Leinster 20 – 12 Connacht

Jamie Osborne and Charlie Tector cross for first-half tries as Leinster beat Connacht 20-12 at the Aviva Stadium; Oisin Dowling and Shane Jenning crossed in the second half for a great finish but Leinster held on to make it 10 wins from 10 in all competitions this season.

Charlie Tector is congratulated after crossing for Leinster’s second try

United Rugby Championship leaders Leinster made it 10 wins from 10 in all competitions but had to work hard to secure a 20-12 win over Connacht at the Aviva Stadium.

Tries from Andrew Osborne and Charlie Tector gave Leinster a 14-0 half-time lead, although they should have done more with a yellow card for Connacht center Shane Jennings.

After seeing Ross Byrne kick a penalty, Connacht took advantage of Lee Barron’s sin-bin to make it a five-point game, with Oisin Dowling and Jennings crossing.

Mack Hansen grew in influence for the Westerners, but a nervy final 20 minutes ended with Leinster center Byrne getting the result with a 79th-minute penalty.

With 13 changes from last week, Leo Cullen’s men applied early pressure. Connacht stepped in defensively with Bundee Aki and Jennings making crucial plays.

After nineteen minutes, Byrne used a quick move from what was an almost unreliable Leinster lineout to send Osborne running. Byrne converted.

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Jennings then saw yellow for a late tackle on Luke McGrath and Connacht’s midfield opened up again. Barrett placed Tector perfectly to score, with Byrne converting.

Connacht gained momentum briefly with the runs of Paul Boyle and Josh Ioane, until the latter had to go off injured.

Darragh Murray’s ability to steal the ball from Leinster’s lineout was a big positive for the visitors, along with Shamus Hurley-Langton’s wins.

Playing against the wind on the restart, Byrne pushed the margin to 17 points but Connacht responded well.

Repeated Leinster penalties landed substitute Barron in the sin bin in the 51st minute, and the resulting penalty led to Dowling crossing.

Hurley-Langton and Hansen provided further spark, and with Leinster ever tighter in defence, Jennings was sent behind the posts. Forde’s conversion cut the gap to 17-12.

Connacht captain Cian Prendergast did brilliantly to hold off Barron, denying him a certain try on 70 minutes.

Jimmy O’Brien was denied for taking out Hansen in the air to give the visitors hope, but it was Byrne who had the final say for the table-toppers.