Leinster make 13 changes for Ospreys clash published at 14:04 BST
14:04 BST
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Jimmy O'Brien is one of two starting survivors from last week's win over the Lions
Leinster head coach Leo Cullen has made 13 changes for Saturday's United Rugby Championship [URC] clash against the Ospreys at Aviva Stadium [17:15 BST].
Jack Conan will captain the side from blindside flanker with Josh van der Flier on the opposite side with James Culhane - one of two survivors from last week's win over the Lions - at number eight.
In the front row, hooker Gus McCarthy is flanked by Jerry Cahir and Rabah Slimani with Joe McCarthy and Diarmuid Mangan in the second row.
A strong half-back line will see a partnership of Harry Byrne at fly-half and Jamison Gibson-Park at scrum-half.
Robbie Henshaw and Garry Ringrose for the partnership at centre, with Jordan Larmour and Tommy O'Brien on the wings, while Jimmy O'Brien reverts to full-back this week.
Leinster sit third in the URC standings heading into this weekend's final round of regular season games, two points off leaders Glasgow.
Leinster: J O'Brien, T O'Brien, Ringrose, Henshaw, Larmour, Byrne, Gibson-Park; Cahir, G McCarthy, Slimani, J McCarthy, Mangan, Conan (capt.), Van der Flier, Culhane.
Leinster players nearing return for silverware pushpublished at 16:32 BST 11 May
16:32 BST 11 May
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Jack Conan, Paddy McCarthy and Tommy O'Brien will all train this week
Leinster's bid for silverware is set to be boosted by the return of several players as the province builds up to the Investec Champions Cup final and United Rugby Championship play-offs.
Ireland loose-head prop Paddy McCarthy has returned to training after a four-month spell on the sidelines with a foot injury.
While 22-year-old McCarthy is not part of the European squad, a decision will be made later this week on his availability for Saturday's URC game against Ospreys.
Jordan Larmour and Tommy O'Brien are available for selection this weekend, while Jack Conan has returned to training after hobbling off in the Champions Cup semi-final win over Toulon on 2 May.
Tadhg Furlong, James Lowe and Alex Usanov are all training, while Josh van der Flier and Robbie Henshaw are continuing to follow graduated return to play protocols.
Lock Brian Deeny is set to be assessed on an injury he sustained in Saturday's bonus-point win over the Lions which virtually assured Leinster of a home URC quarter-final.
Joshua Kenny, who withdrew from the line-up before kick-off, also requires further assessment, while Connacht-bound back row Will Connors is ruled out for the rest of the season after picking up an injury on Saturday.
Leinster host Ospreys on Saturday before travelling to Bilbao for the Champions Cup decider against holders Bordeaux on 23 May.
Leinster boosted their hopes of securing home advantage in the United Rugby Championship play-offs with a bonus-point victory the Lions at Aviva Stadium.
Jamie Osborne and Thomas Clarkson crossed for the hosts before Lions captain Francke Horn halved the deficit before half-time.
Having soaked up plenty of pressure from the visitors in the third quarter, Leinster stretched the lead through replacement back Hugo Keenan.
Rieko Ioane clinched the bonus-point score before Jimmy O'Brien added gloss to the scoreline in the final minute.
The result ends the Lions' six-game winning run and moves Leinster from fifth to third in the URC table, with the top four after next weekend's final round of regular-season games enjoying home advantage in the play-offs.
The Lions move down to fifth, a point off the Bulls.
After his frontline stars beat Toulon last week to seal a return to the Champions Cup final, Leinster head coach Leo Cullen made 12 changes, with Ireland utility back Osborne making an immediate mark after being drafted in when he chased down his own kick to get the hosts up and running in the second minute.
And after the Lions lost flanker Ruan Venter to injury, Leinster thought they had scored a second try when Prendergast touched down in the corner, but it was ruled out after Jimmy O'Brien strayed offside in the build-up.
The Lions also had a try disallowed for offside with Erich Cronje deemed offside when he challenged Luke McGrath at the ruck before back rower Sibabalwe Mahashe surged clear and produced a superb solo finish.
And while Leinster got their second through prop Thomas Clarkson, Horn darted through a gap in the home defence to leave seven points in it at the interval.
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Leinster are chasing a URC and Champions Cup double
After Cullen introduced experienced front rowers Andrew Porter, Rabah Slimani and Dan Sheehan, Leinster were pinned back in the early stages of the second half before a momentum-shifting intercept from Diarmuid Mangan.
And having had their patience tested, Leinster finally got their third when Keenan - who replaced Prendergast - sprinted through a tiring Lions defence to score after good work from Jamie Osborne and Ioane.
With the Lions fading, Ioane clinched the bonus score before O'Brien wrapped up proceedings with the home side's fifth try.
Leinster host Ospreys next weekend while the Lions take on Munster.
Leinster: Frawley; A Osborne, Ioane, J Osborne, J O'Brien; Prendergast, McGrath; E Byrne, McKee, Clarkson, Deeny, Ryan (capt), Deegan, Connors, Culhane.
Lions: Q Horn; Cronje, Van Wyk, Kriel, A Davids; Smith, Van den Berg; Kotze, Botha, Ntlabakanye, Oosthuizen, Nothnagel, Mahashe, Venter, F Horn (capt).
Replacements: Marais, E Davids, Lombard, Landsberg, Hlekani, Pretorius, Steyn, Mpeku.
Leinster ring the changes for Lions clash published at 12:26 BST 8 May
12:26 BST 8 May
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Ryan will captain Leinster on Saturday
Leinster head coach Leo Cullen has rung the changes for Saturday's United Rugby Championship [URC] against the Lions at Aviva Stadium [17:30 BST].
Cullen has retained just three players whom started last week's European Champions Cup semi-final win over Toulon with one of those, James Ryan, captaining the side in Dublin tomorrow.
Ryan is joined by Brian Deeny in the second row, while Thomas Clarkson is called upon again at tighthead prop, while Ed Byrne comes in at loosehead and John McKee is named at hooker.
In the back row, Max Deegan and Will Connors come in along with James Culhane at number eight.
A changed half-back partnership will see Sam Prendergast start at out-half with Luke McGrath at scrum-half.
In the backs, Rieko Ioane is named once again, but switches from the wing to centre where he will start alongside Jamie Osborne, while Joshua Kenny and Jimmy O'Brien have been named on the wings with Ciarán Frawley at full-back.
Keenan signs two-year extension with Leinsterpublished at 13:34 BST 5 May
13:34 BST 5 May
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Keenan made his Leinster debut in 2016
Hugo Keenan will remain with Leinster until the end of the 2027-28 season having signed a two-year extension to his Irish Rugby Football Union (IRFU) central contract.
The 29-year-old, who has won 46 caps since making his international debut in October 2020, scored the series-clinching try for the British and Irish Lions against Australia last summer.
Keenan has also made 81 appearances for Leinster since his debut against Zebre in November 2016, helping the club win five URC titles.
"Hugo is a top-class performer and I am really pleased that he is continuing his journey in Ireland," said Ireland head coach, Andy Farrell.
"He has been a model of consistency since his debut in 2020 and I believe that the best is yet to come as he continues to set the highest standards on and off the field of play."
IRFU Performance Director David Humphreys expressed his delight the Dubliner has committed his future to Ireland.
"Hugo has established himself as one of the leading full-backs in the world game and we are excited that he has committed his future to Irish Rugby," Humphreys said.
"A talented and committed athlete, Hugo has proven himself consistently for club and country for many years and I have no doubt that he will continue to progress in the seasons to come."
Leinster's Henshaw ruled out of Lions URC gamepublished at 15:36 BST 4 May
15:36 BST 4 May
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Leinster centre Robbie Henshaw has been ruled out of Saturday's United Rugby Championship game against the Lions.
The Ireland international has entered graduated return to play protocols after being stretchered off following a collision with Mikheil Shioshvili in Saturday's Investec Champions Cup win over Toulon.
Henshaw's Test team-mates Tommy O'Brien, Jack Conan and Josh van der Flier are also doubts for the Aviva Stadium game (17:30 BST). O'Brien and Conan both picked up unspecified injuries while Van der Flier may be available despite entering graduated return to play protocols.
In more positive news, prop Tadhg Furlong and wing James Lowe are pushing for selection after returning to training. Furlong missed the Toulon game while Lowe has been out since the Six Nations with a groin injury.
Leinster head coach Leo Cullen is still without Ryan Baird, Jack Boyle, Paddy McCarthy, RG Snyman, Charlie Tector and Alex Usanov.
The Irish province sit fourth in the URC table, level on points with the third-placed Lions.
After facing the South African side in Dublin on Saturday, Leinster will host Ospreys on 16 May before taking on Bordeaux-Begles in the Champions Cup final in Bilbao on 23 May.
Tries: O'Tighearnaigh, Van der Flier, Gibson-Park, Frawley Cons: Byrne 2, Prendergast
Leinster passed up an opportunity to improve on the fourth place they currently occupy in the United Rugby Championship table as they suffered a dramatic last-gasp 29-26 comeback loss away to Benetton.
The Italian side trailed by 14 points early in the second half but battled back to draw level with eight minutes remaining, before Jacob Umaga's penalty in the final minute secured a bonus-point victory.
With both sides scoring four tries, Leinster had the consolation of leaving with two bonus points.
Tommy O'Brien won an early foot race to the line to deny Benetton a try but soon after Alessandro Garbisi went over in the corner after accepting an off-load.
Conor O'Tighearnaigh rumbled over from close range, Harry Byrne converting, to edge Leo Cullen's charges 7-5 ahead.
Leinster continued to put on the pressure and were denied a second score when Ciaran Frawley dotted down under the posts but after a consultation with the television match official (TMO), the try was chalked off for a forward pass by Jack Conan in the build-up.
Josh van der Flier then marked his return to action after injury by burrowing over the whitewash shortly before half-time.
Five minutes after the restart, Jamison Gibson-Park got in on the try-scoring action.
Dan Sheehan broke clear and passed to the scrum-half, who weaved his way through the home defence and ran in behind the posts.
Benetton responded with two converted scores to draw level at 19 apiece.
First, Ignacio Mendy picked up a loose ball and sprinted into the corner, dodging an attempted tackle by Gibson-Park in the process, then Nicholas Gasperini barged over after emerging from the back of a maul.
The see-saw nature of the game continued as Frawley scored after collecting a long pass to the wing after Leinster had gone through the phases.
Cian Prendergast added the extras to push Leinster's advantage to seven but back came the home side again as Gasperini claimed his second converted try to level the scores once again, repeating the play in much the same fashion as his first touchdown.
Umaga's penalty in the final minute proved decisive for the Italian side.
After their Champions Cup semi-final against Toulon next weekend, Leinster host the Lions and the Ospreys in their concluding games of the regular URC season, with Benetton heading on their travels to South Africa to face the Sharks and the Bulls.
Augustus aiming high in the hope of home advantagepublished at 20:42 BST 16 April
20:42 BST 16 April
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Juarno Augustus joined Ulster from Northampton at the end of last season
Ulster back row Juarno Augustus says the team are focused on finishing as high up the United Rugby Championship table as they can to try and secure home advantage in the knockout stages as the battle for silverware hots up in the latter stages of the season.
Richie Murphy's side sit third in the table with four rounds of regular season fixtures remaining but face a testing run-in with Friday's visit of Leinster to Belfast followed by matches against Munster, the Stormers and table toppers Glasgow Warriors.
The South African says confidence is high after European Challenge Cup wins over Ospreys and La Rochelle set up a semi-final at home to Exeter Chiefs on 2 May.
"We are playing four of the best so all we need to do is take it week by week, recover well and then just go again when it's game day," the 28-year-old told BBC Sport NI.
"We're focusing firstly on the URC now because we want to get a home quarter-final, a home semi-final. That's what teams are playing for now.
"If we win a few games we can get second or first in the table and that's what we're aiming for."
The back-to-back European wins were both played in challenging conditions at the Affidea Stadium, but the number eight is philosophical about adapting gameplans to suit different weather conditions.
"We want to play expansive rugby, that's what we want to do, but unfortunately it's out of our control, so we have to adapt to the weather conditions and the teams we play over the next few weeks.
"If the weather is better we can show better what we have."
Augustus added that he was pleased to have overcome the frustration of a lengthy spell on the sidelines because of the ankle injury he suffered in December.
"For me I felt like I could go but then I had felt a little niggle, but hopefully it's all behind me now. Hopefully I can finish the season well and the team can finish it well also."
Ulster opt for consistency as Leinster ring changespublished at 13:01 BST 16 April
13:01 BST 16 April
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Sean Reffell's introduction at flanker is Ulster's only change for Friday's game against Leinster
Ulster head coach Richie Murphy makes just one change for Friday's United Rugby Championship inter-provincial derby against Leinster at Affidea Stadium (19:45 BST).
Sean Reffell comes in to replace Nick Timoney in the only change from the side that beat La Rochelle in last weekend's Challenge Cup quarter-final.
Once again, there is a front three of Angus Bell, hooker Tom Stewart and Tom O'Toole, while team captain Iain Henderson is joined in the second row by Cormac Izuchukwu.
While Reffell comes in at open-side flanker, David McCann retains his place at blind-side with Juarno Augustus at number eight.
Nathan Doak claimed the player of the match award after last week's win over the French side and he partners Jack Murphy in the half-backs.
The midfield pairing of Stuart McCloskey and James Hume remains, while Zac Ward and Werner Kok occupy the wings as Jacob Stockdale continues at full-back.
There are no changes on the bench with Murphy retaining the same eight as last week in a five-three split.
In contrast, Leinster head coach Leo Cullen has made 12 changes from the side that began last week's Investec Champions Cup quarter-final win over Sale Sharks, with Ireland fly-half Sam Prendergast among those returning to the line-up.
Props Jerry Cahir and Thomas Clarkson and hooker Ronan Kelleher form a changed front row, with James Ryan captaining the side at lock.
Alex Soroka, Scott Penny and number eight James Culhane come into the back row.
Hugo Keenan starts at full-back with Robbie Henshaw coming in alongside Garry Ringrose at centre this week, while there are changes on the wings where Joshua Kenny and Jimmy O'Brien start.
In a six-two bench split, there is a place for prop Ed Byrne who returned to the province this week on a short-term loan.
Ulster are third in the URC table, a point and a place above Leinster.
Leinster won 24-20 when the sides met at Aviva Stadium in December.
Interpro against Leinster 'a spicy one' - Wardpublished at 08:47 BST 15 April
08:47 BST 15 April
Richard Petrie BBC Sport NI Journalist
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Image caption,
Zac Ward was in try-scoring form against La Rochelle
Ulster back Zac Ward says the rivalry with Irish interprovincial rivals Leinster makes Friday's interprovincial game between the two teams at the Affidea Stadium "a spicy one".
Ulster sit third in the table, one point ahead of Leo Cullen's charges, before the encounter in Belfast, and aim to avenge a narrow 24-20 loss to Leinster in their previous United Rugby Championship meeting in Dublin in December.
"Any home interpro at home is a spicy one, but with Leinster I just think it goes to the next level," Ward told BBC Sport NI's Gavin Andrews.
"We know them so well and guys are competing against their opposite numbers to try and get into a green jersey as well.
"We're really looking forward to it. We don't really know what sort of team they are going to send up, but it doesn't really matter, they have a lot of talent and a lot of depth, but we're looking forward to it, to the challenge, and I really hope it stays dry."
Ulster will face Exeter Chiefs for a place in the European Challenge Cup final in early May but are also well in the hunt for URC silverware with four sets of games remaining before the knockout play-off stages of that competition.
"To be in this position now is class. If you'd said at the start of the season we'd be in the position we are now we'd have been delighted," enthused the 27-year-old.
"The hard work that we've done over the season is now really standing to us.
"We have some big games coming up, but the majority of those at home which is really good, so hopefully a packed Affidea can get us over the line in those games."
Ward is also pleased with his own form this campaign, although he knows there is still room for improvement.
He scored two tries in the weekend win over La Rochelle and set up another for brother Bryn.
"From where I was last year to now I think I have come on a lot and have really grown in confidence," explained the ex-Ireland Sevens player.
"There are still things I need to work on, still a lot to learn, but hopefully I can kick on at the business end of the season.
"Playing in front of our fans is amazing, they really get behind us, they really back us, and we just want to keep performing, getting a few more people into the stands to cheer us on and put a few more smiles on faces."
Doris out as Sheehan captains Leinster against Salepublished at 14:34 BST 10 April
14:34 BST 10 April
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Hooker Dan Sheehan will captain Leinster for their Investec Champions Cup quarter-final against Sale Sharks at Aviva Stadium on Saturday with Caelan Doris ruled out of the game.
Leinster head coach Leo Cullen makes three changes in total from the team which started last week's 49-31 last-16 victory over Edinburgh.
With Andrew Porter also out, 20-year-old academy prop Alex Usanov will make his first start in the Champions Cup after coming on for Porter at half-time on Sunday.
James Ryan returns from a calf injury to play in the second row alongside Joe McCarthy while Garry Ringrose is also back and partners Jamie Osborne at centre.
As a result, Rieko Ioane, who started at centre against Edinburgh, shifts to left wing, while Ryan Baird moves to lock and Jack Conan switches from blindside flanker to number eight in the absence of Doris.
On the bench, Ronan Kelleher, Jerry Cahir and Scott Penny are recalled to the matchday squad.
Leinster: Keenan: T O'Brien, Ringrose, Osborne, Ioane; Byrne, Gibson-Park; Usanov, Sheehan (capt), Furlong; McCarthy, Ryan; Baird, van der Flier, Conan.
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