Leinster look to Sexton factor for lift
The out-half had endured a difficult season until the recent Six Nations.
Sexton admitted it had been a struggle recalibrating for club duty in the wake of a World Cup ruined by injury and an early team exit; his stuttering form reflected those difficulties. That all changed during February and March, however.
The Lions ten was a popular choice as starting out-half in the eventual team of the tournament.
“Yeah, he just kind of drove Ireland around the pitch. He gave the guys a nice bit of direction of where they were going and sometimes that’s all a team needs. When you’ve got quality players … if you’ve got the likes of Johnny guiding you, it makes it a lot easier.
“I was delighted to see him come back to form after getting a bit of slack at the start of the season,” added McFadden who also returned to Leinster duty after an encouraging Six Nations. “Hopefully he can bring that Irish form when he’s wearing a Leinster jersey now.”
Sexton was rested for last weekend’s one-point loss to Connacht in Galway due to the niggles and knocks he picked up with Ireland, but he trained with the rest of Leo Cullen’s squad yesterday and is expected to start in Ballsbridge.
Luke Fitzgerald (stinger) and Cian Healy (hyper-extended back) failed to finish the Connacht game and are being monitored throughout the week. It remains to be seen if they make Saturday and it is a similar wait-and-see with Rob Kearney (hamstring) who has been sidelined since late February.
Leinster remain well-placed in the PRO12 table, two points behind leaders Connacht and the same in front of Scarlets. McFadden admits consecutive defeats to Glasgow and Connacht have upped the pressure. Munster lie five points further back in fourth.
There was a good deal of introspection at Leinster HQ yesterday after the loss out west and some discussion on the respective styles of the provinces after Pat Lam’s assertion last week that his side had the best attack in the league and Leinster the top defence.
Forwards coach John Fogarty dismissed that as pre-game pop psychology and yet Leinster have scored less tries than other side in the top five. Munster, on the other hand, have managed twelve in their last three games, even if nine of them were claimed against the lowly Dragons and Zebre.
It’s a big step-up for the visitors, then, and McFadden believes the southern province is doing well to strike a balance between the old forward-dominated days and the expansive philosophy as espoused by former head coach Rob Penney.
“They’ve probably got more of a balance than playing the wide-wide game that they played under Penney. They’ve got the balance of playing that at times and also of rolling up their sleeves, keeping it tight and trying to bash you with their pack.
“They’re good at both sides. They seem to be coming into form at the right time of the season. They were getting flak around Christmas time and after that, but they are coming into form at the right time. We’re going to have a big challenge defensively.”
Meanwhile, Fogarty believes the PRO12 is an ever-improving product, despite the view of Ospreys’ CEO that the Welsh regions should consider looking to Super Rugby as an alternative.
Andrew Hore, who is to leave the Principality to become chief executive with the Waratahs, has suggested the move on the grounds that the PRO12 as a product is too similar to the French Top 14 and English Premiership and is thus falling behind financially.
Other Welsh administrators have pondered different options in the past with a move to the Premiership the most oft repeated. As things stand, the Welsh have just one club — Scarlets — in the top seven of the PRO12.
“You’ve got a number of teams vying for that fourth slot, third slot, the top two is going to be fought for,” said Fogarty. “That last day is going to be a really exciting last day. You’re going to see chopping and changes, there’s pressure.
“The league has improved year on year. It’s very, very competitive and that’s what you want to see. You want to see that really, really competitive element. You look a little bit lower down and there’s people fighting for that top six position, so all the way you’ve got that scrap.”
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