Leinster's URC title hopes ended by rampaging Bulls

For the first time in five years, Leinster end the season empty-handed.

This time two weeks ago, the vieux port in Marseille was thronged with blue fans on the eve of the Champions Cup final, most of whom felt the double was more probable than possible.

But 13 days on from their painful defeat to La Rochelle, they have been once again humbled and deservingly so by a Bulls team that outplayed them at the RDS.

Eight months ago, the prospect of the Bulls doing this seemed laughable, swatted aside by Leinster in Round 1 before a hammering by Connacht at the Sportsground.

The fact that 12 of tonight's starting line-up began that opening URC game against Leinster speaks volumes for the their growth through the season.

Leinster struggled to deal with their relentless physicality in both carry and tackle, with their phenomenal back row of Marcell Coetzee, Arno Botha and Elrigh Louw, as well as hooker Johan Grobbelaar tormenting the defending champions all day.

The home side played some lovely rugby at times, and their third try in the 70th minute from Rory O'Loughlin saw all seven backs touch the ball in a single phase, but it was a performance riddled with inaccuracies.

Two failed lineouts close to the Bulls line in the space of a couple of minutes midway through the second half killed their momentum, while Morne Steyn's penalty to ice the game on 74 minutes summed up the inaccuracies in Leinster's display, Ross Molony knocking on the simplest of passes, before being penalised for holding onto the ball on the ground.

For most sides, a final and a semi-final would be a solid campaign, but not for Leinster, who now go back to the drawing board.

The bigger fear is that the Bulls, not to mention the other South African franchises, are