Schmidt welcomes back central figures

HE WASN’T admitting it but you could hear a little frustration creeping into Joe Schmidt’s voice. The Leinster coach, constrained by the time management of his international players in a World Cup year, took Jamie Heaslip off last weekend against Glasgow and began working with his outhalf Jonathan Sexton for the first time this week.

“It wasn’t ideal. Jamie is one of our key leaders,” admitted Schmidt. “Apart from that Jamie can swing a game because he’s a very talented player. That was probably not ideal.”

But Schmidt could break a smile about modern rugby Irish style and a lot of it had to do with welcoming back Irish captain Brian O’Driscoll, tighthead prop Mike Ross, Sexton and flanker Shane Jennings, who will captain the side against Cardiff at the RDS tomorrow.

The starting line-up is beginning to look more like Leinster and on the replacements bench scrumhalf Eoin Reddan and prop Cian Healy, who show their faces for the first time this season, are certain to see game time in the second half.

It’s a case of Schmidt trying to gel the team rather than asking them to perform anything flamboyant. As he pointed out, O’Driscoll knows the games of Shane Horgan and Sexton while Sexton is familiar with the entire back line. The same applies to Jennings and Ross coming into the pack. “It’s been left to me to manage the players within the guidelines that are best for the players long term,” said Schmidt. “There is an obligation for me to manage their time and to be honest I think it would be an obligation of any coach of any provincial or club team. Once they are all back in a group there will be a little more flexibility.”

The return of the central figures should bring more stability to a side that lost their opener 22-19. There are now more decision makers on the field and in O’Driscoll over a decade of experience. It’s Jennings though, who the players hear loudest.

“I think they’ll bring some leadership,” said Schmidt of the arrival of the international players. “We lost our way a bit in the second half at Glasgow. I think they will bring us a little bit more control, a little bit more leadership and experience, Jennings particularly. He’s a very vocal player, organises himself well and he organises the guys around him well so. I’m hoping Cian Healy coming in in the second half can bring us a really solid set-piece game, at the same time ball carry and a good defensive game. Same with the organisation that Eoin Reddan can bring us off the bench. Again he’s a very vocal player, a good organiser.”

Sexton will inevitably add more to Leinster’s kicking game. That aspect of their play was poor and the Irish outhalf’s control around the field should settle the team and provide more platforms. Given Dan Parks could be opposite him, it’s quite a start for Sexton. Parks kicked 14 points in Cardiff’s 34-23 win over Edinburgh last week.

Connacht will be without former Queensland Reds number eight Ezra Taylor through injury and have drafted in academy player Shane Conneely as cover in a 25-man squad for tomorrow’s away match against the Scarlets. Centre Niva Ta’auso is also a doubt, with summer signing Darragh Fanning added to the squad for the trip to Wales.

Leinster v Munster set to be a sell-out

LEINSTER’S DECISION to move their game against Munster from the RDS to the Aviva Stadium has paid off for the home side, who announced yesterday that 40,000 tickets had already been sold for the match, writes Johnny Watterson.

With three weeks to go before the October 2nd game, the Magners League clash looks certain to be a sell-out in the 50,000-capacity stadium.

It follows on from the traditional interest in the annual meeting between the provincial sides.

In the last Magners League encounter before Lansdowne Road was redeveloped after the 2006-07 season, 27,252 attended the match.

LEINSTER (v Cardiff):L Fitzgerald; S Horgan, B O'Driascoll, F McFadden, I Nacewa; J Sexton, I Boss; H van der Merwe, R Strauss, M Ross, N Hines, E O'Donoghue, S O'Brien, S Jennings (capt), J Heaslip. Replacements: J Fogarty, C Healy, S Shawe, M Galarza, D Ryan, E Reddan, I Madigan, E O'Malley

CONNACHT SQUAD:Forwards: R Loughney, B Wilkinson, S Cronin, A Flavin, R Sweeney, J Hagan, D Nolan, M Swift, B Upton, M McCarthy, R Ofisa, M McComish, S Conneely. Backs: C Willis, F Murphy, M Nikora, I Keatley, F Carr, K Matthews, N Ta'auso, T OHalloran, A Wynne, T Nathan, G Duffy, D Fanning.