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Irish Times
28-05-2025
- Business
- Irish Times
Gordon D'Arcy: The greatest danger to Leinster could come from within
As Champions Cup finals go it was a reasonably well contested affair and part of the charm of the result was that it saw a new name engraved on the trophy, that of Union Bordeaux Bègles (UBB). While it didn't break up the French hegemony in terms of dominating European rugby over a handful of years now, it did admit a new club to the inner sanctum. That's an important consideration in the greater scheme of things. Bordeaux are a relatively new club, founded in 2006 through the merger of Stade Bordelais and Club Athlétique Bordeaux-Bègles Gironde and represent the nouveau riche of French rugby. On Saturday Union Bordeaux Bègles confirmed that they are now a major player in European rugby . Bordeaux demonstrated what is achievable when two tribes come to a table to negotiate a singular pathway in rugby terms. It's not always an easy outcome. The model failed to take root in Wales, with hugely debilitating consequences for the sport as regional identities failed to inspire lasting loyalty. In contrast, Bordeaux's rise has been underpinned by a clear sense of place and purpose: a strong supporter base, a core of French players and coaching structures that were dialled into the club's ambitions to be able to compete in the Top 14 and Europe. It was predicated on getting the right people and players in situ and then providing them with the requisite support. READ MORE UBB's progress has been based on a steady progression, top six finishes in the Top 14 since 2020, losing the domestic final to Toulouse last season and now, Champions Cup winners. Converting potential into trophies matters, not least because it reinforces that the work being done is properly attuned to the end goal. For all talk of development, culture or process, it's silverware that validates a project. Unsurprisingly, they've quickly turned their focus to the Top 14. Historically, teams chasing a double face a very tough assignment. The emotional and physical toll of one final often leaves sides flat in the weeks that follow. You have to come down the mountain before you can start climbing again. You really have to be mentally and physically resilient when you embark on that journey to peak for a second time. Damian Penaud will have to get himself up again for Bordeaux-Bègles' next match. Photograph: Dan Sheridan/Inpho Leinster are on the opposite side of that coin, the last occasion they managed to win a trophy of note was the 2021 URC title. Since then, they have morphed into the 'nearly men', a tag no one wants. This season's URC comes with a 'now or never' ultimatum, a watershed moment that has the potential to lift the pall of disappointment. The province's obsession with the Champions Cup has left them susceptible to taking their eye off the URC prize. Once again, they have a shot to change that narrative. To not seize the opportunity would feel significant. Key players are ageing. The discrepancy in standard between some frontline players and those that covet that status is, in some positions, a little wider than you'd like. As we've seen so often in sport, windows close faster than anyone anticipates. It's important to stress, Leo Cullen and Jacques Nienaber aren't the ones who will decide whether Leinster lift silverware this season. That might sound counterintuitive, even unfair, considering the hours they pour into preparation. But at this stage of the season with the sun beating down on battered bodies, only the players can propel Leinster to outright success. The loss to Northampton wasn't a blip, based on the trail of tears in Europe over previous campaigns. That defeat to Saints exposed something we don't normally associate with Leinster teams − a lack of urgency. For long stretches, Leinster looked flat, hesitant, as if they were waiting for someone else to win it for them. The following week against Glasgow in the URC? More of the same, a team with more gears than a Bugatti Veyron but stuck in second. Andrew Porter, RG Snyman and Leinster may have to look within themselves to find a way through their remaining URC opponents. Photograph: Ben Brady/Inpho This isn't a systems issue. Leinster's model is as detailed and well-drilled as any in Europe. Their support lines, defensive shape and breakdown presence all bear the mark of top-class coaching and organisation. But none of that matters when the mentality isn't right. And now comes the uncomfortable bit. This isn't about refining a kick strategy or analysing lineout options. This is about each player looking inward, having that hard conversation with himself. On paper, Leinster are still favourites to win the URC. There's one caveat. How badly do they want it? When things go wrong, and they will at some stage, what happens then, in the 65th minute, when the lungs are burning, and the scoreboard is tight? Where do players look? What do they do? That's not something a coach can instil. That's internal. That's yours alone as a player. There are clear and present threats to Leinster's aspirations. Glasgow will back themselves if they earn another shot at the Irish province. Munster are lurking and have been here before, excelling in adversity when they won the title. The South African sides, as ever, click into gear when trophies come into view. But the greatest danger to Leinster might come from within. Carrying the psychological baggage of the Northampton defeat could prove fatal; the little voice expressing doubt can get very loud when you're struggling in a match. Leinster's occasional starter Jordie Barrett in action against Glasgow. Photograph: Ben Brady/Inpho Those moments, that's where great teams, truly great teams, find a way to push through. Leinster have yet to answer whether they are still in that category. They have the talent, the depth, the experience. But you must meet those assets halfway with the required conviction. The URC run-in offers every incentive − home advantage, a partisan crowd and familiarity. But those can become pressure points too. Just like against Northampton, the sense of 'we should win this' can quickly become 'we must not lose this'. That's when the shoulders tighten. That's when instincts freeze. And that's where the coaches' influence ends. If this group is to right the wrongs of recent seasons, it won't be because Leo delivered a rousing speech or Jacques unveiled a new defensive scheme. It will be because the players accepted individual responsibility. It will be because the squad leaders demand standards, not hope they appear opportunely. Leinster will want to be on active duty for the next three weekends. To accomplish that is a test of character as much as playing capacity. The most important work won't happen in a team meeting or on the training pitch; it'll be framed by what takes place after looking in the mirror.
The Guardian
24-05-2025
- Sport
- The Guardian
Exhausted Saints fall short again as Bordeaux's colour and passion wins out
A new name is on the cup. They reckon Union Bordeaux Bègles are the best-supported rugby union club in the world. To be in Cardiff was not to be disabused of the notion. Rugby is massive in France, on a par with football, and bigger in the southern half of the country. It creates a different kind of animal. Northampton were proud, brave, inventive – but in the end overpowered. The narrative was wild and, Saints might say, liable to have gone either way. A raucous stadium – for Northampton are one of the best supported in England – was treated to crazy fluctuations in fortune, tries scored and overturned, penalties, knock-ons and high tackles subject to review after review. But when the dust settled, the reality of a top club in the sport's biggest market imposed itself on Northampton, champions of England maybe, but a side who have hit their straps this season only in this competition. What a job they have made of it. It has almost been tacitly accepted in English rugby that glory days in Europe may have to wait for a while, so much more powerful and deep are the squads in French and Irish rugby these days. Saints and Harlequins worked wonders to make the semi-finals last year, but to go a step further again was a triumph against all odds for the former, given their injuries and the vagaries in form. Alas, the echoes of their previous appearance in this final, here in 2011, were all too poignant. Back then they rattled up a 22-6 lead against Leinster by half-time, only to ship 27 unanswered points. No such indignity this time. Alex Coles scored tries at either end of the first half to level 20-20 at the break. But the spectre of a scoreless second half returned, despite Henry Pollock's dash to the line from a lineout early, chalked off for a tug by Coles. Bordeaux ground out eight unanswered points for the win. Pollock's was but one of a number of incidents subjected to trial by TMO. He had another effort chalked off five minutes from the break, marginally offside when he touched down Fin Smith's chip ahead. Bordeaux had two of their own disallowed, one for a forward pass between their deadly wingers, Louis Bielle-Biarrey and Damian Penaud, the latter adding another two tries to his tally and collecting the player of the tournament award. By the end Northampton were still swinging but exhausted. They had picked a team to take the match to the opposition, but it was shot through with risk, a statement of boldness or, some might wonder, a devil-may-care roll of the dice. One surprise recovery from injury is one thing, but to unveil five of them in your squad might not be the sort of gamble a club with a bigger budget would take. Alas, two of them, James Ramm and George Furbank, were off within the first five minutes, the latter on a stretcher. Suddenly, Northampton had used two of their three backs replacements and one of those was Ollie Sleightholme, out since the Six Nations after ankle surgery. He probably had not banked on playing more or less 80 minutes. Especially not against Bielle-Biarrey and Penaud, the world's deadliest wingers. Another surprise was to see Coles line up in the back row. He was another to take a knock against Saracens last week. He seemed to be struggling even in the captain's run on Friday, but there he was with heavy strapping on his knee. Happily, he left any struggles behind him to have the game of his life, one of those locks absolutely in his element in the extra space of life in the back row. Those tries showcased his talents, powering his way through defenders for the first, deftly handling and galloping in support for the second. Sign up to The Breakdown The latest rugby union news and analysis, plus all the week's action reviewed after newsletter promotion But there could be little argument with the result. Bielle-Biarrey played most of the match at full-back, after Romain Buros left for a head injury assessment, just as Tommy Freeman did after Furbank left. The pair of them were superb in their different ways, even if Freeman took a spell in the bin. But Bordeaux's half-backs were key. Maxime Lucu took the match award, continuing to show off how he deserves more than to be considered Antoine Dupont's understudy. And his partner, Matthieu Jalibert, was bewitching, particularly in that first half, central to Bordeaux's three first-half tries, beating seven men to set up the second, for Cyril Cazeaux. They all added to the colour of the occasion. The French fans took the streets of Cardiff by storm before the match, chanting, drumming, marching, the British standing around somewhat bewildered with their cameraphones out to record the pageant. So it continued throughout the match. Early in the professional era, one of rugby's grand old cities merged its two deadly rivals. They are a blueprint for how to negotiate the transition from rugby's amateur ways to a bold modern synthesis that harnesses rare energy for the sport. The new club's first trophy, secured in its first European final. They are colourful and passionate. Worthy winners of that other great product of the professional era. Call it what you will, Heineken, Champions, Europe, it continues to bring out the best in rugby. Union Bordeaux Bègles are just the latest.
