The Leinster rugby decision-making team, led by Leo Cullen, are faced with several choices in finalising their team for the Champion’s Cup final on Saturday against Toulouse, held in North London. They have the advantage of welcoming back Hugo Keenan and James Ryan who recently made their comebacks in the match against Ulster last week. It is anticipated both these players will be part of the team playing against the French squad.
After a gap of six and twelve weeks respectively, Keenan and Ryan made their return in last week’s match, where Ulster defeated Leinster 23-21. Both of them played the game’s full 80 minutes, leaving no doubts that Keenan will reclaim his position as fullback, and Ryan will undoubtedly be part of the game-day squad, due to be announced on Friday midday.
This week saw Garry Ringrose, the joint captain of Leinster, back in the training sessions, having been sidelined since January when he suffered a shoulder injury during Leinster’s pool triumph over Leicester. Even though he played for a brief 20 minutes for Ireland in the Six Nations finale against Scotland, another injury three weeks ago during the semi-final against Northampton has cast doubts over his participation in the final.
Meanwhile, Jimmy O’Brien, who was on the bench during the Northampton match, has played two additional matches and is also vying for selection. However, apart from the reinstatement of Keenan, it’s predicted that the starting lineup from the semi-final will remain largely unaltered.
Leinster’s other choices for the second row positions are Jason Jenkins, who played in the quarter-final victory over La Rochelle, or retaining Ross Molony along with Joe McCarthy. Between the two exiting locks, Jenkins is more likely to be picked over Molony.
The strategic conundrum for Cullen and Jacques Nienaber is whether to stick with the traditional 5-3 division utilised in the semi-final or risk the 6-2 configuration seen in the quarter-final victory over La Rochelle.
Will Connors and Jack Conan are potential options for the starting backrow currently under consideration. Before this season, Connors’ career, which has been marred by injuries, saw him play in the Champions Cup only once. This was during the rescheduled 2019-20 quarter-final match against Saracens at the Aviva Stadium, which took place without spectators.
However, Connors unexpectedly received the honour of representing the team in the pool win against La Rochelle last December and was reinstated for his third show in this tournament during the quarter-final against Ronan O’Gara’s team. It’s widely believed that Nienaber’s influence contributed to both of these unexpected decisions. Given this, it wouldn’t come as a shock if Connors is chosen again by the double World Cup-winning coach for Leinster’s next team line-up, possibly opting for a 6-2 split on the bench. This could be especially true given O’Brien’s versatility, as he can cover both midfield and back three positions. Yet, this would mean that two consistent players, Ciarán Frawley (who started the semi-final as a fullback) and Harry Byrne, a quarter-final and semi-final substitute, would not be providing established cover as an outhalf.
For the Toulouse coaching team, led by Ugo Mola, the situation is slightly different. They are enjoying an enviable selection dilemma, with only Anthony Jelonch from their first line team unavailable. One such option is at fullback, a position where Blair Kinghorn won favour over Thomas Ramos in the semi-final against Harlequins. However, this would mean sacrificing Ramos’ outstanding goal-kicking skills, right from the start of the game.
Potential line-ups for both sides could be as follows:
Leinster: Keenan; Larmour, Henshaw, Osborne, Lowe; R Byrne, Gibson-Park; Porter, Sheehan, Furlong; McCarthy, Jenkins; Baird, Connors, Doris.
Substitutes: Kelleher, Healy, Ala’alatoa, Ryan, van der Flier, Conan, McGrath, O’Brien/Frawley.
Toulouse: Kinghorn; Mallia, Costes, Ahki, Lebel; Ntamack, Dupont; Baille, Mauvaka, Aldegheri; Flament, Meafou; Cros, Willis, Roumat.
Substitutes: Marchand, Neti, Merkler, Arnold, Ferreira, Graou, Chocobares, Ramos.