Northern Edition

Select Edition

Northern Northern
Southern Southern
Global Global
New Zealand New Zealand
France France

South African URC sides indebted to La Rochelle after Champions Cup final

Leinster squad after losing to La Rochelle/ PA

South African teams will have learnt a lot from watching French powerhouse La Rochelle beat Leinster in an epic European Champions’ Cup final on Saturday, not the least that the Vodacom United Rugby Championship favourites are not invincible.

ADVERTISEMENT

La Rochelle’s win will have stunned Leinster’s faithful, and much of European rugby, but it also opened a door to other teams to know that while Leinster are incredibly strong, there are cracks that can be exploited.

Firstly, the one thing all teams know is clear is that to get to the URC title you will have to beat Leinster at some point. Four time consecutive PRO14 champions and overall log leaders in the first edition of URC make them clear favourites.

Video Spacer

Win Tickets and Flights to the final of Major League Rugby

Video Spacer

Win Tickets and Flights to the final of Major League Rugby

But what La Rochelle showed on Saturday is that Leinster, for all their success and impressive systems throughout, are not unbeatable.

South African coaches in particular will have taken notice of that, and not least Danny Wilson from Glasgow Warriors, whose side will face Leinster in Saturday’s quarterfinal.

The Warriors will – like all other teams in the competition – be wary of a Leinster backlash, but they will also take note of how La Rochelle outscored Leinster three tries to nil, were dominant in the setpieces and made the side with the fastest ruck reload in the competition look as if they were slow off the mark at times.

The La Rochelle blueprint for victory may have come through courage and determination, but it showed a bunch of teams in the URC that Leinster can be beaten, if you can muster the will and determination to play the right game against them.

ADVERTISEMENT

That may be easier said than done and there is no doubt that Leinster are hurting in coming so close to claiming a fifth European star but failing near the end.

And just how much hurt will be turned into emotion this weekend against Glasgow waits to be seen, and just how much of a backlash there is will also be determined.

Leinster will want now, more than ever, to claim the inaugural URC trophy and will know that, by finishing top of the log, they will play at home in their famed Aviva Stadium where they are very, very hard to beat on any given day.

And the fact that Ronan O’Gara – a former Munster and Ireland legend – ruined their dream of that fifth star and now boasts two wins against them (La Rochelle beat Leinster in the semifinal last year), will make it even more hurtful when they regather this week to shift their attention to the URC.

ADVERTISEMENT

Their coach Leo Cullen described the loss as “sickening” and it is clear the hurt will be channelled into their preparations this coming week.

“It has not really hit home,” said Cullen after the game. “We are licking our wounds. It came down to fine margins and a couple of defensive sets.

“But there is probably a story before that as well in how we got into that situation.

“In the last 15 minutes we could have been better. It is a sickener, but credit to La Rochelle.”

Cullen will know that he has used 60 players this season for Leinster and has used them well. But it will be the loss of impact from the bench that will have hit the hardest. There will be a moment where he wonders if a more battle-hardened side that could have toured South Africa may have been more equipped for the French team they faced?

Either way these questions will linger, especially in a game of fine margins.

“You can’t fault the effort. There are bits in the game that we don’t quite execute at stages. Different parts of our game that puts us under undue pressure, but that’s what you’re expecting with this kind of game anyway, it’s high stakes and high pressure against a French team, away in France,” Cullen said.

“We’d love to have a crack at it again, but you don’t get a second chance in finals, do you?,” he added.

The same goes for playoff matches. The South African teams know this is as real as it gets and there are no second chances.

They also know that if a side like Leinster struggles in Europe after dominating the URC, they will need to up their game significantly before entering Europe next season.

And they will know that whoever gets through this weekend’s playoffs will need to face Leinster at some point.

And like La Rochelle find a way of making Leinster look ordinary. That will be no easy task.

But as the French side showed, it can be done.

Credit: URCSA

ADVERTISEMENT

LIVE

{{item.title}}

Trending on RugbyPass

Comments

0 Comments
Be the first to comment...

Join free and tell us what you really think!

Sign up for free
ADVERTISEMENT

Latest Features

Comments on RugbyPass

R
RedWarrior 24 minutes ago
Three-way race to be number one in World Rugby men's rankings

IF SA and NZ win then its 1,2,3 SA/NZ/IRL Otherwise as you were. This is largely irrelevant beyond bragging rights.


As I have pointed out elsewhere the practical use of the Rankings is to determine the seedings bands for the RWC draw. The draw takes place early 2026 and hopefully the rankings will be taken from then.


Important to be in the top 6, the top 12. (and likely the top 4).

This is because there are now 6 groups in the RWC 2027.

If you are in top 6 you are in Seeding Band 1. That means none of the other top 6 will be in your group.

Seeding Band 2 are teams from 7-12, who will have a top 6 team but no other 7-12 team.

After England's defeat by NZ there is clear water between NZ in 3rd, France in 4th and England in 5th. England are desperate for top4, ill come back and explain why later.

Lets look at Seeding Band 1 and 6th place. If you make 6th, no top 6 team is in your group, you are top dog. If you win your group, you won't be facing a top 6 team in your 1/8th final, you will be facing a weaker team. If you fail to make 6th place you WILL have a top 6 team in your group and if you don't win your group you WILL (probably) meet a top 6 in the 1/8 final. That's massive.


Its Argentina holding 6th now. Assuming England hold 5th, then its a 4 horse race for 6th. Argentina, Scotland, Italy and ...Australia. (ranked 6,7,8,9)

Australia play the Lions in NH summer 2025 they are running out of time to get up to 6th for their own RWC. They MUST make a move now. They must beat Wales and they really must beat Scotland to gain points and take points off them. Could they surprise England or Ireland? England may be the better bet but Schmidt knows Ireland so well having masterminded their downfall in France.

Another one to watch is Italy V Argentina. Italy are ambitious and they will want to start pushing the likes of Argentina. If they win this they are still in the hunt. Well worth a watch either way.


Top4: I think the top 6 will be seeded, all the way through from the draw. If thats the case then the top 4 will be seeded to avoid each other until the semi. Good for more certainty around ticket sales etc. That's a possible reason why England want in there. You're not in there you are hitting a top 4 team in a QF. That's an extra 50:50 match you can do without and avoid by being top 4.


Lets look at what Seeding bands might look like with todays rankings:


Seeding Band 1

IRE/SA/NZ/FRA/ENG/ARG

Seeding Band 2

SCO/ITA/AUS/FIJ/WAL/GEO


Sample Aussie strongest pool opponent and 1/8th final opponent if in top 6

Strongest pool opponent: FIJI

1/8 final opponent GEORGIA

Prognosis: advance to 1/4 and potentially beyond


Sample Aussie strongest pool opponent and 1/8th final opponent if NOT in top 6

Strongest pool opponent: SOUTH AFRICA

1/8 final opponent NEW ZEALAND

Prognosis: You know the prognosis


I am pretty sure this is not lost on Joe Schmidt?


Keep in mind when enjoying the matches.

1 Go to comments
G
GS 1 hour ago
Are the All Blacks doomed to a 70% flatline?

The key is realising this AB side is not what they are now but what they will be in 2025/26.


You can already see a Power bench forming, and I would highlight that people watch the AB XV game vs Munster and watch Fabian Holland - he, in the next 24 months, will be WC and bring some huge physicality to the team.


Then, aligned with Peter Lakai, probably at 7, another WC talent, the AB pack by 2026 will probably both be starting and on the bench - be rated as No 1 or 2 packs in the world.


Then, there is the usual WC talent around the backline, and the missing link is Mo'unga. Unlike in last year's WC, the coming forward pack for the ABs, is similar to the Bok pack, It will be packed full of power, and the key to this is a realitively young pack.


So I think we will lose to Ireland and France in the coming weeks, but watch out as this pack builds into - I mean, look at the tight five and loose forwards that are coming for the ABs - De Groot, Lomax, Williams, Tosi, Taylor, Ofa T, Samson T, Aumua, Patrick T, Barrett, Vai, Fabian H, Setiti, Lakai, Savea, Frizzell (understand they are attempting to get him and Mo'unga back), Blackadder, Papalii and bar Barrett, Savea, Patrick T, Taylor - pretty young in international terms.


Huge front row starting and on bench, Power locks and usual class in loose forwards - only missing ingredient is a WC 10 and with Mo'unga back probably in 2026, these ABs are trending in a very healthy direction.

89 Go to comments
LONG READ
LONG READ The joy, spirit and obstacles of the rugby pilgrim The joy, spirit and obstacles of the rugby pilgrim
Search