Stormers earned Leinster’s respect despite semifinal defeat, says John Dobson

It was always going to be a tall order going to Dublin to face the indomitable Leinster, but the injury-hit Stormers showed they were up for the challenge.

They enjoyed several penetrating attacks, were gritty on defence and were just two points behind the hosts with 12 minutes left on the clock. Ultimately, discipline cost the Stormers a chance for an upset, as two yellow cards saw them reduced to 13 men.

The visitors were well and truly the underdogs heading into the clash as they faced a Leinster side littered with international stars. In the wake of the result, Dobson was proud of the fight and heart shown by his charges.

"People always say you've never played a Leinster first team," he told the press after the match.

"Now we have, and I think they probably have a bit of respect for us, and I mean that genuinely.

"Deep down, we know that with a bit of work, a few things going right and a couple of players fit, we can go toe-to-toe with the best clubs in the world. And Leinster is among the top three or four clubs in the world.

"So, for us, it's fantastic - although it's miserable now. But maybe with four or five Guinness and a night's sleep, we might think there's something to us."

Reflecting on the match, Dobson lamented a poor final ten minutes.

"Up until minute 68, we dared to dream," he continued.

"We defended well. Yes, we had personnel issues, and I don't want to make it sound like an excuse. We weren't going to come here and out-attack Leinster; we wanted to make it a dogfight, give them set-piece pressure and defend well. I think that was working.

"The thing with Leinster is that if you give them more than ten lineouts in your half, they get their rhythm from that, and it leads to tries. A couple of those lineouts came from our poor discipline.

"We knew they'd get a fast start, and we tried to ameliorate that as best we could."

READ MORE: Ill-disciplined Stormers pay the price in URC semi-final loss to Leinster