Sean Lineen urges Glasgow to rise to Leinster test

BEATING Edinburgh in successive weeks and winning a Magners League match at Murrayfield for the first time was all very well, but now the business of proving their championship credibility really begins for Glasgow.

The past fortnight has been enjoyable for Glasgow supporters and the ability of individuals to push themselves up the pecking order for Scotland places crucial, but if Glasgow are serious contenders for the Magners League beating teams like Leinster, at virtual full-strength on their own patch, is the kind of test Sean Lineen's side must overcome.

Leinster sit in third spot, five points behind leaders Glasgow with a game in hand. They had sold nearly 14,000 tickets for tomorrow night's game by yesterday and ground staff are working overtime to ensure the pitch is playable.

Leinster are missing Gordon D'Arcy, Luke Fitzgerald, Shane Horgan and CJ van der Linde, but hardly notice. They will name the starting line-up today, but it is expected to feature Brian O'Driscoll, Girvan Dempsey, Rob Kearney, Jonathan Sexton and Eoin Redden in the back line and Nathan Hines, Malcolm O'Kelly and Jamie Heaslip in the pack.

Glasgow have made just one change from last week, Richie Vernon being ruled out by flu, but they have Scotland No 8 Johnnie Beattie to return alongside John Barclay and Kelly Brown, who were key figures in Glasgow's 1872 Cup double and will be integral to tomorrow night's hopes.

Lineen said: "This is a massive challenge. It's a bit like a mini version of Scotland going across to Dublin at the end of March for the last game of the Six Nations. We are going across and playing half the Irish team and we may have half the Scottish team the way the guys are going. There is no more difficult place to go and do it, but there are no excuses – it is all to do with making sure Glasgow win.

"It's actually a similar position to last year when we went across to play Leinster the week before their Heineken Cup quarter-final and we were winning after 60 minutes as the boys really tore into them, but the game got away from us and we lost four tries.

"We have to make sure that does not happen again. We're mentally fitter now though, a year older, and we're learning."

Leinster (v Glasgow at RDS, Dublin, tomorrow, 8pm): Forwards: J Fogarty, C Healy, J Heaslip, N Hines, T Hogan, B Jackman, S Jennings, S Keogh, R McCormack, K McLaughlin, S O'Brien, M O'Kelly, M Ross, R Strauss, D Toner, S Wright. Backs: S Berne, G Dempsey, D Kearney, R Kearney, S Keogh, F McFadden, I Nacewa, P O'Donohoe, B O'Driscoll, E Reddan, J Sexton.