MUNSTER 6-13 LEINSTER
There was a return from injury for Joey Carbery and Jack O’Donoghue was a titan, but little else to warm the spirits of Munster fans in Limerick.
Leinster’s winning run shows no signs of stopping as they did the hard work in a wind-swept first half and doggedly ran down the clock in the final 30 minutes.
Caelan Doris – the eir Sport man of the match – and Will Connors (23 tackles, 11 carries, 1 turnover) were the catalysts for Leinster, in attack and defence, while experienced heads like Sean Cronin and Scott Fardy stepped up with big plays in the final stages.
Leinster were forced into handing a full debut to young scrumhalf Rowan Osborne ahead of the game as Jamison Gibson-Park was ruled out through illness. The Leinster forwards did a good job at shielding the 23-year-old from the rough stuff but he, and they, were certainly aided by the wind behind their back in the first half.
Leinster went 7-0 ahead after they pounded away at the Munster tryline and Ed Byrne, with James Lowe heaving in behind him, shoved his way over the whitewash. Ross Byrne, who was composed in his return from a two-week lay-off, lapped over the conversion.
James Lowe celebrates Ed Byrne’s try during the Guinness PRO14 match between Munster and Leinster at Thomond Park. (Photo by Ramsey Cardy/Sportsfile)Byrne added two more penalties to stretch Leinster’s lead to 13-0 before a late Munster burst led to a penalty that JJ Hanrahan knocked over to give the home side hope of a second half comeback.
Hanrahan cut the Leinster lead to 13-6 with another penalty, after the break, before Leinster remained disciplined in possession and went through multiple phases. Munster were patient and organised in defence, though, and two Andrew Porter knock-ons were welcome reprieves.
With Rory Scannell and Carbery, when he came on, kicking well into the corners, Munster had the territory to make Leinster sweat but they were error-strewn inside the red zone and let their guests off the hook time and again.
There were turnovers all over the place in the final 15 minutes with O’Donoghue and Fardy getting two that stood out while Cronin and Doris teamed up for one tackle that drove Munster ball-carrier Darren O’Shea metres back. Munster had their chances and will be incredibly frustrated with losing their first game at Thomond Park in 22 outings.
Following the game, Doris told eir Sport, “We’re really happy to stick out the win there… making tackles, back on your feet, go again. Very enjoyable.”
OUR MAN OF THE MATCH: Will Connors (Leinster)
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