Sometimes the elders must clear off the road before a leader can reach his zenith.
Victory started and finished with Jamie Heaslip. Led Leinster onto the field and was last into the media room to provide insightful, lengthy answers. “A fantastic captain’s knock,” said Matt O’Connor. “He led us all week. He was outstanding against a good backrow, against a physical side. (Wasps) will beat a lot of sides”
Heaslip is 30 now. A sporting brand but none of that mattered here – 23 carries for 53 hard-earned metres doesn't seem like reality, more a Marvel comic yarn. Some really crucial turnovers as well. It was a performance that eclipsed the ferocity of every team-mate. Got through the unseen work too.
This is the new Leinster backrow and to O’Connor’s cheer probably only one of them will start against the Springboks next month. Ruddock will presumably provide cover for Chris Henry and Peter O’Mahony.
But Heaslip was Herculean in this 25-20 win, relentless in the face of a Wasps pack including Joe Launchbury. England’s brutal lock made 17 tackles, Heaslip topped the Leinster pile with 12 of their 92 total.
No other blue shirt reached double figures, with Dominic Ryan swatting nine Wasps. Ruddock had 16 carries. Ryan got a try that, if short, would have proved a costly solo run.
Admiration
“Dippy’s try showed the kind of athlete he is,” said Heaslip in admiration. “He went off on his own mission and made our job a little easier.”
But the finished article surpassed his flankers, because he needed to.
Leinster needed him to. There were negative thoughts this week when the names Sean O’Brien and Cian Healy came up.
The Joe Frazier-type heavyweights who have dragged Leinster over the gainline and try line in European quarters, semis and three finals.
Heaslip will always be more Evander Holyfield in pugilistic analogy.
That’s a compliment. Holyfield was the undisputed world champion, he ended Mike Tyson twice. Beat George Foreman, Larry Holmes and Riddick Bowe.
In his prime, he beat everyone put in front of him.
Last night Heaslip, so clearly in his prime, fought like Frazier. Carried like an ox, breaking the gainline 23 times.
O’Connor wondered what more he needs to do for universal respect. “He has done the job (of captain) a lot. Done it internationally.
Fantastic
“I think he hasn’t got the recognition he has deserved previously because he is a fantastic leader in our environment.”
Darks days in green at Murrayfield and Rome seem of enormous value now.
Names like Leo Cullen and Brian O’Driscoll would be thrown in his face if defeat had been tasted last night. And it so easily could have. But Heaslip refused to contemplate failure when tracking Alapati Leiua all of 85 metres, when others wilted, in a vain yet valiant attempt to deny the Samoan a free run under the posts.
That’s a leader.
“He delivers every day in training, he delivers in every game,” O’Connor added.
Flaws were evident. That intercept try and three lost lineouts were identified by the captain.
“I can’t commend the guys’ workrate enough but on the flip side of that some of the carries, some of the passing, our scrum, our lineout at times they were creaking,” said Heaslip. “We didn’t execute properly. These are all going to be work ons. They made a couple of line breaks as well.
“We are coming up against a Castes nine, Rory Kockott, who will hurt us around the rucks.”
At the end he backed O’Connor. The Australian will always be a target for ire and after the Munster game he was flippant and short in his answers. When the defeat was still raw. “Matt is probably one of the most innovative coaches I have played with.
“The pressure?” he added. “The best way to describe it is noise.”
Background noise that he mutes.
