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'Not a normal rugby team' - The Leinster flex that floored Jake White
By Ian Cameron at Croke Park, Dublin
Jake White has seen just about everything in his long coaching career, but even the World Cup-winning coach was left stunned by the depth of Leinster talent after their 32–7 dismantling of the Bulls in Saturday’s URC final at Croke Park.
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Speaking with disarming honesty in the aftermath of the defeat, White paid a series of glowing tributes to Leo Cullen’s side, describing Leinster as “not a normal rugby team” and marvelling at the quality available to them across the park and off the bench.
“You have to understand, this is not a normal rugby team,” he said of Leinster.
“We are naïve when… I made a note in my book, they are 19–0 up and they bring on RG Snyman.
“It’s just a different league altogether and that’s why Leinster supporters are probably so disappointed because they were waiting for that performance the whole year and we just happened to get the 40 minutes that they were waiting for the whole year.
“We couldn’t get our hands on the ball. I say again to all the Irish, I don’t think they give the credit to that Leinster team. They are well coached, they are fantastic guys as well.”
The addition of Springbok Snyman off the bench — deployed almost as a luxury option with the game already leaning heavily in their favour — spoke to the disparity in resources between the two sides.
White was blunt in his assessment of the gap and what needs to change for South African franchises to compete consistently at this level.
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“The lesson I’ve taken from that is we need more international players to play in our province. I need what Leinster have. I need to be able to fight fire with fire.
“They’re sitting in the coaching box, 19–0 up, and say, ‘RG [Snyman], warm up’. They put him on and let him menace the defence like he did tonight.”
For White, it was a sobering reminder of the standards being set by the Irish URC heavyweights.
“I keep banging the same drum. I’ve coached some of the best players in the world, players who have won player of the year twice. If you’re playing against 23 internationals, I think today Leinster were short with only 22, there is a complete difference.
“That’s a phenomenal provincial team. That must be the best Leinster team, I know that’s going to be a headline but that must be one of the best Leinster squads they’ve ever had.”
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Nope, SA doesn't need their Boks back, what they need is a coach that knows how to train his team to deal with European weather and you aren't it!! From the totally embarrassing loss to Saracens in the EPRC, to the joke up-and-under kicking along with Willie le Roux’s attempts at cross kicks on Saturday, even if your team was full of underpaid Boks under your coaching they would have lost. It's time you effed off and Loftus got someone who understands how to play in those conditions (and Montpellier is in the South if France and doesn't count) rather than us having to listen to your incessant whinging about how it's everyone's fault but yours.
It must be hard for guys like Jake. His team is a far cry from the great ones he’s (and others) had in Super Rugby. A good cry out for their best to return home to help claim a URC crown.
Safas and their endless excuses. Not missed in Super.
In your opinion, which nobody cares for anyway. The people that are in the know disagree with you. Mexted, Muliana, Goldie, Parsons, the list of proper rugby characters in NZ that lament the absence of the SA teams. Some dumb as boar pooh calling himself dynamight is hardly a blip on the radar.
But we are happy in the URC anyway, less travel, more money and we don’t deal with numpties like you. We will see again in the RC if we are not missed after you trained basketball all SRP
Jake White banging hard on the same drum ignores some fundamental realities. This same Bulls team beat full strength Leinster in 2 semi finals and Munster accounted for them in another. Northampton took them down this year in the Champs cup. Munster won the URC away in SA and Glasgow did it last year. The team didnt show up, they didnt perform and they barely fired a shot. In fairness Leinster also didnt allow it and played magnificently. Yes Leinster are top class but they are beatable and the Bulls were really poor on Saturday. White doesnt need more resources to win the URC. He doesnt need to build some sort of Galacticos. He needs his team to do the job in the final. Right now they are the biggest chokers in the comp.
I was actually at the match. Leinster were the outstanding team in the league stage. Leinster’s squad depth meant the Bulls could only nick a late win in Pretoria against an understrenght Leinster. Simple put, Leinster are significantly better this year compared to last. The Dublin match last year was a big win by Leinster. Yes they won by a point in the RDS three years ago but thats not relevant to yesterday.
As Leinster are such a dangerous team, it forces an opponent to focus on a strategy to undermine them and that way get their game on the pitch. Leinster allowed that against Northampton. But that was not going to happen again. The Bulls attack in last 10 minutes of the first half was as savage as anything in the URC this year. Yet Leinsters coaching plan repelled them allied to savage commitment from the players. The defense was outstanding, pressure at breakdown outstanding. Leinster did not win the European cup but arguably at their best this year no other European team could reach that height. They reached that yesterday. Leinster completely removed Bulls ability to hurt them.
And Croke Park….100 years ago the Brits fired machine guns into spectators injuring 100s and killing loads. No Irish team ever performs badly there. Same with Irish supporters. Opposition players might as well be Brit Tommies with machine guns.
I think a great Leinster team, played a great game plan, to the height of their power in a horrible stadium for opponents. If Bulls score before half time they were back in the match. They went down, but they went down fighting.
“We couldn’t get our hands on the ball. I say again to all the Irish, I don’t think they give the credit to that Leinster team. They are well coached, they are fantastic guys as well.”
Magnanimous from White. Irish fans do need to appreciate what Leinster have achieved by assembling that squad. And they are good guys. Narrow defeats in finals stung. The utterly disingenious accusations of ‘Arrogance’ when they fall just short often peddled by lazy journalists looking for clickbait must have hurt too.
That first half performance was magnificent. The pressure that Bulls applied at the end of the first half, would have broken through any other team in the URC…beyond probably. I was in the terrace above and you could hear the thunderous collisions echoing above the din.
Two best teams in this years tournament and it showed.
Hard luck to Bulls but their day is coming.
Lovely to see the beautiful roars from the crowd for the great Jordie Barrett and that great journeyman no 10 for Leinster, Ross Byrne who saw the last quarter through with characteristic composure and professionalism.
Great tournament and I don’t think anyone could deny Leinster deserved that one, over the year as well as yesterday.
All absolutely fair.
They were universally hailed as chokers last year in the CC final despite being a drop goal away from beating Toulouse. A Toulouse team that went on to drop 60 PTS on UBB in that years top 14 final.
I can't understand Irish fans who seem to think we'd be better off without a dominant Leinster?
Always new excuses from White, but the same old choking. Brumbies, Sharks, and Bulls can all attest to that.
Yea - your dislike for South Africans must make you feel sick. We are the only nation ever to hold the RWC and WTC trophy simultaneously - oh and throw in the 7’s title for good measure. You are welcome to your sickly existence in. whatever pothoie you call home.
Well played Leinster. An amazing match. Surely Leinster are the best club in the world. Can’t understand how they can’t beat the top French clubs. Certainly there is no club in SH rugby that could live with them.
BS comment. You are a poor representation for SA and your venom for NZ is just as pathetic as your ready offense for any criticism of SA. Any of the top 4 kiwi sides as well as the Brumbies and possibly Reds would be a match for Leinster. Bulls were only rarely a contender in SR and being beaten by a loaded Leinster does not mean Leinster is “the best club in the world”! As others point out, there is little between a number of club sides that are French, English, Scottish, Irish, Kiwi, Aussie, Argentinian and South African. The only way to know the “best” is to play each other. Until then, such declarations are worthless.
Best in the world but can’t beat the top French clubs!
Wouldn’t beat the top teams in Super rugby either….
It very much depends on whose in the middle, the Welsh and Scots refs hate Leinster so it's that simple especially Whitehouse and incompetent Adamson. Wish we had Dixon or Pierce or Brace
Chiefs Saders Brumbies Blues Canes at full noise can foot it with any club provincial team in the world just as I’m sure is the same for Bath Bordeaux whoever is at top of the top comps going around surely if u knew rugby u would know that? Obviously the Bulls cannot according to Jake but I don’t believe that …Leinster lost to a Prem club this year btw
Have you seen the lineups of the French clubs? The only team Leinster struggled against in the group stage was La Rochelle, who are rebuilding for next season. They were ranked 9th in the Top 14 when Leinster beat them. That is how strong the Top 14 is. I hope they play Bordeaux next season, that’s going to be one hell of a game.
They probably had the match of the French teams this year but were caught by Northampton. I think both competitions are hard to win and it is good for the URC to have at least one team competing for both. The double is very difficult.
White was very magnanimous and it was nice of him to point out that this great Leinster team deserve more credit at home. They are nice guys too.
I think the standard of Leinster will help Bulls, Sharks and others aim for them. And if they have a squad competitive with that Leinster team then they are qualifying for and winning Champions League. A SA team winninga Champions league would be a moment in sporting history. Good luck to SA teams and SA in the Rugby Champs (I will be supporting them as our URC fremenies). Bitter rivalry will resume in the Autumn.
Leinster were dominant and no mistake, the game was always likely to play that way but the French teams have similar riches of resources and at that point, the finer details become very important. Psychology is probably one of the most significant of those details and make no mistake, the Irish still have some challenges in that department. Took them a helluva long time to consistently overcome that challenge at 5/6N level.