Handré Pollard: 'URC final will be decided by whoever can control their emotions best'

SPRING IN STEP: Vodacom Bulls' Handre Pollard, left, and Marco van Staden. Picture: Ewan Bootman/Inpho

A half-time tunnel clash was as spicy as it got between Leinster and the Stormers in last weekend's URC semi-final at the Aviva Stadium.

However, the stakes are even higher for Grand Final on Friday, with the competition's two best teams, the Bulls and Leinster, ravenous for silverware.

The bottom line is that both need the win.

It was Leinster who prevailed when they met in last season's decider at Croke Park and that's where the trophy will be fought for again next Friday night.

Bulls out-half Handré Pollard believes the contest will be decided by whichever side handles its emotions best. Finals are nervy enough occasions as it is, but there is significant baggage being carried to Jones's Road for this one.

Leinster are chasing back-to-back URC titles and this is their opportunity to rescue their season after the disappointment of losing the Champions Cup final in Bilbao.

The Bulls, meanwhile, arrive with memories of a painful defeat at the same venue 12 months ago, when Leinster outclassed them in the decider. It was their third final loss in four years in the competition.

Throw in the familiar Ireland-versus-South Africa subplot and it is easy to understand why Pollard expects emotions to run high.

Five members of the Bulls' starting team were part of South Africa's last World Cup-winning squad, while the Pretoria side fielded 14 Springboks in their dramatic semi-final comeback victory over Glasgow, with another five on the bench. 

Leinster had 14 Ireland internationals in their side against the Stormers.

"There's going to be a lot of emotion, definitely, from both sides," said Pollard, who was helping Leicester Tigers to a historic Premiership final win on the same day that the URC final was being played.

"We are desperate to get over the line, they're desperate to defend and they're playing at home in front of their people.

"There's a lot of quality players on both sides of the pitch and there's going to be a big emotional part of the game, which is good and it should be that way.

"It's a final and that brings a different kind of intensity, but I think you've also got to control that.

Leinster won last year's final battle between the two sides at Croke Park. Pic: Brendan Moran/Sportsfile

"If it gets out of hand, you're going to make decisions that might bite you later on. It's going to be very important for us to control our emotions as best as we can, but also get out of it what we can because it's a big part of rugby.

"We've got to use that energy but try to control our minds. The pressure gets big in finals but it's still about expressing yourselves and playing your game."

The Bulls beat a Leinster side without their British & Irish Lions at the start of the season but then went into free-fall, only to recover in the new year with a little help from the Boks' former Munster duo Jerry Flannery and Felix Jones to steady the ship for a time.

They have won their last eight games. "Let's be honest, I think in December and January nobody really saw us in the final," Pollard admitted.

"Most people think there's this big emergency meeting and players sit in a boardroom and discuss it. It's not like that at all. We were just honest with ourselves."

The Bulls recovered from 21-3 down to beat Glasgow but Pollard described his goal-kicking display, which included three missed penalties, as "terrible".

The comeback happened because of the technical fixes that the Bulls coaches made at the break. "They were just tearing us up off every set-piece," the 32-year-old said.

And his own kicking struggles? "You've got to be able to put it aside. I'd like to think I've had more good days than bad in terms of kicking in my career," Pollard reflected.

"As frustrating and disappointing as it was, I know what to do to reset. You get back on the horse. The nice thing about rugby is you get another opportunity in a week's time. It's not a confidence thing at all. Each kick is just what it is, it's a kick."

Pollard is aware that both of Leinster's out-halves, Sam Prendergast and Harry Byrne, have been under pressure. "I know the guys get quite a lot of criticism in Ireland, but they're great players, each different from the other," he said.

"Sam is a younger guy. He's got that sort of swagger around him and he plays with so much confidence. Harry is just a really solid player and he's been doing a great job.

"Whoever they pick, it's two great players playing alongside Jamison Gibson-Park, so they're very dangerous. They're two guys we really respect."

The Bulls regard Gibson-Park, the player of the match in the semi-final, as a massive threat. "His kicking game off nine is probably the best in the world, if not the best," Pollard said.

"That's a big factor. We know their set-piece, their line-out are brilliant as well and, of course, they have a very defensive mindset with Jacques Nienaber there.

"But if you don't do what you have to do well, it's not going to matter at all. It's up to us to come out with the right intent and mindset and be accurate.

"They're going to have their moments. They're too good a team not to. But if you can limit that to as few scoring opportunities as possible, you stay in the fight.

"We've worked very hard to get ourselves here. Now it's about taking the opportunity when it's in front of us."