Leinster player ratings vs Ospreys | 2025/26 URC

Leinster player ratings: Leo Cullen’s men went into this as heavy favourites, but with Ospreys effectively playing for pride as they were no longer in the running for a play-off spot.

Leinster had the bonus point in the bag not long after 20 minutes and it became a glorified training exercise after that, although there were plenty of errors from both sides. Ospreys’ heads went down as Leinster kicked up the gears and the scoreline ballooned into an ugly 68-12 by full-time.

15. Jimmy O’Brien – 8.5
Extremely tidy throughout and looked dangerous every time he found a sliver of space. Beat Giles brilliantly for his first-half try after a classy give-and-go with Gibson-Park and generally played with composure and intelligence. Set up Larmour’s second-half score too.

14. James Lowe – 7.5
His first appearance since January and there was a little ring rust in places, but he was still a menace. Produced a lovely kick in behind early doors, stripped the ball in contact for what would have been another Leinster score and beat three defenders in the first half alone. Deserved his late try after Larmour’s break. One try away now from Shane Horgan’s all-time Leinster record.

13. Garry Ringrose – 7.5
Dropped an awkward pass from O’Brien early in the contest but recovered well. Defended physically and ran hard lines all afternoon. Took his try smartly after Leinster punished a poor Morgan-Williams box kick.

12. Robbie Henshaw – 7
A rock solid afternoon. Very physical defensively and his passing in the build-up to Van der Flier’s first-half try was excellent. Helped turn the Ospreys midfield into soup once the game opened up.

11. Jordan Larmour – 8.5
First appearance since Harlequins and looked lively from the outset. Made a fine break on 13 minutes but lacked the gas to quite get around Hopkins. Charged down Edwards brilliantly despite earlier doubts about his sharpness. Then exploded in the second half with two tries and several electric breaks. Juggled brilliantly for one score and his pace completely shredded a tiring Ospreys side.

10. Harry Byrne – 7
Goal-kicked well and helped move Leinster around the park effectively in the first half. Some nice catch-pass work before Van der Flier’s try. But he was also caught behind the gain line a couple of times and the attack looked sharper once Frawley arrived.

9. Jamison Gibson-Park – 8
Typically sharp around the fringes and Leinster repeatedly exploited weaknesses around the base of the Ospreys defence. His support line and assist for Jimmy O’Brien’s try was classy and his tempo helped Leinster race clear early.

1. Jerry Cahir – 7
Fine afternoon in the scrum where Leinster generally had the upper hand despite one late first-half penalty concession. Got through a decent amount of unseen defensive graft too.

2. Gus McCarthy – 5.5
A strange outing. Some overthrowing issues at lineout time and there were definitely technical gremlins there. Joe McCarthy also missed one take so he was not solely responsible. Around the field he battled hard and carried with intent, but too many errors to rate higher.

3. Rabah Slimani – 7
Ospreys came back into the scrum battle briefly on his side but overall this was a strong set-piece display from the veteran tighthead. Fairly pedestrian in the loose but that was hardly his remit here.

4. Joe McCarthy – 9
A monster. Crashed over after only three minutes and never stopped causing damage. Beat three defenders in hand-to-hand combat on the wing for his second Carried more like an angry back-row all afternoon and somehow completed a hat-trick after side-stepping Hopkins late on as the Ospreys defence descended into total brainrot. Brutal performance.

5. Diarmuid Mangan – 6.5
Thrown into the action twice after the early reshuffle involving Deegan and his own injury scare. More effective with ball in hand than usual and got through an honest workload, even if it lacked the fireworks of last week’s display.

6. Jack Conan – 8
Outstanding first half. Produced the initial break that led to McCarthy’s opener and later burst through before putting Van der Flier away. Powerful, abrasive and hugely influential despite seeing one effort ruled out.

7. Josh van der Flier – 8
Worked tirelessly and took his try well off Conan’s break. Lost the ball in contact shortly after halftime but otherwise another industrious outing full of carries and breakdown work.

8. James Culhane – 7
Did plenty of defensive donkey work and helped set up McCarthy’s early try. One bad midfield spill just before halftime but otherwise a solid shift from the young back-row.

Replacements – 7.5
Frawley sharpened the attack considerably and looked excellent after halftime, slicing through repeatedly and kicking well from the tee. Gunne produced a classy touchfinder and looked lively around the base. Doris, Furlong and Kelleher helped Leinster maintain complete control as the game became increasingly one-sided.