HEC Final: Leicester Tigers v Leinster - pre/during/post thread

ALH-06

Don't care - when's the Champions League final on man??

jimmybeige wrote: »

What's the story with CJ? Is he still injured?

MC basically gave him the rest of the season off to sort out his niggling foot injury. Apparently he's been to several specialists about it already...

Fingers crossed for next season.

ALH-06

Don't care - when's the Champions League final on man??

Podge_irl wrote: »

Fitz can also play full-back, bringing the sum total up to 4. Kearney is no great shakes as a winger and Fitz hasn't been fantastically impressive in the centre. Surely the more obvious thing to do would be to have McFadden on the bench.

Do you think McFadden is ready for this level? He's had very limited HC game time this year so I'm not sure how he'd take to the pressure / increased intensity of this level. I think it would be a gamble.

Podge_irl

Don't care - when's the Champions League final on man??

ALH-06 wrote: »

Do you think McFadden is ready for this level? He's had very limited HC game time this year so I'm not sure how he'd take to the pressure / increased intensity of this level. I think it would be a gamble.

Yes it would be a gamble, but Cheika seems to be gambling on neither BOD or D'Arcy getting injured at the moment. I have no doubt that McFadden is the next best centre. He's done well whenever he's played and him coming on a straight swap would lessen Leinster less than having to shuffle Fitz into the centre and Kearney onto the win. A lot less actually I think.

accensi0n

Podge_irl wrote: »

Yes it would be a gamble, but Cheika seems to be gambling on neither BOD or D'Arcy getting injured at the moment. I have no doubt that McFadden is the next best centre. He's done well whenever he's played and him coming on a straight swap would lessen Leinster less than having to shuffle Fitz into the centre and Kearney onto the win. A lot less actually I think.

I agree.

I think Kearney should have been left out for McFadden.

anonymous_joe

Don't care - when's the Champions League final on man??

I couldn't sleep last night with the nerves.

Kearney's wing cover, Girve's full back cover, Fitz or Horgan will go into centre.

Stev_o

Leinster

One goal kicker for Leinster, sounds very very dodgy. Not having McFadden on the bench may be costly and plus what impact does Girve offer? None!

Leicester Tigers (v Leinster, Heineken Cup Final, Murrayfield, Saturday 5pm)
15 Geordan Murphy (captain)
14 Scott Hamilton
13 Ayoola Erinle
12 Dan Hipkiss
11 Alesana Tuilagi
10 Sam Vesty
9 Julien Dupuy
1 Marcos Ayerza
2 George Chuter
3 Martin Castrogiovanni
4 Tom Croft
5 Ben Kay
6 Craig Newby
7 Ben Woods
8 Jordan Crane

Replacements
16 Benjamin Kayser
17 Julian White
18 Louis Deacon
19 Lewis Moody
20 Harry Ellis
21 Matt Smith
22 Johne Murphy

yogidc26

Don't care - when's the Champions League final on man??

spank_inferno wrote: »

I want to see Leo the Lion being dragged off a concussed Leicester Tiger mascot

)

LOL

yogidc26

Don't care - when's the Champions League final on man??

I think this game is going to be won for us at 10 13 15 6 7 and 8 if the six players play like we know they can I think we will win by a few points

Stev_o

Leinster

yogidc26 wrote: »

I think this game is going to be won for us at 10 13 15 6 7 and 8 if the six players play like we know they can I think we will win by a few points

Teams win matches not 6 players.

chupacabra

Don't care - when's the Champions League final on man??

Hmm.. no established kicker on the bench. Risky stuff, McFadden should have taken Kearneys place on the bench.

themont85

Leinster

chupacabra wrote: »

Hmm.. no established kicker on the bench. Risky stuff, McFadden should have taken Kearneys place on the bench.

Nacewa can kick.

subfreq

Leinster

What an epic day for Cian Healy. I think you can look no further than the front row for where the real early battle will be. Second row in the tight five cancels itself out. Going to be an epic front row battle.

Sextons game in open play should be well protected by the forwards and the centers. He has the confidence to give a a go. The spotlight is on his place kicking.

Phrio

Don't care - when's the Champions League final on man??

themont85 wrote: »

Nacewa can kick.

And he has done it in finals before too

http://www.wellingtonlions.co.nz/news/195-air-new-zealand-cup-final-match-report

so no worries there

twinytwo

Don't care - when's the Champions League final on man??

Tbh honest with the way BOD is playing at the mo he will prob win the game by himself... well maybe with a little help from Rocky. While they should win we are down 3 lions already dont want to lose any more.......


never thought id say this but.......cmom leinster!

twinytwo

Don't care - when's the Champions League final on man??

Stev_o wrote: »

Teams win matches not 6 players.

eh i believe BOD bod defeated england more or less by himself so sssssssshhhhhhhhhh

Fozzie Bear

Don't care - when's the Champions League final on man??

I think Leinster will win. Better quality individual players compared to Leicester for me. As long as they don't let Leicester drag them into their sort of game and play with the same intensity of the Munster semi final they should have the quality to win. The major concern I'd have is with line outs and Jackmans throw ins. Not the greatest at the best of times and Leicester are particularly competative here. Could cause problems but feck the negativity! It would be the icing on the cake for Irish rugby and really make it our best season ever.

C'mon you boys in Blue.......

Stev_o

Leinster

themont85 wrote: »

Nacewa can kick.

Has he kick this season for Leinster? Seems a bit vague to me.

themont85

Leinster

Stev_o wrote: »

Has he kick this season for Leinster? Seems a bit vague to me.

Can't recall tbh, but he could slot them handy for Auckland.

Stev_o

Leinster

themont85 wrote: »

Can't recall tbh, but he could slot them handy for Auckland.

Well id be slightly worried that someone who hasn't been kicking for the best part of a year would considered 2nd back up when there is a perfectly capable player in the form of McFadden who can kicks superbly.

Phrio

Don't care - when's the Champions League final on man??

Stev_o wrote: »

Well id be slightly worried that someone who hasn't been kicking for the best part of a year would considered 2nd back up when there is a perfectly capable player in the form of McFadden who can kicks superbly.

As I posted before http://www.wellingtonlions.co.nz/news/195-air-new-zealand-cup-final-match-report

McFAdden hasnt got the experience of doing under it under the same pressure as Isa so I wouldnt be too worried with him stepping up on the big day and slotting them if it came to it...

Doesnt matter tho as Sexton will step up to the challenge and have a top performance mark my words

Peter B

Leinster

I think Leicester are going to win and win by a good bit. I cannot see Leinster performing to the same level as the semi which will be needed to have a good shot at the Tigers. When is the last time Leinster pulled off 2 massive results in a row?

I can see Sat evening being a big anticlimax with the Tigers winning comfortably.

thomond2006

Don't care - when's the Champions League final on man??

Article by Hooky, as always not predicting an Irish victory! :rolleyes::rolleyes::rolleyes:


Expert Analysis: Leicester v Leinster

by George Hook

From a Leinster perspective, the destination of the Heineken Cup rests on very young shoulders. Because of the positions they play, Cian Healy and Jonathan Sexton are the key men and they are likely to be the players we focus most closely in the studio analysis on Saturday night.

The return of Martin Castrogiovanni means Healy in particular will face the biggest examination of his career, especially in light of the fact that if Castrogiovanni goes off at any point, Julian White is the next man in. Castrogiovanni was the tight-head when Leicester famously ended Munster's winning streak in the last game at the old Thomond Park. Leicester successfully targeted Munster's scrum on that occasion and all the indications are that they will look to do so again in this match.


On the other hand, I don't believe the lineout will be a crucial phase. Obviously, anytime Bernard Jackman plays the throwing in is a discussion point but I think the sides will cancel eachother out unless Jackman has a particularly bad day at the office.
The scrum will be immeasurably more important in terms of setting the tone for the forward battle.

Ruck - can Leinster slow down Leicester ball?

The ruck is also critical. Leinster, vitally, were able to slow down Munster ball time and again in the semi-final. If they can do that again, they will greatly improve their chances. As ever, the outcome of the game will depend on what happens in the tight exchanges. Against Leinster, Munster were beaten up front and Ronan O'Gara got a lot of poor possession from which Leinster were able to create pressure.

This time, Leinster need quick ball. Jonathan Sexton is a creative fly-half and he plays to make space for the men outside him; Leinster need to make use of that. I don't think they can win this match by waiting for penalties and if they are to do it, I think it will be a high-scoring match. As they did against, Munster, I think they will have to go out and attack from the first minute.

Can they deliver quick ball and get the best out of their backline? You have to wonder because there are a number of potential weaknesses there. For example, it is being assumed that because Isa Nacewa had a good match at full-back in the semi-final it automatically brought to an end all the doubts that had surrounded him up to that point. It didn't. Nacewa remains the same player he always was. O'Gara did not test him but the Leicester out-half, Sam Vesty, and full-back, Geordan Murphy, will surely do so.

Leicester will deny Leinster space

The Leicester centres will also not give the Leinster centres and full-back the space that Keith Earls in particular was guilty of giving them and that could be hugely important. Chris Whitaker is another player who did well in the semi-final but has not become a world beater overnight.

Overall, Leinster haven't 'turned a corner' simply on the basis that they beat Munster. You have to remember they performed very well in the opening third of the Magners League match in which they were eventually quite badly beaten after Christmas and they are not a bad team.

However, the suggestion has always been that Munster are a better team and I still think nobody would deny that, or that Leinster's record in the Heineken Cup is inferior to Munster's and have failed to perform on crucial days in the past.

They have now delivered two matches in a row, which is a step up on previous years but this match is a huge ask. It is a Heineken Cup final against a very good side - one of the best English teams of the last 50 years.

You have to make Leicester narrow favourites and although it is a very tight call I think Leicester will just about win it. They have a bigger squad, more experience of the big occasion and a better bench.

twinytwo

Don't care - when's the Champions League final on man??

Peter B wrote: »

I think Leicester are going to win and win by a good bit. I cannot see Leinster performing to the same level as the semi which will be needed to have a good shot at the Tigers. When is the last time Leinster pulled off 2 massive results in a row?

I can see Sat evening being a big anticlimax with the Tigers winning comfortably.

when the last time they knocked munster out of the HC.... anything can happen

dan719

Leinster

twinytwo wrote: »

eh i believe BOD bod defeated england more or less by himself so sssssssshhhhhhhhhh

Utter rubbish. There were 15 players on the pitch that day. BOD had a great game, but please don't make him out to be some sort of superhero. That's what Goose81 is here for.:rolleyes:

Phrio

Don't care - when's the Champions League final on man??

Peter B wrote: »

I think Leicester are going to win and win by a good bit. I cannot see Leinster performing to the same level as the semi which will be needed to have a good shot at the Tigers. When is the last time Leinster pulled off 2 massive results in a row?

I can see Sat evening being a big anticlimax with the Tigers winning comfortably.

thanks... need to hear a few people saying these things

afraid with everyone starting to say Leinster favourites that it wont end well

altho do still think I will watch a Leinster master class 2m, tight first 20 and then our back row take control and a 7 + point victory

Hippo

Don't care - when's the Champions League final on man??

Peter B wrote: »

I think Leicester are going to win and win by a good bit. I cannot see Leinster performing to the same level as the semi which will be needed to have a good shot at the Tigers. When is the last time Leinster pulled off 2 massive results in a row?

I can see Sat evening being a big anticlimax with the Tigers winning comfortably.

Comfortably? Really? I'm not saying they won't win, but I don't think either side is going to win this 'comfortably'.

Peter B

Leinster

twinytwo wrote: »

when the last time they knocked munster out of the HC.... anything can happen

Leinster have had many one off good matches over the past 5 years in the HC. When have they put in 2 decent performances in a row?

Phrio

Don't care - when's the Champions League final on man??

Peter B wrote: »

Leinster have had many one off good matches over the past 5 years in the HC. When have they put in 2 decent performances in a row?

Okay just for 2 examples Quins and Munster.. thats two already so theres one example Wasps then edinburgh 2 bonus point wins in a row earlier this season

Four-Percent

Leinster

To those who said they don't care - why are you here at all?

Peter B

Leinster

Phrio wrote: »

Okay just for 2 examples Quins and Munster.. thats two already so theres one example Wasps then edinburgh 2 bonus point wins in a row earlier this season

I was speaking about 2 massive matches. In my opinion Quins played poorly which resulted in a 1 point win to Leinster. Leinster were great underdogs and looked sketchy going into the Munster match. Fortunately for them they raised their game to play excellently in Croke Park. Had they played to the same level as the Quins match they would have been well beaten I reckon.

Also the results against Edinburgh in the HC were 16-27 to Leinster in round 1 and 12-3 to Leinster in round 6. Not exactly 2 massive results on a European level.

After beating Toulouse in the pool stages in 07-08 comp they lost 25-9 to the Tigers.

In 06-07 after beating Edinburgh 49-10, Leinster lost 19-13 against Gloucester.

In 05-06 after beating Toulouse 35-41 in Toulouse, Leinster lost 6-30 against Munster.

In 04-05 after hammering Treviso 57-17, Leinster lost to the Tigers 13-29 in Lansdowne.

In 02-03 after beating a strong Biarritz team 18-13, Leinster lost to Perpingan in Lansdowne 14-21.

Hopefully they can prove me wrong, its just in my opinion I cannot see it happening. I feel Leinster need more experience at this level before they manage to steal a win against the best team in the UK and arguably the best team in Europe over the past 10 years.