Speaking ahead of Saturday’s game in the RDS, Leinster’s Consultant Coach ALAN GAFFNEY said that the squad are expecting a tough test against the Scarlets…

“The Scarlets have a couple of long-term injuries, but team wise I wouldn’t expect too many changes from last weekend. We’re expecting a different proposition this weekend and we played some pretty good rugby for 40 minutes and in the last 20, but in the other period we were just too sloppy. We let ourselves down actually, and we’ve got to improve those areas.

“As Michael (Cheika) has alluded to already, the players were pretty disappointed in the dressing-room afterwards, but the Scarlets will come out fighting. They still have a mathematical chance of qualifying so they will give themselves a chance.

“The score-line was pretty close in the second half, but we know that it will be competitive this weekend. They have beaten London Irish away, and not many sides do that, so we’re going into this game knowing that we’re in for a battle. We can’t worry about the result, we’re just concentrating on getting the process right.

“I thought there was a lot of skill in (Gordon) D’Arcy’s try. The boys have been working very hard in training along those lines, working in close quarters with three on two situations, and to see the result of that try after the work that they have been doing on the training paddock was very satisfying.

“The build up work for Shane Horgan’s try was good, but the finish was fantastic, and the second and third tries were very good, but we should have had the bonus point wrapped up before half time. There is confidence that a lot of the work that’s being done during training is coming through into games. We know that we’ve got to get better, but the boys have set the challenge for this weekend and I think we’ll get the performance we’re looking for.

“They (Scarlets) won’t lay down because they have some very good and experienced players and I’ve no doubt that the likes of Simon Easterby and David Lyons will be trying to work the oracle this week. They have already got a good result away, so they know that they’re capable of doing it. Though they have been in the wilderness in Europe for a number of years, but to be leading the pool after the opening two rounds and having given themselves a chance of qualifying, they’ll be giving it everything.

“The (Leinster) boys want to perform. We were very disappointed after the London Irish game, not only with the result, but with our performance. We’ll go out on Saturday with a positive frame of mind, wanting to play good rugby.

“Shaunie (Berne) hasn’t played a lot at 10 for a number of years. He wasn’t the first picked 10 at Bath, though he played a lot there with New South Wales. With the Waratahs he played more at 12. Shaun is a very smart rugby player. He has been maligned over time that he can’t do this, or he can’t do that. But knowing Shaun and going back a long, long time with him – probably ten or more years – I know how skilful a player he is.

“I think he showed that at the weekend, not just with the fact that he’s able to run the ball, but some of those glimpses where he knocked the ball down the right touchline, down the left touchline and back over the wingers heads (was) smart play. And I think we needed that at that point in time. We needed to be able to mix our game up at that time.

“Redser (Eoin Reddan) did play very well the other day. He has been working very hard at certain aspects of his game because we’re playing a lot differently than how he would have done with Wasps over the last number of years. When Redser left Ireland I thought that he was technically the best passing nine in the country… and the service that he is giving at the moment was instrumental in us getting that performance.”