Leinster vs Munster | Guinness PRO14 Final 2021

FINAL LEINSTER V MUNSTER
Despite a turbulent start to his reign,
he created history in 2018 by guiding
Leinster to an unprecedented Guinness
PRO14 and European double in just his
third season in charge.
By doing so, he also became the first man
to lift the European Rugby Champions
Cup both as a player and as a coach
when Leinster edged out Racing 92 in
Bilbao for their fourth European crown.
But while his transition to head coach
has proved to be a masterstroke, Cullen
was initially wary about being suddenly
parachuted into the role following the
sacking of Matt O’Connor.
Cullen was Leinster’s forwards coach at
the time O’Connor was shown the door
and it was far from smooth sailing for the
Wicklow native after he was chosen as
the club’s saviour.
In his first season, Leinster lost five of
six European pool games – including a
humbling 33-6 defeat by Wasps at the
RDS Arena – and looked unlikely to add
to the three stars on their shirt.
He went on to lead Leinster to a Guinness
PRO12 final defeat to Connacht in that
first season before turning his attention
to transforming the club in a bid for
future success.
Cullen’s impact began to bear fruit in his
second season in charge with two semifinals
and the selfless decision to appoint
former England head coach Stuart
Lancaster to his coaching staff.
Lancaster’s recruitment, along with
Cullen’s faith in the province’s young
talent, proved to be the final pieces
of the jigsaw as Leinster completed a
remarkable double in his third season.
“
HE ALSO
BECAME THE
FIRST MAN
TO LIFT THE
EUROPEAN
RUGBY
CHAMPIONS
CUP BOTH AS A
PLAYER AND AS
A COACH
He followed up that success by guiding
Leinster to Guinness PRO14 titles in the
following two campaigns thanks to final
victories over Glasgow Warriors and
Ulster.
News that Cullen turned down a two-year
contract in favour of a rolling one-year
deal this month may cause some Leinster
fans to contemplate what life might be
like without the mastermind behind their
recent success pulling the strings at the
RDS.
But as long as he is at the helm keeping
the engine purring, Leinster will remain a
dominant force in club rugby.
27|03|21 RDS ARENA | DUBLIN 23