Final frustration for Leinster as La Rochelle reach the pinnacle

Leinster 21 La Rochelle 24

The ridiculously fine lines between success and failure have rarely more vividly demonstrated than was the case in a vibrant Stade Vélodrome on Saturday.

When Arthur Retiere finally rewarded his team’s prolonged endgame siege to plant the ball on the line with an extended arm – his initial slip actually helped him to squirm under Garry Ringrose – La Rochelle were champions of Europe with the clock stopped at 78 minutes 40 seconds.

So it was that Leinster came agonisingly close to emulating Toulouse as five-time champions – their brave defiance in that last ten minutes actually conspiring against them as Ihaia West ran down the clock with his conversion.

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Cue another painful post-mortem into a ‘failed’ European campaign.

Such is the supremely high threshold by which they judge themselves, that even a URC title will not erase the wounds from this second defeat in a final either side of quarter-final and semi-final losses.

Quite possibly La Rochelle wouldn’t have won but for their magnificent yellow and black army, who turned this final into a home match and, mostly stationed behind Leinster’s end, practically willed them over the line as the Velodrome volume levels nearly lifted the roof.

The fear always was that beating a French side in a one-off knock-out tie on French soil would be a bridge too far again. This was Leinster’s sixth defeat in eight such encounters, and fifth in a row since their semi-final against Clermont in Bordeaux a decade ago when withstanding a similar late siege with Wayne Barnes as referee.

After a first-half penalty count of 9-3 in Leinster’s favour, no doubt La Rochelle would have had their grievances about Barnes’ typically overbearing performance had they lost. But with Barnes seemingly only having eyes for blue in the endgame, the last six penalties went to La Rochelle – and Retiere’s try came with an advantage play – so balancing out the final count at 13-11 in Leinster’s favour.

Yet while Leinster might well have won this decider at the Aviva Stadium, and perhaps even at a neutral UK venue, so be it. Great teams have to win in such a cauldron and they will know that they fell short of their previously brilliant standards in Europe this season.

In truth, Leinster were slightly outcoached, out-thought and outplayed as O’Gara, Donnacha Ryan and Co hatched a game plan that increasingly nullified Leinster’s hitherto irresistible attacking game.

Whether or not Leinster were also slightly complacent is hard to know but, after a strong start and the first two of Johnny Sexton’s six penalties, they seemed a little rattled after the dangerous Raymond Rhule completed a superbly-constructed try.

That Toulouse semi-final did Leinster no favours. Where the outgoing champions were soft in defence, allowing Leinster to play on the gain line, La Rochelle were typically more aggressive as they attacked the ball and looked to smash the ball carrier.

They played the laws to the limits in slowing down Leinster’s life blood – quick ruck ball. By sending up shooters and defending from the outside, they also cut off Leinster’s other life blood, getting to the edges, albeit they conceded penalties in doing so. James Lowe, leg heavily strapped, hardly featured as a running threat.

The livewire Jamison Gibson-Park provided energy and big moments, while Josh van der Flier (25 tackles) and James Ryan led the resistance (21) but their numbers also tell us much.

Leinster were perhaps guilty of playing too much rugby but after edging two scores clear for the only time in the match with Sexton’s 58th minute penalty there was a huge moment when both he and Hugo Keenan failed to clear their lines.

It led to a penalty to the corner and a catch-and-drive try by the magnificent Pierre Bourgarit, and despite Thomas Lavault’s idiotic sinbinning for tripping Gibson-Park, the momentum was all with La Rochelle thereafter.

O’Gara admitted that if he had been offered a 12-7 interval deficit he’d have signed up for it, on the premise that La Rochelle are a better team in the second half whereas “we knew that Leinster’s last 20 is where we can get them”.

The two benches were a major factor in this coming to pass. La Rochelle could introduce Reda Warid, Pumas hooker Facundo Bosch and fellow Argentinian Joel Sclavi to supplement their scrum dominance, not to mention Levani Botia as well as the match-winner Retiere.

Wardi and Sclavi had twice as many carries in their combined 45 minutes on the pitch as Andrew Porter and Tadhg Furlong did in 124 minutes. Robbie Henshaw, who had a good game, was Leinster’s leading carrier with nine. The outstanding Gregory Alldritt and Will Skelton alone had 22 and 17.

Whereas O’Gara had emptied all bar Romain Sazy of his bench to impactful effect before the 70th minute Leinster didn’t turn to theirs to the same extent, nor have much impact.

Save for the enforced introduction of Dan Sheehan, who had some good carries, and the customary exchange of props past the hour mark, only Rhys Ruddock (15 tackles in his 13 minutes on the pitch) made a mark.

Ross Byrne nailed his first kick but had two costly spillages, Luke McGrath and Joe McCarthy were brought on in the last five minutes, while Ciaran Frawley wasn’t used at all. One wonders if Leo Cullen and Stuart Lancaster privately regret not having opted for Jordan Larmour, but they needed more X-factor on their bench.

Scoring sequence: 5 mins Sexton pen 3-0; 9 mins Sexton pen 6-0; 10 mins Rhule try, West con 6-7; 10 mins Rhule try, West con 6-7; 22 mins Sexton pen 9-7; 40 (+3 mins) Sexton pen 12-7; (half-time 12-7); 42 mins Wet pen 12-10; 48 mins Sexton pen 15-10; 58 mins Sexton pen 18-10; 61 mins Bourgarit try, West con 18-17; 65 mins Byrne pen 21-17; 79 mins Retiere try, West con 21-24.

LEINSTER: Hugo Keenan, Jimmy O’Brien, Garry Ringrose, Robbie Henshaw, James Lowe; Johnny Sexton (capt), Jamison Gibson-Park; Andrew Porter, Ronan Kelleher, Tadhg Furlong, Ross Molony, James Ryan, Caelan Doris, Josh van der Flier, Jack Conan.

Replacements: Dan Sheehan for Kelleher for (15 mins), Ross Byrne for Sexton (62 mins), Cian Healy for Porter, Michael Ala’alatoa for Furlong (both 63 mins), Rhys Ruddock for Doris (67 mins), Luke McGrath for Gibson-Park (76 mins), Joe McCarthy for Molony (77 mins).

Not used: Ciaran Frawley.

LA ROCHELLE: Brice Dulin; Dillyn Leyds, Jérémy Sinzelle, Jonathan Danty, Raymond Rhule; Ihaia West, Thomas Berjon; Dany Priso, Pierre Bourgarit, Uini Atonio, Thomas Lavault, Will Skelton, Wiaan Liebenberg, Matthias Haddad, Grégory Alldritt (capt).

Replacements: Remi Bourdeau (30-38 mins) and Liebenberg (60 mins), Reda Wardi for Priso (55 mins), Joel Sclavi for Atonio (62 mins), Arthur Retiere for Berjon (65 mins), Facundo Bosch for Bourgarit (67 mins), Jules Favre for Lleyds (68 mins), Levani Botia for Danty (69 mins), Romain Sazy for Lavault (75 mins).

Sinbinned: Lavault (65-75 mins).

Referee: Wayne Barnes (England).