Saturday's Investec Champions Cup final won’t be the first meeting of Leinster and Bordeaux-Begles, although it may as well be.
The sides met twice in the pool stage of the 1998-99 competition, seven years before Bordeaux merged with Stade Bordelais to form the current Union Bordeaux-Begles we know today.
Leo Cullen played in the second of those games at Stade André Moga, a 31-10 defeat, while a few weeks earlier the province had ground out a 9-3 win in Dublin.
That’s the extent of the history between these two sides, aside from a pre-season friendly in France in 2024.
Leinster’s ninth Champions Cup final appearance will be a rare one where they have little or no baggage with their opponents.
The players will have plenty of experience to fall back on though, with Leinster being the bulk suppliers to the Irish squad, and Bordeaux populating much of the starting French backline.
"There is a bit of familiarity from watching them and seeing how well they have played over the last two years," Garry Ringrose (below) says, ahead of Saturday’s final at San Mames Stadium in Bilbao.
"So there may not be a 15 on 15 familiarity, but definitely from watching games, seeing what they do really well."
Plenty of the Leinster squad will also be familiar with Bordeaux’s attack coach Noel McNamara, who previously worked as Ireland’s U20 coach as well as being the head of the Leinster academy.
The French side have been the coming force in European rugby in recent seasons, reaching the Top14 decider in 2024 and 2025 – beaten by Toulouse on each occasion – and winning Champions Cup in Cardiff last year, impressively seeing off Leinster’s semi-final conquerors Northampton Saints.
In the grand scheme of things, Yannick Bru’s side were surprise winners last year, but they have been among the favourites from day one this season.
They have barely flinched in reaching the final, scoring an average of six tries and 43 points per game, seeing off Toulouse and Bath in the last two rounds.
With backline talent like Louis Bielle-Biarrey, Damian Penaud, Matthieu Jalibert and Yoram Moefana, UBB are electric in full flight, but that’s matched by a forward pack that can also inflict pain, with hooker Maxime Lamothe, props Carlu Sadie and Ben Tameifuna, lock Adam Coleman and the versatile Cameron Woki.
"I feel like they are growing their game constantly but I admire how hard they work for each other," Ringrose adds.
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"Some of the tries they score that are incredible. Very few players and teams in world rugby can do that and that gets a lot of attention but seeing how hard they work for each other; it’s a team that won last year and doesn’t have an ounce of complacency in how they play.
"I don’t know if its improvement because they have always done it, but what is impressive about them is how hard they work for each other and the opportunities they create from unseen work."
The old saying is that hard work beats talent when talent doesn’t work hard.
It’s not an issue Bordeaux appear to have, according to the Leinster centre.
"I remember watching them against the Bulls at altitude, and they were winning the battles that you see some teams struggle over there.
"I guess it’s a mental thing as well as a physical thing, but that kind of shows their intent and work for each other which then creates moments and rightly so are admired and applauded but it’s off the back of hard work."
Leinster’s ninth Champions Cup final will be Ringrose’s fifth.
A starter when they edged past Racing 92 eight years ago, the 31-year-old also wore the 13 shirt against Saracens in 2019 and La Rochelle in 2022 and 2023, with injury ruling him out of the 2024 final defeat to Toulouse.
This Saturday brings them back to the scene of their most recent triumph, with Saturday’s final at San Mames taking place in the same ground as their 2018 victory, where Isa Nacewa’s late penalty and an even later defensive stand saw them become champions for the fourth time.
"I remember the stadium and the tunnel and the atmosphere. It’s a really cool stadium and the crowd is right on top of you.
"In terms of those specifics, even seeing a few videos of it, it triggers a few memories."
Ringrose will be leaning into those memories this week as his side return to Basque country, but equally the Ireland international sees the value in revisiting the darker days for nuggets of wisdom.
"You remember them all. They’re all valuable experiences and some a bit more painful than others but all valuable nonetheless. Equally.
"It makes you savour every bit of a week like this, to have this opportunity.
"I’ve mentioned before about the effort from the coaches, backroom, medics, all the staff to get this chance, and the players as well.
"So try to soak up every bit of it, try to enjoy the week as much as possible."
"I would have loved to have won all of them, don’t get me wrong. But I guess, going through all those experiences, learning that the outcome isn’t something that one could control, that’s one of the valuable lessons from previous experiences.
"I think that’s the sentiment you see or hear from past players: How privileged we are, and they were, to be in the positions we are in this building with the group we have, guys who are turning up genuinely trying to win every game.
"Try and embrace and enjoy it as much as you can. I guess that’s what I try and do."
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Follow a live blog of Ulster v Montpellier in the Challenge Cup final (Friday, 8pm) and Leinster v Bordeaux-Begles in the Champions Cup final (Saturday, 2.45pm) on RTÉ.ie/sport and RTÉ News app.
Listen to live commentary of the Champions Cup final on Sunday Sport on RTÉ Radio 1.
