IN THE END, La Rochelle are without their talisman as Will Skelton has been ruled out of tomorrow’s clash against Leinster at Stade Marcel Deflandre [KO 3.15pm Irish time, Premier Sports] due to injury.
Leinster had seemingly anticipated that Skelton would recover to feature but the mammoth Aussie lock was missing when Ronan O’Gara confirmed his matchday 23 yesterday.
That means La Rochelle have lost lock Skelton and hooker Tolu Latu, who was banned this week for his illegal clearout against Toulouse last weekend. It was only given yellow at the time but a subsequent disciplinary hearing ensured that Latu was more heavily sanctioned.
The combined absences deprive La Rochelle of a fair degree of size and power, even if they still have lots of that in their matchday squad.
O’Gara has gone for a 7/1 split of forwards and backs on the bench in an indication that La Rochelle are taking the battle up front very seriously. Leinster have lots of punch among their replacements and the likes of 142kg tighthead Georges-Henri Colombe Reazal, Ireland international Ultan Dillane, Fijian powerhouse Levani Botia, and back row duo Matthias Haddad and Judicaël Cancoriet should bring explosive impact.
20-year-old wing Hoani Bosmorin is the only back on La Rochelle’s bench so there is clearly risk involved. Bosmorin is set to cover scrum-half as he did for their Top 14 game against Perpignan. A couple of backline injuries could cause real stress.
Even without Skelton, Latu, and the injured Jonathan Danty, La Rochelle’s starting XV still includes lots of quality.
The back row of in-form captain Grégory Alldritt, Paul Boudehent, and Oscar Jégou are all France internationals, with 21-year-old Jegou clearly having a big future ahead of him with club and country.
Thomas Lavault and former Leinster man Kane Douglas are in the second row to lead the assault on the visitors’ lineout and maul, while the grizzled tighthead Uini Atonio and France loosehead Reda Wardi will go after scrum penalties.
Kerr-Barlow and Hastoy are a proven halfback pairing, outside centre Ulupano Seuteni is a class act, while fullback Brice Dulin’s kicking game is always important for O’Gara’s side. The La Rochelle boss would love to see experienced wing pair Jack Nowell and Dillyn Leyds making an impact with ball in hand after a lack of cutting-edge out wide recently.
Still, Leinster’s favouritism for tomorrow has grown slightly since confirmation that Skelton is out for La Rochelle.
And Leinster’s own matchday 23 showcases the quality they can call on as Tadhg Furlong makes his long-awaited return to action for the first time since October. His hamstring and calf issues are behind him and he has lost time to make up for.
Intriguingly, Leinster have opted to go with loosehead Andrew Porter on the bench for the second game in a row. Porter came on for starter Jack Boyle just 22 minutes into the win over Munster in Thomond Park and it now looks like Leinster will use the same new tactic against La Rochelle, albeit Cian Healy is starting at number one this time around.
The thinking seems to be that Leinster can benefit from the sudden injection of Porter’s power into the game and finish with him on the pitch, with the usual sub’s cameo instead coming at the start of the contest. It’s certainly worth another look after working well in Thomond Park.
Hugo Keenan and Ciarán Frawley were both available for selection this weekend after recovering from injuries but initially missed out on the matchday 23 in an indicator of Leinster’s enviable backline options.
Jamie Osborne was named at fullback yesterday, while Jimmy O’Brien was on the left wing with James Lowe still sidelined.
Tommy O’Brien was named on the right wing after Jordan Larmour suffered an injury earlier this week but it has now emerged that O’Brien too has been ruled out in the latest cruel injury blow for him.
That means Jordie Barrett, initially named on the bench, starts at fullback with Osborne moving to the left wing and Jimmy O’Brien switching to the right.
Barrett has predominantly featured as an inside centre for Leinster, with five of his six appearances so far in that position, but he was good at fullback against Clermont last month and has a top-end history in the position.
Frawley, who is only back up and running after injury, will now make his comeback off the bench but Keenan is still outside the matchday 23 albeit having just returned to full training. Leo Cullen and Jacques Nienaber will be delighted at such a serious sense of competition within the squad.
Ryan Baird holds his place in the starting back row after impressing against Munster, helping to solidify the lineout in particular, so Jack Conan’s comeback from injury will be off the bench. The fact that in-form Max Deegan is not involved speaks volumes.
The Leinster bench has a potent look, with 21-year-old hooker Gus McCarthy continuing his brilliant season by backing up Rónan Kelleher again as Dan Sheehan continues to rehab his knee injury, while French tighthead Rabah Slimani’s scrummaging nous means he is preferred to the fit-again Thomas Clarkson.
Helpfully, Leinster’s bench also includes one of the best players in the world. RG Snyman is among the elite and his entry into the game should be a key factor. It’s understood that Leinster can’t start Snyman in these Champions Cup games but to have him supporting starting locks James Ryan and Joe McCarthy is dream stuff.
Luke McGrath’s excellent performance against Munster and his defensive excellence mean he is still the back-up to starting scrum-half Jamison Gibson-Park, while Ross Byrne’s nous is also trusted once again as the second out-half.
Sam Prendergast continues as the main man at number 10 and he can expect some heat at Stade Marcel Deflandre. He has looked unflustered by each step in his impressive rise so far, earning high praise from none other than O’Gara along the way.
Both clubs have shown their hands and the sense is that Leinster are closer to a royal flush.
- This article was updated at 10.12am on 11 January to reflect the late change to Leinster’s team.
Can’t wait for this now… the 7:1 bench is a massive risk. It is not beyond the realms of possibility that La Rochelle are chasing the game with minutes to go and, as Ireland discovered in the RWC, you need to bring fresh legs with fresh ideas into the fray to win that battle. Plus 1 injury to the backs could be a disaster, nevermind 2!!
@Paul Ennis: Botia played a lot of his rugby at 12 so not really 7/1
@Paul Ennis: looking at both 23’s, you’d have very few LRO players in a combined 15 or 23. Their squad isn’t actually that impressive so it highlights how good a job ROG has done. I expect Leinster will have too much today and it mightn’t be that close in the end.
@Michael Corkery: at their peak when they won the finals their squad was extremely impressive on the day with size and power than no other team in Europe could match. Skelton, Antonio and Botia are unique athletes although the later two are getting on in years
@Barry Leahy: This is a really good point… I suppose SA had similar options when they named a 7:1 bench… but it is still a risk.
Leinster will probably have this wrapped up at halftime. No Skelton today for La Rochelle is a huge loss as Leinster couldn’t handle him over the last few seasons.
@Liam23: Yep like a recent one – 17-0 after 20 minutes and still blow it!!
@Lulu: that game probably convinced Cullen that their defense was not good enough to win trophies.
@Michael Corkery: it’s cute seeing Munster fans discussing Leinster together. big Ls
@adizlack93: Most balanced fans comment positively on the other Irish teams. We all want what’s good for Irish rugby and appreciate what each side brings. The infantile attitude of attacking another side because it’s not the one you support is really crazy and perhaps not mentally beneficial.
@Con Cussed: what each side brings? You’re acting like the national team isn’t relying extremely heavily on Leinster for the last decade. You’re also forgetting that the 3 other provinces rely on Leinster’s discarded players to fill their squad. Yet everyone else likes to have a dig at Leinster for what they have or have not achieved forgetting the fact that without a strong Leinster backbone rugby in this country would be a shadow of itself. 10/13 central contracts earned by Leinster players illustrates my point perfectly.
@adizlack93: you do know there has been an Irish team before the last decade
@Liam23: yeah and we won nothing
@adizlack93: In fairness we won a slam in 09 with a Munster dominated pack and half backs. But, back then, as a Leinster fan, I never recalled being as toxic towards Munster as some of their ‘fans’ are towards Leinster now sadly. Quite the opposite actually. A shame that isn’t being reciprocated now that Leinster are the dominant team on the island.
I believe it will come down a lot to fitness levels and I believe Leinster have the upper hand… Leinster’s player management and squad depth will be a factor in the closing 10 mins of the game if the scores are tight and the fact of Porter Snyman and Barret to spring of the bench enough to down any team…
@Den: Fitness and Leinster …… how many games have they failed to score in the second half??
@Lulu: teams are putting a lot more into defence when playing Leinster but as the stats demonstrate they are failing to out score Leinster…Again I say the depth at Leinster and the level of fitness due to the game management of players is telling and I feel this will play a major part again with La Rochelle… La Rochelle play in a more demanding league Pro14 the demand on the squad is greater which can be a benefit but can also be a hindrance with player game time management.
@Lulu: Don’t think that has much to do with fitness. It’s more the George Graham-ification of Leinster under Nienaber.