Bath will 'go for broke'

Bath coach Mike Ford is ready to go for broke in a bid to upset the odds in Dublin and end a nine-year wait for a European Champions Cup semifinal.

The West Country side take on Leinster in-front of a packed house in Dublin on Saturday, with a place in the final four at stake.

They warmed up with a five-try Premiership triumph over London Welsh at a blustery Kassam Stadium at the weekend.

Ford is hoping for conditions more conducive for running rugby, and he wants to see his men take the game to the three-time European kings.

"We have Leinster on our mind and it will be a totally different spectacle as we are going out there to play," Ford said.

"We will have our five internationals returning but they'll be favourites as they have 50,000 behind them and have their 12 internationals back. We are looking forward to it as we've come from nowhere in Europe to be in this position.

"Our timing was out as we haven't played for three weeks. However, the conditions were terrible and we've got five points with no injuries, so I'm satisfied as it's now in our hands as far as the league table is concerned.

Bath came through there bonus-point win unscathed and will welcome back England internationals George Ford, Jonathan Joseph, Dave Attwood, Anthony Watson, Henry Thomas and David Wilson for the crunch quarterfinal.

Bath last lifted European honours back in 2008 when they battled past Worcester to claim the Challenge Cup.

But they have been made to wait for honours at Europe's top-table since they were crowned European champions in 1998.

Leinster will have 12 Ireland stars back amongst their ranks with but Rhys Ruddock has undergone surgery to fix a recurring arm injury.

Source: @epcrugby