Leinster 16-6 Munster: Holders secure fourth straight Pro14 title by seeing off Irish rivals

Leinster hooker Ronan Kelleher produced a couple of his typical attacking thrusts

Leinster wore down Munster to clinch a fourth successive Pro14 title as they earned a deserved 16-6 win at the RDS.

The holders lorded first-half territory but came up against a resolute Munster defence as Ross Byrne and Joey Carbery kicked two penalties at either end.

However, Jack Conan produced the Leinster breakthrough six minutes into the second half after more pressure.

Another Byrne kick extended Leinster's lead after he came back on when Johnny Sexton took a blow to the head.

Sexton lasted only a couple of minutes following his 59th-minute introduction after being caught by an accidental glancing boot although he was able to walk off the field unaided.

Despite the Ireland captain's absence, Leinster managed the game with the minimum of fuss in the closing stages with most of the action taking place in the Munster half - as had been the case throughout the 80 minutes.

Gavin Coombes produced a couple of first-half carries which helped Munster draw level before the break

Leinster put Irish rivals in their place

A number of pundits had tipped Munster to earn their first Pro14 title since 2011 but Leinster controlled the game from the off as they didn't become frustrated by their first-half inability to turn territorial domination into points.

Munster's form this season - as they matched Leinster's campaign by losing only two Conference games and playing some attacking rugby in the process - suggested that the gap might be closing.

But judging by the way they came out, Leinster were determined to keep their Irish rivals in their place as they owned the ball in the opening 12 minutes to forge an early 6-0 lead.

Leinster's threats were coming from all over the pitch with dynamic hooker Ronan Kelleher producing a couple of typical dynamic bursts and the jinking Jordan Larmour also looking particularly dangerous with ball in hand.

Straight from the restart after Byrne's second penalty, a Rhys Ruddock side-entry to a ruck gifted Carbery three points but the remainder of the first period was a tale of Leinster producing moments of danger only for the Munster defence to remain firm.

On two occasions, the over-lapping Larmour looked set to score tries only for wild passes from centre Rory O'Loughlin which flew into touch.

A triumph of the Leinster collective

Lock Scott Fardy did breach the Munster line in the 27th minute but was held up by CJ Stander and Gavin Coombes which summed up the first-half defensive effort of Johann van Graan's side.

Further chances also went begging for the holders before Conan's high tackle on Conor Murray enabled Carbery to level just before the break.

But any suggestion that Leinster might pay for their first-half missed chances was soon out the window as they continued to dominate.

Intense pressure saw Ireland full-back Hugo Keenan held up over the line before Conan burrowed his way through the Munster defence after the resultant five-metre scrum.

Byrne's 61st-minute penalty was the only remaining score as the holders gave their opponents no opportunity to get back in the contest.

With the contest primarily a battle of the two packs, man of the match Conan and Kelleher were among the standout performers but this was very much a triumph of the Leinster collective.

How they lined up

Leinster: Keenan; Larmour, O'Loughlin, Henshaw, Kearney; R Byrne, McGrath (capt); Healy, Kelleher, Porter; Toner, Fardy; Ruddock, van der Flier, Conan.

Replacements: Tracy, E Byrne, Furlong, Molony, Baird, Gibson-Park, Sexton, Lowe.

Munster: Haley; Conway, Farrell, de Allende, Earls; Carbery, Murray; Cronin, N Scannell, Ryan; Kleyn, Beirne; Coombes, O'Mahony (capt), Stander.

Replacements: O'Byrne, Kilcoyne, Archer, Holland, O'Donoghue, Casey, Hanrahan, R Scannell.

Referee: Mike Adamson (SRU)