Leinster have narrowly missed out on a place in the Champions Cup final, after a 25 - 20 loss against Toulon at Stade Velodrome in Marseilles.
Leigh Halfpenny opened the scoring for Toulon with a penalty five minutes into the game. However a trio of penalties in quick succession from Ian Madigan put Leinster ahead. Despite another successful Halfpenny kick, Leinster led with 9 points to 6 going into the second half.
Halfpenny equalised in the 55th minute, and another penalty saw them sneak ahead just over ten minutes later. However it was quickly followed by three points from Madigan, putting the teams neck and neck yet again. After a tense ten minutes, both teams were still on 12 points when the full-time whistle blew.
It proved to be a high scoring extra-time, with successful penalties for both teams in the first five minutes of added time. However another three points for Toulon were quickly followed by the ultimately decisive try from Bryan Habana, converted by Halfpenny - giving the French team a ten point lead.
Leinster kept the pressure up, but despite Sean O'Brien's try - and the unexpected cameo of a cat on the pitch - it was not their day. They trailed by five points when the final whistle blew.
Toulon's win sees them advance to the Champions Cup final in two weeks' time, where they will face Clermont.
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