Leinster Team Talk/Gossip/Rumours Thread XII (The Byrne Supremacy)

True! This exactly! Get back to the drawing board and get it on!

La Rochelle/R92

Gloucester/Sale next season

So it seems anyway

I agree with this. Everyone is looking for a narrative but the fact is Leinster lost the two games by an aggregate of 4 points and absolutely could have won both. There's nothing imo that needs to be fundamentally ripped up and thrown out. There are some obvious things that require work like the set piece but this is clearly something that can be worked on and improved.

I think the biggest looming problem (same for Ireland) is at 10. It's only 2 games after a career of being really good for Leinster but Ross Byrne just did not step up against La Rochelle or the Bulls. I wonder if the coaches will re-evaluate and think of Frawley or H.Byrne instead.

As a general observation on Leinsters season and where performance can improve, I think they really need to look at what's happening to Luke McGrath. If your sub scrum can't come on and make a positive contribution to the game there's a big issue.

Over the last 12 months the quality and consistency of his passing has fallen off a cliff. I think it was the Glasgow game that really showed had bad it has become. He was on for just 20 minutes, but at least 3 of his passes went to ground before they reached the intended target. And he also had a few more high, loopy ones which the receiver had to jump for.

McGrath still has his positives. He's a great reader of the game and constantly pops up to receive an offload and keep attacks going. But that's not enough to make up for the shortfall in his passing game.

So Leinster lose 2 matches by a combination of 4 points and you pin this on Lancaster. Words nearly fail me. Those defeats ultimately came down to poor decisions made by players.

As for Lancaster? It could be argued that Leinster wouldn't have been playing in the European final and the semi final of the URC without the input of Lancaster.

I just hope the coaching staff aren't as in denial about our issues as some are here.

If anyone at this stage still doesn't think that we seriously struggle when teams go out to kick the sh*t out of us, then there's no point in trying to convince them anymore.

And as for people denying that Porter is having scrum issues...people are honestly living in cuckoo land.

Lancaster's the coach. Coaching is the biggest influence. I'm analysing the situation as I see it. Most other posters tend to critique players more. I think coaching is the thing that really determines how well a team does.

And it's not just two results. It's the continuation of a trend. I was saying the same thing last year. Lancaster has his strengths and weaknesses. I'm a fan of a lot of the work he's done. He's brilliant at developing players. And Leinster are a far more formidable outfit with him on board compared to the rabble they were when Cullen was coach in '15/'16. But you can't overlook the fact that his Leinster and England teams have almost invariably just missed out when it comes to winning the HC and the 6N, respectively. How can you say I'm basing it on two results? I'm talking about four 6N Championships and six Heineken Cup tournaments.

It's getting to the point where Leinster are like the Clermont of some years ago. They're not as good anymore, but there was a time when they would look incredibly formidable in the pool stages and quarter finals, but then find ways of losing games when it really mattered.

I think that there is more going on than Porter. If it was just him, things would improve when he went off. Yes he probably has vulnerabilities that are being exposed. He’s still learning, that’s to be expected. Though there may be a wider issue too. Like the one we previously had when Saracens took us apart. Where they had to change how the whole 8 engage, to fix it. These things happen, then get sorted.

The best team in Europe that hasn't won any of the last four European Cups 🙄

The narrative that Leinster can't compete with physical sides has become absurd. I've even seen posts declaring the pack to be soft, which is just stupid.

In both their recent defeats, Leinster have more than held their own physically. There were prolonged periods of time where they won collisions, put huge pressure on the opposition and eked out penalties. The pack isn't an issue in my eyes.

The biggest issue facing Leinster is what they do when physical dominance isn't weighted in their favour. Silly mistakes creep into their game like dropped catches, offloads thrown which shouldn't have been etc. That's a mental issue rather than a physical one.

We desperately need work in the set piece though. Power helps there of course, but the scrum and lineout is far more about correct technique than anything else.

I think there's more nuance to this point that you're missing. Yes, since we last won the European Cup in 2018, we've lost when it has really mattered in Europe. The reality for Leinster right now is that only the very best teams are realistically capable of beating us, so if we lose at all, it will only be when it really matters. Unfortunately for us, that has meant that we have experienced heart break mostly in semi-finals and finals.

But those losses ignore some incredible performances and wins against top tier European teams like Leicester and reigning champions Toulouse this season, reigning champions Exeter last year, and Toulouse twice in 2019. We're winning the big games more often than we're losing them. It's just outrageously difficult to continually churn out those top tier performances time and time again.

I think despite this being our first season without a trophy in five years, we have shown a lot more evolution in our game plan and established a distinct and effective style of play that looks like it will see us through in the big games, and honestly should have delivered the double for us in 2022.

But that's elite sport. If you're 1% or 2% off your best, that can be the difference. Our issues this season weren't being overpowered or outplayed, it was poor decision making and sloppy errors. Looking at La Rochelle, Sexton kicks that ball instead of running it in our 22, we probably win that game. Keenan kicks it after Sexton offloads it to him, we win that game. Jimmy O'Brien doesn't touch the ball as it goes dead, we win that game. Any one of those moments goes our way and we're European champions again. Those are the margins.

Bernard Jackman made a good point that Leinster, over the last few weeks, have not used their bench well. Especially for replacements in the pack. For example, in the Champions Cup final Joe McCarthy came on in the 77th minute. And in last weekends game Rhys Ruddock came on in the 65th minute. Andrew Porter and Dan Sheehan played almost the entire semi final as well. We've never been shy about bringing Ross Byrne on early for Sexton, but there seems to have been a greater reluctance with the pack.

I know there's an argument that McCarthy is incredibly young and maybe he's not quite ready for that level of fixture. But it was clear that from about the 60th minute onwards, La Rochelle were really beginning to exert pressure on us and our forwards were tiring. McCarthy is a physically imposing player, despite his young age. He would surely have been more of a positive than leaving a tiring Molony on for most of the game? It's the same story with Ruddock and the front row subs against the Bulls. Came on too late to really make an impact.

Over the last few years, Leinster has done a brilliant job in building squad depth. But over the last few weeks I think they've not shown as much faith in those players as they maybe should have. They recognised their mistake with McCarthy which is why he started against the Bulls, and actually played quite well.

And if they think those guys were unable to make an impact then it's time to start really bringing through the next generation of young players who maybe could have the desired impact ala Soroka.

Indeed! Would this be in McBryde's wheelhouse?