UK columnist bemoans 'priceless advantage' afforded to Leinster

Sunday Times columnist Stephen Jones is not that happy at Leinster being allowed to play their “away” Champions Cup semi-final at Croke Park, a mere 3.4 kilometres from the Aviva Stadium.

Last night Leinster defeated La Rochelle 40-13, ending the French club’s bid to secure a third consecutive Champions Cup title.

Under the guidance of Corkonian Ronan O’Gara, La Rochelle had previously bested Leinster in the finals of the last two seasons, albeit with a slender overall margin of just four points. However, Leinster got their sweet revenge in a relatively one-sided contest.

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However, it’s the decision to host the semi-final at Croke Park that has stirred debate among rugby enthusiasts and commentators alike, particularly regarding the integrity of what constitutes an ‘away’ game.

Critics – including Jones – argue that playing so close to their usual venue provides Leinster with a “priceless” home-field advantage, not typically afforded to teams in similar situations.

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Writing in his Sunday Times column, Jones observed: “They [Northampton Saints] will face Leinster, who beat La Rochelle 40-13, in the semi-final, and in a massive shock, Leinster are not hosting it at their home ground, the Aviva Stadium, because it is the venue for the Europa League final.

“It is not to cast aspersions on anyone, but the last time they played an away game, their boots had wooden studs.

“They have the home country advantage as the competition’s second-ranked team but will now have to walk all the way to Croke Park, also in Dublin, of course.

“The organisers of this tournament have made it partially ridiculous by allowing the seedings from months ago to apply all the way through until the final, which has devalued the event and given Leinster a ludicrously priceless advantage.”

Regardless of venue, there’s no denying that Leinster are now hot favourites to add a fifth Champions Cup to their trophy cabinet, such was the manner of their victory over La Rochelle.

O’Gara – a long and bitter rival of Leinster – doffed his cap in the direction of the men in blue, copping the loss on the chin.

“If it’s a close one, you always have a lot more regrets but if you have a small bit of cop on, you could see that the dominant team was in blue,” said O’Gara in the post match press conference. “They were shaper to everything and they made it difficult for us and their rush defence worked well and in the first 70, I don’t think we won a breakdown penalty bar the kick-off that we took.”