THE SERIOUS BUSINESS starts here.
Talk of new European campaigns, and opening game assignments on the continent, will be put to one side for a few hours longer, as the pre-eminent rivalry in Irish rugby gets set for its latest instalment at a virtually sold-out Aviva Stadium [KO 6pm, eir Sport/Premier Sport].
For now, all that matters is the next 80 minutes, as Leinster lock horns with Munster, blue goes head-to-head with red, and east meets south. Provincial bragging rights are on the line, but so too the invaluable momentum a win in this marquee fixture can produce.
Any doubt as to what this heavyweight clash means is distilled by the huge levels of interest and anticipation, with Leinster reporting ticket sales of close to 50,000 as of yesterday, while Munster’s team selection is a serious statement of their intent.
Johann van Graan’s side travel to the capital fully locked and loaded, with their heavy artillery in tow, as they take aim at Leinster and a first win over their provincial rivals since St Stephen’s Day 2016.
Coming off the back of their nine-try evisceration of Ulster, and the fact van Graan has made just three changes in personnel from that game, Munster won’t be short of confidence, but their recent away form, and indeed record at the Aviva Stadium, leaves a lot to be desired.
Three emphatic home bonus-point wins to start the campaign have been offset by no-shows on the road against Glasgow and Cardiff, making it difficult to accurately assess where the southern province stand at this juncture.
A renewal of their rivalry with the defending Pro14 and European champions will provide a true gauge of that, and with it the perfect opportunity to focus minds and sharpen combinations ahead of a tough trip to Sandy Park to face Exeter Chiefs next weekend.
Joey Carbery’s presence at out-half provides a fascinating sub-plot as he comes up against his former side for the first time, while van Graan has retained the half-back partnership of Carbery and Alby Mathewson after an encouraging start against Ulster last week.
That record victory was built on the foundations provided by a dominant forward pack and certainly Munster will be seeking to stick to their strengths this evening, and give Carbery and an exciting backline the opportunity to cause damage.
“You have to think outside the box against them [Leinster],” van Graan said this week.
“Let’s call their defence the secret of their team. They don’t really commit a lot of guys to the breakdown. They are very comfortable to defend 10, 20, or 30 phases and once they get that turnover, they punish you.
“A lot of teams have come trying different things against them: some guys try to keep the ball in hand; some go to the air; some went with a breakdown focus and some went in with a variety of stuff.
“The important thing for us is that we play our game.”
The South African’s decision to play his strongest hand a week out from Europe will have come as a surprise to some, with Carbery, Andrew Conway, Tadhg Beirne and Peter O’Mahony all now set to play six games in a row should they be involved, as expected, in the European fixtures against Exeter and Gloucester.
As for Leinster, Leo Cullen has had one eye firmly on his side’s six-day turnaround into Wasps at the RDS next Friday, and thus has rotated heavily by making 11 changes in personnel from Connacht last time out.
Leinster’s unrivalled strength in depth, however, means their matchday squad is still stocked with experience and quality, with 21 of their 23-man panel boasting international credentials.
Johnny Sexton, Scott Fardy, Tadgh Furlong, Jack Conan and Garry Ringrose are all rested, while Jordan Larmour is nursing a hip knock and will be wrapped in cotton wool as Europe and the November Tests come into sharp focus.
Conference B leaders Leinster, seeking a fifth win from six this season, are captained by Rhys Ruddock in Sexton’s absence, with the flanker joined in an exciting and well-balanced back row unit alongside the fit-again Dan Leavy and Sean O’Brien.
While there are several fascinating match-ups across the park, not least the toe-to-toe battle of Carbery and Ross Byrne at 10, the back row showdown between two potent and dynamic units stands out.
Munster have no shortage of experience, pedigree and form in that department with O’Mahony, Tommy O’Donnell and CJ Stander, while they can also spring Chris Cloete from the bench, and Leinster will like the look of their potent combination.
“They’re players we know well and respect,” Ruddock says. “Obviously played alongside them and have played against them in some massive games as well. They’re all quality players and even if you look at Cloete coming off the bench, when he has had his opportunity this season, he has been class and a serious threat.
“It’s definitely a big challenge and I suppose that’s what you want to be doing, testing yourself against the best.”
Leinster’s depth is further underlined by the fact Jack McGrath — fit again after a knee injury — will become the 42nd player used by Cullen already this season, while their starting XV has a combined 337 international caps between them.
It will be a landmark day for Rob Kearney, as the fullback wins his 200th appearance for Leinster, having made his debut in a 22-20 defeat to Ospreys back in September 2005, and Luke McGrath could win his 100th cap if he is called upon off the bench.
A near-capacity crowd of 51,700 is also sure to add to the occasion under the lights at the Aviva Stadium, with Leinster enjoying a particularly strong record at the national stadium, winning nine games on the bounce there since Toulon in December 2015.
In contrast, Munster have won just once in their last 11 visits to Lansdowne Road, having endured painful days at the venue — most notably their European semi-final defeat to Saracens and Pro14 final loss to Scarlets two seasons ago — since their 34-23 win over Leinster in October 2014.
“Coming up against Leinster in the Aviva is as hard as it gets, it’s like a European knockout game in terms of intensity, skill levels,” Billy Holland, named on the Munster bench, says.
“We’ve fallen short the last couple of years, this season we’ve gone good game, followed by bad game, followed by good game — it’s all about consistency. It’s all well and good rebounding and having your tails up after a loss, but we need to do it week in, week out.”
No better place than the capital to right that wrong, and reproduce the level of performance we’ve seen from Munster at home this season. And no better test of their credentials than the defending champions.
There is also the small matter of the fast-approaching November internationals — in this year of all years — and certainly a cursory glance down the team-sheets suggests Joe Schmidt will be keeping a close eye on a couple of individual auditions.
See James Tracy’s collision with Niall Scannell at hooker, Dave Kilcoyne’s chance to stake his claim in the scrum, or the marker O’Donnell can lay down in the uber-competitive back row area when he goes head-to-head with Ruddock and Leavy.
Or what of Devin Toner and James Ryan against Jean Kleyn and Beirne in the second row? Or Darren Sweetnam’s golden opportunity on the wing after winning his first caps in November of last year.
The bottom line is that this fixture carries weight and significance, both for the players and supporters, as Leinster and Munster, two old foes, meet for the 35th time in the Pro14.
“It is just that intensity that physicality, it is kind of hard to put your finger on it, it is just the way teams try and attack each other, trying to get to upper hand,” Ruddock adds.
“It can start out as a bit of an arm-wrestle but then the game gets played at a high intensity and a fast pace which is, as I said, an equivalent of European games. It is hugely physical and that stands to us.
“There is the emotion that the players carry into the game. If you ask any player which game they look forward to I’m sure they will tell you this one.”
It’s all set-up rather nicely.
Leinster:
15. Rob Kearney
14. Fergus McFadden
13. Rory O’Loughlin
12. Robbie Henshaw
11. James Lowe
10. Ross Byrne
9. Jamison Gibson-Park
1. Jack McGrath
2. James Tracy
3. Michael Bent
4. Devin Toner
5. James Ryan
6. Rhys Ruddock (captain)
7. Dan Leavy
8. Seán O’Brien
Replacements:
16. Seán Cronin
17. Cian Healy
18. Andrew Porter
19. Mick Kearney
20. Josh van der Flier
21. Luke McGrath
22. Noel Reid
23. Dave Kearney.
Munster:
15. Andrew Conway
14. Darren Sweetnam
13. Sammy Arnold
12. Dan Goggin
11. Keith Earls
10. Joey Carbery
9. Alby Mathewson
1. Dave Kilcoyne
2. Niall Scannell
3. Stephen Archer
4. Jean Kleyn
5. Tadhg Beirne
6. Peter O’Mahony (captain)
7. Tommy O’Donnell
8. CJ Stander
Replacements:
16. Kevin O’Byrne
17. James Cronin
18. Ciaran Parker
19. Billy Holland
20. Chris Cloete
21. Duncan Williams
22. JJ Hanrahan
23. Rory Scannell
Referee: Ben Whitehouse [WRU].
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