Leinster v Scarlets - ‘twas the night before

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The eyes of a Scarlet fan drift across a Dublin pub. The debate as to why Guinness tastes better in Dublin serves as an interlude between songs that are delivered with passion. The fervor is fueled by excitement and nerves in equal measure. 

The wandering eyes eventually rest upon the three stars that sit proudly above the crest of the blue jersey on the follower of the adversary. The stars are representative of Leinster’s European triumphs in 2009, 11 and 12.

As the envy subsides, the mind of the Scarlets supporter meanders down a river of European memories. It drifts to days when the Apollo Llanelli felt destined for the stars, but crash landed with a thud, somewhere over the midlands. The record reads 0 from 3 in Semi Finals. There is a familiar narrative - so near but so far.

If there is a set of supporters that can empathise with the Scarlets’ tales of the brink, it is Leinster’s. Their victory in 09 was preceded by two quarter and two semi final defeats in the first half of the noughties.

The cliche on offer here is that the lessons learned from fruitless toil were a fundamental part of the journey from also rans to premiers. The counter to this is that it was a new kid on the block, who, unburdened by past failure, thrust himself to the fore in 2009 and 2011. Particularly 2011. Enter Johnny Sexton, a player for whom winning is not a want or hope, it is a primal need.

If the Scarlets are to advance to Bilbao on May 12th, they must not fear the failures suffered by their predecessors. Channeling their own level of Sexton-esque desire is but the buy in. The full house can only be achieved by the manifestation of this desperation, in belief. Belief in the ability to deploy a high octane strategy under the type of pressure that is a given against a team yet to experience defeat in this season's competition. It is a game plan that is riddled with risk, but has an irresistible upside that not many defences can live with. 

Wayne Pivac’s midweek rhetoric was that the team who made the least mistakes would most likely triumph. He ended the week by selecting Dan Jones at Stand Off. A signal to Scarlets fans that the men from the west are heading to Dublin not to limit mistakes, but to make things happen by playing with tempo and slight of hand, by balling the Scarlet way.

Alarm clock set for 0600 hours, see you in Dublin.


Anyone know any good hotels in Bilbao? Dare to dream.

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