Leo Cullen & Caelan Doris react to successive Champions Cup failure after defeat in Bilbao.

Saturday, 23 May 2026 at 19:02

byLiam Reynolds

Leinster once again fell at the final hurdle in Bilbao as Bordeaux ran rampant on them for 40 minutes to secure a back-to-back Champions Cup success. The Irish side managed an improved second half, limiting Bordeaux to zero tries; the damage had already been done by Louis Bielle-Barrey and co.

After defeat in the semi-final to the Northampton Saints last year, and a finals defeat the year prior, questions have started to emerge around head coach Leo Cullen as Leinster added another final defeat to their history. Their defeat today meant that they have lost five finals since their last triumph, in 2019, in the same city as their defeat today.

Following the heavy defeat to Bordeaux, the Leinster head coach somberly met the media, joined by his captain Caelan Doris. Doris was nominated for Investec Champions Cup player of the year; the award ultimately went to the French superstar, Bielle-Barrey, picking up the award off the back of a record-breaking Six Nations campaign.

Scroll down for Leo Cullen and Caelan Doris's live reaction from the San Mamés Stadium, Bilbao.

5 TALKING POINTS: LEO CULLEN & CAELAN DORIS REACT TO CHAMPIONS CUP FINAL DEFEAT IN BILBAO.

1. LEO CULLEN REFLECTS ON 'CLINICAL.' BORDEAUX FOLLOWING 'UNDERDOG.' LEINSTER CHAMPIONS CUP FINAL DEFEAT.

Across the course of the tournament, the defending champions and current holders emerged as one of the top attacking sides in European history. With the most points and tries scored across the entire competition, they also finished with the tournament's top scorers as Bielle-Barrey's try shot him ahead of Toulon's Gael Draen with 9 tries.

After an early period of dominance in the opening 40 minutes, the French side managed to ruthlessly put Leinster to bed, scoring five tries in the span of 40 minutes, and 3 in the span of 10 as Maxine Lucu, Uberti, and Bielle-Barrey all crashed over the line, spreading the rewards across the entire backline.

Leo Cullen: "That's almost a million-dollar question, isn't it? They're just that split-second quicker than we were and very, very clinical. But they've been doing that to lots of teams over the course of the last couple of seasons. So we knew it was going to be a tough challenge.

2. 'NOT A MILLION MILES AWAY.' LEINSTER HEAD COACH BELIEVES PROVINCE CAN STILL GET OVER THE LINE DESPITE FINALS RECORD.

Over the course of the last 7 years, the Irish side has suffered multiple final defeats to French clubs, including Bordeaux, La Rochelle, and Tolousse. Despite making the decision to bring in South African World Cup-winning coach Jacques Nienaber, it ultimately proved not to be enough as they were defeated soundly today, with Nienaber's defense conceding 5 tries.

Cullen:. "Yeah, it's not like we're a million miles away. I know there's a decent gap in the scoreline today, but I think if you reflect upon what's going on in the game, the stats in the game, as I said, that would be my big reflection just in terms of how technical Bordeaux were. The speed and the way they do things are very impressive. And that's the bit that we need to get after."

"You've seen the quality of the Top 14 teams as well. It's a competition we watch a lot. I personally watch a lot. There's great intrigue. They're playing big battles every week and full stadiums and all the rest. It's something that we need to reflect on, take stock. How do we really move forward as a group and what do we want to really chase down? We weren't good enough today. There'll be things every year. What are the things that we can try and go after?"

3. CAELAN DORIS REFLECTS ON 'ECHOES.' OF IRELAND SIX NATIONS DEFEAT TO FRANCE.

Following Ireland's heavy Six Nations defeat to France earlier in the year, the international team's and province's captain revealed that he wanted to move away from chasing French teams. During today's game, the only time Leinster led was a brief period in the opening 5 minutes, before Bordeaux took over, leaving Leinster trailing in their wake.

Additionally, during that press conference, the Ireland captain revealed that he wanted his side to be more dominant in collisions. During today's game, Leinster came off second best without the ball, with Damien Penaud, Jefferson Poirot, and Boris Palu all topping the statistics for dominant tackles.

Caelan Doris: "I think it's the contact area and the tackle. We've obviously scouted them thoroughly over the last few weeks and seeing what they can do with quick ball, the pace they have, the varied skill set they have, their ability to capitalize on any sort of an overlap, and you've got to slow their ball down with a proper tackle contest. We didn't have that consistently enough for a start."

"There's probably some echoes similar in Ireland, but away from that game, maybe. The execution is just about doing it on the day, similar to what we did. We got stuck in our half and exited out this quite a few times, defended well at times, got into a little bit of a cycle of three or four compounding things against us"

"I admire the resilience of the group to keep knocking. I remember James Ryan said two years ago that when you strive to do great things and be in the latter stages of the tournament, you also risk being on the other side and feeling these emotions. We've got a lot of strength in the group to keep coming back, to keep working hard through the season to get to these stages. I've got faith we're going to do the same again."

4. LEO CULLEN REFLECTS ON TOP 14 'DOMINANCE' AS FRENCH TEAMS SWEEP EUROPE.

With Bordeaux winning today's final in style, fellow Top 14 side also secured a European trophy the night before as they, similar to Bordeaux, demolished an Irish side. With both teams topping their respective tournaments for tries scored, in the last 6 years, each and every Champions Cup final has been won or contested by French sides.

Cullen: "Yeah, it's a good question, but definitely in terms of competition, it's the speed, and the way the teams are playing is the biggest thing. I remember at the start of the season when Toulouse put 60 odd points on La Rochelle, maybe even 70 points, wasn't it? And I remember La Rochelle coming away from that game, and they were saying just about the speed, the way Toulouse were playing at that moment in time."

Obviously, we've had many great battles with this competition over the years. Some where we've been successful, some where they've been successful. But yeah, that game, I think everyone was reflecting on that and the speed at which Toulouse were playing. And listen, you see the way Bordeaux play as well, it's things done at speed. So, and that's probably the bit, is that we're noticing the speed at which they're doing things."

5. CULLEN AND DORIS LOOK AHEAD TO URC QUARTER-FINALS AND AIM TO PUT CHAMPIONS CUP FINAL BEHIND THEM.

Following their defeat today, Leinster need to pick themselves up again and go as they aim to defend their URC crown. The Irish side plays the traveling contingent of the Lions, who are currently residing in Dublin, ahead of their clash at the Aviva Stadium next weekend.

Following their five successive Champions Cup final defeat, the URC has been the singular piece of silverware Leinster has managed to secure in the last five years. Despite being heavy favorites each year, since the tournament's conception in 2022, they have only secured it on one occasion.

Cullen: "As I said, it's a quarter-final, and hopefully we get a turnout there. I know we ask a lot of fans, we know that. It's into the final bend of the season, isn't it? We just need to make sure everyone's pushing as hard as they possibly can in these next few weeks because otherwise it just becomes very anticlimactic for these guys. We want to have a proper send-off for them at the end of the season. We'll be doing everything we possibly can to make that happen."

"You've clearly just not been quite good enough on the day, and that's what we just need to reflect upon and get better at for the future. Can we get better at it to go on and try to win the URC? Let's hope so. Can we get better to get to another final and win another final in this competition next season? But that's quite a long way down the track, isn't it? But that's where everyone's at all the time. Nothing stays the same forever in sport, does it? So, yeah, everyone will be coming again after we're done next year.

Doris: "We're all feeling it in the changing room there, but like I said, we're a special group, so we'll lean on each other and stay tight over the next couple of days. I think it always helps having a thorough review and turning the page very quickly and leaning on the excitement of what's still possible at the end of the season."