Leinster v Northampton Saints: Big match preview

Competition: Investec Champions Cup (semi-final)

Venue: Croke Park, Dublin

Date and kick-off time: Saturday, May 4, 2024, 5.30pm

Live television coverage: TNT Sports

Weather forecast: 13c, cloudy

Referee: Mathieu Raynal (France)

Assistant referees: Pierre Brousset and Luc Ramos (both Fra)

TMO: Thomas Charabas (Fra)

Leinster: Frawley; Larmour, Henshaw, Osborne, Lowe; R Byrne, Gibson-Park; Porter, Sheehan, Furlong; Molony, McCarthy; Baird, van der Flier, Doris (c).

Replacements: Kelleher, Healy, Ala'alatoa, Jenkins, Conan, McGrath, H Byrne, O'Brien.

Saints: Furbank; Ramm, Freeman, Dingwall, Hendy; F Smith, Mitchell; A Waller, Langdon, Davison; Moon, Coles; Lawes (c), Graham, Augustus.

Replacements: S Matavesi, Iyogun, Millar Mills, Mayanavanua, Scott-Young, James, Litchfield, Seabrook.

Not considered for Saints selection: Callum Braley, Paul Hill, Rory Hutchinson, Lewis Ludlam, Burger Odendaal, Tom Pearson, Ollie Sleightholme.

Most recent meeting: December 19, 2020: Leinster 35 Saints 19 (Champions Cup pool stages)

Leinster forwards coach Robin McBryde: “Northampton are off the back of a great match against Harlequins last Saturday, I enjoyed watching that. It has given us a bit more prep time, not so much intense game time, but I would like to think that won’t be so much of a factor in Saturday’s game. It’s always in the back of your mind as to whether you got the prep right or not. I’m not going to lie there but I trust them, I trust the players. They just have to trust themselves. The level of detail retention is second to none. I’ve never worked with a group of players like them.”

Saints director of rugby Phil Dowson: "They're an incredible team with incredible history. They're European royalty really. I count Stuart Lancaster (who was senior coach at Leinster for seven years before leaving to join Racing 92 last summer) as one of my mentors so his impact there has been huge. They seem to go from strength to strength so it's an impressive setup, one we can learn a lot from, but also one we want to get stuck into. They are very high skill, very technical but also incredibly powerful with the athletic ability of their forward pack to move the ball and carry hard. Their set piece is excellent. In Jamison Gibson-Park they've got one of the best nines in the world, and they've got plenty of talent behind the scrum as well."

Opposition dangerman: Where do you even begin? Leinster have so many threats, you could pick any of them. But Jamison Gibson-Park has been making this team tick, and the scrum-half can be electric.

Tom Vickers’ prediction: While it would be lovely to think Saints can make the final, the obstacle standing in their way is so formidable. And the motivation Leinster will get from playing in front of a capacity crowd at Croke Park should only push a world-class team to even greater heights. Saints have plenty of ability of their own, but Leinster are expected to make it through… Leinster 35 Saints 25.