Shock and awe - English duo say Leinster best in Europe

Many athletes say they don't take any notice of the media and Leinster would be well advised to turn off the radio this week.

The worst thing that could happen to Leo Cullen’s side is that they get the feeling that they are invincible.

And going by the almost universal acclaim of the side ahead of Saturday's Heineken Champions Cup semi-final against Toulouse at the Aviva, it wouldn’t be a hard conclusion to draw.

A couple of Leicester Tigers players began last week by demurring on the theory that the European Cup was a step up from the Premiership, which they lead.

A couple of days after the 23-14 defeat, during which Leinster led 20-0 at the break, Tigers wing Chris Aston, the Champions Cup and Premiership record try-scorer, was moved to admit his side were taught a lesson.

"There was a little bit of inexperience there, we accept that," the two-time tournament winner with Saracens said on the BBC.

"The first 20 minutes shocked us. When you are against such an experienced team who have the master [Johnny Sexton] in the middle of it all, and [Jamison] Gibson-Park, who was outstanding.

"You’ve got to control the first 20 minutes, half an hour, build into it, and that’s something that we didn’t do, we made too many mistakes.

"In the Premiership you get a second or two [at the breakdown], lads get half a chance. It was ridiculous how good they were, how fast they were to it.

"What got me, which I haven’t felt [since] when I was at Saracens, was the efficiency of everyone doing their job, not just doing it and hanging on, doing it to excel, everyone in their position.

"You put a little kick in, there’s three of them clearing it up. You try and kick to a certain area of the pitch and [full-back Hugo] Keenan’s already cleaning it up and