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Leinster hooker Kelleher runs riot in as Ospreys thrashed in RDS

By Online Editors
(Photo by Michael Steele/Getty Images)

Ronan Kelleher opened his Leinster try account with a well-taken hat-trick in a 53-5 Guinness PRO14 hammering of Ospreys at the RDS.

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The defending champions marked their first home game of the season with an eight-try display, Fergus McFadden and 21-year-old hooker Kelleher crossing early on before Joe Tomane’s first home score for the Irish province had them 22-0 ahead at half-time.

Kelleher, the man-of-the-match, added two more tries at the start of the second half to complete his treble and replacements Max Deegan, Harry Byrne and Michael Milne finished off a runaway victory.

Back in Ireland just a week on from losing 38-14 to Ulster, the depleted Ospreys’ only consolation in Dublin was a late effort from Luke Morgan – which came when they were 53-0 down.

An early Lloyd Ashley offside was punished with an opening penalty from Ross Byrne, who then created winger McFadden’s try.

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Rory O’Loughlin reacted quickest to a turnover, chipping over the top with Hugo Keenan first to the ball, and a penalty advantage developed before Byrne’s cross-field kick was grounded by McFadden in the right corner.

An inviting hole in the Ospreys midfield was ruthlessly exploited when Peter Dooley sent Will Connors galloping past halfway and he fed the supporting Kelleher who showed impressive pace to charge over from outside the 22. Byrne converted before some untidy errors hampered the hosts’ progress.

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Ospreys were foiled by Caelan Doris’ turnover penalty and a second lineout steal of the night from Scott Fardy.

Their poor run of luck with injuries also continued as Dan Evans and Ashley both hobbled off, with new signing Ben Glynn making a brief PRO14 debut before injury struck him too.

Tomane thundered through a couple of attempted tackles to register Leinster’s third try, seven minutes before the break.

Following Byrne’s conversion, Ospreys enjoyed one of their best spells thanks to a Shaun Venter break and some late scrum pressure which, much to their annoyance, had no end product.

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The visitors began the second half with two hookers on the field – Scott Otten had to come on for replacement lock Glynn – and Kelleher in brilliant form.

James Lowe chipped through and combined with Jamison Gibson-Park and Kelleher in a counter-ruck, the latter dribbling through and touching down from a few metres out.

With the bonus point secured, Leinster then used a penalty to set up a defence-splintering maul which handed Kelleher his third score.

Another maul platform led to Deegan crashing over from a snappy Gibson-Park pass. Fly-half Byrne landed both conversions to top off his 11-point contribution.

Dublin University scrum-half Rowan Osborne came on to make his senior debut for Leinster, his speedy service a feature in the build-up to Byrne’s younger brother Harry slipping out of a tackle from Sam Cross to make it 46-0.

Academy prop Milne then piled over at the end of 12 phases to crown his RDS debut with a converted try.

Ospreys finally got off the mark eight minutes from the end, as reserve scrum-half Matthew Aubrey’s break and quickly-taken lineout sent Morgan over.

The Welsh region lost replacement back rower Gareth Evans to the sin-bin for a no-arms challenge on McFadden, but avoided conceding a ninth try when Keenan’s try was ruled out for a forward pass from Deegan.

Ireland coach Joe Schmidt and captain Johnny Sexton talk about beating Russia for their second win in the Rugby World Cup 2019.

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Jon 5 hours ago
Jake White: Are modern rugby players actually better?

This is the problem with conservative mindsets and phycology, and homogenous sports, everybody wants to be the same, use the i-win template. Athlete wise everyone has to have muscles and work at the gym to make themselves more likely to hold on that one tackle. Do those players even wonder if they are now more likely to be tackled by that player as a result of there “work”? Really though, too many questions, Jake. Is it better Jake? Yes, because you still have that rugby of ole that you talk about. Is it at the highest International level anymore? No, but you go to your club or checkout your representative side and still engage with that ‘beautiful game’. Could you also have a bit of that at the top if coaches encouraged there team to play and incentivized players like Damian McKenzie and Ange Capuozzo? Of course we could. Sadly Rugby doesn’t, or didn’t, really know what direction to go when professionalism came. Things like the state of northern pitches didn’t help. Over the last two or three decades I feel like I’ve been fortunate to have all that Jake wants. There was International quality Super Rugby to adore, then the next level below I could watch club mates, pulling 9 to 5s, take on the countries best in representative rugby. Rugby played with flair and not too much riding on the consequences. It was beautiful. That largely still exists today, but with the world of rugby not quite getting things right, the picture is now being painted in NZ that that level of rugby is not required in the “pathway” to Super Rugby or All Black rugby. You might wonder if NZR is right and the pathway shouldn’t include the ‘amateur’, but let me tell you, even though the NPC might be made up of people still having to pull 9-5s, we know these people still have dreams to get out of that, and aren’t likely to give them. They will be lost. That will put a real strain on the concept of whether “visceral thrill, derring-do and joyful abandon” type rugby will remain under the professional level here in NZ. I think at some point that can be eroded as well. If only wanting the best athlete’s at the top level wasn’t enough to lose that, shutting off the next group, or level, or rugby players from easy access to express and showcase themselves certainly will. That all comes back around to the same question of professionalism in rugby and whether it got things right, and rugby is better now. Maybe the answer is turning into a “no”?

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j
john 8 hours ago
Will the Crusaders' decline spark a slow death for New Zealand rugby?

But here in Australia we were told Penney was another gun kiwi coach, for the Tahs…….and yet again it turned out the kiwi coach was completely useless. Another con job on Australian rugby. As was Robbie Deans, as was Dave Rennie. Both coaches dumped from NZ and promoted to Australia as our saviour. And the Tahs lap them up knowing they are second rate and knowing that under pressure when their short comings are exposed in Australia as well, that they will fall in below the largest most powerful province and choose second rate Tah players to save their jobs. As they do and exactly as Joe Schmidt will do. Gauranteed. Schmidt was dumped by NZ too. That’s why he went overseas. That why kiwi coaches take jobs in Australia, to try and prove they are not as bad as NZ thought they were. Then when they get found out they try and ingratiate themselves to NZ again by dragging Australian teams down with ridiculous selections and game plans. NZ rugby’s biggest problem is that it can’t yet transition from MCaw Cheatism. They just don’t know how to try and win on your merits. It is still always a contest to see how much cheating you can get away with. Without a cheating genius like McCaw, they are struggling. This I think is why my wise old mate in NZ thinks Robertson will struggle. The Crusaders are the nursery of McCaw Cheatism. Sean Fitzpatrick was probably the father of it. Robertson doesn’t know anything else but other countries have worked it out.

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A
Adrian 10 hours ago
Will the Crusaders' decline spark a slow death for New Zealand rugby?

Thanks Nick The loss of players to OS, injury and retirement is certainly not helping the Crusaders. Ditto the coach. IMO Penny is there to hold the fort and cop the flak until new players and a new coach come through,…and that's understood and accepted by Penny and the Crusaders hierarchy. I think though that what is happening with the Crusaders is an indicator of what is happening with the other NZ SRP teams…..and the other SRP teams for that matter. Not enough money. The money has come via the SR competition and it’s not there anymore. It's in France, Japan and England. Unless or until something is done to make SR more SELLABLE to the NZ/Australia Rugby market AND the world rugby market the $s to keep both the very best players and the next rung down won't be there. They will play away from NZ more and more. I think though that NZ will continue to produce the players and the coaches of sufficient strength for NZ to have the capacity to stay at the top. Whether they do stay at the top as an international team will depend upon whether the money flowing to SRP is somehow restored, or NZ teams play in the Japan comp, or NZ opts to pick from anywhere. As a follower of many sports I’d have to say that the organisation and promotion of Super Rugby has been for the last 20 years closest to the worst I’ve ever seen. This hasn't necessarily been caused by NZ, but it’s happened. Perhaps it can be fixed, perhaps not. The Crusaders are I think a symptom of this, not the cause

33 Go to comments
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