Champions Cup quarter-final: Leinster 43 Sale Sharks 13
This took a while. Leinster didn’t quite scale the attacking heights of last week, not until the second half anyway. They had to earn this one, but once again they pulled together at the interval to produce a much improved second half display. And ultimately they won pulling away, which is the mark of a good side, to earn a home semi-final in three weeks’ time against Toulon.
The French club’s win in Glasgow had offered the prize of a home semi-final rather than a trek to Murrayfield. Whether or not that contributed to a slightly sluggish first half is a moot point, but after turning around with a 7-3 interval lead, Leinster solidified their scrum, and with Ryan Baird in imperious form, shredded the Sale lineout.
Critically, they also cut down their error count, kept the ball and clinically took their chances to win by six tries to one. Some of their shape and width in attack, particularly after the break, was excellent, and it helps when you have alternative runners on the edge like Ryan Baird and Dan Sheehan, as well as Tommy O’Brien and Rieko Iaone.
Leinster now have three weeks to prepare for the final four, and will hope to whip up a bigger crowd, although Saturday’s attendance was fully engaged and stayed with their team to the end.
Leinster’s Jamison Gibson-Park plays a pass against Sale. Photograph: Dan Sheridan/Inpho
There were other positives too. Sheehan gave another demonstration of his ability to play in practically every position, by dint of playing in practically position, even after Rónan Kelleher replaced James Ryan but slotted in at hooker for the last quarter.
Alex Usanov’s full European debut was also cut cruelly short inside four minutes, adding to Leinster’s list of injured looseheads. But Andrew Porter’s injury does not appear long-term, and though Sale had some joy from scrum penalties, Jerry Cahir performed manfully.
Caelan Doris should also be back for the semi-final, but along with Sheehan’s tour de force Jack Conan had another fine, intelligent, skilful all-round game. Harry Byrne has confidently claimed residency at outhalf, Ioane looks increasingly sharp, Garry Ringrose had another strong game and O’Brien’s influence was again profound for a winger.
It had looked like this would be an altogether different challenge to the Edinburgh game. Sale were involved in the lowest scoring game in the Round of 16 and are not really signed-up members to the new wave of attacking rugby.
Rieko Ioane in action for Leinster. Photograph: Niall Carson/PA
They brought plenty of line speed to their defence, often starting halfway up the ruck and by not over-committing numbers to defensive rucks, they filled the pitch effectively. They also frequently took to the air through George Ford and took their time executing their scrums and lineouts. The ball-in-play time seemed lower than most games in the last two weekends, but the injury-ravaged visitors just didn’t have enough attacking ambition or bite.
The stop-start nature to the first-half was compounded by stoppages for injuries and a plethora of handling errors, mostly by Leinster, after a prematch downpour made for a greasy pill.
The home team’s frustrations increased after a misleadingly encouraging start. The ball seemed to be drawn to O’Brien like a magnet in the opening quarter, and the pick of his contributions was the counter-ruck, pickup, carry, kick and chase which earned an early attacking lineout.
Sheehan picked out James Ryan with an excellent throw despite two Sale defensive pods, and after pummelling the Sale defence Jamison Gibson-Park bypassed Baird’s decoy run for Sheehan to score when steaming on to the ball.
But Leinster couldn’t build on that lead and instead Ford made it a one-score game with a penalty, very harshly awarded by referee Pierre Brousset against Joe McCarthy for not releasing before winning a turnover.
Sale’s George Ford dejected after the game. Photograph: Dan Sheridan/Inpho
Leinster even failed to maximise on Dan du Preez’s yellow card for a high hit before the interval, but atoned after the resumption from one of three lineouts stolen by Baird. Leinster went through the phases, Byrne attacking the line and Ringrose piercing the Sale defence to release Baird, who unselfishly passed inside on the line for Hugo Keenan to score.
Byrne missed the conversion but Si McIntrye was also binned for a high hit on James Ryan. Though another Ford penalty made it a one-score game, even with the visitors reduced to 13 players, Leinster soon struck again.
Josh van der Flier, having ploughed on for perhaps too long, limped off to be replaced by Scott Penny, who in tandem with O’Brien made a telling double hit for a turnover. Soon after Leinster upped a gear in transition. Ioane offloaded to Ringrose and Tadhg Furlong, Jamie Osborne, Keenan and finally Conan, with a sweet pass, enabled Baird to finish in the left corner.
Keenan then brilliantly reclaimed a Byrne bomb, Baird went in at scrumhalf, Ringrose switched and Byrne freed his hand in a double hit to link with Sheehan, whose pass allowed Ioane to finish in the left corner for the second game running.
Then O’Brien called for a chip from Byrne and helped by a bounce and deflection, scored a deserved try. Although Alex Wills completed a nicely worked try after Ford adroitly picked up an offload by Tom O’Flaherty, Osborne had the final say off a lineout steal by Max Deegan and a stunning 50-metre break by that man Sheehan.
They’re almost clicking.
Scoring sequence – 10 mins: Sheehan try, Byrne con 7-0; 35: Ford pen 7-3; Half-time 7-3; 44: Keenan try 12-3; 47: Ford pen 12-6; 54: Baird try, Byrne con 19-6; 57: Ioane try, Byrne con 26-6; 63: O’Brien try, Byrne con 33-6; 69: Wills try, Ford con 33-13; 81: Osborne try, Byrne con 43-13
LEINSTER: Hugo Keenan; Tommy O’Brien, Garry Ringrose, Jamie Osborne, Rieko Ioane; Harry Byrne, Jamison Gibson-Park; Alex Usanov, Dan Sheehan (capt), Tadhg Furlong; Joe McCarthy, James Ryan; Ryan Baird, Josh van der Flier, Jack Conan. Replacements: Jerry Cahir for Usanov (4 mins), Max Deegan for McCarthy (9-22) and for Baird (61), Scott Penny for van der Flier (50), Thomas Clarkson for Furlong (55), Robbie Henshaw for Ringrose (60), Luke McGrath for Gibson-Park (65), Rónan Kelleher for Ryan (67), Ciarán Frawley for Byrne (70 mins).
SALE SHARKS: Joe Carpenter; Tom Roebuck, Rob du Preez, Rekeiti Ma’asi-White, Tom O’Flaherty; George Ford, Gus Warr; Si McIntyre, Ethan Caine, Asher Opoku-Fordjour; Ernst van Rhyn (capt) Ben Bamber; Jacques Vermeulen, Sam Dugdale, Dan du Preez. Replacements: Alex Wills for Carpenter (h-t), Marius Louw for R du Preez (60 mins), Alfie Longstaff for McIntyre, Ralph McEachran for Caine, James Harper for Opoku-Fordjour (all 66), Dom Hanson for Warr (68), Reuben Logan for van Rhyn, Jos Gilmore for Bamber (both 71).
Yellow card: D du Preez (38 mins), McIntyre (44).
Referee: Pierre Brousset (RFU).