The TOP 14 side staged a dramatic comeback in front of 51,711 fans at the Aviva Stadium as they recovered from 17-0 down to beat Leinster Rugby 27-26 in an enthralling final.

The Irish province looked on course for a record-equalling fifth crown when Dan Sheehan (2) and Jimmy O’Brien scored tries inside the first 11 minutes.

However, they could only add three Ross Byrne penalties after that stunning start and La Rochelle capitalised, Jonathan Danty, UJ Seuteni and Georges Henri Colombe all going over for the TOP 14 side, which, allied to Antoine Hastoy’s 12 points, ensured the trophy stayed in France.

Leinster had sent their supporters into delirium when Sheehan went over inside the first minute as a brilliant lineout move released Jack Conan, who sent his hooker clear down the right for a try that fly-half Byrne converted.

O’Brien followed Sheehan over after five minutes amid relentless Leinster pressure, the wing finishing a move out wide after a perfectly-timed pass by Byrne.

It went from bad to worse for La Rochelle when scrum-half Tawera Kerr-Barlow was yellow-carded for stopping a quick tap, with Sheehan splashing over again moments later after another slick Leinster move.

However, La Rochelle found a foothold in the game by notching their first try while still down to 14 men, centre Danty crashing over and fly-half Hastoy’s conversion reducing the margin to 10 points.

Momentum swung back in Leinster’s favour momentarily after Kerr-Barlow returned, Byrne slotting two penalties before the half hour, but La Rochelle ended the first half in the ascendancy, centre Seuteni gliding across unchallenged for a try that Hastoy converted to cut the gap to just nine points.

The nerves began to set in following the restart as two Hastoy penalties either side of one from Byrne saw La Rochelle move to within six points by the 49th minute.

Ronan O’Gara’s side continued to pile on the pressure, but it wasn’t until the 71st minute that they conjured their decisive third try, replacement prop Colombe squeezing over from close range to stun the Dublin crowd, with Hastoy converting to hand La Rochelle the lead.

The final nine minutes were electrifying, but when replacement prop Michael Ala’alatoa was sent off for an illegal clear-out close to the La Rochelle line with two minutes to play, that ended Leinster’s dreams of a fifth star for another year.

With the pool draw for next season’s Champions Cup being staged in London on Wednesday, we review the final of the 2022-23 Heineken Champions Cup campaign and Stade Rochelais’ successful defence of the trophy in Dublin.