The 30-year-old Scarlets back row man had never before beaten Leinster in the Irish capital in a PRO12 game in a distinguished professional career dating back to 2004.
He was in the victorious Scottish side at Croke Park in the 2010 Six Nations, but has never beaten Ireland at the Aviva Stadium. Now, after his side’s historic 27-15 semi-final win, he is confident his side can go all the way in what will be his first major final.
“I’ve never played in a final before and not many guys in the group have. Maybe Jonathan Davies did at Clermont,” said Barclay.
“The year after I left Glasgow they made the final and the year after that they won it. I was envious of the Glasgow guys who won the final, but pretty happy that a lot of my friends played.
“Speaking to people like DTH van der Merwe, they told me how amazing an occasion it was. It must be great to actually be able to win something like that.
“I am always slightly envious of these guys who get to play in these big games. Just look at what Saracens have created. .
“The history and tradition of Llanelli dictates that this is a big club and I knew that when I came here. That’s why it is so pleasing to be in a final because I feel that’s where we deserve to be, at the top table – now it’s all about delivering, winning and staying up there.”
The Scarlets became the first team in the history of the PRO12 play-offs to win an away semi-final last weekend, but the bookies still have Munster as 3-1 on to take the title. Barclay knows that his battle with a Munster back row containing two British & Irish Lions, Peter O’Mahony and CJ Stander, will be key to the outcome.
“Munster have a great back row with two Lions and Tommy O’Donnell. Then they have Jean Deysel coming off the bench – they have quality in that area,” said Barclay.
“But Leinster had a pretty useful back row and I think we dealt with them pretty well. The stats will back that up and we turned them over on the ground quite a lot.
“We are doing alright there ourselves and we will just concentrate on what we do. The Munster back row play a big part in what they do and CJ Stander is one of their ‘go to’ guys.
“If you have a player like him who is making 20 carries per game, and you stop him making hard yards and put him on the ground early, then it becomes easier for you. They are very good at getting front foot ball and using their powerful carriers.”
Ironically, the Scarlets are the only side to have beaten Munster at home in the PRO12 this season, winning 30-21 in Limerick in February, while Munster are the only team to have won at Parc y Scarlets this season, 23-13 on the opening day of the campaign.
The Scarlets haven’t won a trophy since they last captured the title in 2004, while Munster’s last piece of silverware was the PRO12 in 2011.
“The Aviva is a tough place to play and it is always pretty loud when it is full. It will be interesting to see how the support goes this weekend,” added Barclay.
“Leaving the RDS last week there were a lot of Leinster fans who said they will be supporting us. We will be going in as the underdogs and we hope that the neutrals will support us on that basis.
“It was great to silence the crowd at the RDS and the support from the Scarlets fans who travelled was amazing. The impact of the crowd is over-emphasised in this day and age.
“The Munster fans will give them a bit of a buzz, but they will give our boys a bit of a kick as well. It can maybe help to sway referees, but when you’ve got someone as experienced as Nigel Owens I don’t think he is going to be swayed.
“The RDS is one of the hardest places to go and win and we did that with 14 men, and we won at Thomond Park during the Six Nations.
“There has been a very good feeling about the place for the last few months – everyone is buzzing with excitement. We thrived during the period when the international players were away and loved that challenge – then we got better and better when the players came back.
“There was no panic or distress when we went down to 14 men after 37 minutes at the RDS. It was more a feeling of excitement because it was a great challenge for us to step up to.
“Most of the guys across the board have played a lot of top rugby and are used to playing in big stadia in games like Judgement Days. The fact we have won some big games on the road this year shows the character and mind set of the boys.”
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