Both Leinster and Ulster needed as many points as possible to stay in contention for the Pro12 title as the campaign headed into the new year.
With Ian Madigan kicking the game off, Ulster were quick to gather the ball and spy a weakness in Leinster’s side. Six minutes in and it was evident the visitors were desperate to draw first blood by the amount of pressure they were putting on Leinster’s defence. Scrum-half Isaac Boss managed to clear and give the boys in blue some breathing space, before they ran the ball up to Ulster’s 22. Score still 0-0, a tackle on Dan Tuohy made the crowd wince and Ulster were awarded a penalty, Ruan Pienaar (fresh back from injury) entrusted with placing the ball up on the half way line. Hitting the crossbar, the ball fell into Leinster possession, who took it out to award Ulster a line-out. A scramble or two on the floor and referee Marius Mitrea took it back to the half-line, again, for Pienaar to have a strike, again, this time with success. 15 minutes in, score 0-3.
A few messy scrums later, Leinster were this time awarded a penalty, Madigan pleasing the crowd with a stellar boot between the posts making it 3-3. Ulster began to crank up the gears, adding even more pressure and making Leinster (and their fans) uncomfortable. Flickering between both far sides of the field, the ball eventually landed in the hands of centre Stuart Olding, who looked to have spotted a fault in Leinster’s line, although a crunch and wrestle to the floor meant a Blue’s turnover. Despite this, Ulster made it 3-6 after a Mike Ross mistake gave the visitors a penalty and Pienaar slotted it perfectly. The crowd grew louder and Leinster began to mean business, turning over ball after ball. Jamie Heaslip was replaced by last minute substitute Josh van der Flier and another Madigan three points evened the scoreboard out again. As the clock ticked on towards half-time, Leinster forwards looked enraged in a bid to gain ground, and in response Touhy flew over the top of a ruck and soon found himself in the sin-bin. A Madigan penalty at 40 minutes gave the home side a small lead as the teams departed the field for half-time.
Matt O’Connor’s men clearly came out of the changing rooms the fiercer team, instantly ploughing through a sleepy Ulster defence for Madigan to score and then convert his own try, taking it to 16-6. Luke Marshall replaced Tommy Bowe on the wing and at 50 minutes Ulster fought back in the form of Wiehahn Herbst who crashed over the line to add five points, despite it looking like Leinster had held it up (TMO decision). At 16-11 Leinster made two replacements in their forward pack, with Sean Cronin and Michael Bent coming into action. A long five minutes for a vocal Leinster collective ended in a further three points from Madigan, Mike McCarthy substituted meanwhile for Kane Douglas. Off-form Pienaar missed another crucial penalty chance for Ulster to close the gap, and Neil Doak’s side began to unravel. Strength grew in the home side and as the pace gathered, so did Leinster’s confidence, most certainly when a decision went to TMO for a crowd-pleasing try attempt, that was eventually dismissed. Still, not satisfied with the score line, Leinster aimed for the line again, and an unlucky miss pass on Ulster’s behalf awarded last season’s champions a 79 minute lineout. Keeping possession, Leinster ran the ball closer to Ulster’s 22 and just as his name was announced as Man of the Match, Jack Conan bundled over the line for a try, sending the crowd wild. A missed conversion did nothing to dampen the spirits of the home crowd, who, in a sell out RDS Arena, celebrated the much sought-after victory.
Leinster: Jack McGrath, Richardt Strauss, Mike Ross, Devin Toner, Mike McCarthy, Jack Conan, Jordi Murphy, Jamie Heaslip (Captain), Isaac Boss, Ian Madigan, Dave Kearney, Gordon D’Arcy, Luke Fitzgerald, Fergus McFadden, Zane Kirchner
Replacements: Sean Cronin, Michael Bent, Tadhg Furlong, Kane Douglas, Josh van der Flier, Luke McGrath, Jimmy Gopperth, Ben Te’o
Ulster: P Nelson, T Bowe, D Cave, S Olding, C Gilroy, P Jackson, R Pienaar, C Black, R Best (Captain), W Herbst, D Tuohy, F vd Merwe, R Diack, C Ross, R Wilson
Replacements: R Herring, A Warwick, B Ross, A O’Connor, S Reidy, P Marshall, I Humphreys, L Marshall
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