Leinster boss Schmidt unperturbed as French test beckons

Joe Schmidt has played down the competition quirk that will see his Leinster side hit the road for their Heineken Cup semi-final despite the fact their pool performances were enough to secure them home advantage for the last eight.

There are many things that make Europe’s flagship competition unique and this is one of them: that seedings are used to determine who plays home and away in one knockout round while nothing more scientific than a ‘first out of the hat’ approach decides the same for another.

Were rankings actually used for the last-four stage, then the Irish province would already be preparing for another home fixture at the Aviva Stadium instead of a far more difficult assignment against Clermont at the Stade Chaban Delmas in Bordeaux.