Dec 09,2024
Jordie Barrett marked his Leinster debut with a try, as the four time champions got their Investec Champions Cup campaign off to a winning start, powering past Bristol Bears 35-12 at Ashton Gate.
Squad depth proved the big difference between the province and the Premiership joint-leaders, as Pat Lam's side had no answer for Leinster’s game-changing players from the bench.
Bristol had been the better team in the opening half, but despite Leinster spending 10 minutes down to 13 players after two quick yellow cards for Rónan Kelleher and Max Deegan, the sides were level at 7-7 at half-time.
Leinster’s discipline was an issue all day, with 17 penalties conceded in total and Andrew Porter also going to the sin-bin in the second half.
However, after drafting Porter, Barrett, Caelan Doris and RG Snyman from the bench early in the second half, Leinster blitzed the Bears with three tries in just over five minutes, as Barrett got in for his debut score in between two Sam Prendergast tries, which secured the bonus-point.
The 21-year-old out-half enjoyed a personal haul of 20 points, converting all five Leinster tries, while Jordan Larmour and man of the match Josh van der Flier also crossed the line for the visitors.
A stop-start game took a while to warm in, in part down to a big injury stoppage which saw Bristol’s Irish out-half AJ MacGinty depart early, but the spectacle wasn't helped by referee Pierre Brousset, who struggled to get a handle on the scrum.
As the half wore on, Leinster’s discipline deteriorated, leading to a yellow card for Kelleher on 28 minutes, before Deegan followed him to the bin moments later for a trip on Fitz Harding. From that penalty, Bristol worked their way over for the opening try as Max Lahiff helped them into a 7-0 lead.
Down to 13 players, Leinster hit right back with a try of their own, as Larmour pounced on a spilled ball by Rich Lane to score, which Prendergast converted to make it 7-7 at the break.
Barrett (above) was a second half replacement for Ciarán Frawley, and he made an early impact when he dragged a pass back to Prendergast on 52 minutes, as the out-half scampered through a gap in the Bristol defence to run through and put his side 14-7 ahead.
Two minutes later, Barrett was in for a try of his own, before a rampaging run by Snyman set up Prendergast to sprint clear and score again, as Leinster effectively iced the game with 21 points in little over five minutes.
That Prendergast try secured the bonus-point, and on 63 minutes Leinster made sure of the win when Van der Flier kept up his brilliant recent form to barge over the line and score. The flanker has now scored five tries in his last six games.
With eight minutes left to play, Gabriel Ibitoye pulled a try back for Bristol when he latched onto a lovely grubber down the touchline by former Ireland international Kieran Marmion, but it would only be a consolation as Leinster ran out comfortable winners, ahead of next Saturday’s visit of Clermont Auvergne to Dublin.
Bristol: Rich Lane; Jack Bates, Benhard Janse van Rensburg, Kalaveti Ravouvou, Gabriel Ibitoye; AJ MacGinty, Harry Randall; Ellis Genge, Harry Thacker, Max Lahiff; James Dun, Joe Owen; Santiago Grondona, Fitz Harding (capt), Bill Mata
Replacements: Gabriel Oghre, Jake Woolmore, Lovejoy Chawatama, Steven Luatua, Benjamin Grondona, Kieran Marmion, Joe Jenkins, Benjamin Elizalde
Leinster: Ciaran Frawley; Jordan Larmour, Garry Ringrose, Robbie Henshaw, Jimmy O'Brien; Sam Prendergast, Jamison Gibson-Park; Jack Boyle, Ronan Kelleher, Rabah Slimani; Joe McCarthy, James Ryan; Max Deegan, Josh van der Flier, Jack Conan (capt)
Replacements: Gus McCarthy, Andrew Porter, Tom Clarkson, RG Snyman, Caelan Doris, Luke McGrath, Ross Byrne, Jordie Barrett
Referee: Pierre Brousset (FFR)
