VIDEO: Leinster expects 'the usual' Stormers
It would be a stretch to hyperbole to suggest the Stormers and Leinster are desperate.
Yes, both are coming off disappointing losses – the Stormers producing arguably their worst performance of the year in a 21-27 loss to Ospreys, while Leinster lost 12-44 to a charged-up Lions outfit.
It created an even bigger bottleneck on an already congested dash for the play-offs.
Leinster coach Leo Cullen said the players are well aware of the situation they find themselves in – with a congested URC table and the Champions Cup semifinal less than two weeks away – so there is no need to ‘hype up’ the team.
There will be a response and the quality of the opposition means the Irish province will need to raise their own game significantly.
“The guys know what is on the line,” Cullen said, as his team prepared for the Cape Town face-off.
He said the Stormers won’t make it easy for the visitors.
“They will be disappointed with how they went at the weekend,” the Irish coach said, adding: “A lot of people would have expected them to beat the Ospreys.”
However, Leinster won’t be making the same mistake and has already done a lot of homework on the Stormers.
They are also very familiar with the Cape Town franchise, who were on their side of the European draw in the Champions Cup.
“We have watched a lot of the Stormers,” Cullen said, adding: “We were planning to play either Stade Rochelais or the Stormers [in the Champions Cup quarterfinal] and that game [in the Round of 16 in Cape Town] went down to the final kick.
“It’s a great challenge and a great stadium.
“It’s a proud franchise and team. It will be a serious challenge for us.”
Cullen said two ‘highly motivated’ teams are going head-to-head in Cape Town.
He said it should be similar to last season’s 22-all draw between the two outfits at the RDS in Dublin.
(WATCH as Leinster coach Leo Cullen explains what type of response they expect from the Stormers in Cape Town on Saturday….)
The Leinster coach said he does not expect the Stormers to change their approach of an all-out attack, despite coming unstuck against Ospreys last week.
“Yeah, a lot of the Stormers’ scores come from transition play, but that comes off the back of a strong kicking game,” Cullen said.
“I expect them to kick the ball quite a lot against us.
“We will have a better idea of what conditions will be like later in the week, but they will kick the ball a lot.
“That’s how they look for those broken field opportunities, where they can use their speed and some of the guys who are very good at their stepping game and keeping the ball alive.
“We need to make sure that we deal with their kicking game nice and early, and not give them the access that we gave the Lions last weekend.”
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