‘It’s no good if we don’t turn up for the next game’
Cullen won’t get too excited over victory in a quarter-final
LEO CULLEN didn’t get to where he is today by putting too much stock in quarter-final victories.
Yes, he could appreciate the magnitude of this outstanding come-frombehind win at Sandy Park as he headed for the airport, but he knows it won’t count for anything unless they can back it up in the semi-final against La Rochelle in three week’s time.
Despite a lengthy injury list and a disjointed preparation due to being handed a walkover against Toulon, the four-time champions were too strong across the pitch for the holders, who raced into a 14-point lead early on but were engulfed in Leinster’s all-court game.
The coach confirmed he hopes to have at least a few of his absent Ireland stars – James Ryan, Caelan Doris, Garry Ringrose and Will Connors – back for the visit of Munster the weekend after next, while they’ll monitor Johnny Sexton after his latest removal for a head injury.
If they can fix their slow starts to both halves and add more quality to their 23-man squad, they’ll take some stopping.
Winning
“It’s hard to get that excited with winning quarter-finals,” Cullen said.
“Yeah, it’s a good performance, and lots of good stuff in it, but it’s like a lot of these things, if you perform really well in the quarters and don’t turn up in the semis then what was the whole point of putting in a positive performance in the quarter-finals in the first place?
“So, you’ve got to be able to back these things up again, because so many teams have peaked in an earlier round and then they’re out of the tournament in the following round.
“It’s like, what was the whole point of that in the first place, putting in that work?
“It’s important that we go back to the start again and prepare well.
“We’ve no game next week so it’s a chance to recover now. Recovery is important for us right now because the guys have had a big shift.
“I know we didn’t play last week but still, we all prepared for the game thinking we were ready to go and would play the game. We looked a little bit shy in the first 10 minutes, whatever the reason is for that, so it’s something we’ll have to look at in a bit more detail. We’ve Munster away in the Rainbow Cup the week after, which again is going to be a really tough challenge.
“Munster, as we know, will be hugely motivated I’m sure so again we’ll make some calls as to who are the right people to play in that game and then try and have a nice clear plan in how we go about attacking the semi-final, whoever that is and wherever that is.
“That’s the most important bit from now.
“Lots of good stuff. You can reflect back maybe at a later date. An away win in a quarter-final? What was the other one, the Harlequins game 6-5 (in 2009)? Not many people gave us much of a chance the week after, if my memory serves me correctly, the game that was played out the following week.
“It’s great, yeah, but it’s a little bit irrelevant, because it’s on to the next thing, which is a semi-final.”
That 2009 ‘Bloodgate’ win at The Stoop was a key moment in Leinster’s first European title 12 years ago, a success that transformed the club then captained by Cullen into the most consistent force in European rugby.
Toulon and Saracens have come and gone in the time since, but the boys in blue have regenerated and come back stronger than ever under the guidance of the former skipper and his elite team of coaches, led by Stuart Lancaster.
Among their most impressive performers on Saturday were 23-year-old Rónan Kelleher and 21-year-old Ryan Baird; two men who could easily do a job for the Lions this summer.
Kelleher comfortably outplayed Luke Cowan-Dickie, nailed his lineouts and provided his team with a powerful outlet in the carry, the tackle and at the breakdown. Baird came off the bench for a flagging Scott Fardy and stole three Exeter lineouts, while his relentless physicality helped keep the champions at bay.
That they lost their captain Sexton so early and barely missed a beat was testimony to Ross Byrne’s composure and the team’s comfort in their system.
That Byrne, James Lowe and Jordan Larmour looked so good in the Leinster system raises questions about how they were used by Ireland.
The awful start would have beaten most teams, but the way they scrummaged and rucked their way into the match was outstanding, while their belief in the plan saw them find room on the outside of Exeter’s wingers.
Lowe scored the first, while Larmour served a reminder of his brilliance in attack with his two tries; while Byrne kicked five penalties and a conversion in an excellent display.
“James definitely had a point to prove, he’s a quality operator and yeah, he just wants to go out there,” Cullen (right) said of Lowe, who was dropped for Ireland’s final Six Nations win over England after a series of defensive errors.
“He understands he has a responsibility to represent the group because there are a lot of guys that have done a lot of work to get us to knock-out games.
“You could see him on the sideline in the Munster final, where he’s playing that role on the bench, the energy that he’s giving the team. He’s putting the team first and that’s a really important quality to have. “He gave it a good crack today, I think he’s done well. Jordan as well has done well to finish his two tries, so as a back-three, they come up with three tries, which is great. It’s what you want from your wingers.
“The competition has been good in that area as well. Some good finishes there from the lads, so onto the next challenge for them. Dave Kearney was unlucky as well to miss out, I think it’s important to note that. It was a very close call there.”
That’s exactly how he wants it. Competition drives performance and on Saturday, Leinster backed up their PRO14 final excellence with something even better.
They’re only getting started.
EXETER CHIEFS – S Hogg; O Woodburn (I Whitten 61), H Slade, O Devoto, T O’Flaherty; J Simmonds (capt), J Maunder (S Townsend 59); B Moon (A Hepburn 51), L Cowan-Dickie (J Yeandle 64), T Francis (H Williams 51); J Gray (S Skinner 59), J Hill; D Ewers, J Vermeulen (J Kirsten 53), S Simmonds.
LEINSTER RUGBY – H Keenan; J Larmour, R O’Loughlin, R Henshaw, J Lowe (D Kearney 80); J Sexton (capt) (R Byrne 28), L McGrath; C Healy (E Byrne 51), R Kelleher (J Tracy 70), T Furlong (A Porter 55); S Fardy (R Baird 51), D Toner (R Molony 71); R Ruddock, J van der Flier, J Conan.
REF – M Raynal (France).