Simon Lewis
THERE would be few who could disagree with Joe Schmidt's assertion that Leinster have earned their place in the Heineken Cup final this season.
The path of the 2009 champions back to the final two years later has been over a course every bit as challenging as the Aintree Grand National.
Parisian moneybags Racing Metro, 2010 French champions Clermont Auvergne – whom Schmidt left last summer after three years as back coach – and English contenders Saracens were hurdled in the group stages before Leinster overcame perennial heavweights Leicester Tigers in a epic quarter-final in Dublin in mid-April.
So as a day in the European showpiece at the Millennium Stadium in Cardiff beckons on Saturday, May 21, Schmidt, in his first season anywhere as a head coach, can look back with some considerable satisfaction at his side's achievement in reaching a second final in three years.
“We deserve to be where we are, we can justify it because we have beaten lots of good teams,” the New Zealander said following his side's scintillating 32-23 defeat of defending champions Toulouse on Saturday at the Aviva Stadium.“We have beaten the top three in France and the top two in England.”
Yet Schmidt, who overcame a shaky start as Leinster boss last September to turn his squad into European thoroughbreds, knows there are still important challenges ahead with Leinster facing a Magners League semi-final on the weekend before the Heineken Cup final against either Northampton Saints or Perpignan, who were playing their semi-final on Sunday afternoon.
“We haven't had anything easy and the final will be another step up. So we have to respond to that challenge and start better than we did today,” he said, referring to a sloppy opening five minutes that coughed up seven points without reply to a grateful Toulouse side.
“We will also need to keep our tempo better than today.”
And if anyone has proven he can make his players rise to such a challenge, surely it is Schmidt.
Source: http://feeds.examiner.ie/~r/iesportsblog/~3/dtTx9rp02wg/post.aspx
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