Bordeaux thrash Leinster to retain Champions Cup

Image source, Inpho

• Published5 minutes ago

Investec Champions Cup final

Leinster (7) 19

Tries: O'Brien, McCarthy, Ringrose Cons: Byrne, Frawley

Bordeaux-Begles (35) 41

Tries: Lucu, Uberti, Bielle-Biarrey 2, Moefana Cons: Lucu 5 Pens: Lucu 2

Bordeaux-Begles scored five first-half tries to retain the Champions Cup title with a comfortable victory over Leinster in the final in Bilbao and prolong the Irish team's agony in European rugby's showpiece game.

Despite conceding an early try through Leinster winger Tommy O'Brien, Bordeaux's power and pace told as captain Maxime Lucu and Paolo Uberti scored to shift momentum.

With Leinster wilting under relentless Bordeaux pressure, Louis Bielle-Biarrey's double put the French side in the driving seat before Yoram Moefana intercepted a Harry Byrne pass and ran in under the posts to establish a 28-point half-time gap.

Leinster hit back early in the second half through Joe McCarthy after Lucu's yellow card for pulling the lock's hair.

Lucu returned to kick two penalties, and while Garry Ringrose notched Leinster's third, the damage had been done in the first half as Bordeaux completed a French double over Irish sides after Montpellier's emphatic Challenge Cup final win over Ulster on Friday night.

It is Bordeaux's second Champions Cup triumph and France's sixth consecutive win in the blue riband competition, with La Rochelle and Toulouse also winning twice since 2021.

For Leinster, however, it is a fifth defeat in the final since they claimed their fourth title in 2018, with the past four heartbreaks coming at the hands of French opposition.

Leo Cullen's side lost by a score to La Rochelle in 2022 and 2023 and took Toulouse to extra-time in 2024, but they were comfortably second best to Bordeaux in the Bilbao heat.

More to follow.

• Champions Cup final: Five-try Bordeaux set to retain trophy as Leinster struggle

Line-ups

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

Replacements: Kelleher, P McCarthy, Furlong, Mangan, Deegan, McGrath, Frawley, Osborne

Bordeaux-Begles: Rayasi; Uberti, Penaud, Moefana, Bielle-Biarrey; Jalibert, Lucu (capt); Poirot, Lamothe, Sadie, Palu, Coleman, Bochaton, Woki, Gazzotti

Replacements: Barlot, Boniface, Tameifuna, Swinton, Matiu, Vergnes-Taillefer, Retiere, Reus

Sin-bin: Lucu (42), Boniface (74)

Match officials

Referee: Karl Dickson (Eng)

Assistant referees: Christophe Ridley (Eng) and Hollie Davidson (Sco)

TMO: Marius van der Westhuizen (SA)

Related topics

• Rugby Union
• Irish Rugby
• Leinster