Copy and paste approach cost Leinster

Former Springbok flank Schalk Burger says Leinster will have to change their player management strategy to lose their chokers tag in the Champions Cup.

The Irish giants have won the tournament four times, but their last title came in the 2017-18 season.

Leinster lost the last three Champions finals and suffered a shock 37-34 semi-final defeat to Northampton in Dublin this season, when they bizarrely started star All Blacks centre Jordie Barrett on the bench.

Leinster have prioritised the Champions Cup over the Vodacom URC, opting to rest players in the latter tournament ahead of European matches, yet have nothing to show for it in recent seasons.

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When asked about their “choker’s tag” on Boks Office, Burger said, “It’s a worry, for sure it is.

“Every time we get to this stage of the competition they copy and paste their player management processes from the year before, even though the result isn’t ideal.

“I’m of the point of view that they’ve got to change that. This [past] weekend [against Glasgow in the URC] they played their strongest available side. In the years gone by if they were in a Champions Cup final that wouldn’t have been the case.

“Before they played Northampton, that team hadn’t played together since the quarter-final. That’s three weeks where some players would’ve been involved and some wouldn’t when they beat Glasgow by 50 [plus] points.

“Sometimes, if you miss out on a week [of not playing] you’re fine. If 23 or 15 players have not played for three weeks they can be below par.”

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Former Springbok captain Jean de Villiers said the choker’s tag would remain with Leinster until they won their fifth star.

“In saying that, they’ve also been ‘unlucky’ in the fact that they’ve been up against proper teams who on the day have been exceptional. That you need to take into account as well,” he added.

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