No sign of Leinster express being halted

It’s been one hell of a ride for Leinster around the continent this past four seasons and there is nothing to suggest that it won’t continue through to the semi-final stages, where they would face a trip to either Twickenham or Bordeaux.

The province has played eight knockout ties in this competition since their maiden winning campaign in 2008-09 and the fact is that game number nine in that sequence bears all the hallmarks of being the least stressful.

Joe Schmidt would cringe at that but facts, as they say, is facts.

Think of that arm-wrestle against Harlequins at The Stoop, the Croke Park derby against Munster, the fortuitous defeat of Clermont at the RDS, two tussles with Leicester, another pair with Toulouse and the Millennium miracle against Northampton.

This one should be well within their compass. The two sides have made alterations to the lineups which reported for Pro12 duties last weekend and both look the stronger for them.

For Leinster, it is the reintroduction of Leo Cullen, Cian Healy, Richardt Strauss and Sean O’Brien into a first XV which, after a season of endless musical chairs, is unquestionably their strongest, while the prospect of witnessing Brad Thorn in his first European tie adds to the anticipation.

Rarely can a side have approached the quarter-finals of the Heineken Cup in as much disarray as the Blues but they can at least find solace in the return of Xavier Rush, Martyn Williams and Kiwi Michael Paterson into their pack after last week’s hiding in Glasgow.

The fallout from that game has been well-documented but the furore over Gavin Henson’s ultimate dismissal from the club was a mere sideshow to a team devoid of men like Sam Warburton, Jamie Roberts and Paul Tito.

It is still a XV that can boast eight Wales internationals, two former All Blacks and a fly-half who earned 66 caps for Scotland, so it may take some time and patience before Leinster engineer some distance on the scoreboard.

But, engineer it, they will.