Connacht are primed to give everything against the giants of Toulouse
CONNACHT head coach Pat Lam sometimes still thinks like he’s a player. So, during his pre-match routine out on the pitch, he’ll often have a sneaky peek over at the opposition.
On Saturday, at the Sportsground (5.30pm, kick-off) he’ll do the same and steal a glance at Toulouse.
“Jeez, they’re big,” is something he’s regularly remarked of his opponents prior to kick-off in his playing days.
And that is sure to be his reaction when the giants of French rugby – giants both in terms of individual players’ physique and the club’s stature in the game – are on-ield warming up for the first pool match of the Champions Cup.
Size does matter. The four-times European cup winners certainly have a height, weight and bulk advantage. But Lam insists that won’t faze his charges.
“Without a doubt there is a difference in size. But we’re used to that,” said the New Zealand born Samoan.
“When I used to say ‘they’re big’, I used to get excited by that because it meant they’d go down hard, and it’d hurt more. But it goes back to our techniques and how we tackle and how we put the pressure on and get them down on the ground. We do a lot of work on that, around our tackling and contact work.
“Everyone goes down if you tackle well. If we can put pressure by keeping the ball, put pressure by kicking well and put pressure by defending well, right at the gain-line, it’s going to give us the best chance,” said Lam.
Connacht certainly won’t fear the visitors whom they have encountered on each of their two previous seasons in the top-flight in 2011/2012 and 2013/2014.
The aristocrats of the game came out on top on three occasions but Connacht’s awesome two-points victory over Toulouse in their own back yard in December three years ago will instil belief and confidence into the home dressing room.
So too will last Friday’s compelling win over Ulster. It was the first time in seven attempts Lam’s Connacht has got one over the northerners but what was most extraordinary about the result was it was achieved with so many frontline players out injured.
Midweek, Lam emphasised the importance of squad and, “making sure our weakest link is as strong as possible”. Last Friday, against Ulster, that philosophy worked. Craig Ronaldson, who was scheduled to play 40 minutes with Galwegians, was instead pressed into action when Peter Robb pulled out before kick-off.
The centre, who could have been perceived as a weak link, was anything but and was hugely impressive in his first game since March. “Everyone prepares to play,” said Lam. “I don’t want anyone on that training field that’s not prepared to play. They’re not just making up the numbers.”
The numbers are depleted again this week but Lam was giving everyone an opportunity to prove their fitness ahead of the team announcement at noon Friday.
For more, read this week’s Galway City Tribune.