European Cup / Leinster 32 Biarritz 6:Leinster didn't have to excel; a professional performance sufficed to guarantee the perfect start to their Heineken European Cup campaign, writes John O'Sullivan at Lansdowne Road.
It's been a difficult 10 days off the pitch, but Saturday's victory was facile, facilitated by a Biarritz side which contributed much to their downfall.
The French side gifted Leinster 14 points and long before the final whistle had disintegrated into an undisciplined mess. Number eight Olivier Nauroy, who had 10 minutes in the sin bin for a technical offence, was cruising for trouble. His petulance was manifest in several clashes.
Second-row David Couzinet was fortunate the match officials failed to spot a punch on Ben Gissing as he sought to vent his frustration off the ball.
Biarritz coach Patrice Lagisquet bemoaned the fact there was "less application in combat than there should have been", referring to the legitimate physical battle. He added: "We used to talk before matches about attitude and discipline, but we didn't pay any attention to that today."
Leinster coach Gary Ella was understandably pleased with the result, victory and a four-try haul that guaranteed the bonus point. But there were aspects of the performance he was less enamoured of, although he did point out that players like Eric Miller, Shane Horgan and Victor Costello had had little time to familiarise themselves with a new game-plan.
Not that Horgan seemed in any way inconvenienced by his first game in the centre for about 11 months. He had an excellent game in midfield, strong in the tackle, sharp and alert in sniffing out half-chances. His two tries epitomised the latter characteristics, although modesty led him to downplay his role.
"For the first I just hacked it through and had a run at it. It bounced up for me over the line, which was really nice. We had noticed that they were coming up flat. I was more looking for Drico (Brian O'Driscoll), but he misinterpreted the call so I had to get after it. Luckily I got the touchdown.
"The second was nothing too heroic either. I came from round the corner, tapped it up and then just headed for the line. I was expecting to be hauled down."
The foundation for victory was laid by the pack. They shredded the Biarritz scrum and could have celebrated a couple of pushover tries. Instead, they were forced to settle for Gissing's try, the fourth of the afternoon, when the pack wheeled and then shunted the opposition off their own put-in, allowing the New Zealander to pick up and drive over.
Gissing certainly justified his selection, powerful in defence and athletic out of touch, where he and Malcolm O'Kelly reduced Biarritz hooker Jean Michel Gonzalez to a wreck. Six times the Leinster second-row combination pinched Biarritz throws, the final ignominy for Gonzalez an overthrow near his line that went straight to Miller. The Leinster flanker chose a beautiful angle to power his way over from eight metres.
Miller was a prominent cog in an outstanding back row, Costello made plenty of hard yards and was abrasive in the tackle, and Keith Gleeson the epitome of perpetual motion, supported, tackled or made the odd half-break.
Peter Coyle was handed an opportunity at tighthead because of injuries to others, but the quality of the Leinster scrum confirmed his ability to compete at this level.
Brian O'Meara kicked beautifully in windy conditions, registering 12 points with five attempts from six. Christian Warner's distribution was assured, but the lack of a kicking game from the pivot position is still a big handicap.
Horgan was the pick of the three-quarter line, but Gordon D'Arcy wasn't far behind. Apart from one handling error, he was hugely effective, confirming that there isn't a better broken-field runner in Irish rugby, or one who can better negotiate cluttered corridors of players.
Individual cameos aside, Leinster's performance was nowhere near what they can accomplish. Too often they worked opportunities but lacked the patience and precision to finish them off. Handling errors, rank decision-making and poor peripheral vision denied them at least as many tries as they scored. There was still the tendency to get isolated and turn over possession.
"There were a couple of chances that we put down in the first half that I wasn't happy about," Ella conceded, "but at the same time the hard work was being done and the opportunities were going to present themselves. You've got to be patient.
"I don't think we're anywhere near as good as we could be. We didn't stick entirely to the gameplan but the guys played well enough to win the game.
"You can't really complain too much when you come away with five points against good opposition, but it could be better."
Biarritz got an early reminder of levels required for success in the European Cup. The return of Serge Betsen and Thomas Lievremont will help them recover from this hugely disappointing start.
Leinster head for the Arms Park next Friday and a meeting with a Cardiff team denied an away win at Sale only by a late Charlie Hodgson drop goal.
Leinster took a promising first step on Saturday but can take a significant leap by winning in Wales next weekend.
Scoring sequence: 2 mins: O'Meara penalty, 3-0; 22: Yachvili drop goal, 3-3; 28: Horgan try, 8-3; 33: Horgan try, O'Meara conversion, 15-3; Half-time 15-3. 47: Miller try, O'Meara conversion, 22-3; 52: Yachvili penalty, 22-6; 59: O'Meara penalty, 25-6; 65: Gissing try, O'Meara conversion, 32-6.
LEINSTER LIONS: G Dempsey; J McWeeney, B O'Driscoll, S Horgan, G D'Arcy; C Warner, B O'Meara; R Corrigan (capt), S Byrne, P Coyle, B Gissing, M O'Kelly, E Miller, V Costello, K Gleeson. Replacements: D Dillon for Costello (6-11 mins); Dillon for Miller (13-22 mins); Dillon for Miller (69 mins); S Jennings for Gleeson (72 mins); G Hickie for Byrne (72 mins); B Burke for D'Arcy (72 mins); D Quinlan for Horgan, B O'Riordan for O'Meara (both 78 mins).
BIARRITZ OLYMPIQUE: N Brusque; P Bernat-Salles, G Bousses, M Stcherbina, P Bidabe; J Peyrelongue, D Yachvili; P Balan, J-M Gonzalez, D Avril, D Couzinet, J Thion, O Tonita, O Nauroy, C Milheres. Replacements: L Mazas for Yachvili (59 mins); M Baget for Tonita (63 mins); M Fitzgerald for Balan, E Menieu for Avril (both 69 mins).
Yellow cards: O Nauroy (Biarritz) 27-37 mins; B O'Driscoll (Leinster) 52-62 mins.
Referee: D Pearson (England).
