How Leinster beat the Bulls at their own game in URC final

Jack Conan said Leinster’s URC final win was built on outmuscling the Vodacom Bulls ‘man on man’, with the Irish side effectively beating the South Africans at their own game to end a four-year wait for silverware.

Facing a side renowned for forward dominance and scrum power, Leinster flipped the script. From the opening exchanges, they took control of the collisions and outmuscled Jake White’s visitors in areas where South African sides often look to hold the upper hand.

Conan spoke to the squad’s physical approach in the post-match press conference in the bowels of Croke Park.

“We knew it was going to be unbelievably physical, so there’s no point focusing on the bigger picture. It’s about the here and now, moment-by-moment piece,” he said.

“Just delighted for the lads to have performed. That’s what we spoke about during the week. We didn’t want to be outcome focused. We wanted to be performance focused, and I think we did that in spades today.

“For 80-odd minutes, I think the lads showed up really well and were incredibly physical, and that’s what we asked to be sure and I think we did that.”

Leinster struck the first blow with an early scrum penalty, and it set the tone. That dominance continued through both starting and replacement front-row units, with Thomas Clarkson, Rónan Kelleher and Rabah Slimani all contributing to a controlled set-piece display.

“What we teed ourselves up for all week was the physicality of it and winning that battle, and I think we did that throughout,” said Conan.

“Everyone spoke about the threat of their scrum. A few decisions didn’t go our way, but the lads came on in the second half and I thought it was incredible, and even the boys who started as well were brilliant.”

Leinster’s defensive resilience was telling.

Just before half-time, the Bulls battered away inside the 22 for 18 phases following a tap penalty five metres out, but came away empty-handed. It was a turning point in the game.

“It boils down to man on man, you know,” Conan explained. “Wanting to put your head where you wouldn’t put a shovel and getting off the line and trying to whack people.

“I thought we dealt really well with how direct the Bulls were. You look at the end of the first half, they’re attacking our line hard and we’re holding them out, and some of those shots were incredible.

“I think you can lose focus a little bit thinking about rugby, all the different parts of it, but ultimately it’s a physical game.”

Leinster’s performance, built on collision dominance and set-piece control, neutralised the Bulls’ greatest strengths — and for Conan, it was a full-squad effort.

“Unbelievably proud of everyone’s effort, not just the lads that played today, but everyone who has contributed throughout the season. We wouldn’t be here today if it wasn’t for every single player that has played.

“Even the lads who haven’t played, their contributions to training and prepping us to perform today, we wouldn’t have got the win without them, so credit to everyone.”