Lancaster's big admission about SA's URC teams

SPOTLIGHT: The addition of South African teams has made Irish rugby stronger, not only on the field but in the boardroom as well.

That’s the view of Leinster’s outgoing assistant coach Stuart Lancaster, who will leave at the end of the season to take charge of Racing 92 in France.

Lancaster was reacting to the turmoil in English rugby where both Wasps and Worcester have been put into liquidation, and the financial problems that are now quite common in English rugby because of big spending clubs.

The Leinster forwards coach believes the South African teams joining to form the United Rugby Championship has been a massive boost, and added to the financial muscle that has made the new league strong as well as creating new interest in the game.

“It’s a tough financial environment to be in. The South African teams have been a good addition to the URC, certainly with the TV revenue that’s been generated and the interest in the game that’s been generated,” Lancaster said at his team’s press conference.

“It’s made it a very competitive league but I don’t think anyone, Leinster included, would be sitting there thinking we’ve got all the answers covered in terms of the growth of the game.

“But if we can put in performances like we did against the Sharks in front of 18 000 people at the RDS and get hopefully 35 or 40 000 people for a club game at the Aviva this weekend, that’s amazing really isn’t it?

“So I think Ireland in particular and the four provinces of the union are in good shape. In England it’s very sad to see. Two clubs, and a lot of people who I know at both clubs, young and older players and a lot of coaching staff as well. It’s tough.

“My son plays in England at the moment and I’m just grateful that he’s got a job and an opportunity to progress as a young player.”

Lancaster’s table-topping Leinster face another tough derby against Munster this weekend with the latter licking their wounds after beating the Bulls in Limerick on Saturday.

Stephen Archer (ankle), Edwin Edogbo (calf), Craig Casey (groin) and Tadhg Beirne (groin) are all doubtful and will need to undergo scans before they know if they will make the game, while winger Calvin Nash is also a doubt with a thigh injury. This comes on top of Munster missing Irish test players Keith Earls, Andrew Conway and Simon Zebo, all of whom have been ruled out.

Lancaster said once he leaves the club, he will miss the derbies “massively.”

“I’ll miss them massively,” Lancaster told Irish media

“The Top 14 is different, you’ve got 14 teams going at it and some big away games – Toulouse, Toulon. Nothing quite compares to the interprovincial derbies in my opinion.

“You get a little bit of that in England sometimes when you’ve Bath v Bristol, teams in the south-west playing each, teams in London playing each other.

“But it’s pretty unique in Ireland. I will miss them and will enjoy them while I’m here, for sure.”

He was wary of Munster’s sudden burst of form ahead of the big derby this weekend.

“They’ll be pleased with their performance, they beat a team that beat in the semifinals last year,” said Lancaster.

“Denis Leamy was here, I know him well and worked with him particularly in the contact area and defence. I can see the influence he’s had. Mike Prendergast has done a great job on the attack, you can see the improvements there.

“I know Graham Rowntree very well. His energy, competitiveness and desire to build a winning team will make sure they’re more than prepared.

“There’s a lot of knowledge about Leinster in the Munster camp. That’s what makes them tricky opponents. The rivalry between the provinces means form goes out the window. It’s a proper derby.”