{"id":10708,"date":"2022-11-07T17:13:32","date_gmt":"2022-11-07T17:13:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/googmn.com\/?p=10708"},"modified":"2022-11-07T17:13:32","modified_gmt":"2022-11-07T17:13:32","slug":"we-know-were-playing-the-best-team-in-europe-but-we-will-be-playing-our-rugby","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/googmn.com\/?p=10708","title":{"rendered":"‘We know we’re playing the best team in Europe, but we will be playing our rugby’"},"content":{"rendered":"

Ryan Bailey reports from the Aviva Stadium<\/em><\/p>\n

TOULOUSE HEAD COACH Ugo Mola believes tomorrow\u2019s Heineken Champions Cup semi-final against fellow four-time winners Leinster will be the next step on his side\u2019s journey back to the top of European rugby.<\/p>\n

The Top 14 leaders were welcomed to Dublin by glorious blue skies this afternoon and Mola\u2019s squad enjoyed a gentle run-out at the Aviva Stadium in anticipation of Easter Sunday\u2019s heavyweight showdown here.<\/p>\n

Cheslin Kolbe at today’s captain’s run. Source: Oisin Keniry\/INPHO<\/p>\n

The last four tie will be the third meeting of these two sides this season after they traded home wins during the pool stages, and their 12th tournament clash overall as Europe\u2019s two most successful sides go head-to-head for place in next month\u2019s Newcastle decider.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Mola\u2019s Toulouse arrive in confident mood having suffered just two defeats in their last 23 outings, and with a star-studded XV named for tomorrow\u2019s semi-final [KO 3.15pm, BT Sport\/Virgin Media\/Channel 4], they will pose a serious threat to Leinster\u2019s crown.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cWe cannot ignore the way Leinster play, they have a good mastering of rugby,\u201d the head coach said at the pre-match press conference.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey know their rugby, it\u2019s Irish rugby. We know where we stand, but that doesn\u2019t mean you\u2019re going to win, but we need to keep what makes us strong and express ourselves as best as possible.<\/p>\n

\u201cTo beat a team beat like Leinster we need to play the perfect match. If we play surgical rugby, Leinster will master us. Every weekend we get better and of course, we hope to be better and better each time we play.\u201d<\/p>\n

In 11 previous meetings in Europe, Leinster and Toulouse have played each other twice before at this stage of the competition, with each side winning once, and then going on to lift the title. Overall, Toulouse have the edge, with six wins to Leinster\u2019s five.<\/p>\n

Their resurgence under Mola and Regis Sonnes is now in full flow and with Toulouse back in the top four, a first European crown in nine years is within touching distance.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

The emergence of young players such as Cheslin Kolbe, who has beaten 45 defenders, Thomas Ramos and Antoine Dupont, coupled with the experience of overseas players Jerome Kaino and Reinhardt Elstadt, has made Toulouse a European force to be reckoned with again.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe have great young players who can surprise everyone,\u201d Mola continued.<\/p>\n

Mola speaking at the press conference. Source: Oisin Keniry\/INPHO<\/p>\n

\u201cWe feel there is some form of responsibility and there\u2019s a spirit to the fight. We know tomorrow will be one step in the return of Toulouse to the top of European rugby. We want to win tomorrow. I hope we\u2019ll do it and we have this ambition as we want to grow and work hard.<\/p>\n

\u201cOur fortune is to be part of this new adventure, the group is still very young. We\u2019re so eager to please our supporters. For us, this is huge. 2,000 supporters are to come, clearly, there is a good spirit.<\/p>\n

\u201cOf course, there is the weight of history but a source of motivation. The players are demanding more from themselves. When you play for a club like Toulouse, you have to be up for the challenge, the prestige of the club.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe know we will dealing with the best team in Europe but we will be playing our rugby. Leinster will try and stop us but we want to have enough balls to let our rugby be known.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

Gavan Casey and Murray Kinsella are joined by Andy Dunne to preview the Champions Cup semi-finals and all the week\u2019s news on the latest episode of The42 Rugby Weekly:<\/em><\/p>\n<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Source: The42 Rugby Weekly\/SoundCloud<\/p>\n

Subscribe to our new podcast, The42 Rugby Weekly, here:<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n

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Click Here: melbourne storm shirt<\/a> <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Ryan Bailey reports from the Aviva Stadium TOULOUSE HEAD COACH Ugo Mola believes tomorrow\u2019s Heineken Champions Cup semi-final against fellow four-time winners Leinster will be the next step on his side\u2019s journey back to the top of European rugby. The Top 14 leaders were welcomed to Dublin by glorious blue skies this afternoon and Mola\u2019s…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-10708","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/googmn.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10708","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/googmn.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/googmn.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/googmn.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/googmn.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=10708"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/googmn.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10708\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/googmn.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=10708"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/googmn.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=10708"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/googmn.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=10708"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}