Defending Vodacom URC champions Leinster are winning again, but James Lowe insists results alone won’t be enough as the Irish giants head into a season-defining block of interprovincial clashes.
After an uncharacteristically sluggish start to the campaign, Leinster have steadied the ship with four straight wins across competitions. Yet with derby battles against Ulster, Munster and Connacht looming, the focus has shifted from survival to sharpening their edge – particularly on attack.
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“We have been a little bit sticky so far,” Lowe admitted ahead of Friday night’s showdown with Ulster at the Aviva Stadium.
“We are creating a lot of opportunities, but we have left tries out there through a lack of execution.
“We are so, so close and hopefully if we have another conversation in a month’s time, we will be talking about how awesome it’s been.
According to the Ireland winger, Leinster’s attacking rhythm has also been disrupted by opponents intent on dragging them into a trench fight rather than an open contest.
“Teams don’t want to go head to head with us playing free flowing rugby,” said the 33-year-old. “They want to slow down our ruck, they want to be nasty at the set-piece, they want the ref to ref it.
“They want to be told to chill out. They don’t want to go back to a Monday meeting and be told that they were soft. So everyone is on the edge.”
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The festive period now presents Leinster with a chance to make a statement, starting with Ulster and followed by further derby tests against Munster and Connacht.
Ulster arrive in Dublin with confidence intact after winning five of their opening six matches, despite suffering a late EPCR Challenge Cup setback against Cardiff last weekend.
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