Champions Cup
Leinster v Ulster: Player Ratings & Match Highlights
Leinster made it through to the Champions Cup semi-finals with a narrow win over rivals Ulster
Leinster came through an incredible game to slip past Ulster 21-18 in the Champions Cup quarter-finals at the Aviva Stadium on Saturday night.
The win now means that the home side will face Toulouse in the semi-finals and leaves the prospect of an all Irish final alive.
Ulster got off to a flying start as they put in a couple of crunching tackles on the hosts and were rewarded for their pressure in first five minutes.
Garry Ringrose took the decision to kick even with Ulstermen chasing him, leading Iain Henderson and Rory Best charging the kick down for Kieran Treadwell to pounce for an easy try.
John Cooney slotted home the conversion and it was 7-0 with six minutes on the clock. A dream opening for the underdogs.
However, Leinster bounced-back almost immediately, going through the phases before Ross Byrne chose not to pass but to carry instead and in the tackle with an outstretched arm touched the ball down.
He missed the conversion to leave matters at 7-5 to the away side with only 11 minutes gone.
The high-intensity continued and Ulster captain Best went off after 16 minutes due to an ankle injury.
Byrne was handed a penalty opportunity in front of the posts 50 metres out midway through the half, only for him to send it wide once more.
Cooney had no such problems from the tee when given his chance from a Cian Healy penalty moments later, and instead of Leinster going ahead four minutes previous they were now 10-5 behind.
Just past the half-hour mark Byrne began to make up for his errors. Landing a penalty following a Nick Timoney infringement.
Another Byrne penalty soon after put Leinster in the lead for the first time.
Although it was the visitors who went in smiling at half-time with Cooney kicking his second penalty of the night to make it 13-11.
The incredible pace of the opening half continued when the sides returned, and Ulster should have stretched their lead five minutes in.
Jacob Stockdale flew down the wing following a pass on the blindside from Billy Burns, leaving Leinster men in his wake. He got to the try-line as Dave Kearney put in a routine tackle past the line as it looked like Stockdale had scored his seventh try of the tournament.
It wasn’t to be though, as replays showed that he had knocked the ball on while trying to place it
Within minutes that mistake seemed crucial as the host pounded the opposition defence before man of the match Jack Conan decided to have a pick and go from the back of a ruck and sprint forward.
He, much like Stockdale previously, left defenders looking at the back of him, all the while trying to pull up his shorts. He was eventually taken down by Stockdale only to deliver a beautiful offload to Adam Byrne, who finished off the move.
Ross Byrne delivered the extras and it was 18-13 to Leinster.
A long delay followed minutes later as replacement Dan Leavy, who only returned to action last weekend, went down with what seemed to be a very serious knee injury.
During that time Ulster centre Luke Marshall, who himself was returning to action for the first time since last May came on and with only his second touch of the game scored a fine try to bring things level.
Cooney stepped up and uncharacteristically missed the conversion as they went into the final stages at 18 all.
Ross Byrne went down with cramp on more than one occasion over the next few minutes, but when Leinster put the pressure on and earned a penalty, he took responsibility. Sending the kick through the posts to make it a three-point game with seven minutes remaining.
Ulster continued to search for a score, but it was Leinster who ended the game in the opposition 22, as they almost went over for a try, going through 44-phases before Luke McGrath kicked the ball out to confirm the 21-18 win.
After the game, Leinster head coach Leo Cullen admitted his relief at winning and knows his side will have to be better going forward.
“We are relieved to be through to the semi-final. I don’t think we were anywhere near our best. We know we are in two semi-finals, but it’s about how do we build cohesion and our levels of performance so that when it comes to those games, we give a better account of ourselves than we did today,” he said while speaking to RTE Sport.
The win means Leinster are in with a chance of retaining their European crown, but it may have come at a cost with Leavy’s injury and the possibility of losing Byrne to injury also. While Ulster will rue a missed opportunity to dethrone their rivals in what was an epic encounter.
Player Ratings:
Leinster: Jordan Larmour (6), Adam Byrne (7), Garry Ringrose (6), Rory O’Loughlin (5), Dave Kearney (7), Ross Byrne (8), Luke McGrath (7); Cian Healy (6), Sean Cronin (6), Tadhg Furlong (7), Scott Fardy (8), James Ryan (7), Rhys Ruddock (7), Sean O’Brien (6), Jack Conan (9)
Replacements (8)
Ulster: Michael Lowry (6), Rob Baloucoune (7), Darren Cave (7), Stuart McCloskey (7), Jacob Stockdale (7), Billy Burns (6), John Cooney (8); Eric O’Sullivan (6), Rory Best (6), Marty Moore (7), Iain Henderson (8), Kieran Treadwell (9), Nick Timoney (6), Jordi Murphy (7), Marcell Coetzee (7)
Replacements (8)
Match Highlights:
Munster Rugby and the IRFU are pleased to announce that Academy trio Tony Butler, Ethan Coughlan and Mark Donnelly will be promoted to the senior squad in the summer.
We can also confirm that hooker Scott Buckley, who graduated from the Academy to the senior squad in 2022, has signed a contract extension.
Out-half Butler, scrum-half Coughlan (both 21) and 22-year-old prop Donnelly have all signed on for the next two seasons after impressing over their three years in the Academy.
Butler and Coughlan become the first Ennis RFC players to earn senior Munster contracts.
As previously confirmed, Academy lock Edwin Edogbo (21), who also came up through the Munster Youths system with Cobh Pirates, will graduate from the Academy to the senior squad on a two-year deal next season.
Buckley, Butler, Coughlan and Donnelly all made their Munster debuts in the famous Champions Cup win over Wasps in December 2021.
Tony Butler in action against Dragons.
Ennis out-half Tony Butler has earned his first senior contract after a very productive three years in the Academy.
He has made six senior appearances to date, including two starts so far this season against Dragons and Connacht.
A Grand Slam winner with the Ireland U20s in 2022, Butler now plays his AIL rugby with Young Munster having previously lined out for Garryowen.
He captained Ennis at underage level, teaming up with Coughlan in the half-backs as they enjoyed success in the Munster U16 and U18 Clubs competitions.
Scrum-half Ethan Coughlan is enjoying an excellent campaign with three starts so far this year and eight senior appearances in total since joining the Academy.
He enjoyed great success alongside Butler with Ennis RFC at underage level before captaining the Ireland U18 Clubs team.
He also won a Grand Slam with the Ireland U20s in 2022 and plays his AIL rugby with Shannon.
Prop Mark Donnelly has already made nine senior appearances for Munster after coming up through the ranks at Midleton RFC, Midleton College and CBC.
He was a Pinergy Munster Schools Senior Cup winner with CBC in 2019 and featured for the Ireland U20s in the 2021 Six Nations.
He joined the Academy that summer before making his Munster debut along with Buckley, Butler and Coughlan against Wasps in December 2021
Along with his nine senior Munster appearances, Donnelly has also played regularly for Garryowen in the AIL over the past three years.
Mark Donnelly at Munster training.
Hooker Scott Buckley (23) has signed a one-year contract having made 25 appearances for Munster to date.
A product of the Munster Rugby Academy, Buckley started out with Kinsale RFC before captaining CBC to the Pinergy Munster Schools Senior Cup in 2019.
He was Player of the Match against Wasps on his Munster debut and made nine appearances last season as Munster won the URC title.
A UCC clubman, he scored the match-winning try against Crusaders at Páirc Ui Chaoimh earlier this month.
Scott Buckley scores a try against Leinster in pre-season.
Images & Content from Munster Rugby
Munster Rugby are pleased to confirm the signing of 23-year-old winger Diarmuid Kilgallen on a two-year deal ahead of the 2024/25 season.
In further contract news, hooker Eoghan Clarke has signed a one-year deal for next season after rejoining Munster in November.
Prop Keynan Knox has completed his time at the province after scoring three tries in 33 appearances and we wish him all the best for the future.
Diarmuid Kilgallen in action against Ulster in November.
Kilgallen hails from Eadestown in Kildare and has scored 12 tries in 22 appearances for Connacht to date.
He started out at Naas RFC before playing schools rugby for Cistercian College Roscrea on the Tipperary-Offaly border.
He joined the Connacht Academy in 2019 and made his debut against Munster in 2020.
A tall, athletic winger, he scored five tries in eight appearances last season and has five tries in six appearances so far this year.
Eoghan Clarke made his first start for Munster against Crusaders earlier this month.
25-year-old hooker Clarke has signed on for next year after impressing since returning to the province in November.
Clarke spent three years in the Munster Academy before departing for Jersey Reds in 2021. He won the English Championship with Jersey last season but the club went into liquidation in October.
He has made five appearances for Munster since returning, including a debut against Bayonne in December and a first start against Crusaders at Páirc Uí Chaoimh earlier this month.
24-year-old tighthead prop Knox departs after over seven years at Munster Rugby.
He joined the Academy midway through the 2017/18 season after completing his second level education with Michaelhouse in South Africa.
The Young Munster clubman made his senior debut against Dragons in September 2019 and moved up to the senior squad in 2020.
Knox featured in eight games last season as Munster clinched the URC title. In total, he scored three tries in 33 Munster appearances.
We wish Keynan all the best with his next move.
Keynan Knox at training last month.
Images & Content from Munster Rugby
The Munster squad started preparations on Monday ahead of Saturday’s vital Investec Champions Cup clash against Northampton at Thomond Park (5.30pm).
There are a limited number of tickets remaining here.
Find out all you need to know ahead of the match here.
There were no new injuries to report after the win over Toulon on Saturday.
Following a consultation last week, Jack O’Donoghue will not require surgery on his knee injury and will be managed conservatively by the medical department. He is unavailable for three to four months.
Oli Jager is continuing to follow the return to play protocols and his availability for the Northampton game will be determined later this week.
There is good news for Jack Daly (ankle) as he returns to training this week.
Cian Hurley (ankle/achilles) and Mike Haley (hip) are increasing their training demands and will target a return to play in the coming weeks.
Continuing to rehab: Jack O’Donoghue (knee), Dave Kilcoyne (shoulder), Diarmuid Barron (foot), Jean Kleyn (eye/knee), Liam Coombes (shoulder), RG Snyman (chest/shoulder), Roman Salanoa (knee), Mike Haley (hip), Cian Hurley (ankle/achilles).
There were eight Munster players in AIL action at the weekend.
Academy out-half Tony Butler kicked two penalties and a conversion for Young Munster as they were beaten 23-13 by Cork Constitution at Temple Hill. Chris Moore started at hooker for the Cookies.
Academy scrum-half Jack Oliver kicked two penalties and a conversion for Garryowen in their 23-10 win over UCC at the Mardyke. Colm Hogan scored a try for Garryowen with Academy prop George Hadden also featuring.
Jack O’Sullivan started at no.8 for College.
Evan O’Connell was in action for UL Bohs as they were beaten 34-7 by Old Crescent.
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Tickets
Champions Cup Round 4: Saturday, January 20
Munster Rugby v Northampton Saints, Thomond Park, 5.30pm; Buy tickets here
Saturday, February 3
Munster Rugby v Crusaders, Páirc Uí Chaoimh, 5pm; SOLD OUT
URC Round 11: Friday, March 1
Munster v Zebre Parma, Musgrave Park, 7.35pm; Buy tickets here
URC Round 13: Saturday, March 30
Munster v Cardiff Rugby, Thomond Park, 7.35pm; Buy tickets here
URC Round 16: Saturday, May 11
Munster v Connacht, Thomond Park, 5.15pm; Buy tickets here
URC Round 18: Saturday, June 1
Munster v Ulster, Thomond Park, 5.15pm; Buy tickets here
Images & Content from Munster Rugby
Munster Rugby Announce Contract Deals For Murray, Daly & Gleeson
Squad Update | Munster Prepare For Cardiff At Thomond
