FT Leinster 26 La Rochelle 27: Leo Cullen’s men beaten again in the Champions Cup final

KEY MOMENTS

1 min: Dan Sheehan Try, Ross Byrne conversion - Leinster 7 La Rochelle 0

6 mins: Jimmy O’Brien try - Leinster 12 La Rochelle 0

11 mins: Tawera Kerr-Barlow yellow card

12 mins: Dan Sheehan try - Leinster 17 La Rochelle 0

19 mins: Jonathan Danty try, Antoine Hastoy conversion - Leinster 17 La Rochelle 7

22 mins: Ross Byrne penalty - Leinster 20 La Rochelle 7

31 mins: Ross Byrne penalty - Leinster 23 La Rochelle 7

38 mins: Ulupano Seuteni try, Antoine Hastoy conversion - Leinster 23 La Rochelle 14

44 mins: Antoine Hastoy penalty - Leinster 23 La Rochelle 17

47 mins: Ross Byrne penalty - Leinster 26 La Rochelle 17

50 mins: Antoine Hastoy penalty - Leinster 26 La Rochelle 20

72 mins: Georges Henri Colombe try, Antoine Hastoy conversion - La Rochelle 27 Leinster 26

Back to back champions. Amazing. Chapeau La Rochelle!

That is so unbelievably crushing for Leinster. They will look back at the small moments where they started to wobble in that second half, those careless exits, the kicking game that couldn’t get them out of their own half. Dan Sheehan was phenomenal, Hugo Keenan too. But they just couldn’t dictate any of the second half and La Rochelle deserved every bit of it. What a game though. I’m going to lie down in a dark room somewhere.

Ronan O’Gara, what an incredible Irish sportsperson.

The winning try...

FULL-TIME: LA ROCHELLE 27 LEINSTER 26. They can! Oh my giddy aunt, what a game. La Rochelle were 17-0 down - it would have been 21 only for two conversions hitting the post. And still they came back. They camped in the Leinster half for most of the second half and now they are back-to-back European champions. Astonishing. Astonishing.

79 mins: Another La Rochelle penalty and that is surely that. Hastoy kicks for touch. One line-out and this is La Rochelle’s. Can they secure it? La Rochelle 27 Leinster 26

78 mins: LEINSTER RED CARD! Oh, that’s an awful way for it to end. The reason Colombe is panned out is a brutal clear-out by Michael Ala’alatoa. It’s high and dangerous and he’s sent off. More importantly, it means La Rochelle have the penalty - 90 seconds to go and all they have to do here is secure the line-out, you’d imagine... La Rochelle 27 Leinster 26

79 mins: Keenan goes! Stopped short. Ringrose. Held up. Breathless, breathless stuff. The referee stops the game - Colombe is panned out in front of the posts. There’ll be a Leinster scrum with a minute left. La Rochelle 27 Leinster 26

77 mins: Leinster pile in but get stopped just short of the line. Oh no... they lose it forward! Two minutes to go. La Rochelle 27 Leinster 26

75 mins: YELLOW CARD LA ROCHELLE! Both teams will be down to 14 for the rest of the game. Jonathan Danty hits Doris with a shoulder to the head. Ross Byrne kicks to the corner. Leinster finally get to play something in the La Rochelle 22. With Kelleher gone, van der Flier throws into the line-out. We’ve seen that before... La Rochelle 27 Leinster 26

72 mins: TRY LA ROCHELLE! AND YELLOW CARD LEINSTER! The pressure told in the end, Georges Henri Colombe wriggles over as La Rochelle have another penalty advantage. Peyer gives the try and immediately goes looking for Ronan Kelleher, just onto the pitch. But that’s the end of his day - the yellow card will keep him out for the remaining eight minute. Hastoy nails the conversion and they’re in front! La Rochelle 27 Leinster 26

70 mins: Penalty after penalty for La Rochelle, right on the Leinster line. Peyper warns Leinster - one more penalty and there’ll be a yellow card. Hastoy kicks to the corner again. La Rochelle are turning the screw. Leinster 26 La Rochelle 20

67 mins: La Rochelle turn it over at the scrum! Leinster panic and Doris put hands on the ground past the ball. It’s marginal call but Peyper gives La Rochelle the penalty. They kick to the corner. Pressure, pressure. Leinster 26 La Rochelle 20

65 mins: Yet another scruffy clearance from Leinster - Gibson-Park this time, screwing his kick into touch just outside the Leinster 22. Line-out La Rochelle. Massive pressure coming. But they get done for a truck-and-trailer and Leinster get the scrum. Silly stuff from La Rochelle. Massive relief for Leinster. Fifteen minutes to go. Leinster 26 La Rochelle 20

60 mins: Ryan Baird is on for Conan, who gets a huge reception. Doris goes to number eight. He’s been mostly defending in this half - as have most of the Leinster team. They’ll want him to get his hands on the ball soon. La Rochelle are camped in the Leinster half. They’re not making a lot of progress but Leinster would really prefer to be up the other end. (Obvs) Leinster 26 La Rochelle 20

58 mins: We’ve gone eight minutes without a score. Feels weird. Leinster 26 La Rochelle 20

56 mins: Breather. Robbie Henshaw gets some injury treatment and everybody takes five. Leinster 26 La Rochelle 20

55 mins: Another one out on the full - James Lowe this time. They’re letting La Rochelle back into this. Next score is monumental. Incredible rip tackle from Josh van der Flier but Lowe slices his kick into touch. Nerves, nerves. Leinster 26 La Rochelle 20

51 mins: Leinster are getting careless with their exits now. Byrne and Gibson-Park make sloppy errors - out on the full and blocked down, giving La Rochelle life. But Dan Sheehan burrows in for a huge turnover inside the Leinster 22 and La Rochelle are repelled. Leinster 26 La Rochelle 20

49 mins: PENALTY LA ROCHELLE! The scoring is relentless. Robbie Henshaw gives away a penalty right in front of the Leinster posts and Hastoy does the needful. This is some game. Leinster 26 La Rochelle 20

46 mins: PENALTY LEINSTER! Big scrum for Leinster in the La Rochelle 22. Peyper’s hand is in the air shortly after the put-in and now Byrne has a chance to cancel out Hastoy’s kick. He nails it and Leinster are nine ahead again. Leinster 26 La Rochelle 17

43 mins: PENALTY LA ROCHELLE! Straight away La Rochelle go on the front foot. A scintillating run from Seuteni is only just brought to a halt by Gibson-Park. Leinster slow the ball down and it’s a penalty in front of the posts for Hastoy. One score game now. Leinster 23 La Rochelle 17

40 mins: And we’re back underway!

HALF-TIME: LEINSTER 23 LA ROCHELLE 14. Well, that was frantic. Five tries, three of them from Leinster inside the opening quarter andf somehow this game still isn’t out of sight. La Rochelle have shown their gumption by sticking at it despite Leinster’s whirlwind start. If they get the first score of the second half - and especially if it’s a try - this is far from over.

38 mins: TRY LA ROCHELLE! And there is it. Ulupano Seuteni pops up on the end of some rapid-fire recycling on the Leinster line, finishing off a smart pass from Hastoy and La Rochelle are humming. Hastoy nails the extras and it’s a nine-point game. James Ryan won’t be returning, by the by. Leinster 23 La Rochelle 14.

36 mins: Oof! Out of nowhere, La Rochelle threaten the Leinster line. A terrible attempt at an offload from Dan Sheehan leaves Paul Boudehent in the clear 30 metres out. He tries a couple of agricultural kicks and gets the ball over the Leinster tryline but Hugo Keenan gets back to put manners on the situation. La Rochelle are coming, though...

34 mins: A rare piece of La Rochelle pressure. They win a penalty in midfield, finally getting on Jaco Peyper’s good side. But though they go through a couple of phases in the Leinster 22, messy handling gives the ball back to Leinster and the danger is averted.

30 mins: PENALTY LEINSTER. This isn’t good - James Ryan has gone off for a HIA. Jason Jenkins is on for him. Ryan’s last act was to be part of a huge tackling effort just outside the La Rochelle 22, along with Ringrose and sundry others. It ends in another straightforward penalty for Byrne. Leinster 23 La Rochelle 7

Jonathan Danty’s try for La Rochelle...

Dan Sheehan’s second try...

23 mins: PENALTY LEINSTER: Jack Conan worms his way over the gainline 30 metres out and is met by a tackle from Levani Botia. The La Rochelle openside doesn’t release though and Ross Byrne has a handy task to put Leinster 13 clear. Leinster 20 La Rochelle 7

19 mins: TRY LA ROCHELLE! Game back on! La Rochelle show what they’re made of as Kerr Barlow is in the bin. They spent most of the yellow card period in the Leinster 22, finishing with centre Jonathan Danty bouncing off Garry Ringrose and diving over at the foot of the posts. The conversion is straightforward and La Rochelle are up and running. Leinster 17 La Rochelle 7

That first Leinster try...

12 mins: ANOTHER LEINSTER TRY: This is surely already out of reach for La Rochelle. Dan Sheehan has his second try, catching high from a Gibson-Park pass and sliding in at the same corner in which the other two tries have come. The French side don’t know which end of them is up. Byrne hits the post for a second time with his conversion attempt. Leinster 17 La Rochelle 0

11 mins: YELLOW CARD LA ROCHELLE! This is a nightmare start for the French side. The first bit of decent possession in the Leinster half ends with their scrum half Tawera Kerr-Barlow being sent to the bin for not retreating 10 as Jamison Gibson-Park took a quick tap. Leinster are away again...

6 mins: TRY LEINSTER! Oh wow. Leinster couldn’t have sent away for a start like this. James Lowe starts it with a brilliant 50-22 kick to set up another line-out. They go through the phases, Gibson-Park to Byrne to Jimmy O’Brien and the winger dots down in the corner. Byrne can’t quite make the conversion from a tight angle but Leinster won’t worry for long. Leinster 12 La Rochelle 0

1 min: TRY LEINSTER! Brice Dulin kicks a nervy one into touch from the very first play - which is all the invitation Leinster need. A beuatifully disguised line-out throw from Dan Sheehan to the buccaneering Jack Conan and then straight back to Sheehan. All it took was 41 seconds and Leinster are in. Ross Byrne nails the conversion. Leinster 7 La Rochelle 0

And we’re underway! The Aviva is fizzing. Leinster have an early line-out...

No late dramas, personnel-wise. Ten minutes to kick-off...

Matt Williams reckons that La Rochelle’s major strength is their “exceptionally precise technical coaching – they are the most potent club team in the world at the breakdown.” He sees virtually no weakness for Leinster to exploit. “Leinster must simply grab the few crumbs of opportunity that La Rochelle will throw their way.”

[ Matt Williams: Ronan O’Gara has created a La Rochelle team with virtually no weaknesses ]

Our other big read today is Gerry Thornley’s feature on the rise of Ross Byrne. When Felipe Contepomi left Ireland, his parting recommendation to Andy Farrell was that if Ireland needed someone to kick a clutch score in a World Cup, Ross Byrne had to be part of the squad. He’s had to wait a long time in the queue behind Johnny Sexton but here he is, on the biggest day of his career. As Gerry puts it, “Byrne’s time is now.”

[ ‘He’s learnt a huge amount from Johnny’: Leinster’s Ross Byrne primed to star on the biggest stage ]

So. Plenty of time until kick-off. Some light reading to set the scene. First off, John O’Sullivan went to La Rochelle last week and hung out with Ronan O’Gara for three days. The result was this truly excellent piece – part interview, part travelogue, part deep dive into one of the best rugby towns on the planet. Pour yourself a cup and enjoy this – it’s well worth 20 minutes of your time.

[ Ronan O’Gara: ‘Do I coach in French? Damn right I coach in French’ ]

It’s impossible to overstate the size of this fixture. For a start, it is, of course, a repeat of last year’s final. Ronan O’Gara’s La Rochelle side came out on top in Marseille 12 months ago, lending this rematch all the flavour you could wish for. And even if it was someone else coming to town, we’d still be looking at Leinster’s first ever chance to win a European Cup on home soil. Excited yet?

What a day to be alive. The patchwork quilt of sport on offer around the place covers every conceivable corner of the bed but come 4.45, there’s only one place to be. Lansdowne Road, Leinster v La Rochelle, the Champions Cup final. Malachy Clerkin here to take you all the way until the streamers fall.