1. Connacht’s biggest game ever
IT’S A LITTLE over a decade since the future of Connacht Rugby looked uncertain.
But rather than go the way of Border Reivers, the western province have spent recent years on a sharp upward curve. They ended the regular season contesting the top of the table, neck and neck with clubs who are the primary providers to their respective national teams.
In this league second place is every bit as good as first, because it’s home semi-finals that matter, and Connacht have theirs.
Tomorrow brings the most important game in their history, perhaps the most important Guinness Pro12 match any team on this island has played and they are on the verge of something truly outstanding – 80 minutes from a final, 160 minutes from a trophy.
They have earned parity on the field over the course of the Pat Lam era, but a final and a heavy lump of silverware makes an irreversible dent in the record books and the trophy cabinet.
2. Away woes, something’s gotta give
The value of a home semi-final is beyond question now in the Guinness Pro12. The play-off format replaced a straight league competition in 2009/10 and in the six years since, semi-finals have sent visitors tumbling out one by one.
This weekend, Ulster and Glasgow are the teams with an opportunity to make a little history. Both teams have tapped a rich vein of form to wrestle their way into the knock-out stage. However high spirits may be though, the weight of 12 defeated travelling semi-finalists from 12 will be a mental barrier to overcome. And only after they have dealt with a terrific opponent with raucous support on their home turf.
3. Leinster with a point to prove
The standards which Leinster players have set themselves over the course of seven successful years means a trophy can sometimes feel like the minimum acceptable return from a campaign.
It speaks volumes for the eastern province that many look on this season with heavy tinge of disappointment on Leinster’s behalf, yet Leo Cullen’s side ended the regular 22-game season on top of the pile. Before the flourish of a finish against Treviso of course, there was the thorough defeat at the hands of Ulster a week previously.
From Garry Ringrose to Ian Madigan, Jonathan Sexton to Jamie Heaslip; Leinster players were hit hard, driven back and out-played all over the park in Belfast. Tonight, with so much more at stake and home advantage reversed, the four-time champions will be hell-bent on laying some early markers down in the RDS.
4. Another bite of the cherry for Ulster
Rory Best sat down to greet the media this week and he was met with a friendly voice saying: ‘here we are again’.
The Ireland and Ulster captain has been at the forefront of Ulster’s continuous challenging for honours over the last four seasons.
His face can’t hide how sick and tired he is of banging on the door of success, he wants his team to break through it. It’s 10 years since the northern province etched their name onto a trophy, a league title but with a different format.
More recently, Best and his team have been haunted by near-misses and final hurdle failures both in the Guinness Pro12 and Europe, and all too often at the hands of Leinster. With so much talented firepower behind the scrum while Best and Iain Henderson marshal a pack desperate to succeed, they may not get a better chance to break the duck and deliver silverware to the new Kingspan Stadium.
5. Warriors braced to go again in the wild west
Like tonight’s semi-final, there is also a very recent rivalry bubbling away under the surface of Glasgow’s trip to Galway. The reigning champions’ final day defeat at the Sportsground brought their sensational run of nine straight wins shuddering to a halt. It was a day when Connacht’s defence came up trumps, limiting Gregor Townsend’s thrilling side to a single score, a paltry seven points that was the first time the Warriors failed to break 30 since March, and the first time they were kept below 10 points in a game since November 2014.
It was a tremendous effort. Now Lam’s men just have to do it all over again against an outfit who won’t need any further warning. The Westerners will go about it the way they’ve taken on every other opponent this season; by trusting their skill-set, refusing to fear mistakes and instead being brave enough to take the game to their guests in Galway.
The Guinness Pro12 final takes place in Edinburgh for the first time this year. With tickets starting at €26, you could be there to see your club lift the trophy on 28 May.
