HEINEKEN CUP POOL TWO Saracens 23 Leinster 25:IN THE pantheon of great Leinster wins on English soil, this was right up there. As with the defiant defence shown by 13 men against Northampton 10 seasons ago or in the epic quarter-final win two seasons ago which was subsequently overshadowed by Bloodgate, it will be remembered for the way they withstood Saracens' pummelling through 30 phases in the game's final act.
That Northampton win was their second of six successive victories in England though in actual fact the win at Harlequins, and last season’s draw at Twickenham against Wasps, interrupted and ended a run of four consecutive pool defeats away to Premiership sides.
What made this victory rank with their previous eight in England was that they not only overcame an unremittingly brave if somewhat one-dimensional Saracens, the occasion that was Wembley and all without Brian O’Driscoll, but they also overcame a French referee.
Christophe Berdos is generally regarded as France’s best referee, which about says it all really about French refereeing.
For all Brendan Venter’s laughable lament about Berdos’ failure to brandish another two yellow cards and 50 penalties against Leinster, for much of the second half the French official seemed to be only refereeing one team.
The penalty count was 16-8 in favour of the home side, and in the second half particularly (8-2) he seemed to have eyes only for the team in an unfamiliar white.
When Jonathan Sexton converted his own try to push Leinster 22-11 in front after 53 minutes, a raft of penalties and marginal calls went Saracens’ way, incorporating a yellow card for Richardt Strauss when it looked for all the world he had stayed on his feet when contesting the ball.
It’s a trademark play by Strauss which usually reaps a penalty for not releasing or a turnover, but Berdos had issued a warning to Leinster captain Jamie Heaslip moments beforehand and, to put it one way, it looked like a yellow card Berdos was looking to give.
So it was that Andy Goode assumed the kicking duties from the wayward and stricken Derick Hougaard, to land four penalties for a variety of supposed offences – the penalty against Leo Cullen for not rolling away after missing a tackle was a joke given he was scarcely in the same vicinity of the ball and certainly didn’t affect it’s recycling.
Ultimately, Leinster were indebted to Sexton landing his seventh kick from seven for a personal haul of 25 points and the minor miracle of holding out through those 30 phases while keeping Saracens outside 40-metre range while also not giving away a penalty.
Venter reckoned there’s something wrong with the game when the team that recycles the ball ad nauseum isn’t rewarded with either penalties and yellow cards if not tries. In point of fact, as Joe Schmidt intimated, there’s something wrong with the game when a team can go through 30 phases without a proper contest for the ball, but there was never any likelihood of Berdos penalising Saracens for sealing possession no matter how many times their “support” runners or ruckers flopped on the ball. The game has indeed come full circle from Munster’s end game against Toulouse in the final three seasons ago.
The one time Saracens breached the white line was when they hammered away off a lineout drive, with strong carries by Mouritz Botha and Andy Saul drawing in the defence to create the overlap for Goode to score in the 12th minute.
Goode and dynamic hooker Schalk Brites were the only two Saracens player to use footwork or explore space, and brilliant though Leinster’s double-teaming was in the tackle, an offload by centre Brad Barritt in the first half stood out because it was so isolated. Otherwise, Saracens ball carriers continuously ran in straight lines into contact. Venter and his board of millionaires are clearly building something of import here, but this was crash-bang-wallop rugby, South African style.
By contrast, though increasingly living off scraps, Leinster were much the more inventive side. Their try was a fine example, Shane Horgan chasing and winning Eoin Reddan’s box kick, Strauss brilliantly winning the ball on the deck, and the ball being moved across the line for Isa Nacewa to hand off David Strettle, and Fergus McFadden to provide the link inside for Sexton to score.
That was evidence of how Leinster, thanks in the main to Horgan and the outstanding Rob Kearney, won the aerial duel hands down. Sexton was again sublime in almost everything he did, as was Seán O’Brien with thunderous ball carries and big defensive plays – ditto Shane Jennings and Heaslip – while Nathan Hines again showed what an unremittingly honest and muscular toiler he is in the trenches.
As for Venter claim that Leinster just kicked the ball, it was striking to see – especially in the first half – that despite keeping four men back for kicks, Saracens rarely looked to counter-attack.
At the end, curiously, both teams went to thank their fans as, for the umpteenth time (and at the very least the eighth time of the afternoon) the home crowd were implored to stand up for Saracens.
You’d swear they’d won, though, in truth, it would have been a travesty if they had.
