Good afternoon, folks. Welcome along to our live coverage of the Guinness Pro12 meeting of Leinster and Connacht.
Paul Dollery here to keep you posted throughout the game from back at base, while Ryan Bailey is at the RDS for us to keep an eye on the second of this weekend’s inter-provincial fixtures.
If you want to join in, tweet us: @rugby_ie and @The42_ie, e-mail pauldollery@the42.ie or post your thoughts in the comments section below.
Kick-off in Dublin is at 5.15pm.
Here’s Bundee Aki arriving at the RDS earlier on. The news this week that he has committed his future to Connacht is a massive boost to the province.
Both teams will line out as they were announced yesterday…
Leinster
15. Isa Nacewa (captain)
14. Adam Byrne
13. Rory O’Loughlin
12. Noel Reid
11. Barry Daly
10. Joey Carbery
9. Jamison Gibson-Park
1. Cian Healy
2. Sean Cronin
3. Mike Ross
4. Mick Kearney
5. Ian Nagle
6. Dan Leavy
7. Sean O’Brien
8. Jack Conan
Replacements:
16. James Tracy
17. Peter Dooley
18. Michael Bent
19. Mike McCarthy
20. Josh van der Flier
21. Luke McGrath
22. Ross Byrne
23. Rob Kearney
Connacht
15. Tiernan O’Halloran
14. Niyi Adeolokun
13. Peter Robb
12. Craig Ronaldson
11. Cian Kelleher
10. Jack Carty
9. Kieran Marmion
1. JP Cooney
2. Dave Heffernan
3. Conor Carey
4. Quinn Roux
5. Andrew Browne
6. Sean O’Brien
7. Jake Heenan
8. John Muldoon (captain)
Replacements:
16. Shane Delahunt
17. Dominic Robertson-McCoy
18. Finlay Bealham
19. James Cannon
20. Eoin McKeon
21. Caolin Blade
22. Bundee Aki
23. Stacey Ili
While you’re waiting for kick-off, here’s a reminder of the most recent meeting of the side’s — last May’s Pro12 final.
Here we go: it’s fifth versus ninth in the Guinness Pro12, the champions versus the runners-up. Connacht have never won at the RDS. Can Pat Lam’s side change that?
Leinster 0 Connacht 0
Connacht deploying a kicking game in the early stages here and a Cian Healy infringement at the breakdown gives them a penalty.
Leinster 0 Connacht 3
Nicely done by Craig Ronaldson and Connacht take an early lead.
Leinster 0 Connacht 3
Connacht seeing the lion’s share of the possession and using their expansive brand of rugby to put pressure on Leinster but Healy does well to ease it with a turnover for the hosts.
Leinster 0 Connacht 3
Connacht looking very dangerous with the ball in hand. Jack Carty was very nearly in for a try there but Leinster survive.
Leinster 0 Connacht 3
Leinster 0 Connacht 6
Under ferocious pressure, Leinster cough up another penalty says referee John Lacey and Ronaldson makes no mistake again from wide on the right.
Leinster 0 Connacht 6
“Leinster need Sean O’Brien in the game,” says Alan Quinlan on Sky Sports.
Leinster 0 Connacht 6
Leinster 0 Connacht 6
Great defence by Leinster to snuff out another Connacht attack.
Leinster 0 Connacht 6
Bundee Aki is on for Connacht. Looks like Craig Ronaldson has gone off for a head injury assessment.
Leinster 0 Connacht 6
Connacht steal a Leinster lineout but Aki knocks it on so it’s a scrum to Leinster on Connacht’s 22.
Leinster 0 Connacht 6
Strong scrum by Leinster wins them a penalty.
Leinster 3 Connacht 6
Just under 24 minutes in and Isa Nacewa gets Leinster up and running.
Leinster 3 Connacht 6
Carbery kicks Leinster into the opposing 22 after great work at the breakdown by Dan Leavy but Connacht steal another line-out.
Leinster 3 Connacht 6
Sean O’Brien is going to have 10 minutes off after a yellow card for recklessness as he tried to clear out the ruck, ramming into the head of Peter Robb with his shoulder.
Leinster 3 Connacht 6
Leinster are starting to drive Connacht back and they win another penalty thanks to good work at the breakdown.
Leinster 6 Connacht 6
It’s good again from Nacewa and the teams are level.
Leinster 6 Connacht 6
Excellent stuff there from Healy and O’Loughlin to force that penalty. The last 10 or 15 minutes have been much better from Leinster.
Leinster 6 Connacht 6
Scrum to Leinster following a knock-on by Andrew Browne. Half-time approaching.
Leinster 6 Connacht 6
Peter Robb could be in trouble here for what looked like a deliberate knock-on as Leinster went wide. John Lacey is consulting the TMO.
Leinster 6 Connacht 6
Yellow card for Robb and he joins O’Brien in the sin bin.
Leinster 9 Connacht 6
Nacewa nails another one and Leinster lead in the 39th minute for the first time in this game.
Leinster 9 Connacht 6
Sean O’Brien is back on. Leinster were behind when he went off. Now they lead. A good period for Leo Cullen’s side despite the loss of the Ireland flanker.
Leinster 9 Connacht 6
Some late pressure by Connacht as they drive towards the Leinster line but the hosts defend brilliantly and survive as the visitors knock forward. Dramatic end to the opening half.
Half-time: Leinster 9 Connacht 6
Leinster 9 Connacht 6
Leinster 9 Connacht 6
Isa Nacewa has been outstanding for Leinster this evening.
Leinster 9 Connacht 6
Carty kicks wide to play Kelleher in but it’s a bit heavy and he ends up stepping into touch.
Leinster 9 Connacht 6
Jack Conan kicks ahead to bring Leinster to Connacht’s line but they mop it up. However, it’ll be a scrum to the hosts.
TRY! Leinster 14 Connacht 6 (Byrne, 50)
Leinster 14 Connacht 6
That’s the first try of the game as Adam Byrne gets in at the corner after the ball was spread wide by Gibson-Park and then Cronin. Nacewa narrowly misses with a very tricky conversion.
Leinster 14 Connacht 6
Leinster have their tails up now and are forcing turnovers. Long way to go but the momentum is with Leo Cullen’s men for now.
Leinster 14 Connacht 6
Leinster near the Connacht line again but O’Halloran gets a crucial turnover for Connacht. Leinster will be disappointed not to have taken a score from that period of pressure.
Leinster 14 Connacht 6
Gordon D’Arcy tells Sky Sports that he’s been very impressed with Leinster’s “accuracy in the wider channels.”
Leinster 17 Connacht 6
Brilliant work by O’Brien to turn the ball over at the breakdown and Nacewa extends Leinster’s lead with a penalty.
Leinster 17 Connacht 6
So many positive individual displays from Leinster this evening: Healy, Cronin, Leavy, O’Brien, Byrne, Nacewa, to name just a few.
Leinster 17 Connacht 6
Alan Quinlan singing the praises for Dan Leavy at the moment.
Leinster 17 Connacht 6
Lovely break by Reid but Carbery’s pass was forward.
Leinster 17 Connacht 6
Connacht aiming to turn the screw in a bid to get back in the game after a bit of a lull in the play, but O’Halloran knocks forward to thwart their attack.
Leinster 17 Connacht 6
Josh van der Flier is on for Sean O’Brien.
Leinster 17 Connacht 6
Risky play from Connacht as they go wide in an effort to attack from inside their own 22 and it backfires as Leinster force a scrum.
Leinster 17 Connacht 6
TRY! Leinster 22 Connacht 6 (Daly, 76)
Leinster 24 Connacht 6
That seals it for Leinster. Barry Daly takes a beautifully weighted pass from Carbery and gets in at the left corner for the home side’s second try, before Nacewa adds the conversion.
Leinster 24 Connacht 6
Leinster’s Dan Leavy is named man of the match.
TRY! Leinster 24 Connacht 11 (Delahunt, 80)
Leinster 24 Connacht 13
Shane Delahunt runs a great line to cross for Connacht, before Carty converts. However, it’s merely a consolation for Connacht because that’s full-time.
Full-time: Leinster 24 Connacht 13
