JOHNNY SEXTON SAYS he and his Leinster team-mates are facing into the biggest battle of their careers after securing a place in the Heineken Champions Cup final against Saracens.
Leinster will be aiming to secure a record fifth title in Newcastle on 11 May, having scored three tries in an impressive 30-12 victory over Toulouse in today’s semi-final in Dublin.
Victory for Leo Cullen’s side over Saracens in the decider at St James’ Park in three weekends’ time would take them clear of Toulouse in terms of trophies in this competition, but Sexton knows Leinster have a huge task ahead of them.
“We spoke a little bit about that, not too much,” Sexton told Virgin Media of the opportunity to claim a fifth title. “We knew Toulouse had four stars on their jersey but at the same time Sarries have two and if they win they won’t be far behind us.
“We saw yesterday how they dominated Munster and we know how tough a side Munster are. So we’ll be up against it but we’ll prepare now for the biggest battle of our careers.”
Sexton was named man of the match after a strong 65-minute outing in which he guided Leinster’s controlled win over Toulouse, although he described his own performance as an “a mixed bag.”
But there was no doubting that this was an impressive showing from a player who had last taken to the pitch in Ireland’s Six Nations defeat to Wales and who hadn’t played for Leinster in 2019.
“During the week I felt like I was cramming for a big exam, I haven’t trained in a few weeks so I had to fit in a lot of work during the week,” said Sexton.
“I probably tried to do a little bit too much during the week but I’m just delighted to be in another final.
“It’s amazing, it’s amazing for all of these supporters here today. To go to another Heineken Cup is dream-come-true stuff. I never thought I’d play in one, never mind five and throw a Challenge Cup in there as well.
“It’s special, but we don’t play to get to finals, we play to try and win stuff. Hopefully, we can go one step further.”
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