Connacht complete the unlikeliest journey in some style

A famous scene adorns the walls of the ACT Brumbies headquarters in Canberra, depicting the dressing room scenes after their first ever victory over the New South Wales Waratahs in Super Rugby. At that stage the Brumbies team were full to the brim with players rejected by their big Sydney neighbours and the win not only sparked emotional scenes but also marked a changing of the guard.

Connacht has enjoyed a number of notable wins over Leinster over the last decade but none to equal the magnitude and significance of Saturday’s Pro 12 final at Murrayfield. With a title on the line and an opportunity to make history, this group of Connacht players not only stood up to be counted when it mattered most, but proved superior to their more established counterparts in all aspects of play with the exception of the scrum.

Central to this landmark victory was a clutter of players, six in total, who learned their trade in the Leinster schools system but were deemed not of sufficient quality to make the cut in their professional pathway. Three of those, Matt Healy, Niyi Adeolokun and AJ McGinty contributed fifteen of Connacht’s 20 point total with the blistering pace of Healy and Adeolokun creating havoc throughout.