Leo Cullen says last year's win against Northampton Saints has played a big part in his team selection for tomorrow’s Investec Champions Cup semi-final against the Premiership champions.
Leinster came out on top when the sides met at this stage of the competition 12 months ago, but were left clinging on for a narrow 20-17 win at Croke Park, having been 20-3 in front early in the second half.
The Leinster head coach has kept Andrew Porter, Jordie Barrett and Jack Conan back on his bench this weekend, with Cian Healy, Robbie Henshaw and Max Deegan starting ahead of them at the Aviva on Saturday, Cullen is insisting how Leinster finish will be just as important as how they start.
"We're excited about the game and we've got a good mix between a strong start and a strong finish as well," he told RTÉ Sport after naming a team with three changes from their last European outing.
"It was a very tough game at Croke Park, we started the game well.
"Northampton came back into the game and looked the stronger team at the end, so I think it's important we get the balance between who we have starting and who we have coming off the bench.
"We think we have a good group, and we're hugely excited to here again."
The decision to hold Barrett back on the bench is a brave call by Cullen, given how well the All Black centre played in the quarter-final win against Glasgow Warriors.
He said: "Yeah, a strong temptation to start lots of guys because you need that level of competition. I think he'll deliver a good impact off the bench.
"Jack [Conan], another player, lots of people might do things slightly differently but the way the game is going now, the impact is hugely important, and because he gives that bit of versatility is hugely important."
The Leinster coach was asked outright if there were any regulations around Barrett’s contract that would preclude him from starting the All Black centre, similar to the province’s deal with RG Snyman, who has often been on the bench.
And while Cullen did bristle at the question, he eventually clarified that Barrett (above) could have started.
"This is top-secret now so it is," he said.
"This might upset people. You can’t get into the ins and outs but he could have got picked, yes.
"Everyone wants to know. There’s always bits in the background that go on….it depends who you ask."
While Northampton are defending Premiership champions, Phil Dowson’s side have struggled domestically and are without a number of players due to injury, including George Furbank, Ollie Sleightholme and George Hendy.
But even with the Saints being much changed, Cullen says both sides know each other very well heading into Saturday’s rematch.
🗣️ "Until they win a couple of titles you're probably always going to have that slight doubt around their ability to deal with pressure."@bernardjackman expects Leinster to beat Northampton on Saturday but can they go all the way? ⭐️
— RTÉ Sport (@RTEsport) April 30, 2025
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"There are always bits, you are always accumulating knowledge, whether that’s useful or not depends over a long period of time," said the former Ireland lock.
"In their last-16 game and quarter-final game against Castres and Clermont they put in two very, very strong performances at home so you’ve seen different players emerge for them in that time.
"The beauty is the teams start to get to know each other a little bit better. Whether that’s good or bad we’ll find out tomorrow."
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Watch the Champions Cup semi-final, Leinster v Northampton Saints, on Saturday from 4.45pm on RTÉ2 and RTÉ Player. Follow a live blog on rte.ie/sport and the RTÉ News app and listen to Saturday Sport on RTÉ Radio 1.
