Advertisement

Toulon edge Leinster in extra-time to reach another final

By Justin Palmer MARSEILLE, France (Reuters) - Toulon's ageing galacticos earned a shot at a third straight European crown after digging deep in extra time to beat Leinster 25-20 in a far from vintage semi-final at the Stade Velodrome on Sunday. The big-spending team from the Mediterranean naval port will face fellow French giants Clermont Auvergne in the inaugural Champions Cup final at Twickenham on May 2 after an error-strewn match littered with handling mistakes in wet conditions. South African wing Bryan Habana has made a habit of poaching vital tries in his illustrious career and it was his interception score from Ian Madigan's pass when Toulon were down to 14 men in the first extra period that proved decisive. Even then Toulon, winners of the now defunct Heineken Cup in 2013, when they beat Clermont, and 2014, had to withstand another riposte from the three-times winners with Sean O'Brien's try setting up a tense finale. The semi-final between two sides who have won five of the last six European Cups between them, including the last four in a row, had finished 12-12 after 80 largely forgettable minutes. Toulon coach Bernard Laporte hailed his side's spirit, if not their performance. "We showed what we are made of," he told a news conference. "We lacked discipline for a semi-final but our spirit pulled us through." That spirit was epitomised when at 15-15 in extra time their former All Black lock Ali Williams was sin-binned. MAGIC MOMENT Toulon, until then a side without spark, rallied and Leigh Halfpenny slotted over his sixth penalty before Habana's moment of magic, which arrived appropriately as the sun finally peeked out of the gloom. Leinster head back to Ireland wondering how they missed the chance to take Toulon's scalp, rueing a drop goal attempt from Madigan near the end of normal time that was just off target. They more than matched Toulon in the scrum and disrupted their lineout time and again. Their gameplan to counter Toulon's aggression at the breakdown and restrict their turnover count worked in a scrappy first half in which the hosts were repeatedly penalised but, Madigan's boot apart, they also showed little joie de vivre. "The effort we put in was fantastic," said Leinster head coach Matt O'Connor. "We are incredibly disappointed to come second. We dominated for large periods but came up short." (Reporting by Justin Palmer; editing by Ken Ferris)