Leinster stand alone in Europe but for Munster, Ulster and Connacht in the URC there is precious little wriggle room for further missteps from here on in
Leinster stand alone in Europe but for Munster, Ulster and Connacht there is precious little wriggle room for further misstepsVodacom Bulls' Cameron Hanekom reacts before being shown a yellow card against Northampton in the Champions Cup. Bulls left a host of frontline Springbok Test players at home for the game as they instead prioritised the URC. Morgan Treacy/Inpho
The latest example of a club prioritising something other than European competition was highlighted by the Bulls’ decision to send a weakened side to contest the quarter-final against the Northampton Saints at Franklin’s Gardens, a choice that has drawn an EPCR investigation.Joe McCarthy, another Bakkies Botha in the making?
Leinster have regularly faced this criticism over the past number of years in heavily rotating their squad for South African trips and focusing on the Champions Cup. The upshot and the patent lack of success that ensued has put that approach under the microscope; this season will be no different. Munster will reflect that, despite the ravages of illness, they gave Northampton a proper rattle in the Round of 16, much more so than the ‘Bulls-lite,’ who they face in Pretoria on Saturday afternoon, did when losing to the Saints.
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