Matt Williams claims Leinster boss Leo Cullen would have been ‘kicking every bum in the club’ this week with Toulon smelling ‘some blood in the water’
Matt Williams claims Leo Cullen, inset, would have lit a fire under his Leinster players after last weekend's loss in Italy (INPHO/Dan Clohessy and Independent Photo Agency Srl)
Matt Williams has warned Leinster that Toulon will arrive in Dublin for Saturday’s Investec Champions Cup semi-final “smelling some blood” and feeling they have a potential route to the final in Bilbao.
However, rather than overly worry about the potential trouble the Irish side could encounter at the scrum, the ex-Leinster boss was confident that last weekend’s shock United Rugby Championship loss would have resulted in current boss Leo Cullen lighting a fire under his players that can ensure their scrum vulnerability against the French doesn’t become a campaign killer.
The 29-26 defeat at Benetton, a match in which Leinster threw away a seven-point lead heading into the closing 10 minutes, was their latest setback on the road this season. While they have won on their sole visits to England and France, the defeat at Treviso has left them with just one win in six on their trips to South Africa, Wales, Scotland and Italy.
That’s simply not good enough for a club of Leinster’s stature, but Williams was adamant that the ambush at Stadio di Monigo will ensure there is no repeat of last year’s troubling Champions Cup semi-final defeat at home to Northampton.
“All week his message would have been simple…”
Leinster went into that Aviva Stadium match having been beaten 35-22 in the league by the Scarlets the previous weekend. They had rested most of their front-liners for that Parc Y Scarlets fixture and several of their returning stars failed to deliver the following weekend in Europe.
This time around, Cullen fielded plenty of star names for the trip to Italy, only for another surprise defeat to be the outcome. However, rather than this latest crash hampering them, Williams believes it will have fired up the Leinster boss and there would have been no hiding place on the training ground this week in Dublin.
“Leinster’s failure against Benetton has provided Cullen with the opportunity to spend a considerable part of this week kicking every bum in the club,” reckoned Williams in his latest Irish Times column. “Players and coaches will have been strongly reminded of the consequences of not being totally mentally present at a match.
“All week his message would have been simple: Be where your feet are because we have not yet earned the right to play in the final. Last year, a mentally weak Leinster allowed Northampton into the game. At the Aviva on Saturday, Leinster must not repeat that same mistake. If the Leinster players are dialled in and committed to imposing their game plan, then they will be hard to beat.”
While ultimately giving Leinster his vote of confidence to win through to the final against either Bordeaux or Bath on May 23, Williams’ semi-final analysis did highlight his one area of concern where they could be exploited, resulting in a much closer contest than is generally anticipated.
“There is one area where Toulon do smell some blood in the water – Leinster’s scrum,” he claimed, focusing on an aspect of the contest where the home side could have to field minus injured tighthead Tadhg Furlong. “If they can dominate the scrum, it may open an unlikely door for Toulon.
“Under the lunacy of the current scrum laws, being pushed backwards is now regarded as a penalty (although no proper and logical rugby explanation has ever been provided to me as to why this is the case), and Toulon believe this is the area where they have the advantage.
“Toulon will hold the ball at their number eight’s feet and simply push Leinster for a penalty. They will either kick long to maul the lineout or hand the ball to their exceptionally gifted goal-kicking full-back Melvyn Jaminet (presuming he starts on Saturday as the team is yet to be announced), who holds a goal-kicking success rate of 92 per cent at international level.”
Williams concluded: “Toulon are dangerous because they have nothing to lose. All the pressure and expectation are on the home team. With their history of heartbreak in the Champions Cup, being favourites in a semi-final is another uncomfortable situation for Leinster, so this match may be closer than many are suggesting.”
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