Hugo Keenan determined to end Leinster's wait for silverware

Michael Bolton

Leinster full-back Hugo Keenan says he is determined to win the URC and end Leinster's wait for silverware.

Heavily backed to win their sixth Champions Cup, Leinster suffered a shock defeat to Northampton in the semi-finals, as their wait for a first European Cup since 2018 goes on.

Despite a hugely talented squad, Leinster have not won a trophy since the PRO14 in 2021, with attention now turning to the URC, with Glasgow this Saturday in their final league game.

Leinster are guaranteed first, no matter what happens, and would be at home in a potential final.

However, semi-final defeats to the Bulls and Munster in the last couple of seasons saw them end the season empty handed, with Keenan determined to lift the trophy in June.

"There’s a few other lads in the same position as me who are going out with a point to prove about how much this URC means to us, and how we can’t be deflated and how we have to remotivate ourselves to go again and that’s the challenge.

"It’s also the beauty. The worst thing in rugby is losing a tough knockout game and then having nothing to play for.

"We’re lucky in that we’ve such a big competition to focus on now.

"We’ve never won the URC as it is, and it’s 2021 since we got our hands on the Pro14 so yeah, we’re really motivated and excited for the next few weeks."

Just days after the Northampton defeat, Keenan was one of 15 Irish players who were called up to the British and Irish Lions squad for the tour of Australia.

In what will be his first tour, Keenan will be in competition with Scotland's Blair Kinghorn for the 15 jersey.

A proud moment for any player, he was happy he got to share it alongside his teammate and friend Ronan Kelleher.

"It was nerve-wrecking, you put it to the back of your mind for a while.

"We had a day off the day before, and it starts creeping in. We finished up an hour before the announcement, got home and didn't really know what to do with myself.

"Luckily, Ronan was there, so we were trying to distract each other and sat down on the couch together.

"We figured we would go through it, whether it was going to be good or bad for one or both of us, that we would go through it together, which does help.

"It made for a more enjoyable experience when we both got the nod."