‘Leinster should win the URC but I’ve lost all confidence’ – Bernard Jackman’s brutal assessment after Champions Cup failure
Bernard Jackman has lost confidence in Leinster following their Champions Cup defeat.
Former Ireland hooker Bernard Jackman has ripped into Leinster for their inability to win knockout matches and has lost all confidence in them winning the United Rugby Championship.
Jackman, a former head coach and now a respected pundit, thinks that Munster would lap up the opportunity to tackle Leinster in a knockout match, and most teams would too.
The Irish club were clear favourites to win the Investec Champions Cup semi-final against Northampton Saints but again fell short as they fell to a 34-37 defeat at the hands of the Premiership side.
Leo Cullen’s side reacted to that defeat by thrashing Italian club Zebre in the United Rugby Championship, scoring 12 tries in a 76-5 victory.
Zebre were pathetic
But that win has not given Jackman any confidence that Leinster will go on to win the URC.
“Zebra were pathetic really, I know Leo was trying to talk them up before the match but I think it would have been better just to say ‘Look doesn’t matter who we play this weekend, we have got to go out and smash them’ and not say that they’re a great team and all that because they’re not a great team,” Jackman remarked on the RTÉ Rugby podcast.
“They had no interest; it was pathetic from them, and Leinster put them away.
“But it doesn’t heal anything. I’m not even sure if lifting the URC trophy at the end of the season, if they can do it, would really make up for the disappointment of Europe.
“Obviously, that’s the only thing they can do now.”
Winning the URC this season would also not fill Jackman with confidence that Leinster could bounce back next season and end their wait for a fifth Champions Cup title.
He believes that there is a mental block of sorts and that the side needs to show some resilience for when things aren’t going their way.
“Knockout rugby, you heard the Northampton footage around behind the scenes, and what they were saying about Leinster,” he continued.
“Everyone would say that now. They have this doubt around their mentality, a doubt around their ability to close out knockout rugby, and until they start doing that on a consistent basis, it’s going to grow and grow.
“This weekend is another match for them, but the quarter-final, semi-final, final, if they get there, they need to start showing more resilience.
“I didn’t pay much heed to it [beating Zebre]; everyone looked brilliant. Of course, Jordie Barrett is going to win man of the match against an opposition like that, a player of his quality.
“Bigger tests lie ahead, and I think everybody is waiting to see how they react to being challenged.”
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Leinster wary of travelling
This leads the ex-Leinster hooker to believe that Munster would be licking their lips to face their rivals in a knockout match, even though a quarter-final is unlikely given the permutations.
Munster could still sneak into the play-offs, but more than likely in sixth or seventh position rather than eighth.
“Leinster went fairly strong last year against the Bulls after losing to Toulouse, and they obviously lost it, but this year the difference is, I think they are very conscious of making sure they finish top this year to not have to travel potentially,” Jackman added.
“I actually think that if Munster finished eighth, they’d love a crack at Leinster.”
No confidence
Still, the pundit has no confidence that Leinster could win the URC given their recent history in knockout matches.
The injury to Caelan Doris is undoubtedly a blow for the club, but Jackman says that it is no excuse as they have plenty of depth and leadership within the team.
“I’m not confident Leinster win the URC,” he said.
“I’ve lost all confidence in Leinster in a knockout game, honestly.
“I don’t think being without Caelan Doris is the issue because Jack Conan is so good. Like Dan Sheehan gets injured, Ronan Kelleher is there, so it’s not the depth that is the problem.
“It’s just this lack of ability to close out knockout-type games and until they start doing that consistently, even a once-off isn’t going to be good enough now.
“I’ve been led down the wrong path so often with them, in terms of seeing them play brilliant rugby and then just bang, it breaks up.
“Obviously, they should win the URC, but until they actually start winning trophies, I can’t be completely confident.”
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