Leinster captain James Ryan has been accused of disrespecting La Rochelle during the coin toss prior to yesterday's Champions Cup final.
The French side won back-to-back titles under Ronan O'Gara, winning a dramatic encounter at the Aviva Stadium by a single point on a scoreline of 27-26.
Leinster, having looked dominant for most of the season, now walk away empty handed following yesterday's loss and last week's URC semi-final defeat to Munster.
While La Rochelle were overjoyed to claim a second successive title and there was magic scenes on the pitch at full-time they also wanted to use their post-match press conference to highlight some grievances they had.
James Ryan accused of disrespect
Their captain Grégory Alldritt claimed that Ryan eyeballed him and stared him out of it when they shook hands after the coin toss.
“From the toss, already, we were not respected. And that should not be done. There are a lot of values in our club and respect is part of it,” the France number eight blasted.
O'Gara backed up the views of his captain when asked by media whether his side had been disrespected by Leinster.
“Yeah, I got word of it down on the pitch,” he said.
“Obviously, I have a close relationship with my captain. A bizarre action when they were going for the toss.
“Greg was disappointed and let down.”
This has now been clarified by the translator. Rather than not make eye contact, Alldritt said James Ryan eyeballed him or stared him out of it if you will https://t.co/6L0pD4pOPZ
— Rúaidhrí O'Connor (@RuaidhriOC) May 20, 2023
O'Gara also hit out at the fact that his side had to have their post-match function in Lansdowne Rugby Club rather than in the Aviva. The EPRC came out and stated that La Rochelle had been offered a room but declined it as it wasn't big enough for their group.
Tensions between both sides were also evident at half-time with EPRC launching an investigation into an alleged incident.
The Irish Independent reported that that incident in involved Leinster's Johnny Sexton and Sean O'Brien, as well as O'Gara and La Rochelle lock Will Skelton.
SEE ALSO: Ronan O'Gara Explains How Special It Was To Share Win With His Mum
