LEINSTER V NORTHAMPTON SAINTS: FIVE TAKEAWAYS FROM THE CHAMPIONS CUP CLASH AS VINTAGE JAMISON GIBSON-PARK GETS BETTER WITH AGE
Following Leinster’s 20-17 triumph over Northampton Saints at Croke Park on Saturday, Planet Rugby picks out five takeaways from the action.
Jamison Gibson-Park shows his class again
At the age of 32, he is in the twilight of his career but the New Zealand-born scrum-half is ageing like a fine wine as he stepped up with a commanding performance and it was not a surprise when he walked off with the official Player of the Match award after the game.
From the outset, Gibson-Park showed his class as he took the fight to Northampton Saints. Few players would have the confidence which Gibson-Park showed to tap and go before passing out wide to James Lowe, who crossed for the opening try after 10 minutes.
He then left his stamp on the semi-final again with a deft offload for Lowe’s second try and continued to have a huge influence on the rest match with his game management outstanding until the end.
Although Saints came back strongly in the second half, Gibson-Park continued to control the tempo in Dublin and his performance is a major reason why Leinster came out on top.
Leinster’s forwards lead the way
As brilliant as Gibson-Park was, his forwards also deserve plenty of credit as they laid an outstanding platform for their backline, with the scrum-half and his fellow backs making full use of the quality ball he was receiving.
Although they were penalised at the opening scrum, Leinster soon took control of that facet of play and their pack had their counterparts on the back foot at the set-piece on most occasions during the rest of the game, with Saints blown up for illegal scrummaging on several occasions.
Although the lineouts were more evenly contested, the Irish province also held a slight edge in that department as they won all their balls (12 out of 12) and managed to disrupt Northampton on their throw-ins on a couple of occasions (15 out of 17).
Northampton’s nerves got the better of them
Although they came into this encounter as the underdogs, there was plenty of confidence in Northampton’s ranks but despite that they battled to gain any momentum as their nerves got the better of them.
Phil Dowson’s charges committed a plethora of handling errors and their decision making also let them down at crucial moments. Calm heads were needed, especially during the first half, and what made things worse for them was the fact that Leinster made them pay on a few occasions.
One such moment was late in the opening period when James Ramm had a clear run-in over the try-line but he dropped the ball after overrunning the pass. Although they came back strongly in the second half, mistakes like that ultimately cost them a place in the final and they will have to cut that out of their game if they want to lift silverware in the future.
Healy history
The veteran raced onto the Croke Park field on 71 minutes and for good reason. Today saw Cian Healy become the leading appearance maker in Champions Cup history as he made his 111th outing at the age of 36. This feat sees him overtake Munster legend Ronan O’Gara and take his place at the top of the pile all on his own.
Healy’s longevity is admirable and he can be incredibly proud to sit at the summit of this list of European greats, with O’Gara (110) followed by Gordon D’Arcy (104), John Hayes and Peter Stringer (both 101) in an all-Irish top five.
The loosehead can move on to 112 at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium later this month and with retirement not in his immediate thoughts that number could grow and grow next season.
Hats off to one of Leinster’s greatest ever servants for what is an incredible achievement.
Not Northampton
Saints will be kicking themselves on the flight back to England and for a good few days thereafter as this was not the Northampton we have seen and thoroughly enjoyed watching in 2024.
Known for their attacking brilliance under the tutelage of Sam Vesty that sees them carve through opposition defences through slick handling, angles and silky running, they just weren’t at the races today as a combination of Leinster’s devastating defence and a high error count knocked all the confidence out of them.
This is just a blip of that there is little doubt and it’s incredible they remained in the contest and almost snatched victory late on, such was their poor performance. But that will be what frustrates their players, staff and fans as had they turned up from the outset then a place in the showpiece final would have been theirs.
Northampton will hope they can get back on the horse quickly as they now turn their attention solely to Premiership matters.
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2024-05-04T21:12:10Z dg43tfdfdgfd