{"id":465657,"date":"2026-05-25T03:58:15","date_gmt":"2026-05-25T03:58:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/465657\/"},"modified":"2026-05-25T03:58:15","modified_gmt":"2026-05-25T03:58:15","slug":"gerry-thornley-leinster-beaten-decisively-by-bordeaux-on-bruising-weekend-for-irish-rugby-the-irish-times","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/465657\/","title":{"rendered":"Gerry Thornley: Leinster beaten decisively by Bordeaux on bruising weekend for Irish rugby \u2013 The Irish Times"},"content":{"rendered":"

No tears, no hard luck stories, just a grim acceptance they had been well beaten. Leinster<\/a>\u2019s second-half performance was another indicator of their continuing spirit and resolve in the face of yet more wounding blows. But by then the die had been cast in a deep burgundy, albeit the 20,000 or so Bordeaux B\u00e8gles supporters were mostly matching their team\u2019s alternate white jerseys.<\/p>\n

Amid the heartbreak from the previous four losses, there were at least some what-might-have-beens to reflect upon. Not so this time. Leinster were not only beaten, but in truth beaten like never before, in a final anyway.<\/p>\n

The mitigating factors were the absence of Ryan Baird and RG Snyman, the sweltering conditions and the excellence of Bordeaux B\u00e8gles. But even at full strength, it\u2019s doubtful Leinster would have won this final. That said, it was surprising to see them stay out on the oval-shaped San Mames oven to continue their warm-up for at least five minutes after UBB had sought the sanctuary of the dressing-room.<\/p>\n

That may have contributed to their strong start but they already looked to be visibly wilting midway through the first period at the water break, after which they soon conceded a third try. The heat and perspiration generated by the players and the 53,331 capacity crowd made the ball greasier and may also have been a factor in Leinster\u2019s spate of first-half handling errors. <\/p>\n

However, UBB weren\u2019t nearly as culpable with the same ball, and while this might have been the best display they\u2019ve come up against in a final, it was undoubtedly Leinster\u2019s worst performance in their nine deciders, especially in their error-strewn first-half.<\/p>\n

Look at the match statistics without knowing the result and you\u2019d find it hard to pick the winner. Leinster had almost 60 per cent of the possession and territory. They had more carries, and made more passes, metres and offloads. What\u2019s that they say about statistics and damned lies?<\/p>\n

Of course, the statistics are distorted by Bordeaux B\u00e8gles being so much more ruthless. Their first try, admittedly after earning a close-range penalty with an extended attack, was scored after two phases, the second was a first-phase strike play, the fourth came directly from broken play and the fifth was an intercept.<\/p>\n

\"UnionUnion Bordeaux B\u00e8gles’ Cameron Woki is tackled by Leinster’s Andrew Porter and Tommy O’Brien in the Champions Cup final. Photograph: Dan Sheridan\/Inpho <\/p>\n

In other words, four of their five tries required a total of six phases. Leinster\u2019s first try alone came after 19 phases. It was a well-worked try but it was hard work. <\/p>\n

[\u00a0\u2018The downward spiral continues\u2019: French media reacts to Bordeaux rout of LeinsterOpens in new window<\/a>\u00a0]<\/p>\n

Another factor in the misleading match statistics is that having built up a 35-7 lead, Bordeaux B\u00e8gles could afford to play from the front, by dint of kicking the ball downfield, tagging on a couple of penalties and keeping Leinster at arm\u2019s length. <\/p>\n

One has to admire Leinster\u2019s second-half resolve. Many teams would have folded their tents. Although you have to take into account the scoreboard and UBB\u2019s winning position, Leinster actually won the second half 12-6, with Max Deegan and Ciaran Frawley especially bringing impetus. It is remarkable to think Frawley last started a game for Leinster with 10 on his back in round 15 of last season\u2019s URC against Ulster.<\/p>\n

Indeed, the only Irish winners on this sobering weekend were Connacht, given Montpellier\u2019s win on Friday ensured qualification for the next season\u2019s Champions Cup, and Frawley is bound for the west next season.<\/p>\n

For their part, like any team well behind on the scoreboard, Leinster were also much less inclined to kick the ball away when in possession 50 or 60 metres out, and it was entirely understandable that they pushed for a try at the end of the first-half when Yoram Moefana picked off Harry Byrne\u2019s pass. <\/p>\n

\" Union Bordeaux B\u00e8gles’ Matthieu Jalibert tackles Leinster’s Ciaran Frawley. Photograph: James Crombie\/Inpho <\/p>\n

Indeed, far from this match being decided between the 10-metre lines, it was more a case of it being won in the respective 22s. UBB had seven visits to the Leinster 22 and scored five tries, Leinster had 11 entries into the UBB 22 and scored three tries. <\/p>\n

So, although Leinster did well to reach a ninth final, never has that elusive fifth star seemed so far away. <\/p>\n

In part because they place such emphasis on their magnificent obsession \u2013 and by extension so do the rest of us \u2013 the Northampton semi-final defeat last season devalued their URC triumph. Likewise, this final loss, and the sheer scale of it, places a cloud over their attempts to retain that URC title, beginning with their quarter-final next Saturday. <\/p>\n

Interest is sure to have been dulled by what is Leinster\u2019s most damaging defeat in a final. Not having patted themselves on the back for reaching the previous four losing finals, perhaps they congratulated themselves too much this time.<\/p>\n

Admittedly, this is a tad revisionist, but this heavy loss acts as the finale to Leinster\u2019s least impressive Champions Cup run to a final. After all, their toughest match by far was at home to La Rochelle when they were indebted to a couple of late breaks and Harry Byrne\u2019s match-winning penalty.<\/p>\n

\"Leinster'sLeinster’s Dan Sheehan dejected. Photograph: James Crombie\/Inpho <\/p>\n

In the knock-out stages they beat Edinburgh, who finished 12th in the URC, Sale Sharks (who sit seventh of 10 in the Premiership) and Toulon sit ninth in the Top 14. <\/p>\n

Although the attack was good again for stretches, this performance was a manifestation of the decline in Leinster\u2019s skill levels this season. There\u2019s a nagging sense that Leinster have just gone stale.<\/p>\n

Leo Cullen, Jacques Nienaber et al have another year on their contracts, so nothing will happen before then.<\/p>\n

What\u2019s more, in the view of the IRFU, Cullen is fulfilling one of his primary KPIs in ensuring a supply line of players to a successful Ireland team, and indeed the Lions.<\/p>\n

But this defeat will damage Leinster\u2019s future attempts to win this competition and, added to the beating Ireland received in Paris on Six Nations opening night, won\u2019t be a positive for the Irish team either.<\/p>\n

[\u00a0Joey Carbery set for Leinster return, Ulster had eyes on the wrong prize: What we learned from the European finalsOpens in new window<\/a>\u00a0]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"No tears, no hard luck stories, just a grim acceptance they had been well beaten. Leinster\u2019s second-half performance…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":465658,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[32728,61,60,1449,11287,28577,112],"class_list":["post-465657","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-sports","tag-champions-cup","tag-ie","tag-ireland","tag-ireland-rugby","tag-leinster-rugby","tag-leo-cullen","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/465657","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=465657"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/465657\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/465658"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=465657"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=465657"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=465657"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}