Heineken Cup / Hugh Cahill / 19 May 2009 / Leave a comment

Can Leinster repeat their semi-final heroics when they meet the Leicester Tigers in Saturday's Heineken Cup final? Hugh Cahill believes the answer depends an inexperienced fly-half as well as the most talented man on the pitch ...

Winning a Heineken Cup is a very difficult thing to do. Just ask Munster. It is a long, gruelling slog that can lead teams along dangerous paths on the road to the ultimate prize. To win it, as previous successful coaches will confirm, one needs not only a highly skilled and balanced starting 15, but also a powerful and enduring squad of players that can withstand blow after blow for the best part of six months. It is without doubt the holy grail in European club rugby. Leinster and Leicester have fought many battles to reach the final in Murrayfield on Saturday but ultimately, there can only be one winner.

The main question to be asked of the Irish province going in to Saturday's match is; have Leinster already played their final? Many rugby analysts would argue that down the years Leinster have struggled to put in back to back performances against strong opposition. Remember Toulouse in France? That heart breaking defeat to Perpignan in Lansdowne Road? This season, on both occasions in their last two games against Harlequins and Munster, I seriously considered backing them to win but stopped myself each time.

Hindsight is a wonderful thing and looking back on it, Leinster at [4.0] on Betfair to beat Munster in Dublin was, on the face of it, extremely generous odds. I did not take them. Likewise, Leinster to get a result against Harlequinns at the Stoop at just over evens was a value punt. Again I let it slide. This is a guy who has backed Leinster in all previous Heineken Cup competitions - from outright winners, to straight up head to head games - and never thought twice about it. Something stopped me this season and, sure enough, they have come out on top on each occassion so far. Murphy's law? If I'm really honest, however, I know full well why I didn't put money on them this year; I simply did not believe they had it in them.

From the start of the 2008/2009 season, Leinster have flitted between sub standard mediocrity and surpassing themselves. They have not reached the heights expected from a squad with their capabilities. Felipe Contepomi has been far from his best and as a result, the team have failed to fire on all cylinders. The daft experiment with Isa Nacewa at fly-half will hang over Michael Cheika's head for some time. He clearly was neither comfortable nor competent in that position and valuable time to explore the full potential of Jonathon Sexton at 10 was lost. Now Cheika must turn to a 24-year-old he previously deemed third choice in the most crucial position and ask him to dictate proceedings in a Heineken Cup final. Sounds crazy? It is.

I was in Croke park for the semi-final against Munster. Despite the manner of Leinster's victory; their dominance against the mighty Munster pack, their determination, doggedness in defence and brilliance in attack, one image stands out in my mind from that game. When Gordon Darcy crossed for the opening try, Sexton - who was on the pitch about eight minutes - ran over to Ronan O'Gara and screamed mockingly in his face. The game wasn't even 30 minutes old and Sexton, who was being asked to steer his side to a Heineken cup final against the defending champions, was mocking and jeering one of the most accomplished fly-halves in the world.

Was it this immaturity that Cheika saw from day one? Nevertheless, because of the injury to Contepomi, Sexton will be the starting fly half in Edinburgh on Saturday and he will be pivotal in determining the outcome of the game. If he's on form, Leinster can win. The worry is that he has not yet proved himself on the big occasions and they don't come much bigger then this.

Last time these two sides faced each other, Leicester were overpowered and outplayed and Leicester ran out easy winners. The Tigers went on to lift the Cup that year and despite the absence of most of that team, they know what it takes to win this competition. Leinster have yet to experience it. Leicester put in a serious performance and defied the odds to contain Cardiff in the semi-final. They have muscle and aggression upfront and pace and power out wide. Tom Vesty has found a new lease of life at 10 and players like Tom Croft - now almost certain to take Quinlan's place on the Lions tour - and Geordan Murphy can turn a game in an instant.

Leinster need to go out and get on top from the very start. If they allow the Tigers to grab an early foothold on the game, they will be chewed up and spat out. Brian O'Driscoll has had arguably his finest ever spell in the game so far and despite Leo Cullen taking over the captains armband this season, O'Driscoll must lead from the front as he did for Ireland in the Six Nations. He is the most talented man on the pitch and another epic performance from him would go a long way towards clinching the Cup.

Leinster fans must ask themselves a few hard questions ahead of this game. How much do their team want it? Do they have another massive performance in them? Will Michael Cheika have enough time to get Jonathon Sexton in the right frame of mind for the biggest match of his life and, more importantly, will the 24-year-old rise to the task? Will the absence of Contepomi - still one of the best players in the world - be too much to overcome? Can Brian O'Driscoll grab the bull by the horns and turn out yet another herculean performance? That's a lot of questions that need positive answers.

There's no doubting Leinster have had much the easier run in to this game. A couple of inconsequential matches in the Magners League will hardly have had the ship at full tilt. Leicester, meanwhile, have just won the Guinness Premiership in a hard fought and largely unimpressive battle against London Irish and they must also be suffering from the Heineken Cup semi final extra time and penalty shoot out win over Cardiff. Will they be out on their feet this weeked?

Leinster fans will argue that their side have peaked at just the right time and that this just has to be their year. The problem is, rugby, and in particular the Heineken Cup, owes you nothing. Often the best performing side throughout the season do not go on to make the latter stages of the tournament. Leinster bungled their way through the group stage and have since put in brilliant performances to reach the final. Leicester, seasoned campaigners and former champions, stand in their way. It's going to take something very special.

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