3 finals lost in a row by Leinster
Since their last coronation in 2018, against Racing 92, the Irish have reached the final 3 times… for 3 defeats. In 2019, Saracens got the better of the Leinstermen before La Rochelle became the bête noire of the men in blue, during the 2022 and 2023 editions. A figure all the more striking since before these failures, Leinster did not had never lost a European final.
Leinster, the bane of Stade Toulousain
Titled for the last time 3 years ago in 2021, Antoine Dupont’s partners subsequently fell doubly to Leinster on the verge of the final. The Irish team got the better of Ugo Mola’s players in 2022 (40-17) and 2023 (41-22). In 2019, Toulouse also failed against Leinster in the semi-finals (12-30).
Toulouse more prolific than Leinster in this Champions Cup
Since the first day of the 2024 edition, the Rouge et Noir have scored 311 points and registered 46 tries. Nobody does better in Europe, Leinster are notably the fifth best attack in the Champions Cup, with 16 tries and 92 points less than their future opponents.
Stade Toulousain, 8 finals won in a row
Toulouse have not lost a final in all competitions since 2008. That year, they lost in the European Cup final against Munster in Cardiff (16-13). But they had gone for a Brennus Shield straight away against Clermont. Then they won the European Cup in 2010, the Brennus Shield in 2011, 2012, 2019, a European Cup again in 2021, then the Shield in the same year and in 2023.
Toulouse is the king of the offensive in this 2023-2024 edition of the Champions Cup. Antoine Dupont’s teammates have the best attack with 311 points scored, an average of 44 per game! They scored the most tries, 46, or 6.5 per game. Logically, it is the team which crosses the most (14 crossings per match) and which beats the most defenders in the competition (24 per match).
Cian Healy, the man of records
The Irish left pillar (36 years old, 129 caps), replacing at the kick-off of this final, had already overtaken Ronan O’Gara in the number of matches played in the European Cup during the semi-final against Northampton (111 against 110 for the current manager of La Rochelle).
Today, he will play his 8th final with Leinster (he was already the record holder with 7 finals played, ahead of Heymans and Sexton, 6). If his province wins ahead of Stade Toulousain, he would become the one and only player to hold 5 trophies. So far, with 4 cups raised, he currently shares the title with Cédric Heymans (1 with Brive, 3 with Toulouse), Frédéric Michalak (4 with Toulouse), Isa Nacewa, Johnny Sexton and Devis Toner (4 with the Leinster).
A clash of stars at the top
The most successful team in the history of the Champions Cup (5), Toulouse is aiming for a sixth crown against Leinster on Saturday (3:45 p.m.) in London, against a team which would join it in the list of winners in the event of success. The Irish province, made up of the backbone of the Irish team, double title holders of the VI Nations Tournament, has serious assets to put forward, as it will be playing its third consecutive final. Toulouse, whose last coronation dates back to 2021, is a serious contender for a sixth star.
>> We explain to you here why this final is a clash of titans
The lineups for the final, with Ramos still on the bench for Toulouse
Toulouse stadium: Kinghorn – Mallia, Costes, Ahki, Lebel – (o) Ntamack, (m) Dupont (cap) – Cros, Roumat, Willis – Meafou, Flament – Aldegheri, Mauvaka, Baille
Substitutes : Marchand, Neti, Merkler, Arnold, Brennan, Graou, Chocobares, Ramos
Leinster: Keenan – Larmour, Henshaw, Osborne, Lowe – (o) Byrne, (m) Gibson-Park – Connors, Doris (cap), Baird – Jenkins, McCarthy – Furlong, Sheehan, Porter
Substitutes : Kelleher, Healy, Ala’Alatoa, Ryan, Conan, McGrath, Frawley, Van der Flier
>>> Analysis of the starting XV here
Hello everyone !
It is a final for European supremacy which will be played in London this Saturday afternoon, at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, between Leinster and Stade Toulousain. The reigning French champion has shown impressive collective strength for several months but sees his worst enemy, Leinster, a monster of the continent who has often blocked his path in recent seasons, stand in his way towards a sixth star. Ugo Mola’s Toulouse side have three defeats in a row in the semi-finals against the Irish province, which shows that the challenge awaiting them is colossal.
