JOE looks ahead to a crucial all-Irish affair at the RDS, wonders if Connacht can lend a helping hand against Cardiff and pays tribute to the great Alan Quinlan, who will hang up his boots in the summer.
All to play for in all-Irish clash at the RDS
A week on from their respective Heineken Cup quarter-finals, Leinster and Ulster will be going into this weekend’s clash at the RDS with completely different frames of mind.
Leinster will be buoyed by a gritty victory over Leicester in a game that represented an extremely slippy banana skin, while Ulster will look back on the defeat to Northampton with mixed emotions; proud of what was an extremely gutsy performance in defeat, but still sore about some of the opportunities that went astray on the day.
Good for Brian McLaughlin’s side then, that they have a chance for redemption so soon after the end of what was their longest Heineken Cup adventure in 12 seasons. Ulster lead Saturday’s opponents by three points in the Magners League table and should they become the second Irish province in three weeks to get one over Leinster, they will go a long way to securing not only qualification for the last four, but a home semi-final as well.
Munster’s passionate faithful should appreciate the great Alan Quinlan while they have him, for they are unlikely to see his kind again.
It won’t be an easy task, however. First of all, Leinster are at home and don’t have their eye on a big European game the following week, which one suspects was the case in Thomond against Munster, especially in the second half. With the Ospreys, Cardiff Blues and Llanelli Scarlets all still within touching distance of a place in the last four, nobody can afford to let-up and we should be in for a full blooded affair in Donnybrook on Saturday evening.
The potential to leapfrog their opponents in the table and the fact that they need this win slightly more than the northern province would suggest that Joe Schmidt’s men might just prevail on home turf this weekend.
Connacht to lend a helping hand?
The situation at the top of the Magners League table is arse-clenchingly tight at the moment as, after Munster, there are five teams whose claims for the other three spots in the semi-finals will probably not be decided until the final round of fixtures in three weeks time.
The prospects of Leinster and Ulster joining Munster at the business end of things could be given a massive boost by the little guy in Irish rugby, Connacht, who are currently sitting comfortably in eighth position in the table after an extremely impressive Magners League campaign so far.
Eric Elwood’s side welcome fifth placed Cardiff Blues to the Sportsground this weekend, with the Welsh side currently trailing Leinster by four points and Ulster by seven, although they have a game in hand on both sides. Time is fast running out, however, and if Connacht could cause an upset, it might be too late for the Blues to mount a late bid for a semi-final berth.
If, for example, Connacht could beat Cardiff Blues this weekend and Leinster defeat Ulster (bonus points not permitting) Ulster and Leinster would be seven and eight points ahead of Cardiff respectively, who would have only three games to make up the deficit.
It’s asking a lot for Connacht to get the better of a star-studded Blues squad, but the Westerners will certainly have plenty of support from both the Leinster and Ulster camps, who will be watching events at the Sportsground with more than a passing interest.
An ode to Quinny
With a maximum of seven games left for Munster this season, their passionate faithful should appreciate the great Alan Quinlan while they have him, for they are unlikely to see his kind again.
Quinlan confirmed that he will indeed call it a day at the end of the season, putting an end to a distinguished career that took in 210 appearances for his province (so far) and 27 caps for Ireland.
Quinny with Anthony Foley back in 1999
The likes of Paulo Maldini, Ryan Giggs and Paul Scholes are often feted for their longevity in football, but they inhabit a world nothing like the coalface at the breakdown, where the 36-year old from Tipperary has reigned supreme for the last 15 years.
If anything, Quinlan has got better with age. Why else would he have been selected for a Lions Tour in 2009 at the age of 34? Unfortunately, he was denied that honour because of an ugly incident with Leo Cullen that added to a nasty reputation that followed Quinlan throughout his career.
Granted, he could be cynical at times, but Quinlan was always been a great man to have when going into a battle and it’s a great shame that he was ignored by Eddie O’Sullivan at international level when at his peak in the middle of the last decade.
Although he wasn’t appreciated by O’Sullivan, the same could not be said at Munster, where he has been a fan’s favourite for many a year. When he does ride off into the sunset later this summer, he will be sorely missed.
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