Leinster met Bulls in the URC final at Croke Park at 7.30pm, with James Lowe set for his last game in a Leinster shirt. Leinster were chasing back-to-back titles against the South African side they beat in last season’s final. That made the rematch more than a repeat.
Croke Park and Lowe
Lowe’s final Leinster appearance gave the final extra weight before a ball was kicked. The winger was in a starting group that also included Hugo Keenan, Tommy O’Brien, Rieko Ioane, Jamie Osborne, Sam Prendergast and Jamison Gibson-Park.
Caelan Doris was listed as captain, with Jerry Cahir, Rónan Kelleher, Tadhg Furlong, Joe McCarthy, James Ryan, Max Deegan and Josh van der Flier completing the rest of the pack behind him. Leinster also named Dan Sheehan, Alex Usanov, Thomas Clarkson, Diarmuid Mangan, Jack Conan, Luke McGrath, Harry Byrne and Garry Ringrose among the replacements.
Leinster and Bulls again
The shape of the contest carried a clear comparison to last season. Leinster had beaten Bulls 32-7 in that final, a margin described as the biggest winning gap in the competition’s history, and they had produced 11 line breaks to one on the night. This time, the challenge was whether they could match that level again after a much tighter semi-final against the Stormers.
Bulls arrived with Willie le Roux, Kurt-Lee Arendse, Canan Moodie, Harold Vorster, Stravino Jacobs, Handre Pollard and Embrose Papier in the back line, while Gerhard Steenekamp, Johan Grobbelaar, Francois Klopper, Ruan Vermaak, Ruan Nortje, Marcell Coetzee, Elrigh Louw and Cameron Hanekom formed the rest of the starting side. Marcell Coetzee captained Bulls, with Marco van Staden, Jan-Hendrik Wessels, Wilco Louw, Cobus Wiese, Jeandre Rudolph, Zak Burger, Stedman Gans and Nizaam Carr on the bench.
URC final stakes
That rematch set a simple standard for Leinster: anything less than the same control would leave the title defence under pressure. The final also carried the added force of Lowe’s exit, turning one league match into the closing act of a four-year spell in blue. Whatever happened on the scoreboard, the last image of his Leinster career came inside Croke Park, with a championship still in reach.
