England great’s bold prediction on what will happen next in Ronan O’Gara’s coaching career despite La Rochelle ‘sticky patch’

 England great Ben Youngs believes inconsistent Leinster will do a number on Stade Rochelais in the Investec Champions Cup, but added that the adversity the result will heap on Ronan O’Gara will serve the Irishman well.

Ex-Munster and Ireland out-half O’Gara is back at the Aviva Stadium on Saturday with a La Rochelle team that is performing very differently from when they defeated Leinster in back-to-back Champions Cup finals in 2022 and 2023.

O’Gara revelled in these triumphs, especially the second title, as his team had to come from 17 points down to produce a memorable comeback success.

That was an ordeal of fluctuating emotions that he spoke about in the recently published Touching Distance, the highly acclaimed Gill Books publication where Brendan Fanning forensically details Irish rugby’s battle with great expectations.

“Vulnerable…”

That 2023 final was La Rochelle’s third successive knockout stage win over Leinster, but the pattern of results in the fixture has since changed with the Irish side winning the last three encounters, two pool stage meetings in France and a 2024 quarter-final tie in Dublin that ended 40-13.

La Rochelle have been brittle on the road this season, winning just once in seven matches, and they head to Ireland having lost 42-21 at the Stormers in the Champions Cup and 60-14 at Toulouse in the Top 14.

These results have generated questions about La Rochelle’s ability to compete for trophies at the business end of this season. Regardless of this adversity, though, Youngs, the For The Love Of Rugby podcast co-host who retired as the England men’s most capped player of all time, insisted O’Gara had plenty of credit in the bank and remains a coach in high demand.

O’Gara is contracted at La Rochelle through to the summer of 2027, but he was recently linked with the assistant’s vacancy at the All Blacks under Scott Robertson, his boss when they were both at the Crusaders in Super Rugby.

Youngs predicted O’Gara is bound to coach at the international level, and the inconsistencies he is currently enduring at La Rochelle can only stand him in good stead in the long run.

“Ronan O’Gara’s La Rochelle are very vulnerable with injuries; they are not getting the results we are used to seeing and I don’t see them getting the job done at Leinster,” reckoned Youngs in his latest Planet Rugby Champions Cup column.

“The abrasive and physical Will Skelton is back for La Rochelle, and he will want to use his strength and size. He is a talisman for the French club and there is no doubt that he improves them, but I’m not sure he has enough to get the job done against a quality Leinster outfit.

“The adversity that La Rochelle boss O’Gara is going through is totally natural for any coach and the beauty is they are sticking with him. Having been at Racing 92 and Crusaders, he knows the game extremely well. You can tell that by the success he has had.

“He is now going through a bit of a sticky patch, but that is totally natural and probably great for his evolution as a coach. No doubt about it, O’Gara will be coaching international rugby very, very shortly, I’m sure of that. He will be a high target for anyone looking for a coach to come in.

“I don’t think what is happening now at La Rochelle is a bad thing; it’s just part of his evolution as a coach. He has had things to deal with, injuries, certain personnel not being available, everything like that.

“But you can’t question O’Gara as a coach. He is a proven product, someone who is very, very good, and what La Rochelle are going through will actually just round him into being a better coach.”

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Switching to Leinster, Youngs believed that Leo Cullen’s side is doing well, contrary to popular opinion. Much has been made about the lack of consistent form from the Dublin-based club’s star players, especially their British and Irish Lions tour contingent.

However, despite these concerns, they will host La Rochelle, having won their last seven league and cup matches on the bounce.

“People are saying Leinster aren’t as consistent or performing as well as they should, but they are getting results and that is the beautiful thing – playing badly by their standards and still winning. They are in a good spot and will win on Saturday,” said Youngs.

“Leinster fans should be quietly happy. So often they have seen their team dominate in the pool stages, but you don’t need to be at your best yet. You need to be your best in the latter end of the tournament and maybe what is going on just now is a bit of a blessing.

“They are not quite finding their form yet but it’s alright as they have got time to find that and be at their best come the knockouts. Previously, Leinster have almost peaked in the pools and got it wrong towards the latter end.”