Crocked Potts only looking on bright side

CIARAN POTTS must have gone through all the emotions at Hughenden on Sunday.

With his team playing poorly, he scored a try late in the first half, enabling Leinster go in with a 16-8 interval lead they hardly deserved.

No sooner had the flanker come out for the second half than he had to be helped from the pitch with damaged medial knee ligaments after seeing Glasgow reduce the deficit to 16-13.

"We weren't happy with our performance, and we knew we had to take it up in the second half." he recalled.

"What happens, only their centre Graeme Morrison gets over for a try and I have to go off injured. I was covering across, my foot got planted into the ground, a player went over on my leg, and it bent the wrong way."

So, Potts had to watch the action from the sidelines.

"When Morrison got the try to reduce the deficit to 16-13, the atmosphere within the squad would have been, let's just take this game by the scruff of the neck.

"I love being part of that feeling within a team. Even though I had scored a try, I was disappointed, because we hadn't played well."

However, Leinster did improve, winning 33-20 and picking up a bonus point in the process.

Great, but, on the other side of the coin, they added to their already significant injury list with Potts' medial ligament damage, and a hip problem which stopped Bernard Jackman coming out for the second half.

Potts was hobbling around on crutches, admittedly feeling a bit sorry for himself, but at least Leinster had stayed in contention behind Sale Sharks in the Heineken Cup pool. "The great thing is that I've something to get back for, and another upside is that the timing of the injury could be an awful lot worse."

He's right, Leinster do not play their next Heineken Cup game at home to Bourgoin until December 10. And they have just the one Celtic League game before there is a break for the November international programme.

So, things could be much worse. For instance, Leinster could have been in considerable trouble against Glasgow, had Dan Parks not missed six out of seven goal kicks, and Felipe Contepomi, in complete contrast, performed so superbly.

"That's true. Felipe was massive. One thing I've noticed this year is that after Felipe was given the role of skipper, he brought a great passion to the side."

Unfortunately, Leinster will not have Contepomi, on duty with Argentina, Potts, Jackman, Christian Warner, who is gone for the season, or quite a few of their international players for next Sunday's Celtic League clash with Edinburgh Gunners at Donnybrook.