Head coach Matt O’Connor has said Leinster must now get “maximum points” in their Champions Cup clash with Harlequins in Dublin next Saturday after Sunday’s loss at The Stoop.
Leinster failed to score a try in the frustrating 24-18 loss, but did secure a potentially crucial losing bonus point.
Speaking after the defeat, O’Connor agreed it affected the dynamic of the return clash, and that nothing but five points would now do for Leinster this coming weekend.
“It changes it a little bit,” O’Connor said. “We’ve got to make sure we get maximum points out of it.
“We have got some improving in us. We’ll have some bodies back, which will change the dynamic again, and hopefully we will get a response.
“And we’ve got to make sure that, at the full Aviva, we’ve got to put out a performance.”
"We’ve got to make sure that, at the full Aviva, we’ve got to put out a performance" - Matt O'Connor
O’Connor praised the composure shown by his players after Quins had scored their second try, a sucker-punch interception and sprint down the pitch from Aseli Tikoirotuma after some fine pressure from Leinster.
“You can unravel at that point, and you can lose your way, and chase the game,” he said.
“And from that end, I thought the composure from the group, and the leaders in particular, was pretty good.”
He singled out the contribution of Ian Madigan, who provided all of Leinster’s point from the penalty tee.
“He’s as good a goal-kicker as there is,” was O’Connor’s verdict.
“He steps up to the plate the whole time.”
O’Connor confirmed that Gordon D’Arcy had pulled up with cramp in his calf, but did not anticipate it affecting his availability for next week’s clash.
Overall, O’Connor called the loss disappointing, and suggested Leinster had paid the price for a poor first-half performance, and Tikoirotuma’s moment of inspiration.
“I thought we probably didn’t exert enough pressure in the first half. We had three or four opportunities with the ball to build some phases and get some momentum, and ideally something on the scoreboard [but didn’t], and that was probably a little bit of the way the game went.
“I thought we fought our way back into it, the second half. The intercept is the intercept, but it probably changes the momentum, and probably was the difference at the end of the day.”
