Jennings: We’re not invincible

Leinster flanker, Shane Jennings, has dismissed suggestions that the European Champions are invincible.

Clermont Auvergne coach, Vern Cotter, has kicked off the mind games ahead of their Heineken Cup semi-final by claiming the Irishmen are “almost unbeatable”.

However Jennings yesterday insisted that the Leinster players aren’t inclined to buy into their own hype.

“I don’t think there’s much truth in it,” he says. “Unbeatable is certainly not a tag we are putting on ourselves because if you look back two or three weeks, we were beaten, and that was here (in the RDS). We’re certainly not unbeatable. We’re going to work hard this week and try and correct some of the things we did wrong on Saturday. Then we have a massive test up in Belfast next week, so we’ll keep the head down and try to keep improving and if we can do that, we’ll be a tough team to play against.”

Leinster might have produced their best performance yet this season when they crushed Cardiff in Saturday’s European quarter-final, but Jennings reckons Clermont were just as good a day later when they outclassed Saracens at Vicarage Road.

“It was typical Clermont, powerful, just steamrollering teams, and if you give them the opportunity, they’ll do that,” says Jennings.

“When Brock James came on, he showed he was just as good as Skrela, and played the positions very well. They wouldn’t rely massively on their lineout. But when they get it, they can just rumble teams, like they did to us in the quarter-final (2010). It’s going to be a very difficult game.”

Leinster are unbeaten in the Heineken Cup since losing to Clermont in the Stade Marcel Michelin in last year’s pool phase.

The French team won’t have the advantage of playing in their bear-pit of a stadium this time around but Toulouse will be a home from home, and the experience of playing them on French soil last season left a lasting impression on the Leinster players.

“That day they showed us how they good they are,” says Jennings. “When they put their minds on it they are one of the best teams in Europe. We’re looking forward to it, but we’ll concentrate on them more in a fortnight when we have finished with Edinburgh and Ulster.”

Tomorrow’s RaboDirect Pro 12 match against Edinburgh doesn’t look quite so taxing as the European assignment. The Scots have also qualified for the Heineken Cup semi-finals, but their form in the Pro 12 has been atrocious. Leinster go into the match with a 10-point cushion at the top, which Jennings says makes competing for two trophies not quite as taxing as it was last season.

“We’re not chasing down the league as we might have been last year. We’re somewhat more controlled this year with a cushion of points that have helped us. We’ve done a lot of good work over the course of the year, which has put us in this position. To be honest, we haven’t even noticed what the maths are if we win this weekend. We’re just focusing on getting another performance and correcting the things we didn’t do so well against Cardiff in the second half. If we do that, then we’ll have a good chance of getting a win that would further our chances of getting a home semi-final.”