Miles Harrison says that whoever wins at the breakdown will put their side on course to lift the Heineken Cup
All eyes on Murrayfield
This weekend the Heineken Cup final promises to be a scintillating affair as Leicester aim to win the trophy for the third time in a record equalling fifth final.
Having won the Guinness Premiership just one week ago, the only thing standing in the Tigers way of the double is Leinster.
Leinster go into their first ever Heineken Cup final determined to come out of the shadow of Munster after they beat the defending champions in the semi-finals.
Leicester have the flair and the pace to worry any side but it is the hard edge they have found in the forwards - especially in the backrow that has taken them to the brink of European glory.
Miles Harrison caps off an epic European campaign with a trip to Murrayfield and gives skysports.com his views on a spectacular occasion.
Lets look at the build up to this match Miles, Leicester played in the Guinness Premiership Final last week while Leinster put out a under strength side in the Magners League to take on the Dragons. Who do you think will benefit more?
MILES REPLIES: Well you can look at it two ways. History has shown that some sides have responded well to having a rest before a major cup final and we have seen some sides have done better when they have rolled with the momentum and kept on playing - the winning habit in the big games carries them through.
But, very rarely do we see a side that keeps winning on all fronts and that has to be a concern for Leicester this weekend especially as they did not play the highest quality rugby against London Irish in the Guinness Premiership final. It was certainly a bruising game and we will only know how much that has affected them when we see them play on Saturday. Given the two scenarios, the situation I would prefer to be in would be Leinster's. Before a massive game like this I think Leinster being able to choose the players they wanted to see perform last week and being able to rest those we needed it, well I think that is a better position to be in. But there is something in the fact that Leicester keep on winning. Yes they did not play their best last week but it was still good enough to win and they are a very hard team to beat.
You mentioned it above that Leicester have the ability to grind out wins, do you think Leinster have the same ability?
MILES REPLIES: I think that is an accusation that could have been levelled at Leinster in previous years. Possibly it could have been levelled at them in the Pool stages earlier this year when they went to Twickenham and could not get the win against Wasps. Wasps were not playing particularly well at the time and Leinster failed to take advantage of that. Having said that I don't think you can level that accusation at them now in view of what they have done in the quarter final and the semi final. It was an amazingly gutsy performance against Harlequins that they came through and then they pieced it all together against Munster in a defensive and attacking sense. I think Leinster have definitely moved on.
This is Leinster's chance to move out of Munster's shadow isn't it?
MILES REPLIES: Yes but they will only do that if they win on Saturday. Munster were the bridesmaids for so long in this competition and then put that to rights. I guess that mantle has been passed on to Leinster now. They have been to semi-finals before but never a final - we will only know at the end of Saturday if they can get rid of that mantle too. What a motivation that is though, I don't think I can emphasize that enough.
It is a bit of a cliché, but these days you have to win the breakdown battle. Leinster's backrow were superb against Munster but Leicester have not been too shabby in that area either.
MILES REPLIES: It is a cliché but it is a truism that has certainly been underlined this season. Of all the messages to come out of this season it is the importance of the breakdown in the modern game. It is going to be a key factor which will determine who plays on the front foot and who plays on the back foot and one which will probably determine who wins the match.
We have seen from Leicester this emerging force of the trio of Craig Newby, Ben Woods and Jordan Crane who have really made their mark. Lewis Moody is also a key member of the Leicester backrow over the years and has impacted very well on the matches he has come on in. But they are up against a backrow trio who were too much for Harlequins and too much for Munster, both of whom have magnificent backrows.
That makes Leinster's a truly magnificent trio this season - Rocky Elsom, Shane Jennings and Jamie Heaslip have all been stars. This is an area where if Leinster can reproduce what they did against Munster and Harlequins then they are going to be very hard to stop in this match.
What about injuries Miles, how are they going to affect the sides?
MILES REPLIES: Unfortunately because of the intensity of the season by the time the teams get to the finals, there are always going to be a few injuries. I think it is pretty even on both sides, both are missing a ten in Felipe Contepomi and Toby Flood but both have got more than capable replacements in Sexton and Vesty. Leicester have been missing another major backline man in Aaron Mauger while Leinster have been without a major forward force in CJ van der Linde.
What is encouraging from a neutral perspective is that I don't think the game loses anything even though some big names are missing. I certainly don't mean any disrespect to those players but I think it shows the quality of the squads that they can bring in cover for them.
Both the captains have been immense this season haven't they?
MILES REPLIES: They have been inspirational in different ways. They are both Irish and used to be team mates at Leicester of course. It is a fascinating contrast in captaincy. Geordan Murphy said this week that he does not have to do too much leaving the forwards to sort it out up front. Captaining from fullback is quite a challenge as you are setback from your team. I guess you have the overview and can see what is happening in that sense but you can't really know what is happening upfront. But, I think Geordan Murphy is being very self effacing and modest as you would expect him to be when he says all he is doing is the coin toss. I think he is doing a lot more than that and I have been very impressed with his leadership and his calmness. He sets the standards for Leicester.
Leo Cullen is a bit of a unsung hero really in European rugby terms but that may all change come Saturday night. He was inspirational against Munster and against Harlequins. He has really turned it on for the big games. He is one of those players that leads by his examples and would not ask a player to do anything he wouldn't do. He is a classic captain in that respect. His performances and therefore his leadership have been so admirable.
What do each side have to do if they want to win on Saturday?
MILES REPLIES: From a Leicester point of view well in many ways they have to keep on doing what they have been doing since Christmas and certainly from the start of March. Since then they have played exactly how they want to play and have upped the ante in all aspects of their game as well. They have to keep in that frame of mind and keep on doing what they have been doing. They accept that they have to play much better than they did last week but having said that they still won and, as I say, that proves that they are very difficult to beat. They just keep coming back for more.
For Leinster they have to stay in the position that they were in mentally for the semi-final against Munster. They cannot be distracted by the weight of history and people telling them that they have never done this before but use that as a motivational force instead. This weekend they have to remain focussed and like Leicester do what they have been doing. Ultimately, It has nothing to do with their history of their failure in the Heineken Cup but everything to do with the way this side has developed as a team to the point where they may possibly win it.
