HUGO KEENAN WAS in the academy the last time Leinster won the Champions Cup in 2018.
He joked that he’s still annoyed the province’s young guns weren’t flown over to Bilbao to watch that final against Racing 92 in the flesh.
Instead, the academy players gathered at Bective rugby club to take in Leinster’s success at the San Mames Stadium.
“I remember watching the celebrations and being so proud of the group,” said Keenan after Leinster’s 29-25 win over Toulon in Dublin yesterday.
“It was a case where I had aspirations to break into the first team. At that stage, I had only a couple of caps. It was sort of a first taste of what it could be like, and that’s been a huge motivator.”
The motivation has only grown as Leinster have lost four Champions Cup finals since that day in Bilbao.
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Keenan wasn’t involved when Saracens beat Leinster in the 2019 final, but he started the 2022 and 2023 losses to La Rochelle, as well as the extra-time defeat by Toulouse in 2024.
So like some of his Leinster team-mates, Keenan will head to Bilbao in three weeks aiming to experience Champions Cup glory for the first time with his native province.
“Obviously, I haven’t gotten my hands on the trophy and it’s a big personal goal,” said Keenan.
“It’s a big squad goal and it has been for the last number of years. So we’re going to do our all to muster up that spirit of Bilbao from 2018.”
Leinster won their most recent Champions Cup title in Bilbao. Dan Sheridan / INPHO
Dan Sheridan / INPHO / INPHO
There are plenty of survivors of that 2018 final still playing for Leinster in Garry Ringrose, Robbie Henshaw, Tadhg Furlong, Andrew Porter, Jamison Gibson-Park, James Ryan, Luke McGrath, Jack Conan, and Jordan Larmour.
So it’s not as if this is a Leinster squad devoid of the experience of winning the competition that they hold so close to their hearts.
Leo Cullen’s side will face the winners of today’s second semi-final between reigning champions Bordeaux and Bath [KO 3pm Irish time, Premier Sports], both of whom would provide a stern test of Leinster’s quality and resilience.
Whoever does face Leinster will have seen lots of excellent work in their win over Toulon yesterday, particularly in the 68 minutes that left the Irish province 29-11 up and seemingly cruising towards victory.
Leinster’s scrum was superb, winning five penalties. Their attack was clinical, scoring four tries. Their defence was suffocating, constantly forcing Toulon into kicking the ball away or making errors. Leinster managed a period when they were down to 13 players with composure.
But a nerve-wracking closing 12 minutes followed as Toulon scored two converted tries and threatened to sicken Leinster at the death.
“We know we let them back in towards the end of the game,” said Keenan. “We know if a bounce of the ball or a pass went for them at the end, that we could be standing here on the wrong side of the result.
“So there’s definitely lessons to be learned around how to manage the game in those last 15 minutes. Maybe we took our foot off the gas a little bit and Bordeaux or Bath, whoever it will be, will be a serious challenge.
“Finals are all about those sorts of little moments in the last five or 10 minutes, and we have to learn from the previous losses or situations that we’ve been in.”
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Leinster hope to muster the spirit of 2018 as they head to Bilbao
HUGO KEENAN WAS in the academy the last time Leinster won the Champions Cup in 2018.
He joked that he’s still annoyed the province’s young guns weren’t flown over to Bilbao to watch that final against Racing 92 in the flesh.
Instead, the academy players gathered at Bective rugby club to take in Leinster’s success at the San Mames Stadium.
“I remember watching the celebrations and being so proud of the group,” said Keenan after Leinster’s 29-25 win over Toulon in Dublin yesterday.
“It was a case where I had aspirations to break into the first team. At that stage, I had only a couple of caps. It was sort of a first taste of what it could be like, and that’s been a huge motivator.”
The motivation has only grown as Leinster have lost four Champions Cup finals since that day in Bilbao.
Keenan wasn’t involved when Saracens beat Leinster in the 2019 final, but he started the 2022 and 2023 losses to La Rochelle, as well as the extra-time defeat by Toulouse in 2024.
So like some of his Leinster team-mates, Keenan will head to Bilbao in three weeks aiming to experience Champions Cup glory for the first time with his native province.
“Obviously, I haven’t gotten my hands on the trophy and it’s a big personal goal,” said Keenan.
“It’s a big squad goal and it has been for the last number of years. So we’re going to do our all to muster up that spirit of Bilbao from 2018.”
There are plenty of survivors of that 2018 final still playing for Leinster in Garry Ringrose, Robbie Henshaw, Tadhg Furlong, Andrew Porter, Jamison Gibson-Park, James Ryan, Luke McGrath, Jack Conan, and Jordan Larmour.
So it’s not as if this is a Leinster squad devoid of the experience of winning the competition that they hold so close to their hearts.
Leo Cullen’s side will face the winners of today’s second semi-final between reigning champions Bordeaux and Bath [KO 3pm Irish time, Premier Sports], both of whom would provide a stern test of Leinster’s quality and resilience.
Whoever does face Leinster will have seen lots of excellent work in their win over Toulon yesterday, particularly in the 68 minutes that left the Irish province 29-11 up and seemingly cruising towards victory.
Leinster’s scrum was superb, winning five penalties. Their attack was clinical, scoring four tries. Their defence was suffocating, constantly forcing Toulon into kicking the ball away or making errors. Leinster managed a period when they were down to 13 players with composure.
But a nerve-wracking closing 12 minutes followed as Toulon scored two converted tries and threatened to sicken Leinster at the death.
“We know we let them back in towards the end of the game,” said Keenan. “We know if a bounce of the ball or a pass went for them at the end, that we could be standing here on the wrong side of the result.
“So there’s definitely lessons to be learned around how to manage the game in those last 15 minutes. Maybe we took our foot off the gas a little bit and Bordeaux or Bath, whoever it will be, will be a serious challenge.
“Finals are all about those sorts of little moments in the last five or 10 minutes, and we have to learn from the previous losses or situations that we’ve been in.”
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Champions Cup Decider Hugo Keenan Leinster Toulon