Leinster emphatically returned to winning ways with a commanding 31-5 bonus-point victory over the Sharks at Aviva Stadium on Saturday evening, the defending champions finally clicking into gear after their disastrous opening fortnight in South Africa. Before a crowd of 17,549 in Dublin 4, Leo Cullen’s side ran in five tries to dispatch a toothless Sharks outfit that looked every inch a team at the end of a gruelling three-match European tour.
Key moments
11′ – Jamie Osborne try after James Lowe grubber kick, Harry Byrne converts (7-0)
23′ – Jimmy O’Brien try from scrum play after Fintan Gunne break, Harry Byrne converts (14-0)
27′ – Josh van der Flier try from close range after Fintan Gunne pass, Harry Byrne converts (21-0)
30′ – Ethan Hooker interception try from halfway, Jean Smith conversion missed (21-5)
Half-time: Leinster 21-5 Sharks
47′ – Robbie Henshaw replaced by Hugh Cooney due to injury
49′ – Max Deegan try in corner after Sharks high tackle, Harry Byrne conversion missed (26-5)
50′ – Gus McCarthy, Jack Boyle and Thomas Clarkson replace Kelleher, McCarthy and Furlong
53′ – Bongi Mbonambi on for Sharks
70′ – Gus McCarthy try from overthrown Sharks lineout, Harry Byrne conversion missed (31-5)
74′ – Jack Boyle yellow card for repeated scrum infringements
80+1′ – Joshua Kenny makes debut for Leinster
Full-time: Leinster 31-5 Sharks
The result was never in doubt after Leinster seized control in a blistering first half that saw them race to a 21-0 lead inside 27 minutes. Jamie Osborne, Jimmy O’Brien and captain Josh van der Flier all crossed before Springbok winger Ethan Hooker’s opportunistic interception try offered the visitors brief respite. Max Deegan’s fourth try early in the second half secured the bonus point, whilst replacement hooker Gus McCarthy completed the rout with 10 minutes remaining.
For Leinster, this represented a return to the standards their supporters have come to expect after the chastening defeats to Stormers and Bulls that opened their campaign. The return of six British and Irish Lions—including James Lowe, Rónan Kelleher, Tadhg Furlong, van der Flier, Robbie Henshaw and Osborne—provided the steel and quality that had been so conspicuously absent in Cape Town and Pretoria. Harry Byrne, who spent six months with Bristol last season, orchestrated proceedings beautifully at fly-half to claim man-of-the-match honours with a flawless kicking display that yielded three conversions.
The occasion held special significance for van der Flier, who was captaining Leinster for the very first time. The experienced flanker marked the honour in perfect fashion, not only leading by example with his trademark physicality at the breakdown but also crossing for a try that effectively ended the contest as a meaningful spectacle before the half-hour mark.
The Sharks arrived in Dublin nursing wounds from defeats to Glasgow Warriors and a draw with Dragons, their injury list compounded by the late withdrawal of lock Jason Jenkins. Captain Vincent Tshituka was forced to switch from the back row to the second row, with Nick Hatton moving from the bench to start at number eight—disruption that the visitors could ill afford against opponents of Leinster’s calibre playing on home soil.
“We knew the start was going to be massively important,” Sharks head coach John Plumtree admitted afterwards. “They came out fast and we just didn’t get the contestable kicks in terms of regaining ball in the air. We also had a few soft moments defensively that allowed them to build that scoreboard pressure early.”
Leinster announced their intentions from the opening exchanges, moving the ball with pace and precision across both sides of the pitch. Van der Flier showcased his physical presence with several powerful carries, whilst scrumhalf Fintan Gunne kept the tempo high with his intelligent sniping game around the fringes. The opening try arrived on 10 minutes through a moment of individual brilliance from Lowe. The Ireland winger broke up the left touchline into the Sharks’ 22 before threading a perfectly weighted grubber kick infield. Osborne demonstrated sharp awareness to take an inside line and collect the bouncing ball, galloping to the near post unopposed. Byrne’s conversion gave Leinster a 7-0 advantage they would never relinquish.
The hosts continued to probe, building pressure through quick ruck speed and superb handling that left the Sharks scrambling. Henshaw was held up inches from the line on 20 minutes, but Leinster retained possession and struck moments later. From a scrum on the Sharks’ 22, Gunne made initial ground before releasing Byrne, whose diagonal pass found O’Brien cutting a devastating line. The centre’s angle left the Sharks defence grasping at air, and Byrne’s conversion extended the lead to 14-0.
At that stage, the visitors had barely fired a shot. Scrumhalf Jaden Hendrikse spent much of his time launching high kicks that Leinster dealt with comfortably, whilst the Sharks’ vaunted back three of Hooker, Edwill van der Merwe and Makazole Mapimpi were starved of meaningful possession. The match was heading towards a rout when Leinster struck for their third try with just 27 minutes elapsed.
Again it was Gunne who sparked the move, this time finding van der Flier running a perfect inside line between two Sharks defenders. The flanker’s strength allowed him to shrug off attempted tackles and run in beneath the posts, with Byrne’s conversion making it 21-0. The capacity crowd sensed a potential cricket score, but the Sharks manufactured a lifeline from Leinster’s only significant error of the opening period.
Byrne attempted an ambitious skip pass to Lowe on the left wing, but 22-year-old Hooker read the trajectory brilliantly. The Springbok international, who had started for South Africa against Argentina the previous weekend, plucked the ball from the air and set off downfield. With his electric pace, nobody in blue was going to catch him, and he touched down to make it 21-5 at the interval—a scoreline that flattered the visitors given Leinster’s territorial and possession dominance approaching 60 per cent.
Henshaw departed early in the second period with an injury concern, but Leinster required just nine minutes to secure the bonus point. Byrne kicked for an attacking lineout following a high tackle by Sharks prop Ruan Dreyer on van der Flier. Six phases later, the ball was worked wide to Deegan on the wing. The number eight demonstrated deft footwork to step inside his marker and touch down in the corner, though Byrne’s conversion attempt drifted wide.
The Sharks introduced a raft of changes in an attempt to stem the tide, with Springbok hooker Bongi Mbonambi, former Munster prop Dian Bleuler and Vincent Koch all entering the fray. The fresh legs provided temporary respite at scrum time, where the visitors began to enjoy some success. Referee Craig Evans lost patience with Leinster loosehead Jack Boyle after a series of scrum penalties, dispatching him to the sin bin with six minutes remaining for repeated infringements.
However, by that stage the contest was long since decided. The Sharks showed occasional glimpses of ambition but lacked the accuracy and cohesion to trouble Leinster’s increasingly confident defence. The hosts absorbed three consecutive attacking sets inside their own 22 with minimal alarm, demonstrating the defensive steel that had been so conspicuously absent in South Africa.
The fifth try arrived with 10 minutes remaining and owed everything to Sharks misfortune. Mbonambi’s lineout throw sailed over the top of his jumpers and landed perfectly in the arms of replacement hooker McCarthy. The Leinster youngster required just one step forward before diving low over the line to complete the scoring.
There was still time for debutant Joshua Kenny to make an impression. The former Ireland Sevens star, who plays his club rugby with Greystones, displayed lively footwork after coming off the bench and almost created a late score for Luke McGrath. His introduction represented a moment of pride for Cullen and his coaching staff, another young talent given opportunity on the big stage.
“We knew it was going to be a tough start to the season for us because of the amount of moving parts and with the Lions cohort [missing],” Cullen explained. “It’s an amazing achievement for one team to have 14 players away on the Lions trip, isn’t it? But unfortunately, we’re the ones who are going to suffer ultimately for the start of the season. Listen, it’s great we’re through now, we’re getting some guys up and running and hopefully they’ll be fresher later in the year because obviously their season is starting relatively late.”
“The defence overall [was impressive], particularly off the back of the last couple of weeks where we got cut up a bit cheaply at different parts of our game,” Cullen reflected. “You concede four tries one week and six the following week, so 10 tries. The ledger is looking a little bit better.”
For the Sharks, this defeat extended their winless run to four matches against Leinster and left them with just one point from their opening three fixtures. Plumtree’s assessment was brutally honest. “In the last 10 to 15 minutes of the first half we got back into the game, but it was just a case of playing catch-up rugby,” he said. “In the second half we did our best, but their defence was just too good. Once we gave them that lead, that gave them the confidence to defend really well and we didn’t fire enough shots.”
The statistics told the story of Leinster dominance. Their quick ruck speed, handling excellence and all-round game proved too much for opponents who made far too many errors to trouble their hosts. The Sharks’ tactical approach—relying heavily on high kicks in the first half before adopting a narrow game in the second—offered little variation and allowed Leinster to settle into their rhythm comfortably.
Cullen was keen to emphasise that despite the comfortable margin, his side must continue to improve. “There’s lots of good stuff in the game today, but we still want to get a hell of a lot better ourselves,” he insisted. Looking ahead to next week’s derby against Munster at Croke Park, he added: “We have a great test this week. Munster in Croke Park will be a great occasion, we hope, once again. It’s one of those fixtures that’s so special in the sporting calendar in general, not just the rugby calendar.”
The defending champions can expect several more Lions to return for that fixture, with Andrew Porter, Jamison Gibson-Park and Garry Ringrose all participating in the warm-up as emergency reserves. Munster, sitting pretty at the top of the table with 14 points from three matches, will provide a significantly sterner examination than the hapless Sharks managed.
Leinster 31 (Osborne, O’Brien, van der Flier, Deegan, McCarthy tries; Byrne 3 cons)
Sharks 5 (Hooker try)
Yellow card: Boyle (Leinster, 74 mins)
Referee: Craig Evans (Wales)
Attendance: 17,549
Player of the Match: Harry Byrne (Leinster)
