Proud Schmidt hails indomitable Leinster heroes

First, a word for Clermont.

For too many years, it was Munster who carried that unwanted mantle of ‘best team to have never won a Heineken Cup’. Leinster, too, had to shoulder the burden for a time. Now, it is Clermont Auvergne sagging beneath layers of disappointment.

For five years now, Vern Cotter’s side have carried expectation and intent onto European battlefields and, time and again, their ambitions have been undone by Irish opponents who simply refuse to bow to their impeccable credentials.