Leinster Continue Bonus Point Blitz At The Top Of Conference A

A power-packed first half performance paved the way for Leinster’s 32-19 bonus point victory over Conference A rivals Glasgow Warriors at Scotstoun Stadium.

Tries came from Jimmy O’Brien, Luke McGrath, Scott Penny and Michael Bent on a cold and wet night in the Scottish city, with David Hawkshaw making a second-half debut for the province.

Captain Rhys Ruddock was at his abrasive best as Leinster built a 22-7 half-time lead. Glasgow came back into it, but Bent’s 53rd-minute touchdown and a late Harry Byrne penalty wrapped up the result.

Speaking after his side’s fourth straight bonus point success, player-of-the-match Ruddock said: “We talked about bringing really good energy, we know it’s a really tough place to come and win.

“We managed to do it last year and really enjoyed that. I thought we brought the energy for a lot of the game, and most the game we were really good.

“We got a number of scrum penalties, and when we weren’t getting the penalties we were getting go-forward ball off our scrum and the same with our lineout maul in the first half.

“I thought they dealt with us a lot better in the maul in the second half and it was quite hard to play off.

“Credit to Glasgow, I thought they came out in the second half with real bite and intensity and made it really difficult for us.

“We did speak about it at half-time, saying they are a team that won’t go away. They pride themselves on that physicality and that edge, so we knew what to expect. Dealing with it is another thing.”

Scotstoun has always been a tough proposition for away teams, and it looked like a similar story would unfold as Dave Kearney and Ross Molony’s early hard hits were matched by Glasgow’s commitment to play at pace.

Two turnover penalties from Penny and James Tracy set the tone for a business-like start from Leinster, who hit the front with 10 minutes on the clock.

Full-back O’Brien, whose initial kick had pinned Glasgow back, was the scorer. Off an inviting platform provided by the pack, Byrne passed out of a tackle to give O’Brien the chance to fend off Huw Jones and slide over behind the posts.

Byrne converted but the Warriors were level by the 18th minute. George Horne sniped over from a ruck for a seven-pointer, taking advantage of a collision between Ruddock and Rory O’Loughlin.

The Leinster pack knuckled down again with tighthead Bent to the fore. Number 10 Byrne landed a sweetly-struck penalty to edge them back in front at 10-7.

Glasgow fell back towards their own line under pressure from a Tommy O’Brien and Penny-led attack. Josh Murphy was held up from a maul, but McGrath outfoxed the defence with a tap-and-go from a scrum penalty for another converted try.

Ruddock was becoming more prominent on both sides of the ball, and the third try followed in the 36th minute when a well-worked maul put flanker Penny rumbling over with Tracy on his shoulder.

Byrne’s missed conversion left it at 22-7 for the break, although Glasgow had to withstand a late bout of pressure caused by Bent forcing another scrum penalty.

The Scots regrouped in impressive fashion, with prop D’Arcy Rae driven over the whitewash by a clutch of forwards for a 42nd minute try, converted by Pete Horne.

An increasingly-physical Glasgow tried to close the gap further, only for Dave Kearney to shake the ball free from Jones. However, the Scots were soon without their full-back.

52 minutes in, Jones was sin-binned for a deliberate offside after O’Loughlin had charged clear from a Byrne pass and his own dummy. Tom Gordon hauled him down before Jones infringed at the ruck.

Leinster swiftly used their numerical advantage to bag the bonus point, Bent burrowing over with support from Tracy and Devin Toner. Byrne lobbed over the conversion for good measure.

As Glasgow looked to hit back, Toner and Scott Fardy’s lineout smarts led to a series of steals and Cian Kelleher also managed to smother a loose ball close to his own line.

Hawkshaw, last year’s Grand Slam-winning captain for the Ireland Under-20s, was introduced for his first cap just before Kelleher was yellow-carded for a high tackle on Jones.

It was Glasgow’s turn to crank up a lineout drive, flanker Gordon reaching for the line to make it a 10-point game in the 72nd minute.

There was enough composure from Leinster to control the next phase, using the maul again and probing well enough to draw a penalty which Byrne sent over to complete his 12-point haul.