Leinster hung on to beat Northampton 20-17 at Croke Park today. The margin of victory was worryingly slender for Leinster considering how they dominated the first three quarters of the game.
Ultimately, in such high pressure games between elite sides, fine margins decide the results.
For those of an English persuasion, the refereeing performance of Mathieu Raynal has come under scrutiny in the game's post-mortem.
SEE ALSO: Jackman Pinpoints Leinster's fatal flaw after near collapse at Croker
TNT Sports crew called for penalty against Leinster in dying moments
It was a hugely chaotic final 10 minutes for Leinster, as Northampton dared to complete a seemingly impossibly comeback.
A late penalty at the breakdown appeared to give Leinster the win: all that was required was to win a lineout, kill ten seconds and dispatch the ball over the sideline.
And though the lineout was won by Leinster, Northampton did not lie down and nearly stole the ball back with a spirited counter-ruck.
A chaotic few seconds ensued.
It's interesting to hear the commentary of the final passage on TNT Sports, where both Austin Healy - perhaps not the most beloved English pundit on these shores - and Lawrence Dallaglio were in the commentary gantry.
Both saw a Leinster player commit a penalty for coming in from the side in that final play of the game.
𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐌𝐎𝐌𝐄𝐍𝐓. @leinsterrugby are off to their third straight #InvestecChampionsCup Final 🏆#LEIvNOR pic.twitter.com/WXc9ExYd38
— Rugby on TNT Sports (@rugbyontnt) May 4, 2024
"AH: That's a good counter....and a penalty. They've got that.
LD: That's a penalty
AH: That's a penalty. All day long. Coming in at the side.
Just seconds before the clock hit 80:00, Raynal went around the ruck to see if the ball had been turned over. In doing so, he might been obstructed from seeing a possible Leinster infraction.
Watching at home, former England international Andy Goode said Northampton failed to 'get the rub of the green' from the French ref.
Hell of a Champions Cup semi final between Leinster and Northampton. Leinster just about deserved the win, but Saints didn’t get the rub of the green from my buddy Mathieu Raynal
Trawl a bit deeper on Twitter and you'll find less considered criticism of the referee from Northampton supporters.
It goes both ways, of course. Leinster can point a first half incident where Northampton's James Ramm appeared to torpedo himself headfirst into a Leinster ruck. That wasn't pinged.
The referee was not the winning and losing of the match for Northampton.
Imagine, however, Raynal had given that penalty. Northampton would have had an attacking lineout with the clock in the red.
Leinster live to fight another day. Their struggles to close out big games will dominate all of the build-up to the final.
