Brian O’Driscoll has told Leinster to “keep going and not lose faith” after the province suffered a third straight Investec Champions Cup loss. The Irish giants fell to Toulouse 31-22 after an incredible 100 minutes of rugby at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium. It continues a worrying narrative for Leo Cullen’s side, who face the prospect of a third season without silverware in as many years.
TNT Sports rugby pundit Brian O’Driscoll has urged Leo Cullen and his Leinster side to bounce back after the province lost a third straight Investec Champions Cup final, and has asked his former team not to “lose faith.”
Leinster took Toulouse to extra time on Saturday, but the French giants prevailed 31-22 after an intense and enthralling 100 minutes of rugby at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
The loss is Leinster’s third in as many years in this competition, and they have not won the URC since 2021 – then known as the Pro14.
“They’re getting to finals year on year,” former Leinster captain O’Driscoll said on TNT Sports.
“I’m getting text messages from friends asking ‘Is it time for Leo to move on?’
“They were a fraction away. We were in extra time here against one of the great Toulouse teams. It’s crazy to think about.”
The two sides produced a compelling game and with two minutes left of normal time, Ciaran Frawley nailed a penalty to send the contest into extra time.
Toulouse came out firing and scored 10 points in the first eight minutes of extra time, only for Leinster to hit back with a try and roar within three points, but they came up short once again.
“We’re just missing that little bit of good luck and little bit of good fortune that you need in any tournament. It has just gone against them these few times,” O’Driscoll added.
“It will come full circle. They just need to keep going at it. Keep going and not lose faith.”
Defeat to La Rochelle 12 months ago in Dublin was a tough loss for Leinster. But this reverse against Toulouse may be the most disheartening of the three losses.
“Leinster have to go away into the dressing room with a silence, travel home together licking their wounds and go again. God, it’s heartbreaking,” O’Driscoll said after witnessing his former club once again fall at the final hurdle.
TNT Sports pundit and former Wales captain Sam Warburton called it “the best” final he has watched.
“Considering there were no tries, it was the best game I’ve seen at club level with no tries,” the Welshman said.
“You couldn’t take your eyes off the game because any small moment was going to have an enormous consequence.
“When you’ve got teams so evenly matched, it often takes one or two players to have some massively influential moments to tip the scales one way or the other and Toulouse had those players more than Leinster had those players – Dupont, Jack Willis and co.”
Leinster head back to the day job and face Connacht in the URC in six days. They sit third in a tightly-packed top end of the table, and that competition will now have even more meaning behind it.
TNT Sports presents the premium live sports rights previously carried by BT Sport including the Premier League, UEFA Champions League, UEFA Europa League, UEFA Conference League, Gallagher Premiership Rugby, Investec Champions Cup, EPCR Challenge Cup, MotoGP, Cricket, UFC, Boxing, NBA and WWE. The streaming home for TNT Sports in the UK is discovery+, where fans can enjoy a subscription that includes TNT Sports, Eurosport and entertainment in one destination. You can also watch TNT Sports through BT, EE, Sky, and Virgin Media.
