Leinster survive Toulon scare to reach Champions Cup final

Investec Champions Cup semi-final

Leinster (14) 29

Tries: Conan, Van der Flier, Ringrose, Doris Cons: Byrne 3 Pens: Byrne

Toulon (11) 25

Tries: Tuicuvu, Serin, Drean Cons: Jaminet 2 Pens: Jaminet 2

Leinster exorcised their demons of 12 months ago and reached their fourth Champions Cup final in five seasons with a nervy win over Toulon.

This has become an agonising tournament for Leinster in recent years, none more so than with last year's shock semi-final loss to Northampton, but almost a year to the day since that game they are into the final again. Just.

If the four-time winners were nervous in Dublin it did not show until the pulsating last 15 minutes of the contest, with the hosts dominant for the majority.

Trailing by 18 points with 11 minutes remaining, though, Toulon substitute Baptiste Serin flipped the game's momentum with his try from close range.

In the 75th minute worst was to come for the home crowd. Flying winger Gael Drean touched down Toulon's third try to cut the deficit to 29-25, with all the Leinster nightmares of last year's defeat and three successive final losses flooding back.

But the Irish province held firm to close out the final four minutes under enormous pressure, their earlier tries from Jack Conan, Josh van der Flier, Garry Ringrose and Caelan Doris enough to see them over the line.

Leinster captain Doris, speaking on Premier Sports, said: "You know a team like Toulon will up things at some stage. Massive effort from everyone to reach another final.

"It feels good out there this season. It was not been perfect, but hopefully it will stand to us."

As Leo Cullen's side target a first Champions Cup title since 2018, they will face the winner of Sunday's tie between Bordeaux-Begles and Bath in the final in Bilbao in three weeks' time.

If Leinster are left with pure relief and pride in their excellent performance for 65 minutes, Toulon will be ruing that they simply did not turn up until the closing stages.

Pierre Mignoni's side had heroically downed Glasgow at Scotstoun in the quarter-finals but could not get going at Aviva Stadium, with Leinster early out of the blocks and fly-half Harry Byrne sending a first kick at the posts wide.

Toulon - with Englishmen Kyle Sinckler, David Ribbans, Junior Kpoku and Zach Mercer in their squad - responded, making their way up-field despite the hosts' blitz defence and a crunching Tommy O'Brien tackle on Tomas Albornoz, before Melvyn Jaminet also sent a kick at goal wayward.

The Irish province got the opener on 13 minutes, breaking down the right before Jamison Gibson-Park hit Conan on a short line to allow the Ireland back row to barge over.

Centre Robbie Henshaw took a nasty knock and left the field before Jaminet's penalty got the visitors on the board.

In an opening quarter of home dominance, two bullocking Andrew Porter runs got Leinster close to the line, only for Gibson-Park to touch the ball down but see the try ruled out for a knock-on.

Cullen's side did find their second try on 32 minutes, fighting their way into the 22 before Doris flicked the ball on to Van der Flier, who broke Jeremy Sinzelle's tackle on his way to the line.

Leinster were then hit with a triple blow, with Porter sin-binned for a high tackle on Mikheil Shioshvili, Seta Tuicuvu able to score in the corner as Toulon piled the pressure on and Byrne yellow carded for offside.

With the score 14-11, Leinster withstood pressure before half-time and delivered the game's crucial passage of play after the break.

Still down to 13 men, the Dublin-based province shifted the momentum against the odds, forcing a sin-bin for Teddy Baubigny for a high tackle and sending Ringrose over for their third try from the next play.

Byrne kicked another penalty to stretch the lead to 22-11 and with the hosts on top at the scrum they looked to put the game out of reach for their visitors.

It was not a classic semi-final of high quality. Byrne missed another kick at the sticks before the tireless Doris got what would prove to be the decisive try on 66 minutes.

Three minutes later Toulon finally found their edge, Serin and Drean's tries threatening the unlikeliest of comebacks.

It was not to be for the three-time winners but they will take some comfort in a first semi-final in the competition since they last won it in 2015.

"We had match point," said a frustrated Mignoni, Toulon's director of rugby.

"But unfortunately we dropped the ball. That's how it is, that's elite sport, that's life, that's rugby.

"Not many people thought we could win here. We weren't far off but now we have to work to get back into the Champions Cup next season."

For a team with the history of Leinster eight years is a long time without a title, they will hope the resolve shown in seeing out this win can carry them to a fifth star on the shirt.

Leinster: Keenan; O'Brien, Ringrose, Henshaw, Ioane; Byrne, Gibson-Park; Porter, Sheehan, Clarkson, McCarthy, Ryan, Conan, Van der Flier, Doris (c)

Replacements: Kelleher, Cahir, Slimani, Soroka, Penny, McGrath, S Prendergast, Osborne

Sin-bin: Porter (35), Byrne (36)

Toulon: Jaminet; Drean, Brex, Sinzelle, Tuicuvu; Albornoz, White; Gros, Baubigny, Sinckler, Mezou, Ribbans (c), Kpoku, Ollivon, Shioshvili

Replacements: Lucchesi, Brennan, Gigashvili, Halagahu, Mercer, Serin, Abadie, Ferte

Sin-bin: Baubigny (43)

Referee: Luke Pearce (Eng)

Assistant referees: Christophe Ridley (Eng), Sam Grove-White (Sco)

TMO: Ian Tempest (Eng)