WHEN CONNACHT SWEPT into a 20-13 lead early in the second half thanks to a cracking try finished by Mayo man Harry West, the huge home support could have been forgiven for thinking it was their night.
It was a historic occasion, after all. The Dexcom Stadium was unveiled in its full glory, with a spectacular pre-match show in front of a new record crowd of 12,481 people.
But Leinster responded to West’s try with composure as they turned the screw and conjured tries through RG Snyman, Charlie Tector, and Ciarán Frawley to carry them to a bonus-point victory.
Not only did Connacht lose, but they came away empty-handed without even a losing bonus point after a 34-23 defeat.
“It feels disappointing,” said head coach Stuart Lancaster post-match.
“Particularly, I thought we played really well in the first half and went in good shape at half-time, albeit it was 13-13.
“The second half was a big moment but then the game changed in, probably five minutes, but it was two tries in a very short space of time and ultimately that cost us.
“That’s something I’ve spoken about in the changing room, something I’ve spoken about in the change room over the last few games, really, where that consistent application of doing the fundamentals consistently under pressure for the full 80 minutes is the step we need to take as a team.
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“It was a privilege to be part of the occasion and I thought the boys in the week leading into it, everyone at Connacht Rugby put so much effort into it, so it’s absolutely gut-wrenching to not come away with a win.
“Obviously, you’ve got to give Leinster credit for nailing those big moments when they happened.”
The Tector try was a particularly frustrating moment for Connacht as the Leinster centre barged through the middle of their defence with a direct carry on first phase from a lineout.
Is that the kind of moment Lancaster meant when he spoke about the consistent application of the fundamentals?
“Yeah, like tackling the centre who carries the ball,” he replied.
“You set your systems and structure, you do all the work and all the detail, but ultimately, as a coach, you’ve got to nail the big moments and what the big players do in the biggest of stages, they nail the big moments.
“I’m not putting it on the players that missed a tackle because it’s a cumulative thing, isn’t it?
Tom O’Hanlon / INPHO
Tom O’Hanlon / INPHO / INPHO
“We could, again, rewind the clock over one or two things that happened in the first half where we couldn’t exert the pressure we wanted to because we didn’t nail the lineout, for example.
“So it’s never one moment. But in this particular game, having been 20-13 up, the two moments, the penalty which led to Snyman’s try and the Tector try, changed the game very significantly, didn’t they?
“And then when you’re 20-27 down and you’re playing into the rain and against a rush defence, it becomes harder and harder. We got back with the penalty, but obviously Frawley’s try at the end was the killer.”
Lancaster believes his players handled the big occasion in Galway well.
But ultimately, they came up short in frustrating fashion as they fell to their fourth consecutive URC defeat, leaving them in 14th position in the table.
“You could see the real disciplined energy I thought they brought, particularly for a lot of the game, really,” said Lancaster.
“As I say, if you rewind the clock, there was a penalty we gave away which led to Snyman’s try and obviously then another soft moment where Charlie Tector just runs through and scores and that’s the game, really. The game changes in that five-minute period.
“We’ve given ourselves a big challenge now to get in the top eight. We’ve played nine games and we’ve got nine to go.
“Obviously, as I said to the boys, it’s not the end, it’s the beginning. The stand opening with the home games we have to come, but we have to translate that emotion and energy into accuracy and do it consistently for 80 minutes.
“That’s the step we need to take because clearly when you’re playing, I’m looking at the Leinster team and the Munster team, the Ulster team, it was the same in those games as well. That’s the step we need to take.”
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'It was a privilege but it's absolutely gut-wrenching not to win'
WHEN CONNACHT SWEPT into a 20-13 lead early in the second half thanks to a cracking try finished by Mayo man Harry West, the huge home support could have been forgiven for thinking it was their night.
It was a historic occasion, after all. The Dexcom Stadium was unveiled in its full glory, with a spectacular pre-match show in front of a new record crowd of 12,481 people.
But Leinster responded to West’s try with composure as they turned the screw and conjured tries through RG Snyman, Charlie Tector, and Ciarán Frawley to carry them to a bonus-point victory.
Not only did Connacht lose, but they came away empty-handed without even a losing bonus point after a 34-23 defeat.
“It feels disappointing,” said head coach Stuart Lancaster post-match.
“Particularly, I thought we played really well in the first half and went in good shape at half-time, albeit it was 13-13.
“The second half was a big moment but then the game changed in, probably five minutes, but it was two tries in a very short space of time and ultimately that cost us.
“That’s something I’ve spoken about in the changing room, something I’ve spoken about in the change room over the last few games, really, where that consistent application of doing the fundamentals consistently under pressure for the full 80 minutes is the step we need to take as a team.
“It was a privilege to be part of the occasion and I thought the boys in the week leading into it, everyone at Connacht Rugby put so much effort into it, so it’s absolutely gut-wrenching to not come away with a win.
“Obviously, you’ve got to give Leinster credit for nailing those big moments when they happened.”
The Tector try was a particularly frustrating moment for Connacht as the Leinster centre barged through the middle of their defence with a direct carry on first phase from a lineout.
Is that the kind of moment Lancaster meant when he spoke about the consistent application of the fundamentals?
“Yeah, like tackling the centre who carries the ball,” he replied.
“You set your systems and structure, you do all the work and all the detail, but ultimately, as a coach, you’ve got to nail the big moments and what the big players do in the biggest of stages, they nail the big moments.
“I’m not putting it on the players that missed a tackle because it’s a cumulative thing, isn’t it?
“We could, again, rewind the clock over one or two things that happened in the first half where we couldn’t exert the pressure we wanted to because we didn’t nail the lineout, for example.
“So it’s never one moment. But in this particular game, having been 20-13 up, the two moments, the penalty which led to Snyman’s try and the Tector try, changed the game very significantly, didn’t they?
“And then when you’re 20-27 down and you’re playing into the rain and against a rush defence, it becomes harder and harder. We got back with the penalty, but obviously Frawley’s try at the end was the killer.”
Lancaster believes his players handled the big occasion in Galway well.
But ultimately, they came up short in frustrating fashion as they fell to their fourth consecutive URC defeat, leaving them in 14th position in the table.
“You could see the real disciplined energy I thought they brought, particularly for a lot of the game, really,” said Lancaster.
“As I say, if you rewind the clock, there was a penalty we gave away which led to Snyman’s try and obviously then another soft moment where Charlie Tector just runs through and scores and that’s the game, really. The game changes in that five-minute period.
“We’ve given ourselves a big challenge now to get in the top eight. We’ve played nine games and we’ve got nine to go.
“Obviously, as I said to the boys, it’s not the end, it’s the beginning. The stand opening with the home games we have to come, but we have to translate that emotion and energy into accuracy and do it consistently for 80 minutes.
“That’s the step we need to take because clearly when you’re playing, I’m looking at the Leinster team and the Munster team, the Ulster team, it was the same in those games as well. That’s the step we need to take.”
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