Leo Cullen praises Leinster resilience against Leicester

Leinster head coach Leo Cullen praised his side’s resilience after they recovered from a nine-point half-time deficit to defeat Leicester Tigers at Mattioli Woods Welford Road Stadium.

Leinster were seeking a second successive win over Premiership opposition but endured a frustrating opening period. Errors proved costly as they went into the break trailing 15–6.

Leicester struck first when Adam Radwan capitalised on a dropped ball inside the Leinster 22 to score. The hosts extended their lead just before half-time, with Ollie Hassell-Collins finishing a well-worked move following a cross-kick from Ben Searle.

Cullen’s side struggled to gain momentum before the interval but showed a marked improvement after the restart, particularly at the breakdown and in the set-piece battle.

Leinster’s comeback began early in the second half when Jamison Gibson-Park reacted quickest to a loose ball at the base of a scrum, darting over in the corner. Harry Byrne then edged the visitors in front with a successful penalty, maintaining his composure from the tee.

The decisive moment came when hooker Dan Sheehan powered over from an attacking lineout, giving Leinster control of the contest and effectively sealing the win.

After the match, Cullen said he was pleased with how his players stayed composed despite a disrupted build-up and a challenging first half.

"I'm very pleased how we stuck at it, although if we had taken our opportunities, we would have made it easier for ourselves," Cullen said.

"It’s an incredibly tough place to come and although we played with great intensity, they were very dogged and made life difficult for us.

"We had a lot of early disruption with Tadhg (Furlong) feeling unwell on leaving the hotel and then losing two players in the first 11 minutes.

"We then had a try harshly ruled out but we showed great composure even though we were trailing 15-6 at half-time.

"We had a lucky break when the ball comes out of the scrum but Jamison finished well and it was a great result for us in the difficult conditions as it was very greasy out there."