Leinster put it down to Ella

LEINSTER could hardly have hoped for a better start. A 32-6 victory, four tries and a bonus point and an impressive all-round display. Only 7,200 bothered to turn up, but don’t decry the move to Lansdowne Road just yet. After all, it was a bitterly cold afternoon, Christmas shopping was on the agenda and it was only the first match of a new Heineken Cup campaign.

Biarritz, even without the hugely influential but suspended Serge Betson, shouldn’t be a pushover but that was the case and were lucky to escape an even bigger hiding. A side containing Jerome Thion, a front line French World Cup player, was decimated to the point of embarrassment in the line-out, but they weren’t much elsewhere and especially in the scrums.

Not that Leinster will worry. Two tries by man of the match Shane Horgan in the first half, another gifted to Eric Miller and one touched down by Ben Gissing, ensured the crucial bonus point and Biarritz - unfortunate to come up against a “homer” in English referee David Pearson - had no reason to complain. At the end, the status of Leinster coach Gary Ella had assumed new and lofty proportions.

A “breath of fresh air” was the general view from players and officials on the new atmosphere in the camp after the departure to Scotland of the high profile Australian Matt Williams.

Shane Horgan and Brian O’Meara were upbeat:

“The quarter and semi-finals last year were meant to be the most enjoyable of your career but even in terms of off the field fun, they turned out to be the worst”, said O’Meara. “It was stressful, and an awful environment at times. There was no fun and that’s something I hope we will learn from this year and have a more relaxed atmosphere in the camp. The new coach has been a breath of fresh air.

“We lost the first four games this season and then had seven or eight bad injuries and he could have lost the plot completely. But he remained calm and just brought in new players without any fuss and it built confidence in the squad that he had no problem trying younger players. We’ve now won six in a row and I think he deserves to take an awful lot of credit.

Shane Horgan, operating in the centre instead of the wing where he did so well for Ireland in the World Cup, also heaped praise on Ella.

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“Gary is very laid back, he is his own man and has his own ideas”, said Horgan. “It’s a new, fresh situation. After three years of Matt, that’s nice. He has his own ideas and they’re clicking in.”

Ella was not, of course, claiming any personal credit for Leinster’s resounding victory but his sense of relief was apparent.

“The guys coming back from the World Cup really stood up well”, he said. “Right across the board, I think there were some exceptional performances. It’s been easier because they have come back very enthusiastic. You often have to pick them up in that situation but there was no need for that. They want to play for Leinster and they want to win the Heineken Cup.”

Biarritz coach Patrice Lagisquent caused Ireland considerable heartache in his days as one of France’s greatest wingers. . On Saturday, he struggled to conceal his disappointment.

“We just gave the ball away, which was crazy”, he lamented before making a very fair point: “Leinster scored three of their tries when initially we had the ball. For the Miller try, we were three in the line-out and they were four so it shouldn’t have been awarded. We had the worst start you can imagine. Leinster played with a lot of enthusiasm as usual but we didn’t react positively.

“We gave away too many penalties and lost six line-outs which is too many. We talked before the game about attitude and discipline but we didn’t put them into practice.

Strangely for a French side, they were off the pace from the kick-off and certainly lent weight to the view that French teams don’t travel very well. The peerless Serge Blanco was a spectatator in Lansdowne Road and was bitterly disappointed.

! However, you can’t detract from the Leinster victory. Shane Horgan made his first try with a lovely kick ahead and quick follow-up and was presented with his second as he intercepted just inside his own half and cantered away to score between the posts. Leinster were already out of sight at 15-3 at half time having just weathered some fierce Biarritz pressure in the five minutes preceding the break. The superb defence offered said much about Leinster’s resolve and something, too, about Mr Pearson’s unwillingness to give the visitors any break.

Miller was gifted Leinster’s third try when Jean-Michel Gonzalez somehow managed to land his own throw into the welcoming arms of the Leinster number six within a few minutes of the restart and the fourth and bonus point came from Ben Gissing when Biarritz had thrown in the towel.

O’Meara converted three and also landed two penalties for a personal twelve point contribution. He may be a reluctant goal kicker but it is a valuable attribute as he tries to convince Irish coach Eddie O’Sullivan that he deserves a higher place in the scrum-half pecking order. O’Meara was splendid in general play and others who can be happy were Shane Horgan, Eric Miller and Victor Costello.

Only the tougher tests ahead (starting in Cardiff on Friday night) will tell whether a side blessed with brilliant individuals has what it takes as a team when more serious questions are posed.

LEINSTER: G. Dempsey; J. McWeeney, B. O’Driscoll, S. Horgan, G. Darcy; C. Warner, B. O’Meara; R. Corrigan capt, S. Byrne, P. Coyle, M. O’Kelly, B. Gissing, E. Miller, K. Gleeson, V. Costello.

Replacements: D. Dillon for Miller 70 mins; G. Hickie for Byrne 73; S. Jennings for Gleeson 74; D. Quinlan for Horgan 79; B. O’Riordan for O’Meara 79.

BIARRITZ: N. Brusque; P. Bernat-Salles, G. Bousses, M. Stcherbina, P. Bidabe; J. Peyrelongue, D. Yachvili; P. Balan, J.M. Gonzalez, D. Avril, J. Thion, D. Couzinet, C. Milheres, O. Nauroy, O. Tonita.

Replacement: M. Paget for Tonita 65; M. Fitzgerald for Balan 70; E. Menieu for Avril 70.

Referee: D. Pearson (England).