Carbery confirms Leinster return after Bordeaux's back-to-back Champions Cup triumph

Joey Carbery will return to Leinster for the first time since 2018 next season, with head coach Leo Cullen confirming the signing after his side’s 41-19 Champions Cup final defeat to Union Bordeaux-Bèglès in Bilbao.

Carbery, who was present at the final but unavailable through injury, was initially guarded when asked about the move in an interview with Off The Ball. He only opened up once the interviewer informed him that Cullen had already gone public with the news. “If he is saying it, then yeah I suppose it is. I am not sure if it is 100% confirmed, but I am looking forward to heading home,” the 30-year-old said.

Cullen, speaking after the final, was characteristically direct. “I just saw Joey Carbery out there as well, so Joey, on the flip side, is coming in,” he said, framing the arrival as a direct response to the departure of Ciarán Frawley. “We tried to keep Ciaran in the club earlier in the season, but he has made that decision. We respect his decision and we have some good quality 10s.”

Carbery originally left Leinster in 2018 on the advice of then Ireland head coach Joe Schmidt, joining provincial rivals Munster, where he spent six seasons and won a URC title in 2023. The emergence of Jack Crowley as Munster’s first-choice fly-half, combined with a difficult run of injuries, prompted his move to the Top 14 with Bordeaux — a switch that effectively placed his international career on hold.

Reflecting on his time in France, Carbery was unambiguous about the value of the experience. “It’s a great place to come and play. For me, as an experience, it has been eye opening to see how these guys operate. It’s just a different way of playing and obviously it’s a very successful way of playing, so hopefully I can bring some stuff home with me.”

Much of what Carbery is taking home centres on the influence of Bordeaux and France first-choice fly-half Mathieu Jalibert, whose instinctive, high-risk style has clearly left a mark. “There’s a looseness and chaos, but there is also a lot of reason behind why he does it,” Carbery said. “For me it has given me a lot to say, ‘look, you see something, you try something and you don’t worry about what a coach is going to say if they give out to you.’”

At Leinster, Carbery will compete for the ten jersey with Harry Byrne, who started the Champions Cup final, and Sam Prendergast, who has featured prominently in big games this season. Cullen made clear he expects the competition to sharpen everyone. “Everyone just needs to keep pushing each other on,” he said.