SITTING IN A rooftop bar a stone’s throw from the early morning hustle and bustle of Grafton Street, Dan Leavy is reluctant to slip into a potential war of words ahead of the blockbuster Heineken Champions Cup final set to take place in Dublin this weekend.
The former Leinster and Ireland flanker is aware of James Tracy’s comments made on Off The Ball, where the recently-retired hooker accused La Rochelle of “pushing the boundaries” when it comes to the laws of the game, comments which were put to Ronan O’Gara on the same station last week.
O’Gara’s view? “All good teams push the boundaries, there’s no doubt about that.”
Leavy, who retired in April 2022 after a long battle with a knee injury, sees pros and cons to what La Rochelle present around the breakdown.
“The media kind of hone in on that but that’s the same with every game,” Leavy explains.
“It’s always the breakdown, it’s always carries, it’s always being physical. La Rochelle are in a unique position. They’ve got some of the biggest players in world rugby – (Uini) Atonio, (Will) Skelton, (Grégory) Alldritt, these guys, even Ultan Dillane who I think has been absolutely amazing for them this year, and a super signing – so it’s always going to come down to physicality. La Rochelle are huge, huge men and Leinster will try and move them.
“The pro of having huge men is, if it’s a slow game, it’s a big advantage but if it’s a quick game, it’s a disadvantage. That’s the crux of it.”
So what’s the best course of action for the Leinster forwards preparing to come up against those “huge men” – who just happen to have to ended the province’s Champions Cup season in both of the last two campaigns – in Dublin this weekend?
“As a back-row, I used to think it was, first thing, absolute reckless regard for your body. There’s no hiding.
“When you’re coming up against a Skelton, I always thought it’s way easier to hit them first before they hit you. Because if you let those guys get a run of steam, they’ll absolutely flatten you. That was one thing and then just make it hard for them.
“I think the big thing is accuracy and who makes fewer mistakes. If you knock the ball on off of first phase, it slows the game down and gives them an opportunity to reset. You just need to keep pounding the rock, keep the ball in play – 20 phases. If you run 20 phases against a big team like La Rochelle, it will be tough for them.
You’ve got to minimise your errors and if you get an opportunity, you have to take it. It’s finals rugby.”
Leavy speaks from a position of experience, having been part of the Leinster side that claimed a brilliant double in 2018.
The 28-year-old thinks the class of 2023 is even stronger.
“I think this team is better. With the depth they have, if you look at last weekend (against Munster), the team that they had not playing was frightening. It was really, really frightening from Leinster.
“If they can put in the performances that we know they’re capable of, look at Toulouse three weeks ago. Toulouse are one of the best teams in the world and they absolutely ran riot. It’s in their locker. They just need to dig deep and if they can be physical and they can get the ball on their terms. Get quick ball to the likes of Lowie [James Lowe], Barnet [Hugo Keenan] on the wings, they should do very, very well.”
Yet trophies will define how this Leinster team is remembered, and on the back of Saturday’s URC semi-final defeat to Munster, the Champions Cup final is now their only chance to win silverware this season.
Failure to do so would see Leinster go trophyless for a second season running.
“It is a travesty (if they don’t win), yeah,” Leavy continues.
“But I just think the evolution of the team, the shape, the consistency. Even the Irish team now, I think it’s probably the best Irish team we’ve ever seen as well.
“I mean, I think from the offset of the campaign, that first win against Gloucester… You can definitely see there is a bit of frustration and hunger, and I’m not saying they haven’t had it before, but to be so close, so many years in a row and having not won since 2018, being probably there or thereabouts the best team in Europe, there is definitely a bit of frustration. I think the fact it’s in the Aviva is huge for them.
“I was in Marseille last year and it felt like a La Rochelle home game. It was just deafening, the support, and I absolutely hope the Leinster fans, I know there was a good atmosphere last week at the Munster game and it was good to see the fans getting engaged and getting loud, it makes a huge difference as a player so I hope they can get down early, get the pints in, get loud and support the team properly.
“I think it’s a big ask, I know they were hot favourites last year, I even watched the game back last night, just to kind of jog the memory. They dominated a lot of the game and just one or two breakaway tries from La Rochelle really kept them in it.
“It’s tough to bet against Leinster at home in the Aviva and they’ve looked amazing all season so I wouldn’t bet against them.”
Dan Leavy was speaking at the launch of his very own Ogham Irish Whiskey. Ogham’s first limited release will go on sale on May 18th via oghamwhiskey.com
