Elsom hails Heineken Cup format

LEINSTER powerhouse Rocky Elsom has hailed the Heineken Cup as the best club competition in world.

Speculation is rife ahead of today’s final showdown with Leicester Tigers at Murrayfield that Elsom will be rejoining the Wallabies after just one season with the Irish province, but the competition has certainly captured his imagination.

In that short period, the all-action flanker has proven a smash hit with Leinster supporters for his aggressive style and commitment.

Man of the match awards have been collected at a remarkable rate, proving that Elsom has embraced the challenge of northern hemisphere rugby, rather than just clocking in for a sizeable pay cheque.

“The quality of the teams competing is immense but it is the unpredictability of the tournament that separates it from all others,” he said.

“The first unpredictable factor facing any team is the dangerous away legs.

“In every pool there is at least one away trip that can be identified as ominous right from the draw date.

“The other great unpredictable factor is the uncertainty of who you are going to play in the finals, should you make it through, and where you’re going to play them.”

The build-up to special games such as Leinster’s clashes with Toulouse and Munster in 2006 is also unique to the European competition, according to Elsom.

“What an opportunity it was for Munster to come to Lansdowne Road and match up against a red-hot Leinster team that had just annihilated the mighty Toulouse,” Elsom told the Evening Herald.

“Opportunities like those classics don’t come along very often and Munster and their supporters grabbed it and shook the hell out of it.