Lowe starts in farewell as Leinster get double injury boost for URC final

Ireland and Leinster captain Caelan Doris has been passed fit to start in their United Rugby Championship final against the Bulls on Friday at Croke Park.

The No.8 was an injury doubt heading into the weekend after sustaining a knee injury in the semi-final victory over the Stormers, and was listed as a player that required further assessment earlier in the week alongside Dan Sheehan, who missed the semi-final with knee and shoulder injuries.

The pair are fit to play in the final, though Sheehan will start on the bench with Ronan Kelleher starting in the front-row.

In Andrew Porter’s absence, Jerry Cahir will start at loosehead in his last Leinster appearance before joining Connacht, with Alex Usanov serving as his back-up on the bench.

In his final appearance for the province, James Lowe will start on the left wing, with Tommy O’Brien on the other and Rieko Ioane forming a midfield partnership with Jamie Osborne. They will play outside Sam Prendergast, who is the preferred option at fly-half for Leo Cullen on this occasion.

Fixture

United Rugby Championship

Leinster

11:30

19 Jun 26

Bulls

All Stats and Data

The decision to pick Harry Bryne as the back-up fly-half means Connacht-bound Ciaran Frawley has played his final game for the province.

Byrne’s half-back partner on the bench will be Luke McGrath, who is another player making their Leinster swansong before joining Perpignan next season.

Leinster XV (caps in brackets): 15. Hugo Keenan (85); 14. Tommy O’Brien (61), 13. Rieko Ioane (17), 12. Jamie Osborne (76), 11. James Lowe (101); 10. Sam Prendergast (51), 9. Jamison Gibson-Park (173); 1. Jerry Cahir (15), 2. Rónan Kelleher (94), 3. Tadhg Furlong (166), 4. Joe McCarthy (65), 5. James Ryan (111), 6. Max Deegan (160), 7. Josh van der Flier (175), 8. Caelan Doris (108, capt).

Replacements: 16. Dan Sheehan (88), 17. Alex Usanov (9), 18. Thomas Clarkson (79), 19. Diarmuid Mangan (30), 20. Jack Conan (179), 21. Luke McGrath (256), 22. Harry Byrne (93), 23. Garry Ringrose (150).