Despite having a year to run on his contract the Australian was sacked following a disappointing season.

Cullen has been appointed as the interim head coach while Leinster rugby chiefs look for a successor, but O’Connor believes the former second row is an ideal candidate.

“There’s nobody who knows more about Leinster rugby than Leo Cullen. From my perspective, I certainly wish him all the best”, O’Connor told RTE radio last night.

“Is it perfect timing? No it’s not, but I think you weigh up all the pros and cons, there wouldn’t be too many better blokes to do the job.”

O’Connor endured a frustrating time during his two-year term and admitted that the level of criticism aimed at him was over the top.

“We spoke a lot about trying to ignore the noise and distractions from outside and focus on the positives inside and we managed that but maybe the noise got a little bit too loud towards the end”

“You can’t win every year. That’s the reality of it. No-one wins every year and I think the Leinster fans, as fantastic as they have been, need to have a little more clarity in relation to what is acceptable and what is realistic.”

Another frustrating aspect of the role of Leinster head coach for O’Connor was the amount of time the Irish squad members spent away from the camp.

“We lost significant leaders out of the back-room as we did out of the changing-room. There was always going to be a transitional period for Leinster and I thought by and large we managed that.”

Leinster will be boosted by the return of Johnny Sexton and Isa Nacewa although the Rugby World Cup will limit the availability of the Irish squad members during the beginning of the new season.

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