โIF LEINSTER LOSE to the Bulls, itโs a big, big failure on their part,โ Bernard Jackman told Gavan Casey and Murray Kinsella on Mondayโs subscriber exclusive Rugby Weekly podcast.
โThe Bulls arenโt all that,โ Jackman said. โMunster have gone down there and beat them. Benetton made them look very average, thereโs too many flaws in their performance. I havenโt been overly impressed by them.
โLook it, Leinster have to build it up as being an incredible expedition to get to Pretoria and the challenge of getting back, but I think thereโs no excuse here. You have the best team in the URC on paper, you have the most internationals and youโve been able to rest them during the year as best you can, so thereโs no distractions.โ
Wary that Leinster have failed to get over the line in recent Champions Cup finals, The42โs Murray Kinsella was keen to note that Leinster must stay humble if they are to book their place in a URC final, which could potentially be a Thomond Park clash against Munster.
โI think you have to treat it with the utmost respect and have an element of edginess. Theyโre going to altitude and thatโs a challenge, as well as the atmosphere that there is going to be there,โ he said.
โThereโs some big units in that Bulls team too, the physicality of their carrying . . . theyโre very good at doubling down but they do give you opportunities.
โI think itโs a good opportunity for Leinster to win on the road. What are they, four point favourites? That feels about right to me, but itโs certainly no gimme. It will take an improved performance.โ
Rugby Weekly host Gavan Casey also believes that the home crowd advantage that the Bulls will have could aid their chances of pulling off an upset.
โItโs going to be a different sort of atmosphere than at a regular URC game. Now thatโs nothing that Leinsterโs players wonโt be used to but that combination of things, it will feel hostile. The fact that theyโve such a long trip down there, the fact that the Bulls are going to be up for it, the fans are going to be up for it, maybe theyโre sort of levelling factors.โ
Jackman said: โItโs obviously a contest, I accept that the travel and the home crowd make it harder for Leinster but I think they will win by more than four points . . . I think Leinster will do a job on them. Leinster unfortunately have cracked under similar circumstances so thereโs a doubt there but I donโt think the Bulls are as good as Toulouse or La Rochelle potentially could be. Leinster should be able to win this one.โ
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Heโs entitled to his opinion, just as Iโm entitled to the opinion that heโs a self-aggrandising twit, who courts controversy with his ramblings just for the sake of it.
For someone who played at such a high level of the game, he displays a remarkable lack of understanding of it.
Brolly u are a plonkerโฆ