Missed Champions Cup glory has cut Ross Byrne: ‘I don’t think it’s any secret how much the last two years hurt’

Until he and his team get over the line, there will always be questions hanging over the 29-year-old, who has a winner’s medal from 2018 when he was part of the wider squad but wasn’t involved in the final.

He was an unused sub in 2019 when Leinster lost to Saracens, while he came on in the 2022 reversal to La Rochelle and played 80 minutes in last year’s showpiece, where he copped plenty of criticism for how they handled the endgame.

That’s the lot of an out-half. At Leinster, Byrne is very much a facilitator to the stars. Man-of-the-match awards don’t often come his way; others like Jamison Gibson-Park, James Ryan, Caelan Doris and Dan Sheehan are more likely to be the heroes if Leinster win.

He was there as a fan when Sexton led Leinster to their 2009 breakthrough win and again when his predecessor led the fightback against Northampton in 2011.

So, he knows what a Champions Cup title means to the organisation. Missing out in recent years has cut deep.

“Yes,” he said when asked if it took him a long time to get over last year’s defeat to La Rochelle. “I mean, I don’t think it’s any secret how much it hurt everybody over the last two seasons and how much it means to us, so yes, it wasn’t easy.

“I don’t think it was any worse for me than it was for anyone else. I think everyone was pretty devastated afterwards.

“The only thing you can do is go again.

“Obviously, it was different last year with the World Cup, so it was go away, come back, work hard and try to put ourselves in these positions again, which we’ve managed to do.

“We’ve addressed it over the last number of weeks. Everyone’s very aware, so it’s just about trying to channel it in the right way. A big thing in the last two finals is how close they have been. Even the semi-final against Northampton.

“It came down to the last play and a lot of the games we have had this season and in recent seasons have come down to that, so it is the importance of taking your chances and doing the simple things well.”

Goal-kicking will be key, but after impressing in the quarter-final win over La Rochelle, Byrne wasn’t at his best at Croke Park against Northampton, where he missed three kicks at goal to leave the English team in with a sniff.

He has, he reckons, identified the specific technical glitch that led to those misses and is confident he’s addressed it, while he can chuckle now at his inability to exploit his own defensive anticipation when he ran aground after intercepting Fin Smith’s pass.

“That wasn’t a great moment!” he said with a smile. “I was looking for someone around me, a lot quicker than me.

While Byrne will be charged with running the attack, he hones in on Leinster’s defence as their potential point of difference against a star-studded Toulouse team.

“The big thing is that we have to defend well against them,” he said.

“Everyone knows how good they are when they get in their flow, and if they get on top of you, they are very hard to stop, particularly with the individuals that they have. The last few years as well we have taken our chances against them and we have implemented our game on them, which is important.

“We can draw on Jacques [Nienaber]’s experience.

“He has gone to the highest level twice, so it is great to be able to draw on that experience. In terms of what he has brought, everyone can see how our defence has changed this year.”

He seems relaxed as the big day approaches, quietly confident that the work is done and determined to enjoy the week.

“That’s probably a big thing. They’re very unique, they [finals] don’t come around that often,” he said.

“I know this is our third final in a row, but these weeks are few and far between. You don’t know how many you’re going to get in your career.

“It’s being able to enjoy it, particularly with the squad we have at the moment. It isn’t going to be the same next season and there are coaches moving on as well, so it’s important we enjoy it, and hopefully, we can deliver a performance that we’re happy with.

“The older you get, you probably get to enjoy it a little more, or try to anyway... maybe you know how important it is to enjoy it, so actually you can, but I think that’s probably the big thing here that you’re aware of it.”

It’s easier said than done when you have the weight of a province’s expectation on your shoulders.