LEINSTER got the better of La Rochelle in a knockout game at the fourth time of asking with a five-try win at the Aviva Stadium.
The back-to-back European champions were humbled by the province, failing to trouble the scoreboard after the restart.
Following on from a pool win in December, it was sweet revenge for losses against Ronan O’Gara’s side in the 2021 semi-final and the 2022 and 2023 deciders.
O’Gara had no complaints. He said: “If it’s a close one, you always have a lot more regrets but if you have a small bit of cop on, you could see that the dominant team was in blue.
“I said before the game in an interview that I think we could put a score on these or else we could take a score.
“40-13 sounds like a hammering, and it is a hammering,.
“We didn’t hit our stride, we couldn’t really change speed.
“They were sharper to everything and they made it difficult for us and their rush defence worked well and in the first 70, I don’t think we won a breakdown penalty bar the kick-off that we took.”
James Lowe grabbed tries in either half with Jamison Gibson-Park, Ryan Baird and Dan Sheehan also crossing the whitewash to book their side’s place in the semi-finals.
Leinster will face Northampton Saints/Bulls [please update] in Croke Park on the first weekend of May.
CROKE CLASH
O’Gara expects them to navigate that to set up a final against Toulouse, who face Harlequins in the other semi-final.
He said: “There will always be a challenge I think for whoever came out of this game because, all of a sudden now, they’ll be hot favourites.
“But the air gets thinner as you go semi-final, final. Toulouse are quality. Leinster have always had their measure in this competition but the way they play the game will pose challenges.
“For me, it’s two teams with massive tradition left so this was not a final for Leinster, I wouldn’t think. There’s still 160 minutes of rugby for them. We would have liked to have had that.”
The hosting of La Rochelle by Cork Constitution ahead appeared to get under the skin of Leo Cullen.
But, even if the Leinster coach thought it was more an attempt at mind games than because of practical considerations, with the French side travelling from South Africa, it did not seem to faze his players.
They found themselves 23-6 and 30-13 ahead either side of the break.
Given they had been 17-0 and 23-7 ahead only to lose 27-26 against the same opposition at the same venue in the competition final less than a year ago, they knew better than to take anything for granted.
But, this time around, there was no spectacular collapse, no easing off the accelerator to allow the visitors to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat.
There was pre-match disruption in the form of Hugo Keenan being ruled out because of a hip problem which saw Ciaran Frawley promoted from the bench with Harry Byrne added to the replacements.
Frawley had some good early involvements with Byrne’s elder brother Ross putting Leinster ahead with a ninth-minute penalty, the first of six successive successful kicks off the tee for the out-half.
And it was the full-back’s chip across to the left, which was eventually gathered by Lowe, which ultimately led to the winger getting the first try of the game.
Gibson-Park recycled the ball with Byrne instantly tossing Caelan Doris’ pass onto Lowe. It looked as though it may have been forward but it was not reviewed with Lowe scampering over and Byrne converting.
Antoine Hastoy reduced arrears with a penalty but Leinster should have stretched their lead. Will Connors went himself but found no way through when he should have picked out Lowe with Gibson-Park held up on the line.
Byrne did nail another two penalties, either side of one from Halstoy, to give them a bit more breathing space and, eventually, they got their second try with Lowe turning provider.
He shaped to throw to the right but instead tossed it to Gibson-Park on the blindside. The ball struck his shoulder before he gathered and touched down with confirmation of the try coming after it was checked by the TMO with Byrne adding the extra.
But the Top 14 side grabbed themselves a lifeline before the break when Louis Penverne scored off a maul with Hastoy converting.
Whatever frustration there was about that late score, was channelled in the right way as, within 21 minutes of the restart, they were 27 points ahead.
First, Baird cut a swathe through La Rochelle’s defence down the left with Byrne again converting.
ROG RETURN
O’Gara said: ”We were quite happy going in just 10 points down at half-time considering the way the game unfolded.
“But to give them a soft score, obviously they executed well, to go out to 17 again, i killed our momentum and we were chasing the game from that.
“And then the last 30, we were inaccurate in a lot of our basics. There is no place for that in quarter-finals.
“When it was in the 10-point zone, the game was always in doubt, but once it passed that, it’s too far-fetched to think you are going to be winning the game against a quality outfit.”
Then, after the ball bounced, Sheehan, in acres of space, picked up Lowe’s pass out wide to grab Leinster’s fourth try.
This time, Byrne struck the upright but it hardly mattered as his side were in a commanding position.
The fifth try came soon afterwards with Robbie Henshaw producing a fine kick into space which Lowe gathered with Jack Nowell unable to stop him as he powered his way over the line.
With Byrne making way for his sibling, it was Frawley’s turn to kick from the near touchline but he too struck the post with his attempted conversion.
LEINSTER: Tries: Lowe 2, Gibson-Park, Baird, Sheehan; Conversions: R Byrne 3; Penalties: R Byrne 3
LA ROCHELLE: Try: Penverne; Conversion: Hastoy; Penalties: Hastoy 2.