Baird & Kearney hat-tricks seal Leinster rout
PRO14 MATCH REPORT: Young lock Ryan Baird and wing Dave Kearney enjoyed a magical game at the RDS with both scoring hat-tricks.
It sealed a 55-19 rout of Leinster over Glasgow Warriors – a 13th straight Pro14 win.
Leo Cullen’s men looked in the mood from the off with early tries for Baird and Dave Kearney, and after Tommy Seymour struck for Glasgow Warriors seven more tries flowed for the hosts as they rolled on at the top of Conference A.
Key Moments
The Warriors approached this 2019 Final repeat with real positivity, naming a strong side in Dublin.
But right from the starter whistle, Leinster looked all-powerful, with Baird forcing his way over from short range on four minutes.
Next to get over was Dave Kearney, this one in space out wide as Glasgow were sucked in centrally before the ball was spun out to the wing.
Warriors found their feet and scored an excellent first try on the angle through Seymour, before James Lowe got in on the act at the other end for Leinster.
Ominously for Glasgow, the bonus point was secured before the break as Scott Fardy got over, although the Scots did register another superb try as Kyle Steyn blazed down the wing after the break.
On 52 minutes it was that man again Lowe, with Leinster weaving wonderful patterns to put the wing into space.
Minutes later came the try of the night from second row Baird, who showed miraculous pace from 45 metres to sear through the middle of the pitch to the line.
Just after the hour, the youngster sealed his hat-trick, the good tries still flowing for Glasgow too as Alex Allan finished off an excellent move.
There was still time for Kearney to get his second and third tries in the final five minutes, capping off another excellent Leinster night.
Player of the Match – Ryan Baird
Who else but Baird? At just 20 years of age! Kearney registered a hat-trick as well but it’s Baird who stole all the headlines with a fine all-round performance.
The lock worked hard, the highest amount of carries in his team with 13, with three lethal finishes that show he has a big future.
Play of the Day
No doubt about this one also, with Baird scoring a try that had everyone in the crowd scratching their heads.
When was the last time a second row showed this kind of pace? You kept thinking a defender would reach the youngster – he had other ideas.
.@GuinnessIreland Player of the Match Ryan Baird spoke to the media following the 55-19 win over Glasgow Warriors tonight. 👊🔵#LEIvGLA #JoinTheRoar pic.twitter.com/a7b41kg0M8
— Leinster Rugby (@leinsterrugby) February 28, 2020
The scorers
For Leinster:
Tries: Baird 3, Kearney 3, Lowe 2, Fardy
Cons: Byrne 3, Frawley 2
For Glasgow Warriors:
Tries: Seymour, Steyn, Allan
Cons: Horne, Jones
Teams:
Leinster: 15 Hugo Keenan, 14 Dave Kearney, 13 Jimmy O’Brien, 12 Joe Tomane, 11 James Lowe, 10 Harry Byrne, 9 Luke McGrath, 8 Max Deegan, 7 Will Connors, 6 Josh Murphy, 5 Scott Fardy (captain), 4 Ryan Baird, 3 Michael Bent, 2 Seán Cronin, 1 Peter Dooley.
Replacements: 16 James Tracy, 17 Michael Milne, 18 Jack Aungier, 19 Jack Dunne, 20 Rhys Ruddock, 21 Jamison Gibson-Park, 22 Ciarán Frawley, 23 Fergus McFadden.
Glasgow: 15 Glenn Bryce, 14 Tommy Seymour, 13 Huw Jones, 12 Nick Grigg, 11 Kyle Steyn, 10 Pete Horne, 9 George Horne, 8 Matt Fagerson, 7 Tom Gordon, 6 Ryan Wilson (captain), 5 Tim Swinson, 4 Rob Harley, 3 D’arcy Rae, 2 George Turner, 1 Aki Seiuli.
Replacements: 16 Mesu Dolokoto, 17 Alex Allan, 18 Ewan McQuillin, 19 Andrew Davidson, 20 Callum Gibbins, 21 Jamie Dobie, 22 Ruaridh Jackson, 23 Niko Matawalu.
Referee: Nigel Owens (Wales)
Assistant referees: Joy Neville (Ireland), Wayne Davies (Wales)
TMO: Jon Mason (Wales)
Report by @PRO14Official
