Leo Cullen: Eight or nine teams can win PRO12

Leo Cullen admits to having a certain ‘nervous excitement’ every day he goes into work, with one week to go to Leinster’s PRO12 opener.

The former second row is in his first full season in the position, after a difficult debut last season, when he was parachuted into the job far ahead of his expectations.

He had to contend with most of his first team squad being away on international duty for the first two months of the campaign, with the Rugby World Cup taking place, and then suffered a disastrous early departure from Europe – when they failed to get out of the group stages in the Champions Cup.