Ronan O’Gara has claimed Leinster are “capable of beating any team in Europe” as he talked up the Irish provinces’ hopes in this year’s European Champions Cup.
Although the former Munster and Ireland out-half admitted Toulon are the standout team in the tournament, he’s confident the Blues will lead the Irish charge, and backed his own province to at least make the quarter-finals.
Leinster and Munster both kick off their European quests on home soil this weekend – against Wasps and Treviso respectively – and O’Gara expects Leo Cullen’s side in particular to prove a real force in the competition.
“I think Leinster are extremely strong. If their squad is fully fit they are extremely talented, ambitious and capable of beating any team in Europe,” Racing 92 coach O’Gara told RTE 2fm’s Game On.
“Their hunger levels probably surpass a lot of teams; that applies to Munster and Ulster as well. Obviously Toulon are in a league of their own and teams have to catch them but I wouldn’t be playing down the chances of Leinster. They’re a serious team.
“You look at the fellas who probably won’t even make their squad for this weekend, a lot of them would be proven international players so they are loaded with depth and quality I feel.”
Racing themselves host Glasgow Warriors in their pool opener, and O’Gara admitted journeys to foreign lands are not the daunting challenge they once were for British and Irish sides.
“Teams and players know each other a lot better than they did in the past. The fear of travelling is gone a little bit and it will come down to the 80 minutes.
“There probably will be a lot more away wins than previous campaigns. You have to win your home games, but with that comes a lot of pressure and teams visiting might be on a freebie... so they can play a little bit more expansively."
O’Gara highlighted the importance of Peter O'Mahony to Munster's chances, and said his fitness is key to how far they progress: “I think they have a very good team. I don’t know the strength in depth there if injuries were to hit.
“It’ll only be in the bigger games that you realise the loss of somebody like Peter O’Mahony. He’s immense. He's a leader in the Irish team not alone for his ability, he's a great standard setter. They’ve a strong chance of qualifying most definitely, but I think the quarter-final stages, semi-final stages, it’ll be tough for them."
