Leinster booked another Champions Cup semi-final after defeating Sale 43-13, setting up a home tie with Toulon at the Aviva Stadium on 2/3 May. For Leinster, it will be semi-final number 17 in the competition, another chance to add to their long record as one of Europe’s leading club sides.
The scoreline suggested a comfortable afternoon, but the match was more hard-fought than it appeared for much of the contest. Sale arrived with a weakened side and were widely expected to struggle, yet they made life awkward for Leinster and stayed competitive for around 50 minutes before the home team finally pulled away.
Leinster had to work to break the visitors down, particularly after their difficulties in trying to do the same against Edinburgh the previous week. That comparison will not be lost on Toulon, who will travel to Dublin knowing there are still questions around Leinster’s consistency despite the result.
Sale’s depleted squad did not prevent them from putting Leinster under pressure in phases. They disrupted the rhythm of the match and kept the contest alive longer than many had anticipated. But in the closing half-hour, Leinster’s quality told. Four tries in that period turned a tense quarter-final into a much more emphatic victory.
By the final whistle, Leinster had done enough to secure their place in the last four and continue their pursuit of another European crown. The challenge ahead will be significant, though, with Toulon awaiting in a semi-final that promises a far sterner examination.
Leinster’s return to the Aviva for another high-stakes knockout match gives them the kind of platform they know well. Their record in the competition has made them perennial contenders, but the margin for error will shrink sharply against Toulon. The French side may not be entirely convincing themselves at the moment, but they will surely look at Leinster’s uneven spells in recent matches and believe they can compete.
Still, Leinster have advanced, and they have done so by eventually showing the depth and power that have long made them a formidable force in Europe. Sale resisted longer than expected, but once Leinster found their momentum, the result was never in doubt.
The semi-final at the Aviva Stadium in early May now looms as another major test, and another opportunity for Leinster to move closer to the Champions Cup final.
