Leinster have been making waves on and off the field this week, with their dealings away from it as emphatic as Saturday's demolition of La Rochelle.
The Blues have a Champions Cup semi-final meeting with Northampton Saints at Croke Park to look forward to as well as a spate of high profile additions set to land in Dublin 4 next season.
The province is the envy of Irish rugby after landing All Blacks superstar Jordie Barrett, reportedly fending off competition from other major European sides.
That signing follows their acquisition of two-time World Cup winner RG Snyman from Munster from next season - a move which drew a particularly strong response from supporters of their rival club.
21 January 2017; Tyler Bleyendaal of Munster is tackled by left Etienne Dussartre of Racing 92 along with Leone Nakarawa during the European Rugby Champions Cup Pool 1 Round 6 match between Munster and Racing 92 at Thomond Park in Limerick. Photo by Diarmuid Greene/Sportsfile
Tyler Bleyendaal to join Leinster
Munster fans will have raised an eyebrow at the news that Tyler Bleyendaal - who togged out 62 times for the province - will succeed Andrew Goodman as Leinster's attack coach this summer.
Leinster had been in the market for a new addition to their coaching ticket with Goodman set to replace the outgoing Mike Catt in Andy Farrell's Ireland setup.
Now, Leinster have confirmed that Bleyendaal - who was a hugely popular Ireland player in Limerick amid a spate of injuries - will succeed Goodman at the Champions Cup and URC hopefuls.
📰 | Tyler Bleyendaal will join the Leinster Rugby coaching team from the Hurricanes ahead of the 2024/25 season.
Read the full story here ➡️ https://t.co/CHG07jDexV#FromTheGroundUp pic.twitter.com/BaaQIrXMxx— Leinster Rugby (@leinsterrugby) April 16, 2024
Bleyendaal, who was forced to retire in 2020 with a persistent neck injury, has since carved out a strong coaching career in his native New Zealand with Super Rugby side, the Hurricanes.
Just 33-years-old, the former out-half has helped guide the club to the top of the Super Rugby table after seven games.
Leinster boss Leo Cullen hailed Bleyendaal as a 'smart rugby mind' when speaking to leinsterrugby.ie.
"With Andrew taking up a position with the Ireland coaching group, we’ve had an opportunity not only to look at our own coaching structures here at Leinster but also to talk to a number of other coaches. Having gone through that process, we believe we are getting a really smart rugby mind in Tyler Bleyendaal.
"Tyler has been with the Hurricanes for the last few seasons and has been steadily growing as a coach – you can see that in the way they’re playing now, not just their results but specifically in terms of some of the stats around their attack.
"He’s someone who knows Ireland well and understands the rugby landscape here which is important, but ultimately, we are keen for him add to our environment and for us to learn from him, which is our approach with all new coaches.
"We wish Tyler well for the rest of the Super Rugby season and look forward to welcoming him and his family to Leinster during the summer.”
Bleyendaal has plenty of good favour at Thomond Park, putting in his finest performance in the emotional win against Glasgow Warriors following the sudden passing of head coach Anthony 'Axel' Foley in 2016.
He was also part of the Tonga coaching ticket at the 2023 World Cup, and came up against Ireland in the group stages.
