‘Our analysis is broader than just one game or the result of a final’

WHILE LEINSTER’S RECORD in European finals had been faultless up until two weekends ago, the province have enjoyed and endured mixed fortunes in league deciders, having four won and lost four of their eight appearances at this stage of the competition.

Whereas 12 months ago their motivation at the Aviva Stadium was to complete the second piece of a historic double, the complexion of this week is somewhat different, with Leo Cullen’s side determined to avoid finishing the season empty-handed having harboured genuine ambitions of a double-double as recently as two games ago.

Rob Kearney and Felipe Contepomi at training on Monday. Source: Laszlo Geczo/INPHO

Leinster lost three Celtic League/Magners League finals, as they were back then, on the bounce between 2010 and 2012, before winning back-to-back Pro12 titles in 2013 and 2014, only to lose the famous 2016 decider to Connacht at Murrayfield.

Cullen’s charges made no mistake on their return to the showpiece last season, convincingly sweeping Scarlets aside in Dublin, to add a fifth league crown to the fourth European title they had won a fortnight previous.

The hope was that they would be coming into Saturday’s final against Glasgow Warriors as back-to-back European champions, but their defeat to Saracens in Newcastle has only served to heighten the significance of this weekend for the eastern province.

But while Felipe Contepomi agrees the group are hugely driven heading to Celtic Park, to say the result of Saturday’s clash will solely define Leinster’s season is overstating it.

“We see a broader picture rather than just the trophy, we want this club to keep moving forward,” he says. “Obviously, trophies and getting silverware is what you play for but it’s our job, or our way of assessing seasons, it’s bigger than just winning or losing one game.

“It’s very important, we’re here to win, we play this sport because we want to win and that’s the mentality of our players as well. We would like to have the silverware but our analysis goes broader than just one game or the result of a final.”

Certainly, it has been another hugely positive season for Leinster who, along with Glasgow, have been the two best teams in the competition, while they came up just short in their bid to retain their Champions Cup title. Small margins.

The bottom line, however, is that a club of Leinster’s stature needs silverware for this season to be deemed a success. Losing two finals in one year is almost unthinkable, and the defending champions travel to Scotland knowing they face an almighty challenge on Saturday.

Dave Rennie’s Glasgow have learned their lessons from last year and were again utterly dominant in Conference A, before emphatically dispatching Ulster in a seven-try semi-final rout last Friday.

Given they will have home city advantage for their third Pro14 final appearance, and first since 2015, the Warriors will be heavily fancied this weekend, while they have lost just one of the last five meetings between the sides.

“They’re a very, very good team and they can turn around situations in the blink of an eye,” Contepomi continues. “They can turn defensive situations into attack with two, three passes. They have very good individuals as well and they are very well coached.

“I think it all starts up front, always. Definitely, they have speed and quality in the back three and we’ll have our strategy. It’s more about a whole performance and when you get into finals rugby or into a final, it’s a sequence of small moments. Every final is different, every game is different and you need to make sure we get those things right. Set-pieces, defence and when the chances come, make sure we take them.”

In that sense, Contepomi and the squad know they need to go up another gear from last weekend’s semi-final win over the Munster, with the assistant coach even admitting Leinster will need their best performance of the season to get a result.

“We need to be better, definitely. We have to go up another notch in terms of attack and in defence. You always have space to get better but Glasgow are probably the in-form team. They had a great semi-final and will be confident going into a final in their home city.

“We know it’s a massive challenge and we know we need our best performance of the season to get a result.”