Co-captains a major loss as Leinster look to wrest title from
Leinster normally need a bit of a lead-in to sell tickets for their trips across Dublin 4 but not this time. This is a rivalry that sells itself.
A fifth meeting in four seasons, the fourth successive clash in the knockouts. The Ronan O’Gara factor, a boatload of spite and some of the best rugby players on the planet on show; this is as good as it gets.
Both sides are missing key figures; Leinster’s co-captains are marked absent and La Rochelle would prefer to have Reda Wardi, Pierre Bourgarit and Brice Dulin on board but we’re in month 10 of the season so perhaps it’s no surprise that some players have fallen along the way.
The visitors are on a world tour, arriving in Dublin from Cape Town via Paris and Cork.
Their form is patchy and the bookies are not convinced their class will bridge the gap.
Nothing O’Gara and his team can do will convince the market that they’re better than their hosts, with home advantage, recent results and the travel all combining in an eight-point spread in the boys in blue’s favour.
That’s despite Leinster’s own relative struggles for form this season.
Their win in La Rochelle is a factor and the performance that day was to be admired, yet there’s no doubting that knock-out rugby is a very different experience and it’s one that the men in yellow and black enjoy more than most.
Last year, Leinster raced into a 17-0 lead with a blistering start but the champions reeled them in.
In the 2022 final, they also squandered a winning position.
This time, they’ve vowed to keep playing when they get ahead but that’s easier said than done.
La Rochelle retain many of the strengths that have proved too much for their hosts in the last three knockout seasons.
They have the depth to absorb the loss of two of their starting front-rows, with Wallaby Tolu Latu offering plenty of power from hooker, while O’Gara reckons he has unearthed a gem in loosehead Louis Penverne.
Leinster, meanwhile, have gone for size in their back-five where Ryan Baird will be calling the lineout. Jason Jenkins gets the nod over Ross Molony and Will Connors gets another chance having not been picked for any of the Champions Cup games since starring in that win in La Rochelle.
Cian Healy misses out, with the Ireland veteran replaced by the more dynamic Michael Milne; they’ve a punchy bench that includes Rónan Kelleher, Josh van der Flier and Jack Conan, and they’ll be aiming to outlast their visitors this time around.
They’ll sense weakness in the La Rochelle back-field where South African Dillyn Leyds shifts to full-back, but there’s plenty of attacking firepower in the French backline and they’ll be hoping for decent ball.
Both sides will look to spoil at rucktime and there’s no doubt that English referee Karl Dickson will be a key figure.
The pool game was borderline ungovernable, with Leinster determined to not let O’Gara’s team have the upper hand in the physical or mental stakes.