LEO’S LIONHEARTS READY FOR FRENCH

LEO CULLEN can’t wait for the semi-final challenge awaiting his Leinster side on a French field as Leinster returned to the European big time at the Aviva Stadium. Victory for the PRO12 leaders of over the Premiership tabletoppers means the Blues will face Clermont or Toulon in Nice or Lyon in three weeks time for a shot at the Champions Cup final. The Top 14 giants clash today for the privilege of taking on Cullen’s exciting side that prevailed in their 12th quarter-final despite the absence of Jamie Heaslip and Rob Kearney.

And this four-try win came 14 months after the last meeting of the sides, when Wasps inflicted the heaviest-ever defeat on Leinster – a 51-10 trouncing.

After a period of rejuvenation, the visit of Dai Young’s charges to Dublin was seen as the litmus test for Leinster’s renewed credentials.

Fergus Mcfadden’s 75th minute try was the fatal sting administered to a club playing it’s 100th European game and hoping to reach the semis for the second year running.

A delighted Blues head coach Cullen (right) said: “It’s going to be tough, we’ll have to figure out who it’s against and the threats we’ll face.

“But it’s an exciting challenge.

“It was a mixed bag today but the group hasn’t been together since mid January (after the 6 Nations), it was a quarter-final against a really, really good team – and all in all we’re delighted to be in a semi-final again.

“But we handed them some opportunities as well and the Willie Le Roux incident was definitely a turning point,” he admitted.