Reigning Champions Cup winners Leinster will fly the flag for the Guinness PRO14 as they look to defend their title against Saracens on Saturday. The robust Premiership side have tasted success of their own in this competition – having lifted the trophy in 2016 and 2017. Leo Cullen’s men will hope to take their Guinness PRO14 success into Saturday’s final, having topped Conference B to secure a semi-final berth. But against the star-studded Saracens, nothing can be taken for granted. What’s at stake? Both sides have tasted success in Europe over the last few years, but this clash will have extra bite to it. Last year’s Champions Cup quarter-final arguably tipped the scales of power towards Leinster, as the Irish outfit dominated the 2018 tie. A 30-19 win for Cullen’s team exemplified all the determined defensive vigour and efficient attacking verve that his side had to offer en route to a fourth European title. But the wounded Saracens will be looking for revenge – on the biggest European stage. Team news (Leinster): Leo Cullen has named an unchanged XV from the team that won against Toulouse in the semi-final. That means Jordan Larmour continues on the wing, while prop Tadhg Furlong is in line to make his 100th appearance for the club. Team news (Saracens): Mark McCall has made two changes from the side that narrowly beat Munster in their semi-final. Scottish winger Sean Maitland is back in the XV after recovering from a hamstring injury and Will Skelton’s stellar form at lock has proved enough to earn him a coveted spot in the side. Talking points Leinster head coach Leo Cullen said: “It is a fine balance, you can’t be just thinking about the opposition. “You need to understand what makes Leinster a hard team to play against and what it took to get us to a final in the first place. “We need to understand the threats that Saracens pose and they’re so different to the threats that we had in our semi-final against Toulouse because they’re at complete opposite ends of the spectrum. “Toulouse are built on all-out attack in many ways whereas Saracens are built on all-out defence and pressure. That’s not to say that one is right and one is wrong but that’s just the way the teams are set up. “The challenge is very different and we need to understand what the threat of this team is that we’re playing, just like every other week that we play.” Saracens head coach Mark McCall said: “We were in a different place then during last year’s loss. England had just had a very poor Six Nations and Ireland had just won the Grand Slam. “We were missing some key players and it just feels different. That doesn’t mean we will win but we will be in a much better state mentally going into that than we were 12 months ago. “These kind of games take a long time to win against quality opponents and they turn on small things normally, so we have got to get everything right.” Key battle – Garry Ringrose vs Alex Goode Both players have two things in common – firstly, they faced off in last year’s intriguing quarter-final, with Ringrose crossing early on. Second, both have been included on the five-man shortlist for the EPCR European Player of the Year. And now, with their teams in fine form and their individual games as good as they’ve ever been, this fixture may come down to which of these two can deliver on the day. Key in both defence and attack, each could prove the difference for their side. Key stat: Both sides have scored an average of four tries per match in this year’s Champions Cup – but Saracens have 2.2 points more per game. Did you know? A Leinster win will see them become the first club to secure a quintet of European trophies. Leinster: Rob Kearney, Jordan Larmour, Garry Ringrose, Robbie Henshaw, James Lowe, Johnny Sexton ©, Luke McGrath; Cian Healy, Seán Cronin, Tadhg Furlong, Devin Toner, James Ryan, Scott Fardy, Seán O’Brien, Jack Conan Replacements : James Tracy, Jack McGrath, Michael Bent, Rhys Ruddock, Max Deegan, Hugh O’Sullivan, Ross Byrne, Rory O’Loughlin Saracens: Alex Goode, Liam Williams, Alex Lozowski, Brad Barritt ©, Sean Maitland, Owen Farrell, Ben Spencer; Mako Vunipola, Jamie George, Titi Lamositele, Will Skelton, George Kruis, Maro Itoje, Jackson Wray, Billy Vunipola. Replacements: Joe Gray, Richard Barrington, Vincent Koch, Nick Isiekwe, Schalk Burger, Richard Wigglesworth, Nick Tompkins, David Strettle. TV: Live on BT Sport 2, Virgin Media One, Channel 4 and Eir Sport. At St James’ Park, Newcastle, 5pm. Referee: Jérome Garcès (France) Assistant Referees: Romain Poite (France), Pascal Gauzère (France) TMO: Philippe Bonhoure (France) The Guinness PRO14 Final is one of the most entertaining games in the rugby calendar and takes place in Glasgow’s Celtic Park on May 25. Tickets start at just £25 for adults, £1 for kids. Visitwww.pro14rugby.org/finaltickets
