Schmidt tells Reds not to expect helping hand again

JOE SCHMIDT hopes his players are able to show more discipline than the last charges he brought to Thomond Park when Leinster visit Limerick for their Magners League clash with Munster on Saturday.

The Kiwi was assistant coach to Vern Cotter when Clermont Auvergne pitched up at the famous ground in December of 2008 only for Jamie Cudmore to be sent off after 18 minutes having traded knuckles with Paul O’Connell.

The scores were still level at that point and yet Munster only won a tight game 23-13 after scoring two late tries, a result secured in no small part to the numerical advantage they enjoyed after the sin-binned O’Connell returned to the fray.

“I was a bit disappointed on the day,” said a laughing Schmidt yesterday. “Paul O’Connell got five good ones in and Jamie Cudmore got five good ones in but Jamie didn’t know when to stop.

“He was a bit of a glutton for punishment and went for a few more. He got the red, so we battled a bit that day.”

Munster-Leinster will match any Heineken Cup encounter for intensity but Schmidt’s current squad is better attuned to the particular difficulties that come with a trip to the south-west than his French friends and came away with a one-point victory from their visit last season.

That marked the fourth-straight occasion which the Blues have bettered the Reds in this gripping modern-day rivalry and Leinster made that an almost unheard-of five earlier this season when edging another close encounter 13-9 at the Aviva Stadium. Doing the season double again would be a monumental achievement, however, given Munster currently lead the Magners League and the fact that Leinster’s success last year was their first in Thomond for 15 years.

“It’s certainly a pressure cooker atmosphere,” said Schmidt, “but it’s something our players are pretty keen to respond to and I know they won there last year, albeit by a point, and it was kind of one of those tries that didn’t come out of the set-piece guide books. It was a lucky bounce for us, a bad bounce for them and we got over the line. Unfortunately, in fixtures like this it is only one or two points — four points the last time, one try with 10 to go. There’s not much between these two teams and it does come down to a bit of luck and just a little bit of timing and effort on the day.”

Like Munster, Leinster will bring all of their available international players to the party for the first time since the final pool game of the Heineken Cup back in January, which means a return for Gordon D’Arcy, Brian O’Driscoll, Sean O’Brien, Cian Healy and Mike Ross.

All five were rested for last weekend’s 10-point win away to the Dragons. Also on board will be Shane Horgan, who returned from injury for that trip and is poised to make his 200th appearance for the province on Saturday.

Awaiting them will be a side which Schmidt agrees is the most physical in the league — “big, angry red men” as he described them prior to training at UCD — and one which is 12 points clear of Leinster at the top.

“Even when they came out of the Heineken Cup, I thought they were going well,” said Schmidt. “It was one game away in Toulon that didn’t go too well for them. But they’ve got an astute coaching staff and I know they’ve got some quality players.

“Paul O’Connell back for them is a massive boon. He really lifts the whole level of expectation and confidence within that group. Across the park, defensively they’re very difficult to break down.”

Underlying it all will be the knowledge that both sides have European assignments to look forward to seven days later when Leinster face Leicester in Dublin and Munster make their bow in the Amlin Challenge Cup away to Brive.

With that in mind, this derby seems well-timed.

“Yes, as long as we don’t get too many knocks. I don’t think there’s going to be any hesitation on the physical side of things. That’s great preparation, as long as you don’t get too many guys knocked around.

“Particularly for us, because it’s a six-day turnaround (from playing the Dragons).

“I think they’ll be a bit fresher and ready for it than we will be so we won’t want to risk guys unduly with the quarter-final coming up the following week.”