By Phil Harlow & Rob Hodgetts

White has a tremendous track record of success in coaching

HEINEKEN CUP FINAL
Sunday, 20 May
Twickenham
Kick-off: 1430 BST
Live on BBC Radio Five Live, local radio commentary and on the BBC Sport website

After four years without a trophy, Leicester made several signings who have taken them to the brink of an historic treble - but who was the most important?

Surely it must be Martin Castrogiovanni, the Guinness Premiership player of the season and one of the rocks on which Leicester have built their success this year?

Not according to Wasps captain Lawrence Dallaglio, who picked out Craig White as the most significant arrival at Welford Road over the summer.

That's Craig White, the Tigers' head of strength and conditioning, to the unfamiliar.

White, rarely seen outside a gym, worked with Dallaglio at Wasps for three successful seasons in which the London club won the Heineken Cup and three league titles.

But after leaving the London club in 2005, White ended up joining Leicester in April last year and his influence has been felt with the players going, literally, from strength to strength as the season reaches its climax.

The rugby we've played in the last few weeks is a complete vindication of Craig's methods Leicester scrum-half Scott Bemand

The Tigers' imposing physicality has already helped them win the EDF Energy Cup and the Premiership, and they face Wasps - the past masters of peaking at the right end of the season - in Sunday's Heineken Cup final.

"The transformation in players like (Leicester full-back) Geordan Murphy has been superb," said Dallaglio. "World-class players adding another element to their game."

The 35-year-old White played amateur rugby league for Great Britain before moving into the strength and conditioning side of coaching with Waterloo.

He then enjoyed stints with Ireland, Premiership football club Bolton and a three-year stay with Wasps during which time they won the Heineken Cup and became the dominant team in English rugby.

White also went on the 2005 Lions tour of New Zealand and intended to take up a job in Waikato after leaving Wasps, but the death of his father made him decide to stay in England.

Leicester's 44-16 demolition of Gloucester in last week's Premiership final provided compelling evidence of their physical conditioning in their 37th competitive match of a draining season.

Leicester's physicality has been too much for their rivals this season

Fearsome wingers Alesana Tuilagi, who has been drawing comparisons with Jonah Lomu, and Seru Rabeni were at their best as Leicester's superior power swept Gloucester aside.

Leicester scrum-half Scott Bemand, who is hoping to return from injury on Sunday, said White's influence could be seen in the team's remarkable end to the season in which they have recorded 10 consecutive wins.

"It always used to be Wasps who started building momentum at the end of the season - the way we're finishing this year is very reminiscent of that," Bemand told BBC Sport.

"Craig's had a massive influence on the whole squad. His ideas were quite different for a lot of us, but everybody's taken them on board and the results speak for themselves.

"He tends to rely on a lot of work in the gym with weights, creating more powerful players.

"Instead of mindless cardio-vascular floggings, it's all a lot more focused and constructive and done with the aim of keeping the guys fresh for the games.

"The rugby the boys have been playing over the last few weeks is a complete vindication of Craig's methods.

"Craig want everybody to be a bit bigger, stronger, faster and fitter.

"Also, we're not carrying many serious long-term injuries, which is incredible when you think of the number of games we've played this season.

"The guys are fit and fresh and raring to go and that's exactly where we want to be."