Sexton resumes O’Gara duel with demolition derby in prospect

JONATHAN SEXTON was yesterday cleared to play for Leinster, and so the extra spice that has become a feature of their games against Munster over the past few is guaranteed once again at the RDS tonight when they go head-to-head again in the semi-final of the Magners League.

They do so in front of a sell-out crowd, three-quarters of them sporting the blue of the home province, while the outnumbered visiting contingent ardently hoping that their team can put an end to Leinster’s recent clear supremacy.

And for the few neutrals in attendance, the latest clash of the rival out-halves Jonny Sexton and Ronan O’Gara will command the most attention although, there are, of course many other fascinating cameos to savour – such as Brian O’Driscoll against Jean de Villiers, Eoin Reddan versus Tomás O’Leary, Cian Healy against John Hayes, Nathan Hines against Donncha O’Callaghan.

But it’s the Jonny-Rog show that invariably captures the imagination when these sides meet and it again promises to be fascinating. Whereas Sexton is coming off a three-week lay-off having recovered from a fractured jaw, O’Gara has played a true captain’s part in leading his side to the required result in Cardiff on Sunday last that got them to this stage of the competition.

O’Gara will be even more anxious to lead his men to victory on this occasion with Sexton equally keen to frustrate him. If it’s as close an encounter on the scoreboard as most expect, their place-kicking fortunes could prove crucial.

“We’re looking forward to the game tomorrow night, it should be a tough game but we’re well prepared,” O’Gara said on his blog yesterday.

“The most important thing is that we do our utmost to win and keep our concentration for the whole 80 minutes.

“We’ve got some big names on the bench – Jerry Flannery and Wallace are both out. It just goes to show that no matter how big a name the player is, nothing can be taken for granted. If the coach feels a player isn’t doing the business, he’ll be left out of the starting 15. People have really sat up and taken notice of that this week.”

Tony McGahan’s line of thinking is probably understandable here.

While Flannery has been ruled out both by injuries and suspension for much of the season, Damien Varley has been making quite a name for himself. Flannery missed that game because of a nagging calf muscle injury so keeping him in reserve for a final half hour appearance could make a lot of sense.

Likewise with Wallace, for whom it has been a year of almost non-stop activity. He gives way on the open side flank to Niall Ronan, another who stepped up to the plate against Cardiff and with not just Flannery and Wallace but James Coughlan, Peter Stringer and Denis Hurley also accommodated on the bench, McGahan has a pretty decent replacement deck with which to play his cards.

Furthermore, he is fortunate to be able to call on Lifeimi Mafi to stand in for the injured Ian Dowling on the left wing and to have Keith Earls back after the groin injury that has curtailed his activity in recent weeks.

All that said, Leinster still look to have the more settled side, especially so now that Sexton is fit to take his place at out-half and resume his rivalry with O’Gara. True, they will miss their very influential captain, Leo Cullen in the second-row where the combined age of Malcolm O’Kelly and Nathan Hines amounts to a cool 78 years!

Cian Healy and Stanley Wright are the chosen props with Springbok CJ van der Linde on the bench, leaving Mike Ross disappointed at missing the opportunity to take on his native province. In Cullen’s absence, Leinster are captained from the back-row by Shane Jennings with Brian O’Driscoll taking charge of a full-strength back line.

These sides know each other so well that for one or the other to gain an edge in open play will be more than a little difficult. It could all boil down to the side that wants it more and after taking three defeats on the bounce from their keenest rivals, Munster’s hunger may be that little bit greater.

Whether that will be sufficient to swing the issue is another matter. This is an outstanding Leinster team, especially when it comes to defending their line. As at Thomond Park on Good Friday, it may all come down to a bounce of the ball and either way we are guaranteed a hard, fast and exciting game, hopefully one contested in the right spirit on and off the pitch.