Toulouse heap more woe on Leinster as Blues stumble again at final hurdle

A final for the ages was decided in extra-time, as Leinster paid the ultimate price for an indisciplined spell that was ruthlessly punished by Toulouse, who claimed a record sixth title in a game that will stand the test of time.

For Leinster, the wait for that elusive fifth star goes on, as Leo Cullen’s men were left to rue a host of uncharacteristic handling errors. In that regard, the review will not make for pleasant viewing.

James Lowe will regret sticking his arm out in the early stages of extra-time, as Toulouse scored 10 points with the winger in the bin. Richie Arnold’s red card gave Leinster hope of mounting a late comeback, and although Josh van der Flier cancelled out Matthis Lebel’s try, further penalty concessions allowed Thomas Ramos to come off the bench and kick Toulouse to victory.

​As the final whistle sounded at a heaving Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, Cullen briefly stood alone on the touchline and looked to the sky. The Leinster head coach must have wondered what more his side have to do to get over what has become a major mental block.

While Leinster deserve credit for sticking in the fight right until the death, they will feel that they put themselves into enough good scoring positions to have gotten the job done in normal time. Toulouse, though, are the epitome of a champion team, and having not lost a final since Munster beat them in the 2008 final, they have now won nine deciders on the bounce.

That requires something special, which is ingrained in Toulouse’s DNA, but it certainly helps when you have a player of Antoine Dupont’s quality. Dupont’s immense performance was more about the less glamorous side, as he tormented Leinster all day.

As expected, the breakdown battle was decisive, and Toulouse, led by Dupont, they gave Leinster a taste of their own medicine by pushing the boundaries like all great teams.

Leinster had big performers in the likes of Dan Sheehan, Caelan Doris and Andrew Porter, but ultimately they left themselves with too much to do. Ciarán Frawley came off the bench to kick a penalty for a 15-15 finish that sent the game into extra-time, as tension rose.

Leinster got on the wrong side of referee Matthew Carley from as early as the fourth minute with two Blair Kinghorn penalties leaving them trailing until Ross Byrne eventually put his side on the board after 18 minutes. Kinghorn produced a magnificent tackle on Sheehan to stop a Leinster try before Dupont quickly kicked a superb 50/22, which led to Kinghorn adding another three points for a 9-3 lead.

Byrne kicked the restart out on the full to pile the pressure back on Leinster, who were breathing a sigh of relief when Kinghorn missed a long-range kick. That allowed Leinster one last first-half attack and having worked their way down to the other end of the pitch, James Lowe got over in the corner, but Carley ruled it out having spotted an earlier infringement much to the New Zealander’s bemusement.

Leinster took the three points on offer courtesy of Byrne to trail by just three points at half-time.

Byrne levelled the scoreline shortly after the restart but a loose Lowe offload saw another attack break down, with the error compounded when Gibson-Park was pinged for offside. This allowed Kinghorn kick Toulouse back in front, but Byrne, despite carrying injury, then knocked over a kick in front of the posts for 12-12.

Larmour’s tackle on Lebel denied the winger in the corner. But Toulouse ensured they came away with points, as Ramos put the French side back in front.

Leinster kept coming back but with Dupont winning yet another breakdown turnover, they momentarily survived until Frawley coolly slotted a penalty from a scrum penalty. Frawley had the chance to win it at the death but his drop goal drifted agonisingly wide. 15-15, on to extra-time we went.

Just when cool heads were required, Lowe was yellow-carded for a deliberate knock on. Leinster were given brief respite when Ramos pushed his kick wide, but Toulouse were ruthless in making their numerical advantage count.

As Frawley lay stricken on the turf, Toulouse shifted the ball wide, where Lebel devastatingly ran clear down the left to score a try that Ramos converted. Ramos added another penalty for a 25-12 lead, but the Blues were given a lifeline as Arnold saw red for a dangerous clearout on Cian Healy.

Leinster still required a minor miracle and when Van der Flier scored from close range coupled with Frawley’s conversion. Toulouse’s lead was cut to three but they were gifted six points courtesy of Ramos. That just about summed up Leinster’s frustrations on a day when they again came up short when it mattered most.

Scorers — Leinster: Van der Flier try, Byrne 4 pens, Frawley 1 pen, 1 con. Toulouse: Lebel try, Kinghorn 4 pens, Ramos 4 pens, 1 con.

Leinster: H Keenan; J Larmour, R Henshaw, J Osborne, J Lowe; R Byrne (C Frawley 69), J Gibson-Park; A Porter (C Healy 88-92, 94), D Sheehan (R Kelleher 69), T Furlong (M Ala’alatoa 69); J McCarthy, J Jenkins (J Ryan h-t); R Baird (J Conan 59), W Connors (J van der Flier 45), C Doris (capt).

Toulouse: B Kinghorn; JC Mallia (P Graou 92), P Costes (T Ramos 58), P Ahki (S Chocobares 23), M Lebel; R Ntamack, A Dupont (capt); C Baille (R Neti 58), P Mauvaka (J Marchand 55, 96), D Aldegheri (J Merkler 55); T Flament, E Meafou (R Arnold 55); J Willis, F Cros (J Brennan 68) (Meafou (84), R Roumat.

Referee: M Carley (England).