There are any number of tantalising head to head battles in tomorrow’s Heineken Cup Final, but here are three that we think could have a huge affect on the end result.
Sean O’Brien v Stephen Ferris
A little under a year ago, these two were barrelling through defences and busting heads for fun at the World Cup in Australia, bringing to mind the exploits of the famous Bash Brothers in that all-time Disney Classic, Mighty Ducks 2 (Whaddya mean you haven’t seen it?).
Since then they have followed somewhat different paths. Having been the best player in Europe last season, O’Brien has had a more muted campaign this time around and although he’s been quietly effective, we’ve only seen brief glimpses of his spectacular ball-carrying ability.
Ferris, on the other hand, has gone from strength to strength with Ulster and his importance to the side was underlined with his superhuman effort against Munster in the quarter-finals having been bound to crutches only a few days earlier.
There have been suggestions that the two Irish internationals will cancel each other out in Twickenham tomorrow and if that does happen, then with all due respect to O’Brien, we’d wager that Leinster would be very happy indeed.
Ferris is absolutely crucial to Ulster’s hopes of winning, while O’Brien is another cog in an extremely well-oiled Leinster machine. Still, this battle in itself is worth the admission fee alone.
Craig Gilroy v Isa Nacewa
There are few more intimidating atmospheres for a 21-year old than Twickenham on Heineken Cup Final Day, but a Heineken Cup quarter-final against Munster in Thomond Park is probably one of them and Craig Gilroy came through that one with flying colours.
His try in that game (see below) is probably the best scored anywhere so far this season and a repeat of that would confirm his status as a star very much on the rise. Pity for Gilroy then that he’ll be up against arguably Leinster’s most complete player over the last three years.
Put simply, Isa Nacewa is a class act and if there are any faults in his game, they are very hard to find. Solid defensively and potent when he enters into the attack, Nacewa could even fill in for Jonathan Sexton in the goal-kicking department if required. Ruan Pienaar and Paddy Jackson will probably try and keep the ball in Leinster’s half as much as possible tomorrow and they’ll do well to avoid any loose kicks in Nacewa’s direction.
Do that, and they’ll be severely punished.
Jonathan Sexton v Ruan Pienaar
Paddy Jackson might be wondering why we’re overlooking him here, but we’re referring exclusively to the kicking battle between Sexton and Pienaar, which could be the difference in the end.
Just as Leinster will be happy if O’Brien nullifies Ferris, Ulster will probably be content to soak up Leinster pressure and let Pienaar kick his goals all day long. It worked against Edinburgh, when he was responsible for 17 of Ulster’s 22 points and to a lesser extent against Munster, when he kicked 14 points as Ulster registered the exact same total.
The fact that Jonathan Sexton’s kicking credentials are still a cause of worry for some is underlined whenever the camera finds its way to Ronan O’Gara when the Leinster man misses a kick on international duty. It’s as if Sexton still isn’t trusted to deliver the goods, but the stats tell that he will be well able to hold his own when it comes to a kicking duel.
He’s had 27 successful kicks from 30 attempts in the Rabo 12 and in the Six Nations he converted 22 out of 25 efforts and they are not the stats of a man who’s lacking in confidence when he places the ball on the tee.
Still, as with the Ferris v O’Brien battle, you feel that Leinster will be better able to cope with a poor goal-kicking display by Sexton than Ulster would from Pienaar and will be conscious about discipline from the halfway line up to deprive the South African of easy pickings.
