MAGNERS LEAGUE Leinster 29 Dragons 13: LEINSTER NEEDED this. On the back of three successive league defeats, a fourth would surely have put paid to the defence of their title and would also have undermined their squad system coming into back-to-back Heineken Cup games against Castres.
In the end, they were entitled to feel they came through well.
Patience was the operative word for much of a bitterly cold night, for team and home supporters alike.
Such is the curse of the modern game under the new ELVs and the diktat regarding players staying on their feet that for long stretches once again the attacking team were penalised more regularly than the defensive one.
The Dragons may have conceded an average of 44 points on their previous five treks to Dublin, but only once this season have they been porous.
Maintaining a creditable willingness to play constructive rugby, time after time Leinster went through phases against the well-organised Dragons defence only to be penalised for going off their feet, not releasing or crossing.
Andy Macpherson blew a veritable concerto in the first half, with an 8-7 penalty count in the Dragons' favour which defied the trend of the exchanges, and the IRB law makers and refereeing fraternity should look at this and ask themselves is this what the paying punters want while they shiver in the stands.
The Welsh region could thus continually regroup, slow down ball and be barely on nodding acquaintance with the offside line. Save for one passage of midfield continuity approaching half-time and a couple of barnstorming drives late on by their flanker Joe Bearman, the Dragons hardly created a thing.
Yet, by dint of a couple of penalties and an intercept try they led 13-3 after 25 minutes, were still ahead six minutes into the second period and were at level pegging inside the last half-hour.
You always felt Leinster's vastly superior running game and continuity would see them get there in the end, and to their credit they never really wavered. They had the game's outstanding performer by some distance in their hugely promising Tullow flanker Seán O'Brien, a dynamic ball-carrier and big hitter who has a massive future in the game, all going well.
Getting into the game early, his explosive running - forever taking the ball on in contact - was the highlight of the game and the high point of his contribution was the fast, hard in-and-out line through the Dragons line, followed by deft dummy to Philip Dolman and hand-off of James Arlidge that clawed Leinster back into the game.
There were further encouraging signs about Leinster's strength in depth in the performances of Stephen Keogh, Jonathan Sexton, Fergus McFadden and Cian Healy.
Keogh has had to fight his way back into Michael Cheika's plans after a confidence-sapping early-season demotion but has done so determinedly, and here he was full of hard running and grafting to augment the dynamism of O'Brien and Rocky Elsom.
Sexton's confidence has also been affected more than, ideally, it should have been by dint of Isa Nacewa's arrival and, though outstanding after his half-time arrival against Wasps, he began unsurely on his sixth start of the season.
To his credit though, Sexton recovered from the concession of that intercept try to Hoani Macdonald by directing Leinster's performance assuredly, varying his game by bringing in more inside runners to telling effect, finding territory when necessary and keeping a shape and depth to their attack. Outside him, McFadden's footwork, good hands and strength made for an eye-catching first competitive start.
Leinster's set-pieces were excellent, especially their lineout - where the well-worked variations and use of their gargantuan locks and Elsom were evidence of improved work on the training ground during the November hiatus.
Bernard Jackman augmented this impressive effort - one crooked throw being the only blemish - with a trademark try to push Leinster in front after O'Brien had again made the inroads with sharp support of Chris Whitaker's snipe and Healy's pick-up off Jackman's dive pass before Sexton took the ball up.
All in all, it was a superbly worked score which summed up the night's gulf in class and ambition.
The Dragons' increasingly desperate measures belatedly saw the penalty count shift against them, though yellow-card offences escaped appropriate punishment before the coup de grace was provided by David Holwell's late cameo - which even a nasty looking facial injury only briefly interrupted.
Having laid on Elsom's well merited late try with a swift transfer from Horgan, the heavily bandaged Holwell returned to the pitch for a strenuous finale. Ever the hardy Kiwi pro.
Scoring sequence: 3 minsArlidge pen 0-3; 14 minsArlidge pen 0-6; 19 minsSexton pen 3-6; 23 minsMacdonald try, Arlidge con 3-13; 26 minsO'Brien try, Sexton con 10-13; (half-time 10-13); 47 minsSexton pen 13-13; 54 minsJackman try 18-13; 71 minsHolwell pen 21-13; 78 minsMcFadden pen 24-13; 85 minsElsom try 29-13.
LEINSTER: G Dempsey; S Horgan, B O'Driscoll, F McFadden, S Keogh; J Sexton, C Whitaker (capt); C Healy, B Jackman, S Wright, D Toner, M O'Kelly, R Elsom, S O'Brien, S Keogh. Replacements: C Jowitt for Stephen Keogh (62 mins), C Keane for Whitaker, D Holwell for Sexton (both 65 mins), T Hogan for Toner, G Brown for O'Driscoll (both 70 mins), Sexton for Holwell (73-75 mins). Not used: B Blaney, J Hagan.
DRAGONS: P Dollman; G Wyatt, R Sidey, M Stcherbina, R Fussell; J Arlidge, W Evans; A Black, T Willis (capt), G Robinson, H Macdonald, A Hall, J Bearman, L Evans, G Webb. Replacements: D Lydiate for Hall (28 mins), J Ringer for Webb (47 mins), S Connor for Arlidge (61 mins), S Jones for Willis, J Corsi for Robinson (both 75 mins). Not used: A Smith, R Lewis. Sinbinned: Macdonald (30-40 mins).
Referee: Andy Macpherson(SRU).
