Milestone appearance for Henshaw in Champions Cup decider

Robbie Henshaw will be trying to help Leinster win the biggest prize in European club rugby when they face La Rochelle in the Heineken Champions Cup final tomorrow (Saturday, kick-off 4.45pm Irish time).

Having been selected to start the final in Marseille at inside centre, the Athlone man will be making his 50th appearance in the Champions Cup, with 12 of those coming for Connacht between 2012 and 2014.

Interestingly, Leinster overcame Connacht in the round of 16 (played over two legs) in this season's Champions Cup.

Henshaw's centre partner Garry Ringrose will be making his 100th Leinster appearance, having made his debut against Cardiff in September 2015.

Overall, Leinster head coach Leo Cullen and his staff have opted to go for the same 23 that defeated 2021 champions Toulouse in the semi-final a fortnight ago.

Captained by vastly experienced out-half Johnny Sexton, Leinster face a French outfit coached by Munster and Ireland legend Ronan O'Gara. Sexton and O'Gara were once rivals for the Ireland number 10 jersey which adds an element of intrigue to the decider.

La Rochelle defeated Leinster 32-23 in last year's Champions Cup semi-final, but the vast majority of pundits are tipping the Irish side to triumph on this occasion.

The Leinster v La Rochelle final in Marseille will be shown on Virgin Media, Channel 4 and BT Sport, with commentary on RTE Radio.

Leinster team (v La Rochelle): 15. Hugo Keenan; 14. Jimmy O'Brien, 13. Garry Ringrose, 12. Robbie Henshaw, 11. James Lowe; 10. Johnny Sexton (captain), 9. Jamison Gibson-Park; 1. Andrew Porter, 2. Rónan Kelleher, 3. Tadhg Furlong; 4. Ross Molony, 5. James Ryan; 6. Caelan Doris, 7. Josh van der Flier, 8. Jack Conan.

Replacements: 16. Dan Sheehan, 17. Cian Healy, 18. Michael Ala'alatoa, 19. Joe McCarthy, 20. Rhys Ruddock, 21. Luke McGrath, 22. Ross Byrne, 23. Ciarán Frawley,

Referee: Wayne Barnes (England.)