Leinster sat down and had what might constitute an emergency meeting after their second pool defeat in Europe last week.
The squad met on Sunday following the defeat to Bath in the Recreation Ground to discuss how the Champions Cup had managed to slide out of sight so soon and how to steady the ship looking into the festive interprovincial pairings in the Pro12.
Not used to the prospect of their first two matches in the Champions Cup turning so sour, the Leinster players forfeited their rest day to talk through the issues that have blighted their season and especially their last two matches.
“Yeah, of course, we’ve got to address the problems,” said Seán Cronin speaking at the launch of ‘Rugby Memories’, a new initiative with The Alzheimer Society of Ireland.
“We didn’t give our team a launch off our set-piece at all in the game. Like I said, we have to cop it on the chin this week in terms of our analysis and say that it wasn’t good enough.
Adapt
“So yeah, we had to address it and get in and make it right this weekend. We had a good sit down and a chat about what we want to do going forward and address a couple of the problems that we thought we had. The major things are being able to problem-solve and adapt during matches, whether it’s with the referee or what they’re doing.”
Cronin could not remember the last time, or any time, that Leinster lost 16 points from their scrum, although he knows that Ulster will provide another test this weekend.
With Rory Best Joe Schmidt's number one hooker and Richardt Strauss edging ahead of him in the selections, Cronin's challenge is already set. But Cronin is not thinking about Ireland now, with Best and Ulster looming large.
"The World Cup was disappointing for me, I just wanted to get back," says Cronin.
“I’m keen. I think I can play a lot better. Ireland is the furthest thing from my mind at the moment. I just want to play well for Leinster. I think Ulster are in good form as well. Bar . . . that was a funny game, that Saracens match. It just seemed to get away from them towards the end. I think they’re all in good form, and Rory [Best] is no different there.
“Look, it’s a challenging time, there’s no point in lying about it. It’s a very challenging time. It’s going to take time, with 20-something players coming back into the squad. Look, I know it’s professional sport and people want results straight away and there’s no time for integration, but it’s going to come.”
Cronin is correct in that. People want results and Leinster over the years have generously obliged. But a win over Ulster would represent less an illustration of progress than a halt to the recent damaging run of results.
Well-led scrum
“There’s no better opportunity in going up against a good pack and a well-led scrum on Friday in a derby match. That will be a big test for us,” said the Irish hooker.
“Like I said, we’re looking for an 80-minute performance. We were quite poor against Wasps at home but we thought there were some aspects of our game that improved significantly against Bath the following week.
“We know that we’re pushing forward, but it’s coming in small steps. We’ve just got to make sure to keep the confidence there because we know the quality is high.”
