Leinster are on the brink of yet another European triumph this weekend, as they look to bring back to Dublin their first European Cup since 2012 when they take on Racing 92 in Bilbao, Spain, on Saturday.
Their success in and dominance in the competition so far this year is testament to the work that the players and coaches have done on and off the field, which comes as no surprise to Steven Smith, the founder of sports science and data analytical company Kitman Labs.
Smith worked with Leinster for a number of years in a sports science capacity before leaving to establish the now global company, and he said that the culture and standards that were implemented and set by the players during his time there were the reason for the not just the success he's had in his business life, but the form that the current team are showing.
"I kind of sat between the physio and the strength and conditioning teams, so I was a bridge between both of them. I was there from around 2007/08 all the way through to 2014/15, so quite a successful period and it was an amazing journey there as well. I think I probably owe the success we've had to this date to them, because the things that we've done and the journey that I've been on wouldn't have happened without being involved in an environment like that".
"I listened to the podcast from the Off The Ball roadshow last week and I heard Shane Jennings, Brian O'Driscoll, Luke Fitzgerald, and a few of the boys talking about the journey that Leinster came through. You heard about the cultural shift that occurred at Leinster, that's why all this stuff happened as well, because of the standards that were set".
Smith noted the demands that Shane Jennings in particular placed on everyone at the club, and how he was one of the key men in creating that winning culture that still exists today.
"Shane Jennings talked about how he was humbled by the fact that he was part of the cultural journey but he really wasn't. He absolutely was, people like that created that environment. They didn't take second best, they'd never accept second best. The standards were so high within that environment.
"People like Jennings weren't the most pleasant people to work with because of that, because they were harsh, but that's what was needed, that's why he was great, because he created that culture. Whilst people may not have liked him when he would call them out, they absolutely respected him".
"For us(Leinster), the journey that we went through occurred because everybody was asking for more and everybody wanted to be better. The competition in the changing room at that point in time, and it sounds like it's exactly the same right now, it was fierce because everybody wanted to pull that jersey on at the weekend. Everyone wanted to get out there and essentially that's what you need. That's what success looks like, it's not about individuals, it's about everyone moving in the same direction".
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