Semi-final: Leinster 29-25 Toulon
Leinster will face Bordeaux or Bath in Bilbao final
They made a bit of a meal of it, but Leinster will march on Bilbao in a few weeks for their ninth Champions Cup final. Given that was where they last won this thing, in 2018, for the fourth time, they might consider the omen positive, but this semi-final, their 17th, was not a classic.
Which is not to say it was boring. Leinster are not convincing this season, and one telltale sign of a team with a confidence issue is the offering up of hope to a seemingly defeated opponent. The hosts, enjoying a knockout tie at the Aviva for the umpteenth time, went 18 points clear when Caelan Doris scored their fourth with a little more than 10 minutes to play. And then all hell broke loose.
Toulon suddenly found themselves. Baptiste Serin darted over from an attacking lineout and carry a couple of minutes later, before Gaël Dréan plucked the ball from the air ahead of Sam Prendergast, playing out of position on the wing, and stepped his way to the line. Leinster’s lead was now down to four points with as many minutes still to play.
