Repeat Pro14 champions Leinster will have a rare kind of pressure exerted on them as they travel to Connacht this weekend for their second-round clash in the northern version of Pro14 Rainbow Cup.
It isn’t often Leinster lose a game. Indeed, earlier this year they’d gone well over 20 Pro14 matches without tasting defeat. A Leinster loss wasn’t quite as unusual as finding a yellowtail swimming in a stream in the Free State, but not far from it.
That has changed though in the last fortnight, with Leinster’s defeat to Munster in the opening Rainbow Cup game being followed by another loss last Sunday, when they weren’t good enough to beat French club, La Rochelle.
Top that with the fact that this week’s opponents at The Sportsground are the same side that ended their long winning sequence, and at their home field of the RDS Arena in Dublin at that, and it becomes apparent that this should be a pretty intense time for a team that is used to winning being a habit.
It is rare for them to have ground to make up when competing against their usual Pro14 rivals, but that is the case as they head into Saturday night’s game. A loss is much more significant in a short competition like the Rainbow Cup is and they know they cannot afford to lose again. As it is, they have to bank now on their main competitors like Munster and Ulster dropping games.
That will happen to one of those teams in the second round as they meet at Munster’s home ground of Thormond Park on Friday night. But it is the Leinster/Connacht game on Saturday that should attract the most interest just because it is so rare to see Leinster under pressure and it will be interesting to see how they respond to it.
WOUNDED BULL
Connacht coach Andy Friend says his team is supremely motivated to follow it up with another triumph over the Dublin-based team. However, he knows his side is up against a “wounded bull” and he is anticipating a massive backlash effort from his opponents.
“We’ve talked about it all week this week. We were the first Connacht team to win at the RDS Arena, and doesn’t happen very often in Dublin,” said Friend.
“It was a nice feather to have in the cap, but having done that, we now know what is coming - a Leinster team which we have knocked off on their home ground the last time we met and which has just lost their last two games. They are a very proud club so they will be coming here determined to make sure that losing streak is snapped.”
Friend is right, Leinster will be smarting, and with revenge and the regaining of pride on their mind, they have a double reason to put in a supreme effort.
“There are going to be 23 men in blue, we don’t know which 23 as yet, but we do know we must be right up for the fight to try and steal another win,” said Friend.
NO SEXTON
One of the men in blue that Connacht won’t be facing on Saturday is Irish and now former British and Irish Lions flyhalf Johnny Sexton, who it was confirmed earlier in the week would not be playing in this game.
Sexton missed his team’s trip to La Rochelle after suffering three head injuries in nine weeks. Leinster will also be without their talismanic looseforward Rhys Ruddock after he pulled a calf muscle against La Rochelle and has been ruled out for a couple of weeks.
Munster, cock-a-hoop no doubt after their win over Leinster, have a chance of cementing their status as challengers, but it won’t be easy against Ulster, even on their home ground.
It is going to be a weekend of interesting derby games, not the least of them the Scottish showdown at Scotstoun in Glasgow, with both teams needing to rediscover the form that made them Pro14 challengers in the past.
Weekend Rainbow Cup Northern fixtures
Zebre v Benetton (Stadio Sergio Lanfranchi, Friday 19.00)
Munster v Ulster (Thormond Park, Friday 20.15)
Glasgow Warriors v Edinburgh (Scotstoun Stadium, Friday 20.15)
Connacht v Leinster (The Sportsground, Saturday 19.35)
Scarlets v Ospreys (Parc Y Scarlets, Saturday 19.35)
Cardiff v Dragons (Cardiff Arms Park, Sunday 13.00)