Kaino’s Toulouse end wait for ‘awesome’ Champions Cup final

PARIS (AFP): New Zealand’s double Rugby World Cup winner Jerome Kaino said it was “awesome” to reach his first European Champions Cup final after joint-record four-time winners Toulouse’s 21-9 home win over Bordeaux-Begles on Saturday.

France scrum-half Dupont crossed late against an away side playing their first game since an April 11 quarter-final victory over Racing 92 because of eight cases of coronavirus in their squad. The hosts, who last won the competition in 2010, will face either La Rochelle or fellow four-time champions Leinster, who play on Sunday, in the final at Twickenham on May 22. Toulouse lost in the last four the past two seasons.

“We’ve been building these last few years and have tripped up in the semi-final stages so I’m very proud. It’s an awesome feeling to be able to step into the door and make the final,” back-rower Kaino, who will retire at the end of season, told broadcasters Channel 4.

“We were under no illusions it was going to be easy. We knew we were up for it and they weren’t going to just lie down,” he added. Toulouse coach Ugo Mola recalled 38-year-old loose forward Kaino who had been rested since the last-eight win over Clermont three weeks ago.

Visiting coach Christophe Urios made six changes from the win against Racing last month, with former France captain Jefferson Poirot, who was among those to catch the virus, starting on the bench.