RUGBY
Disappointing end to Leinster’s season
By Daire Walsh
IT proved to be a mixed weekend for the Irish provinces in the Guinness PRO12 play-offs, with Leinster’s surprising loss to the Scarlets on Friday evening being followed by a victory for Munster over the Ospreys the following day.
With home advantage on their side, Leinster were favourites to reach their seventh Grand Final in just eight seasons.
They defeated Scarlets in the Ballsbridge venue on March 4th with all of 36 points to spare (45-9), but with five consecutive wins under their belt since that game, the Welsh men were always going to be a different prospect for the Blues on this occasion.
There was a considerable Kildare representation in the Leinster team, with the Kill duo of Adam Byrne and James Tracy being joined by Athy’s Joey Carbery.
However, the Scarlets had considerable local and Irish interest, as Eadestown native Tadhg Beirne was selected in the second-row alongside Lewis Rawlins.
Beirne (who made four first-team appearances for Leinster before his departure to Llanelli last summer) has established himself as a regular starter this season, and he produced another accomplished display on his return to familiar territory.
After skipper Isa Nacewa had an early try ruled out for a forward pass from Jonathan Sexton, Scarlets broke the deadlock with a converted Steff Evans five-pointer.
Nacewa eventually opened Leinster’s account with a 19th-minute penalty, though, and he also added the bonuses to a subsequent Garry Ringrose touchdown.
It looked like the Blues were in a position to push on at this point, but Scarlets cut through the home team’s defence to secure tries through Aaron Shingler and Gareth Davies. This helped the visitors to develop a 21-10 interval advantage, but an Evans red-card for a 37th-minute tip tackle on Ringrose offered Leinster a significant lifeline.
A Jack Conan five-pointer on 63 minutes reduced their deficit to six points (21-15), but with a number of players performing well below their expected levels, this was as close as they came to reining in Wayne Pivac’s charges.
A brace of Liam Williams place-kicks ensured that the Scarlets emerged with a 27-15 victory, as Leinster endured a disappointing conclusion to the 2016/17 season.
There will be an Irish presence (in addition to the aforementioned Beirne) at the Aviva Stadium on Saturday, however, after Munster recorded a 23-3 victory against the Ospreys in Thomond Park. Francis Saili, Simon Zebo and Andrew Conway all crossed over for the Red Army, who will be aiming for their PRO12 final success since May 2011.
Meanwhile, there was disappointment for Connacht in the Champions Cup play-off at Franklin’s Gardens on Saturday, when they suffered a 21-15 reversal to Northampton Saints.
Craig Ronaldson (from Ballymore Eustace) contributed five points from the kicking tee, but even though Niyi Adeolokun and Dave Heffernan secured tries in either half, last year’s PRO12 champions ultimately missed out on qualification for next season’s top-tier European rugby competition.