Robin McBryde: ‘Level of competition is driving Leinster towards a good level’
Assistant coach Robin McBryde has said the competition for places in the Leinster squad has helped them to deal with the short turnaround for their United Rugby Championship clash against Ulster at the RDS later today (kick-off 5.15pm).
Whereas their opponents’ most recent competitive encounter was a 20-19 victory at the expense of Connacht at Kingspan Stadium on December 22, it is just six days since the Blues were last in action. A 9-3 success over reigning URC champions Munster at Thomond Park on St Stephen’s Day might be fresh in the memory, but a radically different Leinster side will take the field for their first game of 2024.
From the team that started a gruelling showdown with arch rivals Munster, only Rob Russell retains his spot in the first 15. Nevertheless, head coach Leo Cullen is able to call upon some big-game experience for this latest interprovincial duel with Irish internationals Jimmy O’Brien, Robbie Henshaw, Jamison Gibson-Park, Dan Sheehan, James Ryan, Caelan Doris and Ryan Baird all added to the mix.
There was a similar mixture of established test operators and fringe players in the team for the Munster game and while this is due in part to the IRFU’s player welfare guidelines, having a vast array of options makes things a lot more manageable from McBryde’s point of view.
“We’ve got a good number of fit bodies so the level of competition within the squad is really driving us towards a good level of display. When someone is given the opportunity of wearing the shirt, they have to make the most of it because you don’t know when the next opportunity is going to be coming around the corner,” McBryde acknowledged.
“With that level of competition within the squad, it makes your role as a coach so much easier because they’re all striving to be involved in the big games.
“This is a big game, so they’ll be itching to get an opportunity. Especially when things are going well. Everybody wants to play a part in what will hopefully be a successful season for us. Everyone is keen.”
While he hasn’t altered his side to the same degree as his Leinster counterpart, Ulster head coach Dan McFarland has still made five changes for this evening’s game from that the one that edged out Connacht 10 days ago.
Those to come into the starting line-up are South African World Cup winner Steven Kitshoff, the fit-again triumvirate of Rob Herring, Billy Burns and Luke Marshall, and Tom O’Toole at tighthead prop.
A regular fixture off the bench as Ireland secured a Six Nations Grand Slam in 2023 – he also went on to make an appearance against Romania at the Rugby World Cup in France – O’Toole forms a powerful front-row alongside Kitshoff and Herring for the northern province’s latest trip to Dublin.
Having let slip a 19-point lead to lose on a scoreline of 38-29 to Leinster in a URC bout at the RDS in December 2022, Ulster crashed out of the European Champions Cup with a 30-15 defeat to the same opposition at the Round of 16 stage in the Aviva Stadium last April.
Yet with their win over Connacht being preceded by a 31-15 Champions Cup pool stage triumph at the expense of Racing 92, McBryde is expecting a major test from McFarland’s men in the packed-out Ballsbridge venue.
“They’ve had a couple of good results recently. They’re very physical up front, they have a good set-piece. Their maul is a threat. They have a solid front five, pack of eight. It’s going to be tough. The last couple of times we played them, there hasn’t been that much in the game,” McBryde added.
“They’ve had a good break over the Christmas period. They have to come all guns blazing, so it will be a good occasion. A full house at the RDS. These are the games you get up for as a player.”