Leinster survive Toulon scare to reach Champions Cup final / Photo: Paul Faith - AFP
Leinster survive Toulon scare to reach Champions Cup final
Leinster overcame an astonishing fightback by Toulon to reach the Champions Cup final with a thrilling 29-25 win at Lansdowne Road on Saturday.
The Dublin-based Irish province, four-time European kings, were cruising to victory at 29-11 with just 13 minutes left.
Toulon, however, reduced that deficit to a mere four points with four minutes remaining after a try by Gael Drean was converted by Melvyn Jaminet.
Leinster, though, clung on in the closing stages and this win ended a four-match losing streak against Toulon -- the only team they had previously played more than once and never beaten since turning professional in 1995.
Leinster have only missed the semi-finals once since the last of their Champions Cup titles in 2018 -- a quarter-final loss to Saracens in 2020 -- but have suffered four final defeats and two semi-final reverses in that time, including last year's agonising 37-34 last-four loss to Northampton.
But they will now play the winners of Sunday's second semi-final between reigning European champions Bordeaux-Begles and Bath in a Bilbao final on May 23.
M.De Luca--MJ
