Leinster can make a huge statement
IRELAND’S Six Nations victory against England in Twickenham is something of a reference point for Leinster’s European encounter in Welford Road tonight. Back in March, the visitors emerged as 32-15 victors, but only after surviving a monumental scare from a fired-up 14-man England side.
And there are some old scores to settle. This is the first time Ellis Genge and Tadhg Furlong will face off since Ireland’s scrum was decimated in England HQ. Interestingly, French referee Mathieu Raynal holds the whistle again.
The feedback to the Ireland coaching team after the game from World Rugby was that Raynal got at least three of those scrum calls wrong. Regardless, Furlong will be keen to set the record straight against Genge. The first scrum of this quarterfinal clash should be a doozy.
Then there’s the return of James Ryan (pictured). The Leinster lock is making his first appearance since a clash of heads with England lock Charlie Ewels in that Six Nations tie. Ryan’s latest spell out of the game with concussion has been carefully managed by the management.
This is his first run-out since that failed HIA in London on March 12. Josh Murphy, who is off to Connacht in the summer, has been solid in the second row, but Leo Cullen needs Ryan back for this.
The 25-year-old returns to a pack which has plenty to prove.
For all of Leinster’s exploits this season, there remains a sense that their forwards have not felt the heat since last season’s semi-final loss at the hands of La Rochelle, when Wallabies behemoth Will Skelton did a one-man demolition job on Cullen’s charges.
The Leinster pack has underdone an overhaul since then. Andrew Porter has shifted to loosehead alongside Ronan Kelleher and Furlong. In the backrow, Jack Conan is now a Test Lion, while Caelan Doris has gone from strength to strength.
His tour de force against the All Blacks was a real standout.
Then there’s Josh van der Flier, who has raised his game to another level, particularly as a ball carrier.
Add in Ryan and the under-rated Ross Molony, a grafter and shrewd lineout technician, and this pack looks ready to front up.
The hefty bench of Dan Sheehan, Cian Healy, Michael Ala’alatoa, Joe McCarthy and Rhys Ruddock will be crucial as well. McCarthy is already being touted as a bolter for the New Zealand summer tour. The 21-year-old lock certainly has the size to mix it at this level.
Just as well against this Tigers forward pack, which has rediscovered its bite in recent times.
Leicester are flying high these days. Steve Borthwick has galvanised this operation. They are four points clear of Saracens at the summit of the English Premiership, but they feel a first European title since 2002. In Borthwick, they have one of the best lineout technicians in the game.
They deploy a relentless kicking game and pressure the opposition. On their Welford Road turf, they hunt opposition teams into dark corners and use their imposing forwards to turn the screw. There’s no shortage of gnarly characters in Leicester’s pack either, from their firebrand captain Genge to Pumas hooker Julian Montoya, as well as Springbok No8 Jasper Wiese.
The hosts will aim to keep this tight, disrupt Leinster’s rhythm and turn it into a dogfight. Richard Cockerill, Martin Johnson and Neil Back would nod their heads in approval at such an approach.
The last thing Leicester want is Jamison Gibson-Park and Johnny Sexton on the front foot as Garry Ringrose, James Lowe and Hugo Keenan run amok in the outside channels.
It’s a question of pace for both teams. Leicester will want to apply the brakes and make this a war of attrition. Leinster want a fast-paced contest, width and offloading. The big question is who will win the arm wrestle?
Saracens and La Rochelle both got the better of Leinster in the physical exchanges. Cullen and Stuart Lancaster will feel this group has heeded those harsh lessons and evolved. What’s more, they look like they have the artillery to match a heavyweight pack like Leicester’s these days.
Winning at this venue would be a huge statement. Leicester haven’t lost a game at Welford Road in almost a year. Some of their personnel feel they had the better of the Irish forwards a few months ago. For Furlong and co, there is plenty of unfinished business.
LEICESTER: F Steward; C Ashton, M Moroni, G Porter, H Potter; G Ford, B Youngs; E Genge (capt), J Montoya, D Cole; O Chessum, C Green; H Liebenberg, T Reffell, J Wiese. Reps: N Dolly, J Whitcombe, J Heyes, H Wells, G Martin, R Wigglesworth, F Burns, N Nadolo. LEINSTER: H Keenan; J O’Brien, G Ringrose, R Henshaw, J Lowe; J Sexton (capt), J Gibson-Park; A Porter, R Kelleher, T Furlong; R Molony, J Ryan; C Doris, J van der Flier, J Conan. Reps: D Sheehan, C Healy, M Ala’alatoa, J McCarthy, R Ruddock, L McGrath, R Byrne, T O’Brien. Referee: Mathieu Raynal (France) TV: Kick-off at 5.30pm, Welford Road. LIVE on BT Sport from 5.15pm.