Celtic League/ Leinster 45 Ospreys 22:It's the prerogative of a coach to cavil about his team's imperfections, blemishes that wouldn't unduly trouble supporters, especially in the wake of a six-try romp.
Leinster's Michael Cheika rarely bothers to mask his emotions and on a bracing Saturday night at Donnybrook he epitomised the man wrestling with the positive and negative aspects of his team's performance.
Leinster's dressingroom door had remained closed for about 10 minutes following this Magners Celtic League game and it's fair to assume there were one or two brickbats doled out amongst the Interflora deliveries.
The Ospreys scored three tries, all of which were attributable to negligent fringe defence. Two of those scores came when Leinster, leading 38-8 at the time, decided to take a mental sabbatical and freewheel their way though the last 20 minutes. The Welsh side, emboldened by a handful of first choice recruits sprung from the bench, refused to acquiesce.
At this point the home side had five replacements on the pitch and Cheika won't have been impressed with a communication meltdown in terms of defence.
There were exceptions, notably young fullback Ross McCarron, whose 20-minute cameo underlined his potential. He produced one thunderous tackle, a good turn of foot and the peripheral vision to spot Keith Gleeson supporting on an inside arc that culminated in a try for the openside flanker.
The fact the Ospreys turned up shorn of so much quality in terms of personnel had ramped up the expectation of a resounding Leinster success. For the most part the home side delivered, both in terms of the quality of tries they conjured, and with some exceptional individual performances.
None were better than that of Gordon D'Arcy.
The consistency of excellence in his performances for Ireland and Leinster this season demonstrate a maturing player reaching the pinnacle of his talent and Saturday night was no exception.
The Ospreys found him virtually unplayable, his slashing breaks, intelligent offloads and work ethic defensively marking him as the game's most accomplished performer.
There were others to catch the eye, notably Cameron Jowitt, Keith Gleeson, Jamie Heaslip and Bernard Jackman. In deference to the latter, it should be noted that Leinster's lineout was pitch perfect all evening. It was also nice to see the rehabilitation of Rob Kearney, whose contribution included the game's best individual try.
There appeared precious little prospect of anything exceptional when Kearney fielded a pass 40 metres from the Ospreys line faced by a flock of visiting defenders, but some nifty footwork saw him embark on a slaloming run that took him past four Welsh players, the final sidestep particularly adroit as he plunged over the line.
Kearney actually bagged a brace of tries, his other effort a more sedate canter after Brian O'Driscoll had sent him clear. The Leinster captain also crossed for a couple of tries, the first a result of choosing an intelligent line off D'Arcy's break and the second, a by-product of a clever angle, again profiting from his midfield partner's spade work. The reason why the Leinster midfield enjoyed such a prominent evening was the return of master puppeteer Felipe Contepomi.
Moving freely following his knee injury, the Argentine playmaker offered a mischievous array of flicks and tricks, not to mention kicks: he enjoyed a 100 per cent record. The Leinster pack provided the platform and Chris Whitaker was the perfect foil at scrumhalf, a player looking increasingly comfortable in his new surroundings.
The Ospreys were largely outgunned until the cavalry arrived from the bench and Leinster decided to prematurely turn in for the night. The Welsh side grabbed an 8-3 lead though a Shaun Connor penalty and a try from Brent Cockbain following a fine run by wing Richard Mustoe. Kearney's virtuosity, O'Driscoll's first try and Contepomi's boot saw Leinster escape to the interval 17-8 ahead. When Ospreys number eight Andrew Lloyd was sent to the sin bin for killing ball at a ruck close to his own line on 45 minutes Leinster chose this as a signal to cut loose.
Denis Hickie crossed for a try one minute later, D'Arcy's break the precursor to the score. Contepomi converted, as he would do again when Kearney and O'Driscoll tagged on their respective second tries. At 38-8 with the bonus point secured, a raft of new faces appeared from the stands and while Stefan Terblanche and Richie Pugh crossed for tries converted by Connor, Leinster provided the full point to the night's scoring with Gleeson touching down behind the posts and Jonathan Sexton adding the conversion.
Edinburgh arrive for European Cup fare next weekend and on the back of this display, a week's fine-tuning on the training paddock should see Leinster right.
SCORING SEQUENCE: 4 mins: Connor pen, 0-3; 6: Contepomi pen, 3-3; 11: Cockbain try, 3-8; 19: Kearney try, Contepomi con, 10-8; 30: O'Driscoll try, Contepomi con, 17-8. Half-time: 17-8. 46: Hickie try, Contepomi con, 24-8; 51: Kearney try, Contepomi con, 31-8; 55: O'Driscoll try, Contepomi con 38-8; 65: Terblanche try, Connor con, 38-15; 71: Pugh try, Connor con, 38-22; 79: Gleeson try, Sexton con, 45-22.
LEINSTER: R Kearney; K Lewis, B O'Driscoll (capt), G D'Arcy, D Hickie; F Contepomi, C Whitaker; S Wright, B Jackman, W Green; M O'Kelly, C Jowitt; S Keogh, K Gleeson, J Heaslip. Replacements: T Hogan for Keogh (29 mins); H Vermaas for Jackman 36-40(+5) mins; R Corrigan for Wright, G Easterby for Whitaker (both 47 mins); O Finegan for Hogan (48 mins); R McCarron for O'Driscoll (59 mins); Vermaas for Jackman, J Sexton for Contepomi (both 66 mins).
OSPREYS: S Terblanche; R Mustoe, T Selley, A Bishop, J Vaughton; S Connor, M Roberts; P James (capt), E Shirvington, A Millward; B Cockbain, M Powell; L Beach, R Pugh, A Lloyd. Replacements: N Walker for Vaughton (20 mins); J Spice for Roberts, B Williams for Shirvington, A Jones for Millward (all 56 mins); J Hook for Walker (66 mins); C Martenko for Cockbain, B Lewis for Pugh (73 mins). Sin Bin: A Lloyd (Ospreys) 45-55 mins.
Referee: M Changleng(Scotland).
