logo
Leinster may be semi-final specialists, but getting any further is often a coin toss

Leinster may be semi-final specialists, but getting any further is often a coin toss

Irish Times03-05-2025
Is there a sudden outbreak of
Leinster
'big-game fatigue' out there? Let's pause for a moment and put this weekend's
Champions Cup
semi-finals into context. It actually is an achievement to be one of the last quartet in any competition. Leinster and Toulouse are specialists at reaching this stage in the Champions Cup. Everyone else should be so lucky.
To start with the bleedin' obvious, only four teams out of the 24 which started out this season have managed the feat. As the URC, Top 14 and Premiership pauses, the other 20 would happily swap places with those hogging the stage this weekend. Of course, reaching a final belongs to an even more exclusive club.
Take Leinster. In the 30 years of what is now the Champions Cup, their encounter with Northampton on Saturday will be their 16th semi-final. If you stop and think about it, that truly is exceptional.
Unsurprisingly, the only club to have reached more semi-finals are Toulouse. Against Bordeaux Bègles on Sunday, they will be playing their 17th semi-final. By contrast, Northampton are playing in their fifth and Bordeaux Bègles just their second.
READ MORE
What might be a little more surprising is that even for the two highest achievers in the history of the tournament, there are no guarantees for Leinster and Toulouse when it comes to this stage of the tournament. Of Leinster's 15 semi-finals to date, they have won eight and lost seven. For their part, Toulouse have also endured their fair share of disappointment at this stage, winning eight and losing eight of their previous 16.
So, if there is a small element of big-game fatigue among Leinster fans, perhaps understandably, like all of us they have short memories. Admittedly it's 30 years ago since Leinster reached their first semi-final way back in the inaugural European Cup in 1995-96 when they, as well as Munster and Ulster, were among a dozen teams drawn from France, Wales, Italy and Romania.
Furthermore, all Leinster had to do was beat Milan away and Pontypridd at home to reach the last four. Almost despite themselves.
Niall Woods was a member of the Leinster squad that reached the province's first European Cup semi-final 30 years ago. Photograph: Andrew Paton/Inpho
Niall Woods was Leinster's left winger in the province's competition debut in Milan on November 1st, 1995, when the attendance was recorded as 1,200.
'The game kicked off at 2.30 on a Wednesday afternoon, and it was a mudbath. Diego Dominguez was playing,' recalls Woods of the normally prolific Argentinian-born Italian outhalf.
'He actually kicked two out of eight. It was filthy, as in the fighting, the gouging, the works. Obviously, I didn't see any of that, nor was I anywhere near it.'
[
Rugby analysis: Leinster attack looking more and more comfortable in chaos
Opens in new window
]
[
Matt Williams: Leinster can get past Northampton if they have planned for a new and improved opponent
Opens in new window
]
Despite Dominguez losing his radar, Leinster were losing the game late on.
'I got the ball on the 10-yard line, at outhalf from a ruck in the middle of the field. I stepped a fella and was just gone. These were the days when if you broke the first line, then you just had to round the fullback and we won by three points,' says Woods of Leinster's 24-21 victory.
I remember getting a cheque, I think for £175 to play because you were technically allowed to be paid at that stage

Niall Woods
'The reason I remember is that 'Munch' (aka Shane Byrne) was asked in an interview for the best try he ever saw and he said that one. I read it and laughed and said 'fair play Munch'. We were in [Blackrock] school together, so maybe that's why.'
Five weeks later, on a Wednesday night under lights, in what was also the first season of professionalism, Leinster beat Pontypridd 23-22 in Lansdowne Road to top their 'group' and earn a home semi-final.
'I remember getting a cheque, I think for £175 to play because you were technically allowed to be paid at that stage,' says Woods.
Leinster's Victor Costello breaks through the Cardiff defence during the European Cup semi-final on December 30, 1995. Photograph: Billy Stickland/Inpho
Leinster's first of 16 semi-finals was against Cardiff in Lansdowne Road on December 30th, 1995.
'Conor [O'Shea] was with London Irish and Conor came home on standby in case I failed the fitness test. I failed the fitness test, I'd say at 11 o'clock. It was a horrendous day, blowing a gale and freezing, so I was quite happy. It wasn't a day for me,' recalls Woods with a self-mocking chuckle.
The attendance was 7,350.
'Which was big in those days,' he stresses. 'You'd get 2-4,000 max in those days in Donnybrook. It was decent, put it that way, although we played Australia in 1992 and there was probably 20,000 people there; they had won the World Cup in 1991 and they were fully loaded.'
A European Cup semi-final was unchartered and underappreciated territory.
He added: 'It was totally unknown. It was something a bit different, playing someone from a different country in a game that meant something as opposed to a friendly. We played against New South Wales that season and I think we played eight games. Up to that point we played four games a year.
'Cardiff were the most stacked team of the Welsh at that stage. They were the equivalent of Leinster now. As a spectacle, the game wasn't great. The wind was horrific. Mary Robinson was President and they didn't bring her out on to the pitch because it was so windy.'
Leinster were beaten 23-14 and nobody was really complaining.
Leinster fans cheer on their team during the 2005-06 Heineken Cup campaign. Photograph: Billy Stickland/Inpho
'I don't remember being overly bothered that we lost. We did all right because we got to the semis, even if we only won two matches to get there. It was enjoyable and it was a bit different.'
Toulouse beat Cardiff at Cardiff Arms Park in the final a week later, with 21,800 in attendance, to give the European Cup lift-off.
Whether it was over-confidence or not I don't know

Niall Woods
It was seven years later when Leinster reached the semi-finals, meeting Perpignan at Lansdowne Road in April 2003. As evidenced by the 37,800 attendance, expectations were altogether higher.
Woods had retired in 2001 after a playing career with Trinity, Blackrock, Leinster, Ireland, London Irish and Harlequins. He then worked for the English Players' Union before coming home in January 2003 to set up the Irish Rugby Players' Union (IRUPA).
But in Leinster's biggest game of the 2002-03 season, their season ended with an anticlimactic 21-14 defeat.
'They didn't perform on the day at all,' says Woods. 'Whether it was over-confidence or not I don't know. They never got going. It was hugely disappointing.'
The pivotal matches in Leinster's history were the Heineken Cup semi-finals against Munster in 2006 at Lansdowne Road and 2009 in Croke Park. Technically, the first was a 'home' semi-final, though it was awash in red and felt like an away match. The second was an 'away' tie that was more akin to a neutral-venue fixture given the even split between blue and red in a record-setting attendance of 82,208.
'In 2006, 'Rog' dummies and scores under the sticks and in '09 Drico intercepts Rog's pass to score. They were the two defining moments,' says Woods with reference to Ronan O'Gara and Brian O'Driscoll.
Ronan O'Gara scores a try for Munster in their Heineken Cup semi-final victory against Leinster in 2006. Photograph: Inpho/Getty Images
'The difference in colour was stark. In '06 it was so red, when the Leinster supporters weren't as strong as they are now, whereas in '09 it was even.'
Leinster had reached a point of no return. The 25-6 win led to a breakthrough triumph three weeks later against Leicester in Murrayfield.
'It had started with the quarter-final in 'Quins, the bloodgate game and that [6-5] win gave them belief. Even the final in Edinburgh was a poor enough game against Leicester, but it would always be scrappy against them. But they managed to do it.
'In the semi, Leinster were notably better on the day. The [2009] Grand Slam probably helped. There was better quality throughout the Leinster team than there had been three years earlier, especially with Isa [Nacewa] and Rocky [Elsom] there.'
Leinster have reached another 10 semi-finals since that day, winning seven of them, and the key has been earning home semi-finals through their performances in the pool stages. Leinster have won all six ensuing semi-finals at home, whereas they have won only one of four away from home.
Leinster lost away to Toulouse as reigning champions in the 2010 semi-finals, when Johnny Sexton was injured, but have beaten Toulouse in four of the subsequent six semi-finals at home.
There was defeat to Toulon in 2015 at the Stade Velodrome in Marseille, when Jimmy Gopperth's drop-goal attempt to win the game was narrowly wide before Leinster were beaten in extra-time. They lost a last-four tie against Clermont in Lyon in 2017 and lost behind closed doors in La Rochelle four years ago.
Viewed in that context, Leinster's 19-15 win over a brilliant Clermont side [Julien Bonnaire, Morgan Parra, Wesley Fofana, Aurélien Rougerie and co] in Bordeaux in 2012 has arguably been their finest semi-final victory of all so far.
Cian Healy scores a try in Leinster's famous Heineken Cup semi-final win against Clermot in Bordeaux in 2012. Photograph: Billy Stickland/Inpho
'That was the inside pass to Rob Kearney and Cian Healy's finish,' says Woods – who stepped down as the IRUPA CEO in January 2011 to set up what is now the Navy Blue sports agency – of the famous Joe Schmidt strike play.
There was also the end-game stand on their own line, Gordon D'Arcy's tackle on Fofana to dislodge the ball before he grounded it and Seán O'Brien hanging on for dear life in the jackal to earn the final turnover penalty.
'I'd say that was their best ever semi-final win, considering who it was against and it was away from home,' says Woods, and to put that victory in context it was only the second semi-final win in France by an Irish or UK side – Munster having achieved the first in 2000 against Toulouse, also in Bordeaux.
Reaching semi-finals should never be taken for granted, albeit as Woods says: 'Leinster do have the majority of the Irish team and their budget is massive, above the French clubs as well as the English clubs now. But if Leinster are in any way off, the Saints have enough firepower to do damage.'
Indeed, as history shows us, nor do semi-finals, even at home, come with any guarantees.
'Go back to '03, against Perpignan. They should have beaten Perpignan. They should never have lost that.'
Leinster's semi-final record:
Played 15, Won 8, Lost 7
1995-96:
Leinster 14 Cardiff 23 (Lansdowne Road)
2002-03:
Leinster 14 Perpignan 21 (Lansdowne Road)
2005-06:
Leinster 6 Munster 30 (Lansdowne Road)
2008-09:
Munster 6 Leinster 25 (Croke Park)
2009-10:
Toulouse 26 Leinster 16 (Le Stadium, Toulouse)
2010-11:
Leinster 32 Toulouse 23 (Aviva Stadium)
2011-12:
Clermont 15 Leinster 19 (Stade Chaban-Delmas, Bordeaux)
2014-15:
Toulon 25 Leinster 20 aet (Stade Velodrome, Marseille)
2016-17:
Clermont 27 Leinster 22 (Matmut de Gerland, Lyon)
2017-18:
Leinster 38 Scarlets 16 (Aviva Stadium)
2018-19:
Leinster 30 Toulouse 12 (Aviva Stadium)
2020-21:
La Rochelle 32 Leinster 23 (Stade Deflandre, La Rochelle)
2021-22:
Leinster 40 Toulouse 17 (Aviva Stadium)
2022-23:
Leinster 41 Toulouse 22 (Aviva Stadium)
2023-24:
Leinster 20 Northampton 17 (Croke Park)
Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

Dan Sheehan's very clever and somewhat confusing try
Dan Sheehan's very clever and somewhat confusing try

The 42

time2 hours ago

  • The 42

Dan Sheehan's very clever and somewhat confusing try

WE'VE GOT LOTS of different examples of Dan Sheehan finishing tries in recent months but he surprised all of us, including the Wallabies, with his latest big play. Most teams task their hookers with being the person to tap five-metre penalties. Sheehan is good in this role. He has the size, acceleration, and bravery to thrust himself at the tryline, generally making a few metres for Leinster, Ireland or the Lions before the other forwards take over. Sometimes Sheehan is involved in trick plays where he needs to dummy a carry but instead pass, or leave the ball for someone else to tap. All in all, Sheehan brings a nice variety in this area of the game. When most players tap and carry, they do their best to stay low to the ground, attempting to drive in under the defenders as they race up off the tryline. Getting caught upright is a recipe for disaster into what are usually double or triple tackles. We get an example of that low-carrying approach from Sheehan in last weekend's first Test win over the Wallabies just before Tom Curry's try. Sheehan places his left foot ahead of the ball, bringing himself closer to the tryline, then uses his right foot to tap it. He scoops the ball up as he accelerates off his planted left foot. Sheehan's acceleration takes him over the first couple of metres and then he starts to dive down towards the ground before tacklers James Slipper, Allan Alaalatoa, and Harry Wilson can make heay contact with him. The idea of dropping in low is that Sheehan can burrow under the tacklers, rather than getting rocked back by them. Essentially, his decision to drive low in the carry means he can bank those first three metres he has made off the tap. Curry scores a crucial try for the Lions two phases later. Fast forward to the second Test in Melbourne on Saturday and Sheehan uses the same approach on the first occasion the Lions decide to go for a five-metre tap penalty. Sheehan taps with his right leg, races over the first few metres and dives down into the tackle from Slipper and Wallabies hooker Dave Porecki. The Lions then try a 'Leicester' play – something Ireland and Leinster also use, inspired originally by the Tigers – by switching into the shortside with Andrew Porter, only for the Wallabies to read it well and stop him. A few phases later, the Wallabies are caught offside and the Lions decide to go for another five-metre tap. As Sheehan stands over the ball, we know what the Wallabies are expecting. But he pulls out a new move that catches the Australians off guard. Sheehan again taps and accelerates but this time, he doesn't dive in low to get under the tacklers. Instead, he dives straight over the top of them for the tryline. It's clearly something the Lions had discussed and planned. We can see Maro Itoje grabbing Sheehan's shirt and looking to propel him forward just as the hooker dives for the line. Advertisement Itoje wants to add any additional velocity he can to Sheehan's dive for the tryline. We can see how the two Wallabies tacklers who Sheehan drove under on the earlier tap penalties – Slipper and Porecki – are expecting him to do the same again. Porecki and Slipper are both dropping in low to try and complete the tackle, expecting Sheehan to be down there too. Instead, he clears both of them on his way to the tryline. It's very clever from Sheehan and the Lions, who show the Wallabies one picture with the hooker's tap and low carries before they spring a completely different picture on them. Referee Andrea Piardi awards the try, but the Wallabies immediately appeal, claiming that Sheehan has illegally jumped over the tackle. 'He's allowed to jump to score the try,' says Piardi as Wilson vehemently tries to get the try overturned. World Rugby issued a law clarification around this kind of thing back in 2022 at the behest of New Zealand Rugby, following two incidents where players jumped as a defender tried to tackle them. In the first instance, below, World Rugby ruled that Chiefs number eight Pita Gus Sowakula should have been penalised for jumping to hurdle the tackler, Aaron Smith of the Highlanders. World Rugby said that Sowakula's actions here were against Law 9.11, 'Players must not do anything that is reckless or dangerous to others including leading with the elbow or forearm, or jumping into, or over, a tackler.' Wales' Blair Murray was penalised for the same offence during this year's Six Nations. The same month, Moana Pasifika wing Kyren Taumoefolau was not penalised for the incident below, but Super Rugby bosses later admitted that this should have been a penalty against Taumoefolau. As World Rugby underlined in 2022, 'jumping to hurdle a potential tackler is dangerous play' and should be penalised. In each of these instances involving Sowakula, Murray, and Taumoefolau, they are clearly jumping to clear the defender, with each of them landing again before continuing upfield. They are not diving for the tryline. The other incident that New Zealand Rugby asked for clarification on in 2022 was Jonny May's memorable try against Italy. Frustratingly, World Rugby didn't actually say whether this finish was legal or illegal. They rather confusingly said that players should be allowed to dive to score, but also that defenders may attempt 'safe and legal tackles' in these instances. World Rugby added that in rare situations like this one, 'match officials have to make a judgement call as to which actions have taken place' and that 'if there is any element of dangerous play, in line with the above ruling [re. Sowakula], then a try cannot be the reward.' It's very rugby for the governing body to simply say it's up to the officials to decide in the moment. Just last month, World Rugby had another request in this area from its own high performance referee manager, Joël Jutge. 'At a ruck/breakdown close to the goal line, the attacking scrum-half picks up the ball and dives forward over the ruck in an attempt to score a try,' read the request. 'Is this legal or should it be sanctioned?' Lions skipper Itoje was involved in one of the incidents examined. World Rugby said that these incidents were 'potentially dangerous actions, so a player who attempts this and makes any contact with players already on the ground can be sanctioned' with a penalty. World Rugby did refer to its 2022 clarification in underlining that in these 'specific ruck situations, it would be difficult to either dive safely, or then be tackled safely.' So diving over a ruck to score was confirmed as illegal, as long as the diving player makes contact with other players already on the ground. But of course, Sheehan doesn't dive over a ruck for his Lions try, so really the 2022 clarification on May's try was the most relevant thing for Piardi on Saturday at the MCG. He knew it was a judgment call from his point of view. The Italian referee decided that Sheehan was making a genuine dive to score the try, rather than dangerously hurdling a tackler. And that's the bottom line here – World Rugby basically said that the referee's judgement call in this kind of situation is the law. Piardi decided it was a try, so it was a try. Wallabies boss Joe Schmidt – a former World Rugby director of rugby – expressed his concerns about the score post-match. 'It's illegal to jump the tackle, but he dived over,' said Schmidt. 'What it now challenges World Rugby to do is that if we have two guys going in low and a guy dives over that, he is pretty much headfirst. 'So what do we do to stop him scoring, apart from stopping his head? There's not much else you can do.' It's a fair point from Schmidt and underlines how willing Sheehan was to put his body on the line for the Lions. If one of the Wallabies defenders had stayed up high or popped upwards late, it could have been a nasty collision. But they didn't. The Wallabies tacklers were lured down into low positions by Sheehan's previous set-up plays and he soared right over the top of them. Piardi was happy and Andy Farrell's men had five crucial points.

Alex Dunne retakes F2 Championship lead with Belgian Grand Prix victory
Alex Dunne retakes F2 Championship lead with Belgian Grand Prix victory

RTÉ News​

time6 hours ago

  • RTÉ News​

Alex Dunne retakes F2 Championship lead with Belgian Grand Prix victory

Alex Dunne reclaimed the lead of the FIA Formula2 Championship with victory at the Belgian Grand Prix feature race. The Offaly native scorched to pole position on Friday, more than four-tenths of a second clear of Japanese driver Ritomo Miyata. Having claimed second at the rain-sodden British Grand Prix earlier this month, the 19-year-old again showed his skill in wet conditions to claim his third victory of the season at the legendary Spa circuit in a race that began behind a safety car. The Rodin driver and McLaren junior completed the 19 laps ahead of Arvid Lindblad and Roman Stanek, and having started the day third overall in the championship standings, Dunne returns to the summit on 137 points, ahead of Richard Verschoor (122) and Italian Leonardo Fornaroli (121), who was the sprint race winner. Dunne made a flying start once the safety car departed and, despite a brief challenge from Japan's Ritomo Miyata, led by time he entered the pit lane. He returned from the pitstop in fourth before an audacious overtaking manoeuvre past Ollie Goethe saw him re-take the lead. The safety car returned late on when Sebastian Montoya crashed and when Goethe retired in the final lap with engine failure, Dunne took the chequered flag unchallenged. "I had to work really hard for that one," Dunne said afterwards. "It was really tough." Dunne has won two feature races this year in Bahrain and at Imola, and recently became the first Irish driver to feature in a Formula One grand prix session for 22 years when he took part in Friday first practice ahead of the Austrian Grand Prix.

Ronan O'Gara splattered on by seagull mid-punditry
Ronan O'Gara splattered on by seagull mid-punditry

Extra.ie​

time9 hours ago

  • Extra.ie​

Ronan O'Gara splattered on by seagull mid-punditry

This is the moment former rugby international Ronan O'Gara had a bird poop on him while he was on live punditry duties in Melbourne, Australia. It is considered a sign of good luck, whether the person targeted feels that way is another story, but the 48-year-old took the unfortunate act in his stride. Ronan was working as a pundit during the Australia versus British and Irish Lions Second Test series, which saw Andy Farrell's British & Irish Lions victorious on a score of 29 to 26. Pic: Sky Sports The Aussies led for the majority of the match with the final play of the game seeing Hugo Keenan score a try to put the Lions in front for the first time — ending the game on a win. While the Wallabies have one last attempt at victory next week, Ronan won't be on duty for Sky with the rugby star returning to La Rochelle this weekend. The former fly-half got a heartwarming send-off from his Sky colleagues with even the seagulls getting in on the action. @skysports Good luck? Bad luck? Ronan O'Gara was given a 'gift' from the Melbourne seagulls, live on air, following the Lions' series victory 😅 #lions2025 #lionstour #britishandirishlions #lions #rugby #rugbyunion ♬ original sound – Sky Sports Presenter Alex Payne was mid-question when the hilarious moment ensure, with Will Greenwood quick to point out that a 'bid just pooed on Ronan!' Laughing it off, the Cork man turned to fans to point out that his shoe had been his as well as the arm of his jacket. As being caught by a bird pooing is a sign of good luck former English rugby star Will foretold that La Rochelle would win the European Cup as well as the Top 14, much to Ronan's delight. The Aussies led for the majority of the match with the final play of the game seeing Hugo Kennan score a try to put the Lions in front for the first time — ending the game on a win. Pic: INPHO/James Crombie The hilarious moment was shared via TikTok with Sky Sports writing: 'Good luck? Bad luck? Ronan O'Gara was given a 'gift' from the Melbourne seagulls, live on air, following the Lions' series victory.' Social media users took to the comments to express their delight at the 'wild moment.' One said: 'That's one wild moment! Can't believe he got that gift live on air.' Another added: 'Can't believe the seagulls helped Ronan O'Gara like that! Talk about lucky timing!' A third hit out: 'Normally it comes out of his mouth.'

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into a world of global content with local flavor? Download Daily8 app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store