Ireland and Leinster captain Caelan Doris has become an injury doubt ahead of next Friday’s URC final against the Bulls.
The number eight sustained a knee injury against the Stormers and, despite playing the remainder of the game, may be unavailable for the final, according to the Irish Independent.
Story of the semi-final
Leinster overcame tough South African opposition in the semi-final with a 20-11 win over the Stormers.
Sam Prendergast led the Leinster attack excellently during the first 20 minutes of the game, and a slick backline move set Reiko Ioane through for an opening try. Prendergast kept scoreboard pressure on the Stormers, kicking two more penalties. The South Africans came into the game using their exceptional power and scored to bring the game to 13-8 at halftime.
Doris was at the centre of a heated moment at halftime as the sides headed down the tunnel. After a Stormers player walked in front of him, a push from the Ireland captain set off a scuffle that would spill down the tunnel, including multiple players from both teams.
The second half was mostly defined by the Stormers’ ill-discipline. Two yellows and a red card left them too much to do with a man less. The Ackerman red card when the game was at 13-11 was a baffling decision, as he cleared out Roman Kelleher with no arms directly to the head.
Salmaan Moerat was judged to have intentionally knocked the ball out of Gibson-Park’s hands, and despite the Ireland scrum-half finding a way under the posts to seal the game, the Stormer’s substitute was sent to the bin with just 10 minutes to go.
Can Leinster win the URC without Doris?
For Leinster, it’s not a question of the quality of replacement available at number eight. Jack Conan is a starting test Lion and was on the bench against the Stormers. He is an incredibly powerful ball carrier, and that will be necessary to battle against the power of the Bulls’ back row.
The ultimate question will be down to leadership as Leinster look to end a bit of a disappointing season on a high. There has been lots made in the media about the coaching ticket in Dublin as a team almost full of internationals struggled to second in the regular season and were defeated so comfortably in the Champions Cup final by Bordeaux Begles.
The Bulls showed incredible resilience to come from 21-3 down to win by a point. Their game management when they went on top was impeccable.
