THREE OF LEINSTER’s key players received minor injuries tonight in their 10-0 victory over Connacht with Jack Conan (eye), James Ryan (knee) and Josh van der Flier (ankle) all receiving treatment after the victory in Galway.
However, Leo Cullen their head coach revealed that the decision to take Tadhg Furlong off at half-time was tactical rather than enforced. “The plan was to just get him through 40 minutes rather than get him to come back out again.”
As for the game, a low-score-bore, Cullen was quietly satisfied, this being the rugby equivalent of a Premier League top six side being victorious on a Monday night in Stoke. The conditions here were tough. So were Connacht. Yet Leinster prevailed to secure the four points.
“Jeepers, you’re looking out the window all afternoon thinking the weather is lovely here today and then you see the forecast, you kinda knew the rain was coming,” said Cullen afterwards.
“We had some more chances to push on but couldn’t quite nail them. Then Connacht come back into the game.
“It’s a very difficult place to come. There’s the crowd influence, they’re into everything, aren’t they? The Connacht players feed off that, so they made life difficult for us with their defence.
“You can see what it means to them. I think it’s a great reflection of provincial rugby in Ireland. I know the game is not a classic but there is great intent and desire to represent and give everything to your team. That’s the real positive.
“The form book does go out the window a little bit because the players want to give it everything.
“We’re pleased with how our guys dug in over the course of the game.
“It’s one of those ones where you’re kinda like take your four points, get back on the bus and off you go again.”
Afterwards Connacht’s Paul Boyle said: “Leinster are a really good team, they never give up, they hit you with a constant wave of attack. But we fronted up physically. It is just individual errors at different times that hurt us.
“Those silly knock-ons at crucial times stop you getting into a flow then. We just need to look at that.”
The Connacht head coach, Andy Friend, added: “What is letting us down is fact we did not win the clinical battle. They took their chances and that was the difference tonight. You have to give credit to Leinster. Defensively they are a quality side. Tonight we didn’t seem to have flow. It is frustrating to leave chances out there.
“So while we are proud of the effort, we are not pleased with the result.
“Our performances are getting better but we are one win from five games at the minute and with a two-game block to come, we need to get more clinical. We will be working hard to do that.”
