The Saints stun Leinster with an impressive win in The Aviva.

Peter Burke at The Aviva

Leaving the stadium and 2 gentlemen in front of me were discussing the game:

‘Where was our brilliant defence? Where were the big names as jaysus a few of them didn’t turn up, was it a game too far for the lads do you think?’

‘Ah look it just wasn’t our day, and why didn’t they take the three points there at the end to draw the game always baffles me that decision’.

‘Drop goal would’ve done it’

‘Yep it would’ve but sure aren’t we known for our drop goals’ both chuckled and off they went.

There is a lot of truth in what they said though.

Before the game I met another Leinster fan and he asked me ‘How do we beat the Saints?’ and my simple reply was ‘Stop Freeman and Pollock’.

The game didn’t start well for Leinster and it had all the hallmarks of yet another game where the men in blue are slow out of the gate and it certainly turned out that way with the hosts finding themselves 7 nil down after Tommy Freeman scored on 7 mins and the points added by Smith. Northampton were finding space out wide and the gaps were plain to see, the Leinster defensive line was not organised for large parts of the first half. I counted 6 plays where the Saints had overlaps in attacking play.

Sam Prendergast closed the gap with a much needed penalty.

The ever present and space finder Tommy O’Brien provided Leinsters first try. A free kick tap and Sam fires the pass to O’Brien who touches down in the corner. It was soon after that Healy was replaced by Porter.

The trys kept coming and Northampton were always menacing.

But look i could go on a detailed and score by score analysis of the game but theres more at play here for Leinster and Irish rugby. There seems to be a malaise in Irish rugby at the moment with the current squads, the 6 Nations team both men and womens.

The decision making and game management came into play with Leinster. Why not take the points on offer towards the end? Why didnt Jordie start? Both points raised with great frequency across the media sphere. Also what happened to the great Leinster defence which was torn apart in the first half. On the score board it didnt look too bad for Leinster with just a 3 point defeat but the underlying issues were laid bare. Leinster seemed complacent even lazy at times and Northampton took full advantage through the excellent openside Pollock and wing Freeman.

The over reliance on Irish rugby on Leinster players to fill the national squad is a big worry, as we have discussed on our show ‘Mauls, Balls and All’, as it does no favors for the national provincial set up. Budgets have been criticised, IRFU favoring Leinster (which is just not true) along with player development, academy set ups, pathway structures etc and yes all need to be addressed with a sense of urgency by the IRFU.

To go back to the game itself. Sam Prendergast did not have a great day on the pitch and some of the other big name players didnt stand out for whatever reason. Look we all have a bad day at the office. But the bad days seem to be more frequent for Leinster under the current management and looking at social media, as I do, the calls for Leo to be shown the door are evident. Now I dont know if this is a solution and surely Nienabar has blame in all this. Leinster were not Leinster if you get me and there goes yet another semi final loss akin to the national squad in World Cups with the quarters. Leinster fans are waiting for the elusive fifth star and maybe the random gent exiting the stadium was right as a few of the big lads didnt turn up.