Pat Lam urges players to have no regrets as they prepare for final showdown with Leinster
On the face of it, Saturday’s All-Ireland Guinness PRO 12 final at Murrayfield (5.30pm) between Connacht and Leinster is a classic David versus Goliath affair.
History and tradition says it is, but the on-field evidence produced by the Westerners during this incredible record-smashing season suggests it’s a much more balanced battle.
The statistics are eye-watering: Leinster has appeared in the league final on six previous occasions and have won it four times, most recently in 2014.
They have been champions of Europe on three occasions, including that magic win over Leicester Tigers at this weekend’s Edinburgh venue, back in 2009. They’re cup-rugby specialists. They’ve been there, done that.
And that’s even before you start mentioning the international quality players at their disposal; the experienced Six Nation’s champions who have performed on Lions’ tours, and Rugby World Cups.
Connacht, not so much.
Up until a few seasons ago, not finishing bottom of the league was considered a success. Until this season, Connacht’s highest league finish was seventh, achieved last year. They’ve never before featured in a major final, or come close to qualifying for one.
Apart from the sixth place play-off last season, if Connacht lads were playing any sort of ball in late May, it was on a beach in the Canaries.
Connacht does now have more players than before featuring with Joe Schmidt’s Ireland, but it’s nowhere near the representation of Leinster, who have more than 10 times as many caps, and capped players.
The imbalance is obvious. But for all that, Connacht comes to the final in a rich vein of form. There have been big one-off victories and memories down through the years but nothing has come close to the consistency achieved this season which propelled them to a first ever top-four finish.
Back-to-back wins over the defending champions, Glasgow Warriors, prove once again that this Connacht team, under Pat Lam and led by a rejuvenated John Muldoon, can beat any team on their day.
They’ve already downed Leinster this season, 7-6, at the Sportsground, which is a massive confidence booster ahead of the decider. But Connacht is facing an altogether different beast this weekend than the one they slayed in March.
For more, read this week’s Galway City Tribune.