Connacht's win spoiled by ultimate failure

CONNACHT will be forgiven for thinking somebody there doesn't like them. Since time immemorial, it seems, they've been compelled to surmount all sorts of odds, and when they finally did scale Leinster's surprisingly flimsy challenge at the Sportsground on Saturday, the fates conspired against them once more.

A third successive home win over Leinster was sweet to the taste in its own right, but Connacht fell four points short of their intended 13 point winning target and with it the certainty of finishing above Leinster on points differential. In truth, they wouldn't have been flattered by a 20 point winning margin.

Even so, a top three place and by extension, probable qualification for next season's European Cup - presuming the European Rugby Committee go with the same formula - seemed a certainty when, cruelly and erroneously, word came through that Munster had beaten Ulster by 31-6, thereby leaving Connacht comfortably ahead of Ulster, who needed to avert a defeat by six points or more.

In the event, Ulster did just that and Connacht were left to rue just four points here or there. Had Munster defended their 27-9 lead more assuredly, or had Alan Lewis not disallowed a Dominic Crotty try, then Connacht would have finished above Ulster. But the one that really got away was the winning position which Connacht forfeited in Belfast a week beforehand.

To a man, the Connacht coach Warren Gatland and his fellow selectors were rueing that one, literally from the moment Graham Crothers called a halt to proceedings on Saturday. Had the kickoffs been the other way around on Saturday (the Sportsground starting half-an-hour after Thomond Park) then Connacht might have known exactly what they had to do. It was a bad oversight not to start them simultaneously anyhow.

Ironically, the game had ended with Eric Elwood landing a 22-metre penalty four minutes into injury time with Connacht leading 19-13, yet Gatland had posted an A4 sheet with the following message "Connacht to win, by 13" in every players' room. He laughed off the decision to copperfasten the win with that last kick. However, in hindsight Connacht will gradually start to wish that they had risked going for the 13 point winning margin with a tap penalty. Indeed, a converted try would have pushed them into second place on points differential.

That's all ifs, buts and maybes now, along with the almost countless times Connacht players were held up a yard short of the Leinster line. They at least had the consolation of seeing their interprovincial graph rising steadily upwards. Leinster's - ominously, in view of Saturday's European Cup trip to Llanelli and subsequent games against Leicester and Scottish Borders within the ensuing seven days - has dropped sharply.

They had been given the perfect fillip of a soft Neil Francis try from a line-out four minutes into the first half, with the wind behind them. They didn't press home their advantage, and a lead of 13-5 going into the final half-hour was insufficient against Connacht's rousing finale; the inspired Eric Elwood scoring 17 unanswered points.

Their line-out had struggled long before hooker Mark McDermott (neck injury)) and Francis (media ligament damage) had quickly followed centre Martin Ridge (dislocated shoulder) to hospital in a 10 minute spell before the break, which had the Sportsground resembling the set of Casualty.

Whatever roughhouse tactics Connacht may or may not have been guilty of, the injury which Francis sustained was disgraceful. After gathering a line-out, he had the legs whipped from under him while still airborne and somersaulted to the ground.

Leinster coach Ciaran Callan was rightly incensed by that but was apoplectic about his team's worst performance in two seasons. "Awful. We played terribly. We seemed to have major problems in the line-out. We were flat. There was no passion about it. We virtually handed the ball to them with our turnovers in the tackle. It's unacceptable at that level to commit that many turnovers. We got what we deserved. No cop outs; we played badly."

They couldn't even blame the traditionally inclement Galway weather, for the wind died on Connacht in the second-half and the sun came out with Leinster leading 13-5. For the previous 45-50 minutes or so, their backs had generally looked the more threatening, with the teak-tough Kurt McQuilkin the one player guaranteed to set up second phase ball. But gradually, the service dried up. Without a recognised open side, there were always second to the loose ball.

"Ruck it Leinster, ruck it", a bedraggled Leinster bench implored unavailingly all afternoon. Connacht would have rucked into the night. Until the sun's arrival, they almost seemed to be overdoing it; popping short passes, taking the ball on and rucking almost for the sake of it.

Increasingly though, the outstanding, long-striding number eight Barry Egan, the tight-head battering ram Michael Finlay. Shane Leahy (also a real line-out find for Connacht these past two games) and, of course, Billy Mulcahy, made deeper and deeper incisions.

This was greatly assisted by the increasing regularity with which the support men arrived two at a time to knock straggling Leinster tacklers out of the way and quickly free the ball. Very well drilled they were at it, and also in their line-out variations - compliments, no doubt, of Gatland, their Kiwi coach.

"That was the product of the intensity at training, lots of drills, numbers to rucks all the time," said a satisfied Gatland. "We were conscious of the need to keep changes to a minimum despite the first two defeats, so as to establish continuity. We have progressed steadily and next season I hope to take over the training in August and get more meaningful preparatory matches."

Gatland means business. So too do Connacht. Saturday was their day but more will come, and the breakthrough may not be far away. Though, by the time they do enough to qualify for the European Cup, as one Connacht official put it, there'll probably be an objection.