Culhane Opens Leinster Account Against Experienced Edinburgh Side

Leinster ended Edinburgh’s winning start to the BKT United Rugby Championship season with a well-judged 36-27 bonus point victory at the RDS.

Running out five-try winners at home for the second week running, Leo Cullen’s young side led 21-6 at half-time thanks to converted scores from Lee Barron, Max Deegan and Ciaran Frawley.

Edinburgh lock Glen Young’s yellow card saw their first-half deficit increase from four points to 15, despite Ben Healy responding with his second penalty.

The wind-backed Scots rallied with replacements James Lang, Connor Boyle and Boan Venter all crossing, but Leinster made sure to stay out of reach.

Third quarter tries from Tommy O’Brien and James Culhane, coupled with replacement Sam Prendergast’s 70th-minute penalty, ensured it was another maximum haul for the hosts.

While happy with back-to-back bonus point successes, Leinster head coach Cullen conceded: “I thought (the performance) was a bit patchy. We still have a long way to go. You are up against a team with a pretty experienced pack and that front row was at the World Cup.

“That’s the level they have been operating at, but from our point of view there was a lot within our control and that’s where the learning is.

“The positive piece is you are growing depth and guys are accumulating experience at this time of year, and some guys within that are putting their hands up for bigger games down the line.

“But at the same time it’s about winning the games and we managed to do that. Parts of today were (a) step up and parts were a step back but that’s to be expected.

“Some of the Irish crew came back and trained this week and others are making their way back, and they will have their three weeks done next week and we will see what they are like case-by-case.

“We need to try mould the side together from there. Now it’s going to get competitive. We had 17 guys away at the World Cup and we now get to throw 17 of them into that mix there.”

Former Munster out-half Healy gave the fast-starting Scots a 17th-mnute lead following a Hamish Watson steal, but they began the second quarter by conceding a soft try.

Tom Dodd spoiled a close-in Leinster lineout, but hooker Barron swooped on the breaking ball to touch down under Charlie Shiel’s tackle. Harry Byrne converted from the right for a 7-3 lead.

Edinburgh’s discipline let them down with repeated penalties, and with Young binned for offside, Deegan duly crashed over from close range.

Although Healy rewarded Edinburgh’s strong scrum with a penalty, his opposite number Byrne floated a pinpoint pass, over Duhan van der Merwe, to send Frawley over just before the interval.

Having blown a maul opportunity early in the second period, Edinburgh came under further pressure from the strong-running Jamie Osborne and O’Brien.

A deserved score followed for O’Brien, who pocketed the hosts’ bonus point in the 51st minute, and it all originated with a midfield turnover won by the 22-year-old Barron.

He was then the beneficiary of a lofted Byrne pass, breaking into space down the right before releasing O’Brien to evade Matt Currie’s tackle and score from the edge of the Edinburgh 22. Byrne added the extras for a 28-6 advantage.

Edinburgh replied with a peach of a try, Lang going over from a Shiel pass. Blair Kinghorn’s excellent counter-attacking run did a lot of the damage, but a moment like that was too rare from Sean Everitt’s men.

Healy converted but was guilty of missing touch from penalties, and Leinster were too good when the try-line was in sight. Young number 8 Culhane powered through a lineout drive to open his account for the province.

Edinburgh’s pack gave them a sniff with 14 minutes remaining, a well-executed maul putting Boyle over and Healy converted. Venter also scored following a Shiel snipe, but Prendergast’s well-struck penalty had Leinster too far in front.

In terms of players who stood out, Barron had a busy 66-minute performance, scoring the opening try and helping to send both O’Brien and Culhane over the whitewash.

Grant Gilchrist was the pick of Edinburgh’s players, but Leinster centre Osborne, who consistently broke tackles and was also physical presence in defence, was a firm choice as the BKT URC player-of-the-match.