Aussie Whitaker relishing taste of local rivalry

IT didn’t take Chris Whitaker long to recognise that playing for Leinster against Munster was more special than any other game, and nothing has changed since moving on to manage the Heineken Cup champions.

The Irish derby between the teams at Thomond Park tomorrow night is perfectly poised to produce another memorable encounter between two great teams, believes Whitaker.

The former NSW Waratahs and Australian scrum half – 31 caps, a minor miracle given the menacing presence of George Gregan throughout his career – has known the importance of internal bragging rights for years.

“I’ve always been able to feel there is a match coming up against Munster; there is something in the air at training, a different feel about the week when you’re building up to a match against Munster. All sports have their own particular special matches and this is obviously a great one.

“They’re a great team with a fantastic home record and I’m sure they will be very keen to protect that. Sure, it will be a very difficult match for us but we’re just looking to build on last week’s game (against Connacht).”

Anyone who witnessed that particular match would suggest, perhaps, that a lot of building will have to be done this week; the Leinster coach Michael Cheika was clearly irked and Whitaker didn’t disagree that a significant improvement would have to follow.

But, he commented, perhaps there were some mitigating circumstances for being pinned to the wire by Connacht at the RDS. “As we have found out from experience, it has (traditionally) been difficult for us in the week following a Six Nations (tournament); there is huge room to improvement but hopefully that will come,” he said.

Meanwhile, it’s now believed that northern hemisphere referees have been given different instructions in relation to the laws at the tackle/breakdown that pertained during the Six Nations, instructions that had they been in place would not, in fact, have led to at least a couple of crucial penalty awards against Ireland this Spring.

Apparently, all coaching teams involved in the Magners League and Heineken Cup tournaments have been informed of a fresh dictate from the IRB regarding interpretation of laws at the breakdown.

Whitaker said: “We’re led to believe that they are going to start refereeing the breakdown a little bit differently from what they did in the southern hemisphere (competitions) and the Six Nations.

“I think one of the problems has not been so much about the law but the interpretation, the way the referees were going to call it, There is going to be more competition at the breakdown (now) because the guy on his feet who may be competing for the ball is not going to be penalised; he will have the right to do that.

“Last week if a guy went to ground he would have to release the (other) guy before he could get back onto the ball; this week they’re not going to have to (necessarily) do that, the refs are going to say if you’re on your feet and I make a tackle and go for the ball, and the guy who has the ball goes to ground then I have the right to challenge as I’m trying to keep the ball up while the guy with the ball is going to the ground voluntarily.

“I totally agree that if you’re on the ground and you make the tackle that you should have to get out of the way (to allow competition/clearing out at the breakdown). That doesn’t stop the flow of the game.”