Inevitably with Leinster at this stage of the competition, the impressive feat of scoring seven tries away from home in Europe threatens to slip under the radar given how familiar weaknesses elsewhere were exposed.
After last weekend’s scrum discipline issues away to the Ospreys, the set-piece performance was slightly improved as both sides traded penalties during Leinster’s 49-14 victory over Gloucester on Saturday, but the abounding concern will surround a pair of penalty tries conceded at defensive mauls.
Gloucester’s only source of attacking threat came through their lineout, their 14 points coming when Andrew Porter and Caelan Doris hauled down mauls close to the line, earning both a yellow card either side of half-time.
“We want to go after teams in that facet of the game,” acknowledged Leo Cullen when asked about what was one of few negatives from the victory that keeps them on course to finish up as top seed in the Champions Cup.
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“The two tries, [the question is more] why are we ending up in that situation when we have to defend half a dozen lineout mauls from five metres out? Obviously we gave away two penalty tries there but Gloucester are a well-drilled team.
“Most coaches would be looking at what they do, George [Skivington] has done a really good job there and you’re seeing it week on week where they’re scoring tries from lineout mauls.
“I’ll have a look at it back in a bit more detail, the lads will have a look at it for sure, but there are other facets of the game that we can definitely improve on but overall I think the mindset has been pretty good.”
That was the undeniable negative, nit-picking around what was otherwise an impressive attacking display. Gloucester simply couldn’t cope with Leinster’s ability to shift the point of contact close to the line. Combined with good quality ruck ball, the attack saw the visitors make 433 metres with ball in hand compared to 120 for the hosts.
What’s more, such was the stress Gloucester’s defensive system was put under when constantly having to make the right decision on which carrying option to target, Skivington’s side ended up missing 34 tackles. This was alongside the 157 they were forced to make; Leinster just the 64.
“I’m pleased with how our guys approached the week and delivered on some of the preparation they put in,” acknowledged Cullen.
“That comes down to picking the right play at the right time, generally that went pretty well.”
