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Leinster boss Joe Schmidt is determined to end his tenure with the region by bagging a trophy double.
Schmidt will leave the the helm of Leinster at the end of the season, a position he has held since 2010, to take over as Ireland head coach. Having seen his troops beat Stade Francais 34-13 in the Amlin Challenge Cup final on Friday, Schmidt is hopeful of adding the Rabodirect PRO12 crown to his tally next weekend when Leinster face Ulster in what will be Schmidt's final match in charge.
"We have one match to play so no matter what happens tonight we have to turn around and try and do our best next Saturday," said Schmidt.
"I am a reasonably simple person, I just want to focus on next Saturday now. It is something that has eluded us in the last two seasons, we have won Europe and lost the Celtic League.
"To win the PRO12 would be massive. We will be looking to double up if we can."
While claiming any silverware is an impressive feat, Leinster's Challenge Cup triumph only came as a result of failure in the Heineken Cup, which they won last season. The Kiwi coach insists that Friday's victory more than makes up for defeat in Europe's premier competition.
"It's a trophy we have wanted for the last two months," he said.
"This is our third European trophy in three years and if you had said that at the start of the season I would have taken it with both hands."
Comments
leinster_goy says...
o'connor has a very hard act to follow next year. although the quality of the tigers's second half performance against quins last week fills me with optimism. and they gave toulonchester city a real scare in the Heino QF this year. but Schmidty is one of a kind
Posted 15:24 18th May 2013