“We’re not far away from everything clicking”

JUST one more interminable day to go now before the mother of all Irish derbies, but the highlight of Chris Whitaker’s season, of his entire stay here in Ireland, has already come and gone. His wife Alison gave birth to their third child a few weeks back and the Whitakers now have three delicate, precious buds to nurture in the shapes of Lilly Rose, Jasmine Blossom and, the latest arrival, Poppy Petal.

Three daughters under the age of eight make for “busy times”, he smiles ruefully, but they help put games like tomorrow’s – where phrases and words like “do-or-die’ and “tragic’ tend to be bandied about so freely – into perspective.

“Rugby is one thing,” he says, “but family is family. It’s great.”

It is a perspective that must have served him well in recent years, especially on those occasions when his performances have been called into question by ex-internationals, commentators and columnists.

Leinster possess an abundance of back line talent and yet the unit has performed dismally. They have now gone three games in Europe without a try and they endured an even more barren run in all competitions earlier in the year.

The division has been stripped down for a very public forensic examination and many an expert has traced the root of the problem to the Australian’s service, and to his penchant for taking a number of steps before his release in particular. Is it all that simple?

“I don’t know,” he smiles. “Maybe. I have answered this question before. You hear criticism. That is the way the game is. The game has grown so much and it is probably a good thing that so many people are taking an interest.”

He has heard these brickbats before, in Australia, but he points out that some coaches he has played under have demanded that he take those few steps before releasing. Just to keep the nearby defenders honest.

It depends on the situation. If the ball is there on the deck and ready to go, he won’t take a step. If he has to go excavating the depths of a ruck then he will take a step before making the delivery.

It is worth pointing out what a coup Whitaker’s signing was in the summer of 2006 when the presence of two former Randwick colleagues, Michael Cheika and David Knox, persuaded him to spurn other offers from the English Premiership.

Whitaker earned 31 caps for Australia, this despite years spent waiting on the bench for George Gregan to get injured or retire, and the British passport he carried courtesy of his English parents allowed Leinster to field two other “foreigners’ on the same XV.

Whatever happens tomorrow, he will say farewell to Leinster at the season’s end when his contract will expire. Eoin Reddan has already been acquired from Wasps to fill his boots. Leinster had pursued the Limerick man with some vigour last summer and one radio expert remarked last Monday evening that news of his belated acceptance had arrived 12 months too late.

Ouch.

It can’t be easy for a player to hear comments like that but Whitaker is a relaxed sort of character and a fan of his successor who he describes as a complete scrum-half, one who brings multiple strings for his bow.

He includes Harlequins’ Danny Care and Tomás O’Leary in the same bracket but the Munster man’s cruel injury seven days ago sees another oft-criticised figure in Peter Stringer elevated into Tony McGahan’s line-up tomorrow.

“He is a different player but I don’t think they will change their game too much. That is the benefit of having two world-class scrum-halves in your squad and they have both got good game time this year.

“Stringer has been there for years. He has played for the Irish team for years and he has played so much for Munster that he has built up a sensational combination with O’Gara and the rest of the forwards. They definitely won’t lose too much there.”

The contrast between the teams at the pivotal 9 and 10 positions is worth dwelling on. As Whitaker points out, Stringer and O’Gara are as celebrated a double act as bread and butter. Leinster’s health in that department is less assured. Whitaker’s role we have already dissected but, with the Australian, a certain standard of performance can be depended upon. The same can’t be said for Felipe Contepomi.

The Argentinian rarely has a so-so day against Munster. He tends to be either electric or anaemic and memories of his meltdown in the 2006 Heineken Cup semi-final in Lansdowne Road are far from faded.

Contepomi suffered a similar indignity at Thomond Park in the Magners League three weeks ago and his form at out-half has even led to whispers this week of Jonathan Sexton being parachuted into the post.

Likely or not, the very suggestion that such a switch could be made at such a late point is indicative of the problems Leinster have had in a position where Isa Nacewa was another to audition unsuccessfully for the part.

“Felipe is someone who can win the game for us. He is such a special talent. It takes a while for some guys to get used to playing with him because he sees things quicker than most guys do. He likes to attack. He is the perfect 10 for the team when we are going well and the guys have every bit of confidence in him.”

Let’s put all this in context. If Whitaker and Contepomi are central to the problem, they aren’t by any means the only guilty parties. Leinster have been experiencing turbulence in front of their half-backs, as well as behind them.

Michael Cheika has, on a number of occasions, referred to the team’s failure to dominate the breakdown, which has inevitably led to slow ball. The back line’s flat running and poor angles have been equally irksome.

“I actually don’t think we are too far away from everything clicking. With these things, all you are waiting for is one thing to click and then others can follow. It could be a couple of those things, it could be all of those things.”

It is all a far cry from their first three European group games when they racked up 10 tries and over 100 points against Edinburgh, Wasps and Castres. At the time, Stuart Barnes rated them second only to Munster for the competition.

How revealing it is then that they should be here now at the semi-final stage, just two wins from the title, and with the bookies rating them as the outside shot of the four remaining teams.

“There is a fair bit of belief but there is a feeling too that we haven’t played to our full potential this year. We have played in patches, defended well in patches, but we have never put the full package on the field any one time.

“We are the underdogs here and it is almost like we have to perform that way if we are to come out of this game with a win. We have got to chance our luck and perform to our best.”