Cardiff Blues v Leicester:LEICESTER TIGERS coach Richard Cockerill's decision to persevere with Toby Flood at outhalf could be pivotal in determining whether the English club manage to escape from the Principality, clutching a place in the Heineken Cup final.
Sam Vesty has periodically fulfilled that role this season to devastating effect, so much so the suggestion he could be a Lions’ tourist was not as far fetched as it would have seemed months ago.
The Tigers play with a greater fluency when he is in the pivot position: his appreciation of space and his ability to create and avail of gaps make him a significant running threat. This, allied to a strong kicking game, offers a striking package, further enhanced by his ability to take the pressure off those outside him.
But he is chosen in the centre alongside Dan Hipkiss, where he’s unlikely to be as effective. Flood is a decent player and a solid place-kicker, but since his move from Newcastle hasn’t quite convinced that the expectation sits comfortably on his shoulders.
Cockerill has left scrumhalf Harry Ellis on the bench in favour of quarter-final hero Julien Dupuy, opting for the quixotic over more earthy qualities.
Johne Murphy will try to compensate for the absence of suspended Samoan wing Alesana Tuilagi. While the Irishman may lack Tuilagi’s wrecking-ball power, he is the team’s top try-scorer and brings other qualities.
His compatriot Geordan Murphy will captain the team hoping to showcase his customary elegance as a footballer.
The Tigers boast a powerful pack with a particularly athletic and mobile back five.
The visitors will also be able to call upon an impressive strong bench – it harbours six internationals – that includes former All Black Aaron Mauger, Julian White and French international hooker Benjamin Kaysar.
Cardiff coach Dai Young has made one enforced change to the team that beat Toulouse in the quarter-final with Richie Rees coming in at scrumhalf for the injured Jason Spice.
The backline is an amalgam of power and pace, manifest in the midfield partnership of Jamie Roberts and Tom Shanklin and in the fleet-footed wings Leigh Halfpenny and Tom James – the first three tour with the Lions and this match represents a chance to underline form.
Cardiff will look to get Roberts involved in a physical mismatch with either Vesty or Flood. The 20-year-old Halfpenny’s touchline duel with Johne Murphy is an interesting aside.
Young has elected to plump for the bulkier Bradley Davies to the secondrow for what promises to be an uncompromising series of collisions up front. New Zealander Xavier Rush was outstanding in the victory over Toulouse and is the central reason why Andy Powell (another Lions) starts among the replacements.
Martyn Williams rarely loses the battle at daisy level but in Craig Newby and Ben Woods the Tigers possess a pair of marauders that will test that assertion.
The home side – alright, they play next door in the Arms Park – are marginal favourites with the bookmakers, primarily based on their European form.
The Tigers have the better set-piece and the stronger bench, while Cardiff would look to have an edge behind the scrum and in the place-kicking stakes.
Given that both packs should guarantee a platform of sorts, it is the performances of the halfback combinations may hold the key.
Cardiff’s last semi-final – in a previous incarnation – was their victory over Leinster at Lansdowne Road in 1996, while the Tigers are chasing a fourth final appearance, having won in 2000 and 2001.
CARDIFF BLUES:B Blair; L Halfpenny, T Shanklin, J Roberts, T James; N Robinson, R Rees; G Jenkins, G Williams, F Filise; B Davies, P Tito (capt), M Molitika, M Williams, X Rush. Replacements: J Yapp, T Thomas, D Jones, A Powell, D Allinson, C Sweeney, G Thomas.
LEICESTER TIGERS:G Murphy (capt); S Hamilton, D Hipkiss, S Vesty, J Murphy; T Flood, J Dupuy; M Ayerza, G Chuter, M Castrogiovanni; T Croft, B Kay; C Newby, B Woods, J Crane. Replacements: B Kayser, J White, M Wentzel, L Moody, H Ellis, A Mauger, M Smith.
Referee:Alain Rolland (Ireland).
