THROUGHOUT THIS SENSATIONAL winning run Leinster have strung together, it has scarcely seemed to matter what combination of youth and experience, names big and small, that they put together.
Still, head coach Leo Cullen is intent on making the most of this brief window he had with a full squad (bar injuries) at his disposal.
That means going full-pelt at Benetton next week to ensure the eastern province advance to the quarter-finals as top seeds.
As things stand, despite emerging as standard-bearers this side of the equator, Leinster are not yet assured of a home quarter-final. However, a win in Treviso next Saturday to complete a six-from-six sweep through the pool phase would put them out of reach of the chasing pack; the 22-point club featuring Exeter, Toulouse and Racing. Plus Clermont with 20 on the board.
Top seeding will also serve to book Leinster a home advantage if they can force their way through to the semi-final stage. An added bonus which teams with serious designs on the title must bear in mind as the dust settles on the pool.
“We will be going full at it,” said Cullen, hastily adding that does not necessarily mean he won’t make changes to a side that counted Sean Cronin, Andrew Porter, Caelan Doris and Rob Kearney as replacements in the six-try win over Lyon yesterday.
“Just to freshen things up,” he adds, “it’s full steam ahead and try and make sure we finish the job now.
We’d all have a pretty sick feeling if we don’t manage to do that. We want to go after that top seed.
“We know now if we win the game that can happen. That’s the most important piece now, delivering the performance that will help us win the game.”
Success breeds further challenges for rugby coaches. So while so many Leinster players will soon turn their attention from provincial to international matters, Cullen and Stuart Lancaster must plan ahead, through an off-Broadway Pro14 run, to the quarter-final stage.
Then, all the cohesion they have worked so hard to build into performances in the first half of the season must be produced pre-packaged when players parachute back into blue after the Six Nations.
“After Treviso, for a lot of guys the next time they’ll play for Leinster is in the quarter-final. That’s just the way it’s geared up, which is great in many ways. It keeps it fresh and new. The two weeks prior to the quarter-final we’re in South Africa, so that’s the lead-in that we’ll have.
“There are lots of things that we’ll need to consider, but for now it’s just a six-day turnaround into Treviso and how we manage that.”
The much-discussed competition for places will help aid Cullen’s decision over how much to rotate his line-up. There is competition and healthy arguments in the coaching box too, with all of the voices ultimately roaring this special side on in the same direction.
“It’s diversity,” Cullen smiles as he counters use of the word ‘competition’.
“It is hugely important. Even with Felipe (Contepomi) coming in last year, there was fresh eyes on the group, and Robyn (McBride) coming in this year, it’s hugely important for us to be able to see things in a different light.
“Felipe, all the different environments he’s been in, his understanding of French rugby, his understanding of Pierre Mignoni (Lyon coach), his understanding of the international game.
“Robyn has come in… I think the scrum got a lot of reward today, as an example,
Cullen adds: “As a coaching group, those guys have a ton of experience that I don’t have, so I lean on that all the time.”
Not deliberate. So the money was just resting in the player’s accounts before being moved on.
@Keelan O’neill: right there Ted. Down with this sort of thing!
@Hirrison Mirk: even a Dyson isn’t going to vacuum up all the dirt on this one…
Nobody who wears tinted glasses is trustworthy
@Ave it: What about Ray Charles?
@Hirrison Mirk: Stevie Wonder maybe but Ray Charles?! Have you not seen the movie???
@Graham Ross: good point well made, at least his motivation was always obvious.
The way people are going on about it you’d swear they were systematic drug cheats like the Russians, all they did was under handed pay their players off the official books which is against the rules of the league, every club in Ireland pays a few players under handed against the rules of the All Ireland League, should they all be kicked out vilified?
@Wheresmyjumper: ballina got deducted points because they got caught
@Wheresmyjumper: Don’t be bringing the GAA into this
@s mc: Shannon were fined as well, my point is that people who just don’t like Saracens and are using this as stick to beat them with. At least it was excellent players who have a short career getting paid and that’s not a bad thing. It was rules not laws that were broken
@Wheresmyjumper: Her Majesty’s Revenue & Customs might have a different view as to whether laws were broken. The Glasgow Rangers case springs to mind.
@David Egan: i’m sure they’ll claim back the money so, as far as i know the HMRC are not involved
@Wheresmyjumper: if what you say is true, why would Sarries choose relegation over handing over their books!?
@Cormac Ó Braonáin: no business in the world wants a revenue audit, they did their sums ans found this way was cheaper, other staff paid under the counter might also have got in trouble, I just don’t see this as much of a big deal
@Wheresmyjumper: what about the excellent players at other clubs being run correctly that have had medals taken off them and defining moments that they worked all their life for? Or the fans who spend thousands to follow them over the country being cheated? The correct action was taken to relegate them, and now further action should be taken by stripping them of their titles that they won through cheating. Its a disgrace if they dont check the accounts from every year and how that was an option for Saracens is baffling.
@Darren World: i just think anyone involved with any club in Ireland knows this is going on so we can’t afford to pontificate from our ivory towers
@Wheresmyjumper: you are compairing it with an amateur league, completley different.
@Darren World: how so? Isn’t cheating the same regardless? Aren’t excellent amateur players being denied trophies and medals and dozens, potentially hundreds of club members and fans being denied seeing their club win a trophy? Or do they not count because they are not Saracens? Remember professional rugby came about because the cheating became unhideable.
@Wheresmyjumper: I dunno, let me see, knocked Munster out of two champions cup semi finals in 4 years. A competition where their seeding is based on cheating. Have a stronger playing panel also because of it. Before it was the champions cup it was know as the Heineken cup and Wray was at the forefront of having that changed to favour the english teams. Systematic financial doping…..nothing less
@Wheresmyjumper: that maybe so – in doing so, you run the risks (when sport is a business, they are business risks). They got caught and the agreed and defined punishment was applied.
@Darren World: because you are in a league where it is not a level playing field. The AIL allow universities to offer players scholarships and can pay their college fee’s. Thats why its not strictly policed in the league. How can ya pull up a club for paying match fee’s in a system where players in that league are allowed get 3k college fees covered?
We did not deliberately draw up all those non standard contracts like buying a % of a players image rights for an elevated non arms length valuation….sure it was all an accident really
It would have got interesting if there was also a salary cap in the Championship (which there probably ought to be actually).
In being relegated to the Championship, where there is no salary cap, Saracens can keep all of their players! Now if you were to be cynical ….. Suppose they all stay and were to get say a 50% advance on their salary for 2021/2022 paid as a ‘bonus’ for winning promotion to the premiership in the 2020/2021 season!!!!!
He looks a bit like father Romeo Sensini in that picture !
my hot photos are here…
http://69-chat.club
only 18+