LOOKING FOR A LIFT

I hate being right.

Before the Champions’ Cup began, I boldly stated that both Ulster and Leinster would struggle in their respective pools, and lo and behold we sit here after week two (well, week one for Ulster) with both sides having not won a game yet. It’s not something I delight in, not at all, but it isn’t something I’m too surprised at.

In Ulster’s case a defeat to Saracens, who on current form are strong candidates to win the thing outright, is not something to be ashamed of, however the way in which they did so is something they will endeavour to change. Even though Saracens’ defence was superb, Ulster went through the same toothless attack formations that the “Wolfpack” repeatedly quelled with ease and it got them nowhere.

As a result, Saracens soaked up the “pressure” for most of the first half and then in the second they battered away at the tiring Ulster defence and eventually the cracks appeared. It was painstakingly brilliant and proves why they are one of the favourites to go all the way – they knew exactly how to defeat Les Kiss’ men and they played their game perfectly.

Leinster, for the second week in a row, were not Leinster.

It was better than the Wasps embarrassment, yes, but at the same time Leinster were unsettlingly poor for the amount of talent they have at their disposal, especially in the tight five. Their scrum was taken apart by Bath and given it was an all-Irish front row of Cian Healy, Sean Cronin and Mike Ross for Leinster, it is not exactly something Joe Schmidt will have enjoyed watching.

Being edged out by three points was the kicker for Leinster who looked to have saved at least a draw through Josh van der Flier’s try, but in the end they could not hold out Bath and the laser guided boot of George Ford. While there was a general consensus that they were thoroughly outplayed by Wasps, they were never out of contention at the Rec and probably did deserve some sort of result for holding on so well. That they didn’t will only hurt more.

Leo Cullen is finding out first hand just how difficult top level coaching can be, and while Leinster may not have the squad to win the Champions’ Cup outright you certainly would have expected them to be on at least five points after week two. Instead they return to domestic action with just one to their name and a points difference of -30.

It is rather fitting that the two sides meet this Friday.

Two sides united in their European disappointments will clash at the RDS Arena, nearly level on points in the PRO12, in an attempt to push themselves away from their opponents in the table as the push for the top four nears the halfway mark. It is strange to have an interpro at this stage of the season, but it is probably the perfect time for both Ulster and Leinster in that they know they cannot befall a European hangover lest they be hit with a double blow.

It is a chance to exonerate the demons of a week previous, especially for Ulster whose confidence will take a massive upturn with a win at the RDS, and as such there will probably be an abundance passion and pride on showcase in Dublin as not only do two sides go toe to toe in the league, but there will be a chance for several players to edge their way into Ireland reckoning with a good performance (Craig Gilroy and Rhys Ruddock are two that spring to mind).

Expect a bit more of an edge on Friday night. While both sides will look at it as just another league match with four points on offer, below the surface there is something more brewing in both camps and it is vital for both teams to emerge from the game victorious, both mentally and on the league table. While Leinster are more or less staring down the face of European elimination, Ulster are not yet and should they wish to reach the last eight then picking up a few wins will be vital.

Because sometimes rugby is more than just thirty men on a field.

LOST LEINSTER

Firstly, our thoughts and prayers are with the people of Paris and of France as a whole. Friday night was a tragedy and the decision to call off Saturday’s game was the correct one.

The one French team playing away was Toulouse, and the decision to let their game against Saracens go ahead looked like a terrible call. Saracens were good on Saturday night we should not deny them that, but Toulouse looked like they wished they were anywhere else but on a rugby pitch and as such they were mercilessly pounded into the ground for the first 45 minutes. That they rallied in the second period and prevented Saracens from crossing a fourth time is a credit to their players.

Meanwhile, my predicted Leinster struggles came true.

I took no joy in watching the Dubliners self-implode on Sunday, eventually crashing to a 33-6 humiliation at home to Wasps. From Dave Kearney’s horror show in chasing back that box kick to Charles Piutau’s final try at the death, it was a terrible day for Leo Cullen’s men who were on the receiving end of their worst ever home defeat in Europe. Based on how they played they deserved it too.

It just was not the Leinster we are used to. In seasons gone by we would have seen Leinster get together as a team, brush off the concession of Wade’s try and come straight back at Wasps with some intent to bring the game back under control – it was the hallmark of Leinster under Joe Schmidt that they would find a way back no matter what.

But it never looked like that was the case on Sunday. Leinster looked off colour and devoid of ideas for the whole game, unable to work out how to get past the Wasps defence. Even when it was painfully obvious Wasps weren’t competing on the floor and they were instead just fanning out across the back line lying in wait Leinster still tried to go around them as opposed to going through the fringes and it cost them.

Where they were most lacking though was leadership. This is a point that has been made over and over again this week but it cannot be avoided – that Leinster side simply looked lost. There was a point during the game where a Wasps player was down injured and instead of anybody gathering the players together, the Leinster players stood individually in their own depressive state.

Where was captain Heaslip, the man expected to take over from O’Connell for the national team? Where was the usually passionate Sexton? Where was anybody stepping up to take control?

The lack of leadership just caps the number of problems Leinster had to be perfectly honest. They had the submissive scrum, the mental inability to work their way back from behind or to even get past the Wasps defence, they committed more errors, their defence let them down at crucial moments and, on top of all of that, Jonny Sexton wasn’t firing on all cylinders either and that hindered their attacking play considerably.

In the end it’s a game Leinster will want to forget in a hurry – Jamie Heaslip’s childish behaviour in the post-match press conference suggests they will be doing so as well – and it puts them firmly on the back foot in a pool that many believe they won’t progress from anyway. Having lost one home match, to reach the knock-outs it seems likely they need to win two away matches on top of their remaining home games. And based on how they played on Sunday can you see that happening?

Leinster have been in jams before, such as when they managed to wrestle the 2011 Heineken Cup Final back from the jaws of defeat in Cardiff, but this is a new Leinster and they look vulnerable. They are not as bad as Sunday made them out to be, far from it. That said, they have problems to address that they didn’t have in previous seasons and Leo Cullen has his work cut out for him.

As a final thought: if Leinster thought Sunday was bad, they’ll feel even worse when they remember they’ll be seeing Piutau on a regular basis next season. Based on how he has started his brief stint at Wasps, it looks even more foolish that the All Blacks did not have him in their World Cup squad – his nimble footwork and powerful upper body strength made a mockery out of the Leinster defence for the entire game, and in the end his man of the match performance was capped off with a try at the death.

He looks lethal, and an unbelievable signing for Ulster.

PROVINCIAL PROBLEMS

As we speed towards another season of European rugby, maybe a bit of a reality check is in order.

Take, for instance, the dominance of the French clubs. Do we really see that changing this year? As Ulster, Munster and Leinster attempt (more than likely in vain) to wrestle off the firm grasp the might of Mourad Boudjellal and Toulon have on the Champions’ Cup trophy, you can’t help but feel that it is simply a forlorn attempt fuelled by the laboured desire to simply appear semi-competitive in a wider spectrum.

The Irish sides will put up a fight no doubt. Ulster have a bone to pick with Saracens so our Round Two clash should be very tasty indeed, Leinster will not want to finish bottom of Pool Five even if it is one of the toughest pools in recent memory, while I do actually believe Munster will progress from their pool which is one of the easier this season.

But the grim reality is none of the provinces are going to be able to surmount a strong enough challenge at the lofty French perch on which they roost. Like proverbial vultures, Toulon and Clermont swoop down and pick off their opponents one by one until all that are left are each other and from there it is a battle to be the last remaining survivor – a battle which Toulon have won time and time again and are seemingly destined not to lose.

It is still startling to remember that Toulon only made their debut in the Heineken Cup/Champions’ Cup in 2010.

In their five seasons, they have won it three times.

You need no more than that fact to realise that money talks, and it sings like a siren of success. What other team could lose such inspirational leaders as Ali Williams and Bakkies Botha and simply replace them with equally influential leaders in Paul O’Connell and Ma’a Nonu? Not to mention the arrivals of the likes of Duane Vermeulen and Quade Cooper to the south coast of France as well.

That’s where the Irish provinces will probably fall short. With our NIQ quota, there is no way our home production can match what the French sides are recruiting on a yearly basis – that is in no way a condemnation of our Academy systems but it is a blunt realism. The chances of one province’s Academy churning out eleven top quality players to back up four top quality NIQs in one year is slim to none.

Nor is this a cry on my behalf to change the NIQ quota either. You see how the French national team is in disarray due to their lax attitude on foreign signings, and it would be nothing short of a disaster to see the Irish national side go the same way. Simply this is me openly admitting that Europe is beyond winning for us as a country.

Provincial pride and a bullish attitude will get you part of the way. But not all the way.

Is it even worth trying? Of course it is – the excitement and build-up of the Champions’ Cup at the beginning of the tournament sweeps up every club and no matter how big or small there is always the belief that this could be your year. I do feel that the Guinness PRO12 yields a much greater chance of winning silverware for all three provinces, but by the same token I would like to see Ulster give it their all. Or at least beat Saracens.

I have Toulon to win the thing again, and I imagine I am in the majority when I state that because in all honesty the only side who look like they make compete with them could be Clermont, and we all know how good they are at bottling it. Munster should get to the quarter-finals at least, Ulster stand a chance of making it too if we can sort out our wretched away form, but I can only foresee a Leinster exit in January.

Good luck Ulster, Munster and Leinster. Prove me wrong.

ON THE UP

This week’s post is a somewhat difficult one to write.

On one hand, I want to praise the attacking prowess of both Ulster and Munster and the part they played in what was an enthralling contest from start to finish – some of the tries that both sides conjured up would put the attacking-minded Super Rugby sides to shame and it was well worth the eight hour round trip. Even when Ulster fell 11 points behind to Simon Zebo’s try I found myself not really minding too much simply due to the quality of the rugby being produced.

At the same time, you cannot help but lament the defensive lapses from both sides. On Ulster’s side, Munster were making far too much ground on the left wing, through the driving maul and around the blindsides. For Munster, they too struggled with the driving maul and were unable to contain Stuart McCloskey, Darren Cave and Craig Gilroy. If it wasn’t for CJ Stander making three crucial turnovers inside the Munster 22 then the result could be very different.

I was surprised Stander was not Man of the Match because he was phenomenal yet again. What a prospect Munster have on their hands – a bruising ball carrying number eight who also does the breakdown work of a blindside flanker. He has been in sparkling form down in Limerick and if he continues in that vein then it would be a crime for Ireland to omit him when it comes to the Six Nations because he has been that good.

As for Ulster, even though it was a third away loss in a row, it is an improvement.

Against the Scarlets and Edinburgh by the final whistle you were just glad it hadn’t been any worse than it actually was. This time there was a sense of optimism that Ulster are heading in the right direction as we move towards the European fixtures against Oyonnax and Saracens and that we’re finally moving away from the ineffective kicking game towards a positive running style of rugby that suits our dangerous back three.

But on the face of it, it was still another defeat and that needs addressed. Although this was the game where we got closest to actually breaking our away duck, the results column still reads L and instead of picking up a potential five points, we have to make do with two. The why is a little less clear cut than previous weeks and as easy as it is to criticise the defence, it only glosses over the fact that our line-out struggled all night and in the early stages of the second half we failed to deal with Stander’s breakdown work.

Admittedly we will not come up against someone of Stander’s stature every week and now with Rory Best and Chris Henry back we should have a lot more of an impact at the breakdown (with no offence to Sean Reidy who has proven himself to be a very able stand in) so in that regard we should improve. I am expecting a certain amount of dominance in terms of quick ball against the Dragons this Sunday with those two on the pitch.

Speaking of the Dragons, they are a godsend in terms of games we could have before the European weekends. On the face of it, our form in Newport has been patchy at best and Rodney Parade is never a ground we travel to well, but you have to bear in mind the number of times we have actually been there with a full hand to choose from is very rare. Newport is a ground we frequent during international periods and as such we are usually far more affected than they are, and that more than often results in us being on the end of an embarrassing scoreline.

This Sunday, we have no such excuses.

Everyone is back and, barring injuries, we should have as strong a team as possible taking the field. Perhaps Best and Ruan Pienaar may start on the bench to manage their game time after a gruelling World Cup, but besides that we should be looking at as strong a team as possible on the field in preparation for Oyonnax. It is vital that we head over to France with an away win under our belts – it is not fantastic preparation if we still haven’t won away when we reach the Champions’ Cup.

Still, here’s to an improvement from previous weeks. Thomond Park is a bearpit on its best days (hint: last Friday wasn’t one of those days) and it still holds the demons of past Munster teams and can be a daunting experience. Ulster rose above that and performed admirably, they just didn’t have that extra gear over the line.

But there is now a confidence behind this team. And they will be out for that win this weekend.