Sean Farrell reports from Kingspan Stadium
IF INJURIES ARE not inevitable in rugby, at the least you will find frequent foolishness if you go into a game assuming your team will escape one.
That knowledge is what led Leo Cullen to make 19 changes to his matchday 23 even though Leinster had three weeks to work with between Champions Cup semi-final and final.
Barry Daly was the unfortunate man to sustain injury during the loss the Ulster in Belfast on Saturday, a collarbone problem that will surely leave him to ponder the 2019/20 season.
Aside from the versatile back, Fergus McFadden could well have a disciplinary committee to answer to, but among the positives was another fine display from Ross Byrne, who was called out of the firing line alongside Jack McGrath before five minutes of the second half had elapsed.
Over the years, the IRFU’s player management system has pushed provinces to step away from what was once the accepted wisdom of match fitness. In the modern game, with so much data tracked and so many eager young pros to run as opposition in training, teams can ramp their players right up to speed in a controlled environment, with a massively reduced chance of injury compared to a full-on fixture.
“The way we’ve adapted training is very different to the way that would have been in the past,” said Cullen after ending the regular Pro14 season with a 14-13 loss in Belfast.
“Guys are used to it, the season, there’s lot of high-pressure games for lots of players, so they’re used to that building up to ‘this’ level of performance,” the head coach said while miming peaks and troughs on a graph, “coming off, and building back up again, coming off, building back up.
That’s the cycle they go through over the course of a season so they’re used to it at this stage.”
He adds: “In terms of the information shared on guys that we have, we want guys to not be stumbling over (the line) at the end of the season, we want them to be going as strong as ever at the end of the season.
“Even last year, they played that sequence of games which was: a final in Europe, semi-final and the final of Pro14, have a weekend off and then travel to Australia and play a three-Test series.
“They are able to manage that pretty well, A lot of guys played three Tests. That is important as well. It is not like this stumble on out at the end of the season and the guys are in bits, being strapped together.”
Cullen points out that each club’s situation is different and admits teams in England and France have the chance to build greater cohesion in their groups as a trade-off with the potential for fatigue.
A week after beating Munster in Coventry, Saracens did not take up the chance to rest their front-liners when they returned to the Ricoh to beat Wasps 14-31 with Owen Farrell, Liam Williams, Alex Goode, Maro Itoje and Billy Vunipola all in tow from the start. They have Exeter Chiefs to deal with next weekend, but both sides already have home semi-finals confirmed, so Mark McCall probably won’t feel the need to throw the kitchen sink at the leaders this time around.
Leinster’s marquee players had their rest in the wake of the win over Toulouse. So this week will see them back into a full training load before the final approach.
Before the unusual setting of St James’ Park it will be “a normal week”, Cullen says. Though there is nothing ordinary about the side standing between Leinster and a record fifth European Cup.
“We need to understand the threats that Saracens pose, they are so different to the threats we had in our semi-final against Toulouse. Because they are at complete opposite ends of the spectrum.
“Toulouse are built on all-out attack in many ways, whereas Sarries are built on all-out defence and pressure. It doesn’t mean one is right or one is wrong, that is just the way the teams are set up.
“The challenge is very different and we need to understand the threat of this team we are playing, just like every other week the team we play.”
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Defence is the biggest difference that sexton ( and henshaw) will bring. Taking the line up is a very strong part of his game. Leinster over the past few months have been very passive in defence this has to stop. Seanie looks like he’s going to start ( not sure I’d go with that but hey) he needs to dominate contact, so far this year he’s been very passive, he’s not go the skills and ability of Max or the work rate of Ruddock so he needs his best game in about 2 seasons.
@Chris Mc: O’Brien shouldn’t start this game. He has no form at all. Leinster have plenty of practice winning massive games without him.
@grandslamkbo: I agree, my backrow who be Fardy, Conan and Ruddock. But it looks like Sean is starting.
@Chris Mc:
So Chris do you think J Lowe wont make the team , even if we need tries ::can you let us see your team ::thanks
@Martin Quinn: I never said lowe not to start. I wouldn’t pick O’Brien.
My team
Healy, Cronin Furlong
Ryan and toner
Fardy toner and Ruddock
McGrath and sexton
Henshaw ringrose in the centre
Lowe, Kearney and larmour
With Leinster back to more or less full strength they should have too much powder for Toulouse. It’ll be a cracking game but I think home advantage is worth around 7 and with the bookies calling it an 8 point Leinster win I’d say that’s about right, maybe even slightly more.
The two key factors will be the form of their returning key men – sexton and ringrose especially and secondly they need to tighten up defensively. They’re leaking on average 24 points a game over the last 7 games so if they can bring that number down then there should be handy enough winners against a young but very talented Toulouse side.
@Jim Demps: gun powder. Toulouse like leaking points as well haha
@Fred McHugh: they absolutely do but getting into a high scoring slug out wouldn’t be the best idea for Leinster. Structure and wear them down and they’ll walk it.
Your anti Leinster bias is old and predictable. You might pepper it with occasional compliments but everyone knows you can’t stand us.
At least some of us admit we can’t stand the other.
@Fred McHugh: apologies Fred that reply was meant for Jim Dumps.
@Baz Dunne: i thought you had me muted? Couldn’t go a week without me eh?
@Jim Demps: you get some amount of stick on here. Good job your not sensitive. Anyways tell your mob to keep up their end and we’ll see you in the final.
@Chris Mc: era I take no notice. If some grown man spends his day slinging insults at me then I figure let him at it, he can’t have too many important things going for him. Once they make it personal I normally just ignore them until they want to talk about rugby. The only person I’ve muted is Martin though.
I fully expect munster to win. It won’t be easy but the result is there for us if we show up.
@Chris Mc: bless you Chris you say every yr there’ll be an all Irish final and it never happens. Can’t see it happening this yr.. in fact I’d say Sarries v Toulouse is more likely than Leinster v Munster in my opinion.
@Jim Demps: He misses you Jim. Baz gets lonely with all those Dubs ; )
@Baz Dunne: It’s going to be a Munster vs.Leinster HC & Pro 14 final .Believe Baz , believe.Eire Abu !!Éire Abú!!!
@Baz Dunne: this is the third year in a row where both sides got to the semis. It might be this year, I hope so. As long as we win the 5th I’ll be ok but it would be so sweet to beat munster in the final.
@Baz Dunne:
Baz I hope are not annoyed with me, just because he has Muted me and not you, does not mean you need to up your game !! He does run away when things get hard and someone sees his hidden knife jabs at all things Leinster.
@Martin Quinn:
Just love his comments saying you are a “grown man spends his day slinging insults at me” Baz all your posts are about 2 sentence’s long and you post maybe 2 posts where his 10 posts a page tells it all >> One page had 28 posts ::WOW now he is hoping for the 42.ie to hire him ::the lad has a problem ::and he says you “cant have too many important things going for you”
Keep happy : ) ; )
@Fred McHugh:
Regarding the 24 points per game I feel we were through to the play off for all that time. I feel it would a lot less if we put a better team out, but it does not matter now as it all comes down to this weekend .
Regarding Munster
I believe Munster will bring out one of their famious European games and get through (and I may have a go at some posters but I will always cheer for Munster in these games) Wish you the very best
COYBIR
“We can’t kick loosely to them or their counter attack Will punish us.”
He has a tenacity to kick when there’s a need to keep possession, I hope he remembers this during the game. COYBIG
@Con Cussed: You really are concussed.
@Camroc: What for? This is the biggest weakness in his game, other scrum halfs too within the Irish setup, they keep kicking the ball away when we need to protect it. We often kick the ball to the opposition at crucial parts of the game (often the last few minutes) and have lost games as a result.
@Con Cussed: I think some of that is he’s trying to show joe he can do the Conor Murrary role. There’s a time and place for kicking the ball away and Luke’s not really a master at it.
@Con Cussed: Which games have we lost as a result?