James Low scored twice as Leinster led Limerick to a comfortable derby victory.
Leinster proved extremely strong for Munster in Saturday’s URC inter-provincial derby, with a disappointing 34-19 bonus-point win over Thomund Park.
Center Gary Ringrose – Leinster captain in the evening – Wing James Lowe (two) and opposite Wing Jimmy O’Brien each tried, Ross Byrne added four penalties and a conversion.
Munster earned their points through four Joey Carberry penalties and an effort from a converted Damien de Allende, but with a 12-11 lead in the first half, their second-half performance proved to be on par.
Leinster arrived in Ireland with a squad of 11 players for the Triple Crown-winning Six Nations campaign, with Andrew Conway (knee), Tadhaag Byrne (thigh), Dave Kilquin (neck), Jean Klein (foot) and Mike Haley (foot). Knee) made the task too long for the hosts, who failed to get up adequately.
They also lost to No. 8 Gavin Coombs in the first half after a side clear-out from Devin Toner during the breakdown – which would be a big concern for Johan van Gran with the Champions Cup Round of 16 tie vs. Exeter. Next fortnight
Leinster Round of 16 Champions Cup tie vs. Connacht
Munster started the attack with great speed – Combes and Jason Jenkins teamed up for a huge early carry – but a positive start was undone when tighthead Stephen Archer threw an offload directly into Leinster’s ringrose.
Flanker Chris Kloit was then dropped off-foot during the breakdown, but the opportunity failed because Leinster hooker James Tracy conceded a free-kick and dummy the throw before delivery.
Another Munster breakdown brought visitors back into possession, and when the home side were caught offside after a series of Leinster stages later, Byron tapped from close-range for the lead.
English referee Christoph Ridley and TMO Craig Maxwell-Kiss decided not to review the potentially dangerous low cleanout before that kick, but Leinster No. 8 gave Jack Conan’s Carbery a chance to respond quickly to the late hit hosts and Carberry made. 46 meters no mistake at all.
Leinster was brought back to the front foot after a great midfield game after a dummy-mole, people sent Sprinting into space, and although Callan Doris refrained from scoring after a great Shane Daily tackle, Ringrose ran to penalty advantage after one stage. .
Gary Ringrose passes for the opening attempt at the competition
Bayern pushed the transformation drastically, and returned to the competition with Munster Cloet and Peter O’Mahani, and after taking a great high-ball from Munster full-back Matt Gallagher, Cloet and Peter O’Mahani made a huge carry for the huge meter, their Leinster placed deep at 22.
Although center Chris Farrell went close to slicing through the penalty area, a Coombs knock-on saw the hosts go back for a Leinster violation before the ball slowed down and Carberry slotted his second kick of the match.
Joey Carberry put Munster ahead 12-11 with four penalty kicks, but they fell later.
A tougher penalty against Munster Hooker Neil Scannell for not releasing in the breakdown gave Leinster more territory gains, and when Coombs was on the verge of fouling the whistle to frustrate home support, Byron gave Leinster an 11-6 lead.
Coombes responded with a big carry-off from Leinster’s Toner with an unquenchable clear-out on him, a weak low kick, and when Leinster failed to move away from the next rack, Carberry hit once more with confidence.
The injury proved to be too much for Coombs though – it made him a big suspect in next week’s exit in Europe – and was replaced by 21-year-old back-row Alex Kendall.
Gavin Coombs left half an hour ago with a leg injury
A smart break from Munster’s Daley brought the next point when Murray claimed a high ball well, Flanker Josh van der Flair was penalized for striking in a strike over for a 12-11 lead.
Linster full-back Hugo Keenan performed at 50:22 when the half was over, but Munster calmed the attack as captain O’Mahony and Scanel Toner were forced to make a superb choke tackle and win the turnover.
This should have ensured a half-time lead, but Munster failed to kick the ball out of the park after a defensive scrum, instead hitting back and catching offside, allowing Byron to bring Leinster back to the front.
Leinster’s front-row trio of Sean Healy, Dan Shehan and Tadhaag Farlong – Ireland’s starting unit in wins against England and Scotland – and shortly thereafter, finished for their second time at the low corner.
Lowe’s first attempt put Leinster in a commanding position
Bayern failed to add extra, leaving Leinster’s lead at seven-points, but the spectators scored the next goal – allowing Bayern to take a two-point lead without an unnecessary Finn Wicherley tackle ball over Van der Flair.
An offside penalty against Munster called for an offside gallag kick, and Wing O’Brien took a ruthless advantage to blow up the scoreboard to end a move with a great hand filling along the backline.
Jimmy O’Brien did well to finish for Leinster’s third attempt
Thomas Ahron demanded an acrobatic resume for Munster, and when the replacement scrum-half was tapped by Craig Casey, Leinster was very lucky not to have lost a man in a sin-break after repeated violations.
As it was, De Allende passed the moment as Munster played a number of penalty kicks, reducing the gap to 10 points with 17 minutes left.
Damien de Allende celebrates his second half effort, but it fails to spark Munster’s comeback
Clotte and Kendallin combined to push for a key defensive turnover, but the Dirmude Baron’s resulting lineout throw was crooked, leaving Munster with no real chance of managing the resurgence.
Instead, Leinster Rubberstamp took their next chance – and it registered a try bonus-point – when Low sprinted to dive into his second of the night.
