Leinster facing a taxing Heineken Cup schedule

Leinster's chances of securing a lucrative home quarter-final have been obstructed by a five -day turnaround between rounds five to six of the Heineken Cup.

The schedule, to be released today, tasks Matt O’Connor’s squad with a Sunday evening journey home from Castres on January 12th ahead of the Ospreys visit to the RDS on Friday, January 17th.

It’s almost certain they will need two victories, and possibly try-scoring bonus points, to earn a quarter-final at the Aviva stadium.

That full house is worth up to €1 million for Irish rugby (the IRFU receives the money directly from ERC and redistributes it among the provinces).

Leinster’s Pool One rivals, the Northampton Saints, face a similar schedule away to Ospreys and home to Castres.

"It is farcical," an Irish rugby source informed The Irish Times. "Not only is it potentially detrimental to preparation, the five-day turnaround between such important games can be dangerous to players."

Leinster are the lowest -ranked Pool leader, four clear of Northampton Saints on 13 points from four matches.

Ulster are in pole position with 18 points while French powerhouses – Toulon, Clermont Auvergne and Toulouse – have 15 with Munster on 14. The four best Pool winners get a home quarter-final with the remaining two and two best second-placed sides on the road.

Last season Saracens and Toulon earned home ties with 23 points but Ulster, having topped Pool 4 also with 23 points, faced Saracens at Twickenham. They were comprehensively beaten, 27-16.

Clubs have no appeal mechanism to the ERC over fixture scheduling. Sky Sports and Canal +, as the broadcast partners, have a significant influence on when games are scheduled.

The ERC noted that the potential for five-day turnarounds, while not ideal, is flagged in advance.

“ERC works with the clubs and league bodies to ensure a minimum of a five-day turnaround between ERC weekends and in turn between European matches and league fixtures,” said a European Rugby spokesman. . . . on certain occasions, some clubs will have five-day turnarounds, a necessity that the clubs accept as part of their participation in the tournaments. . .”

Munster, five points clear of Gloucester at the top of Pool Six, are believed to have eight days between the away fixture in Kingsholm and Edinburgh's visit to Thomond Park.

Negotiating table
Meanwhile, Rory Best's new two-year national contract leaves only four elite players at the IRFU negotiating table.

“The support that I received when I missed out on the initial Lions squad was a massive factor in me making the decision to stay,” said Best.

Talks with the most sought after pair – Leinster backrows Jamie Heaslip and Seán O'Brien – remain ongoing with both the union and various French clubs.

Heaslip, having turned 30 last Sunday, looks the biggest flight risk with Toulon and Montpelier expressing interest in the Leinster captain.

Having secured Conor Murray and Donnacha Ryan on two- and three-year deals respectively, Munster hope Paul O'Connell and Keith Earls will sign up before Christmas.

Best is currently recovering from a broken arm. Munster hooker Mike Sherry is also out for six months having ruptured the ACL in his left knee but wingers Gerhard van den Heever (hand) and Andrew Conway (knee) are back training.