Donal Lenihan: Leinster stars are aligning though questions linger
LEINSTER ALIGNED: Leinster during a recent training session. Pic: ©INPHO/Grace Halton.
MERCI for the French. After a pretty depressing series of internationals last November it was impossible to go anywhere without someone ranting about the way the game had become a boring kickfest without a morsel of entertainment.
In truth, it was difficult to disagree. While there was no change in law, the fact referees were forced by World Rugby to enforce a zero tolerance on players interfering with or blocking the ability of a chasing player to compete on equal terms with the receiver in the air has, perhaps unexpectedly, completely changed the dynamic of the game.
Initially, like a herd of cattle, everyone followed the same lead with a plethora of box kicks from the scrum half or a series of bombs from his No 10 becoming the norm. All of a sudden the profile of the back three changed overnight.
Now you had to have wingers competent in coping with a barrage of high kicks or chasing in an effort to win the ball back. The taller you were, the better. So where would that leave the likes of Louis Bielle-Biarrey and Cheslin Kolbe, not the tallest but, two of the finest wingers in the game.
At a time when the amount of kicking increases exponentially, French coach Fabien Galthie, no doubt influenced by what he was seeing when tracking his best players in action with Bordeaux Begles and Toulouse, identified an increased opportunity to run the ball.
All of a sudden this new emphasis on kicking opened up opportunities for a counter attack, or for transition play as the modern day rugby speak calls it, given a host of opposition players were drawn into one area chasing and competing for the high-hanging fruit.
If that was the case, the French knew there must be space available to attack elsewhere on the field. The skill set involved in exploiting that through accurate passing, a peripheral vision and awareness to quickly identify and take advantage of that space is something every French player is taught at under age.
Thankfully, with the exception of England, the majority of Six Nations sides followed suit and adapted their game in time to deliver the most engaging tournaments in history with an unprecedented number of tries scored in almost every game.
The penny had finally dropped and what initially seemed a disastrous move by World Rugby served to transform the game whether or not they intended it to work out that way.
That’s why it was impossible not to tune into the Champions Cup quarter final, a contest that would have graced the final itself, between the holders Bordeaux Begles and six times champions Toulouse last Sunday.
In the build up to this fascinating contest the French media described it as “the meeting of champions in the trophy of champions.” Despite its many faults, the Champions Cup remains a gripping tournament once the cream comes to the top.
Across the four quarter finals over the weekend, we were treated to two classic encounters. The clash of the French titans in a game that wasn’t quite the free flowing try fest we expected with close on 70% of the French team that won the recent Six Nations between them, proved more attritional than expected. Who cares? The ferocity and intensity of a massively physical contest made it equally gripping.
In the end, the teams still shared six tries between them. Once again, indiscipline played a huge role with Toulouse forced to play for 30 minutes with 14 men, courtesy of a 20 minute red card for French prop Dorian Aldegheri coupled with a yellow for captain Antoine Dupont just as Toulouse were about to return to 15 men.
But for that, I suspect, Toulouse would have advanced to the last four. That said, Bordeaux’s classy half back combination of Maxime Lucu and Matthieu Jalibert were majestic, outplaying their French colleagues, Dupont and Romain Ntamack in the process. Leinster may be delighted to see the back of Toulouse, eliminated for the second year in a row by the reigning champions.
What made this win even more noteworthy was the fact the Bordeaux forwards were impressive in the set piece against what, in effect, was the French pack. In addition, their try scoring machine Bielle-Biarrey barely touched the ball in a rare outing without registering a try.
The atmosphere at the Stade Chaban-Delmas was off the charts. Their supporters were brilliant and, with the final to be staged at the San Mames Stadium in Bilboa, the venue for Leinster’s last Champions Cup final win in 2018 less than a four hour drive away, they could take over the city if they manage to deal with the threat to be posed by Bath in their semi final at the Stade Atlantique Bordeaux Metropole.
Great and all as the clash between the two French giants proved, undoubtedly, the game of the quarter final series was the opening clash of England’s leading clubs, Bath and Northampton Saints, at the Rec last Friday.
In contrast to the boring, paint by numbers, rugby played by the England under Steve Borthwick, this proved a spectacular affair from start to finish producing 11 tries, nine in opening half alone, in an epic 43-41 decider that went right to the wire.
Under former Munster head coach Johann van Graan Bath showed impressive character to claw their way back from deficits of 7-28 and 14-35 over the course of the opening half to prevail at the end in a game they led for the first time as late as the 76th minute.
As is becoming an increasing trend in all top class rugby, the impact made by a stronger Bath bench, in particular by Springbok tight head Thomas du Toit at the scrum, coupled with the explosive carrying ability of hooker Kepueli Tuipulotu and back rows Ted Hill and Alfie Barbeary in the contact area, proved the decisive factor in the end.
Bath have the firepower to make life difficult for Bordeaux but home advantage is huge in this tournament and should be enough to see the holders through to a second successive decider.
Having won the URC title last season, the trophy Leinster crave most is the Champions Cup. Things have fallen their way in terms of the draw and the quality of opposition faced in the knockout phase to date. For a team yet to hit their stride, a fifth consecutive semi-final at home, courtesy of Toulon’s surprise win away to Glasgow, has also played into their hands.
Given the history between them, I also suspect Leo Cullen’s men would prefer to face Bordeaux Begles in a final than a Toulouse club with a massive pedigree in this tournament and no hang ups about having to face a star studded Leinster outfit.
Despite strolling through the knockout phase, Leinster are yet to play to the sum of their parts, something the players are acutely aware of. In his interview after a deserved player of the match performance Dan Sheehan, who played the last 15 minutes in the back row, revealed a lot.
"The players have taken ownership in a bid to lift standards. It's just making sure that we as a player group are holding ourselves accountable, not waiting for Leo or the rest of the coaching lads to pick up things.”
Indeed. Still it’s not a bad place to find yourself with the biggest games fast approaching on the horizon. As always, Leinster find themselves firmly in the hunt for silverware at the business end of the season. Questions still remain, however, whether they can get the job done.
