Leinster 33 Connacht 7
Leinster celebrated the final match at the RDS before it undergoes a €50 million facelift with a victory, one facilitated by a number of departing players but none more so than Rhys Ruddock who retires at the end of the season.
Ross Molony, excellent throughout and the official man of the match, Ed Byrne, Charlie Ngatai and Michael Ala’alatoa will play their rugby elsewhere next season and along with Ruddock received hearty recognition from the home supporters.
Sam Prendergast ran the game with verve, helped considerably by a dominant pack in which Thomas Clarkson and Jack Conan stood out in particular. Connacht were left to rue a lacklustre start and even though they showed character in the second half, they were well beaten on the night.
The game’s first score arrived after a couple of Leinster set pieces, a lineout inside the Connacht 22, and then a scrum from which number eight Conan shaped to pass but instead powered through some brittle tackling for a try. Sam Prendergast converted, and the home side were up and running.
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Leinster earned a brace of penalties, twice turned down shots at the posts, the first lineout didn’t go to plan but the second was a perfect launchpad that culminated in a try for Jimmy O’Brien. There wasn’t much subterfuge, but Prendergast made a good decision when the move looked like it had broken down, drew the cover, and timed his pass perfectly to the fullback.
Once again, the home side’s set piece dominance paved the way for a third try; a scrum penalty, followed by a sharp lineout move that sent hooker Ronan Kelleher scampering down the touchline. The imperious Conan made the initial breach and Ciarán Frawley took the scoring pass.
Prendergast converted and at 21-0 the visitors were staring at a shellacking; Connacht’s scrum was in serious trouble.
If this match is to be Ruddock’s swansong, he’ll have a memory to cherish, thunderous in his carrying and tackling, reminiscent of his pomp. Ed Byrne had enjoyed some meaty sallies, while Ross Molony made an important penalty turnover near the Leinster line.
Jamie Osborne caused Connacht all manner of problems, using his feet and vision to equal effect and invariably choosing the right option in finding chinks in the visiting defence or putting teammates in space. His ability to physically dominate contract and instinct to offload could have yielded even greater rewards.
Then there was Tommy O’Brien, who had a superb first half, the high point in defence, a brilliant try saving tackle on Cian Prendergast, that forced a knock-on to boot, but there was so much to admire in the wing’s work. There were aspects of the home side’s performance that didn’t fire, notably some turnovers at the lineout, but few in the stands were of a mind to complain with a 21-0 half-time lead.
Connacht’s plight was a much tougher proposition for which to find a remedy. The visitors did produce some neat passages of attacking rugby usually involving their excellent centre David Hawkshaw, abetted by Cathal Forde, Shane Jennings, and the dangerous Santiago Cordero, but they couldn’t make it count in accumulating points.
Conan was withdrawn at half-time, replaced by Max Deegan, while Connacht too went to the bench, replacement props Denis Buckley and Jack Aungier summoned to try and address the scrum issues. The second half started in similar fashion to the first, Connacht hanging on for dear life, hemmed in by errors, close to their line.
There was a brief interlude to the assault as Ruddock went off to a standing ovation, merited for his performance on the night and everything that went before in the blue jersey. Charlie Ngatai replaced Tommy O’Brien, who had a fine game.
Leinster somehow contrived not to score a bonus point try when it looked odds-on to do so, held up over the line and then Rob Russell couldn’t hang onto a pass with the line at his mercy. Leinster’s starting frontrow departed en masse and can be proud of their night’s work, and not just at the scrum.
Connacht showed guts in defence, Cian Prendergast coming up with a penalty turnover millimetres from his line. Leinster will be disappointed not to have been more composed and thoughtful in engineering a definitive breach.
The game became something of a staccato affair for a while following a raft of replacements and stoppages. Leinster replacement prop Michael Ala’alatoa received a yellow card for a clear-out on Blade, Harry Byrne replaced Frawley with Sam Prendergast moving to the centre, precursors in the timeline to the home side’s fourth try, scored by Dan Sheehan.
Connacht finally mustered a response, and it was eloquent, a sharp attack, with some neat inter-passing finished off by replacement scrumhalf Colm Reilly.
It was the visitors who threatened to finish the game with more attacking vim, winning a couple of scrum penalties and at the behest of Hawkshaw’s clever prompting opened by the Leinster defence but without adding to their tally on the scoreboard.
The home side offered a lesson, or rather Jimmy O’Brien did in how to produce a clinical finish, his superb meandering run taking him past several defenders as he ran 75-metres for a great individual try.
Scoring sequence: 8 mins: Conan try, S Prendergast conversion, 7-0; 16: J O’Brien try, S Prendergast conversion, 14-0; 22: Frawley try, Prendergast conversion, 21-0; 62: Sheehan try, 26-0; 68: C Reilly try, Daly conversion, 26-7; 73: J O’Brien try, S Prendergast conversion, 33-7.
Leinster: J O’Brien; T O’Brien, J Osborne, C Frawley, R Russell; S Prendergast, C Foley; E Byrne, R Kelleher, T Clarkson; B Deeney, R Molony; R Ruddock, S Penny (capt), J Conan.
Replacements: M Deegan for Conan (half-time), R Baird for Ruddock (48 mins), C Ngatai for T O’Brien (49 mins), D Sheehan for Kelleher (51 mins), M Milne for Byrne (51 mins), M Ala’alatoa for Clarkson (51 mins), L McGrath for Russell (55 mins), Clarkson for Deeny (59 mins), H Byrne for Frawley (61 mins), Deeny for Clarkson (70 mins).
Yellow card: M Ala’alatoa (58 mins).
Connacht: S Cordero; S Jennings, D Hawkshaw, C Forde, S Mallon; J Carty, C Blade; P Dooley, D Heffernan, F Bealham; J Joyce, N Murray; C Prendergast, C Oliver, S Jansen.
Replacements: C Reilly for Blade (HIA, 12-24 and 58 mins), S O’Brien for Jansen (24 mins), D Buckley for Dooley (half-time) J Aungier for Bealham (half-time), B Ralston for Mallon (HIA 43 mins), D Murray for Joyce (50 mins), T Daly for Carty (50 mins), D Tierney-Martin for Heffernan (58 mins).
Referee: C Busby (Ulster)
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