As Leo Cullen lamented afterwards, falling behind to such a highly-motivated Bayonne also gave the home team and crowd alike a springboard and a lead to defend. “How many teams have won all their games during this period?” asked Leinster head coach Leo Cullen of this block of games. Teams are dropping at different stages, we’re managing to get wins, so it’s hard to have it every which way. We would have loved another crack to try and score four tries, but unfortunately that’s not the way the game played out. LEINSTER: J O’Brien; T O’Brien, G Ringrose, R Henshaw, J Kenny; H Byrne, J Gibson-Park; J Boyle, R Kelleher, T Furlong; RG Snyman, J Ryan; M Deegan, J van der Flier, C Doris (capt).

Source: The Irish Times January 17, 2026 22:45 UTC