Ronan O'Gara: Having the weekend off has never felt so uncomfortable

Playing at Croke Park is quite the experience. In its pure magnificence, it blows Lansdowne Road away, and feels like six times the size. 

FAST TRACK: Leinster's Brian O'Driscoll hares away from Ronan O'Gara in their epochal 2009 Heineken Cup semi-final at  Croke Park. Pic: Brendan Moran/Sportsfile

For the first time in three years, I’m watching the semi-finals of the Champions Cup from the crappy end of the sofa. There might be an upside though. So too are the La Rochelle players.

Thursday was a good training session. A bit of life there. The Leinster defeat in the quarter-finals lingered longer than we calculated. It has led to some stark introspection from my own side and the players. There is a mutual responsibility, everyone has to bring something to the table. Otherwise, it becomes so much harder. Get better or get beaten, as they say down in the Crusaders.