Emphasis on Leinster losing physical battle not right

Seventy seconds isn't a long time but standing under your posts waiting for the opposition out-half to kick his team to victory, it must have been an awfully lonely place.

Ronan O’Gara and La Rochelle did what many didn’t give them any chance of doing, beating Leinster in a Heineken Champions Cup final.

Of course, this didn’t come from nowhere. La Rochelle have now beaten Leinster twice in two seasons, but you felt that Leo Cullen’s side were on such a high that stopping them seemed unlikely.

Leinster will come in for some criticism with how they managed the game.

They started brightly but faltered with some set-piece combinations and the flow of their attack wasn’t as crisp as what we’re used to seeing.

Their set-piece came under pressure with La Rochelle getting the upper hand in the scrum and both Irish hookers coughed up possession in the lineout, which affected the effectiveness of their attack, something we’re not too used to seeing from a full-strength Leinster team this season.

Of course, when you’re in a final against a top class and physically dominant team, then you’re going to face more adversity than your average league game.

However, some of the Leinster passing and fluidity seemed to be a product of their own doing.

The Top 14 side set up very well in defence.

They imposed themselves and Leinster struggled to find an opening for a try, in fact they didn’t get one at all, which you don’t see very often.

I can’t remember the last time that they didn’t score a try in 80 minutes of rugby.

The United Rugby Championship will also come in for some criticism.

The league isn’t competitive enough, or Leinster don’t get challenged enough and maybe that the other teams aren’t physical enough for the four-in-a-row winners to