🏉 Lions v Leinster wrap
🏉 Around the provinces
🏉 Wonder Wallabies
🏉 Pollock. Discuss.
🏉 #StopTheGame
Our guests :
542 : Lions, Wallabies, Corn rows
Category: Leinster Opposition
540 : Season 8 premiere
🏉 A sort of homecoming
🏉 Earning their stripes
🏉 Great expectations
🏉 The other provinces
🏉 Greater rivalries
Our guests :
533 : URC Grand Final wrap
🏉 Intent & desire
🏉 Super Sam
🏉 Keenan eager
🏉 Pack mentality
🏉 Bad Bulls
THIS WEEK’S GUEST
FULL-TIME THOUGHTS
Chris McDonnell
Job done. Excellent performance. Max deegan has had a fantastic season. Well done to Sam, he had one of his better games hopefully it’s the step he needed.
Gavin Hegarty
I honestly thought we’d get nothing out of the season @xmas but to reach two finals and win one is epic.
The abuse online Leinster got after a few games and lying at the bottom of the table was shocking.
Sam showed the player he can be yday and is now in the driving seat again.
Can’t say anything about Keenan that hadn’t be said before, simply immense.
All the talk of Frawley leaving, what about jerry???? Epic season for him.
Christy O’Connor
Credit were credit is due, Sam played great as did Keenan and big Joe. The Bulls never showed up and played a kicking game that just didn’t work for them. One of Leinster’s best attacking displays in a long time and hopefully we see more of it
Lorcán Murphy
Coaches and players showed how capable and utterly ruthless we are against strong opposition. Makes it more frustrating what was left behind during the year and how the selection policy is applied. Absolutely delighted for Sam. I really hope he carries his self belief for the fight into the future. His potential is still huge
Ruairi Niall Eiméid
A badly needed tonic after the severe disappointment of yet another European Final loss. Immense win and performance by the Boys in Blue
Click here for real-time thoughts from
the Harpin WhatsApp group during the match
URC WRAP
NEXT BATCH OF HARPIN’
TUESDAY
BONUS CHAT : “LONG LIST OF LADS LEAVING LEINSTER” (YouTube)
WEDNESDAY
80+ COLUMN (Substack)
532 : URC Grand Final preview
LEINSTER : 15 Hugo Keenan 14 Tommy O’Brien 13 Rieko Ioane 12 Jamie Osborne 11 James Lowe 10 Sam Prendergast 9 Jamison Gibson‑Park
1 Jerry Cahir 2 Rónan Kelleher 3 Tadhg Furlong 4 Joe McCarthy 5 James Ryan 6 Max Deegan 7 Josh van der Flier 8 Caelan Doris (c)
16 Dan Sheehan 17 Alex Usanov 18 Thomas Clarkson 19 Diarmuid Mangan 20 Jack Conan 21 Luke McGrath 22 Harry Byrne 23 Garry Ringrose
BULLS : 15 Willie le Roux 14 Kurt‑Lee Arendse 13 Canan Moodie 12 Harold Vorster 11 Stravino Jacobs 10 Handré Pollard 9 Embrose Papier
1 Gerhard Steenekamp 2 Johan Grobbelaar 3 Francois Klopper 4 Ruan Vermaak 5 Ruan Nortje 6 Marcell Coetzee (c) 7 Elrigh Louw 8 Cameron Hanekom
16 Marco van Staden 17 Jan‑Hendrik Wessels 18 Wilco Louw 19 Cobus Wiese 20 Jeandre Rudolph 21 Zak Burger 22 Stedman Gans 23 Nizaam Carr
BKT United Rugby Championship
2025/26 Grand Final
Friday, June 19, 2026
Croke Park
KO 7:30pm
Live on : Premier Sports 1, URC.tv
Referee: Andrea Piardi (FIR)
AR 1: Adam Jones (WRU)
AR 2: Ben Breakspear (WRU)
TMO: Matteo Liperini (FIR)
531 : Leinster v Stormers wrap
🏉 Rolls Royce 9
🏉 Physicality
🏉 Imperfect Stormers
🏉 Stats stats stats
🏉 And now the Bulls
THIS WEEK’S GUEST
FULL-TIME THOUGHTS
Liz Power
Scoreline flattered us. Stormers were full of brute force but the lack of discipline did for them
Christy O’Connor
Started off bright, but as the game went on we were struggling. Wasted a number of decent chances when in their 22.
The stormers also wasted a number of chances to punish us. I don’t think the bulls will waste as many chances
Joe Shep
Tbh, a lot of “Muscle Memory” rugby from the likes of JGP (well deserved POTM) but Stormers had our card well marked with strong elements of UBB….. We were lucky they let themselves down with indiscipline and they lacked the game changing flair of Sascha F-M…..A final beckons but more required
Overall we’ve got the individuals but we are NOT a cohesive unit…… I genuinely don’t understand why AF can get the best as a cohesive team having players for only a few weeks yet Leinster don’t 🤔🤷
Kevin Kelehan
Delighted with the game, knew Stormers would be formidable but their hits were massive, they made us work for every yard.
That they won their first card period 3-0 showed how streetwise they are, wasted 3 minutes on one passage of legitimate scrum resets.
The bench was the catalyst, even before the loss of 2 players you could feel the momentum shifting our way. Whilst Conan s brute force and Ringers deftness were probably the main catalysts, you have to mention Usanov, Gus and Mangan all of whom really made an impact against world class opponents.
Finally Sam being a speed bump for massive Stormers loose head in his first tackle situation of today is displaying the fight we need from him to be our 10
Chris McDonnell
A semi final win is a win. Can’t play rugby without a 10 and simply Leo first 2 choices are not good enough.
Jo Kerr
Would have been interesting if the Stormers had Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu and Cobus Reinach
Tricia Cormac Timothy
Need a decent 10
Odran John OBrien
Sorry to say it’s time for Cullen and Nienaber to go bring in Scott Robertson and Owen Farrell at Five Eighth
Niall O’Higgins
Win is a win but i feel stormers coaching was better – they knew what to do, excellent ruck speed , made leinster appear chaotic by comparison – game plan seems limited compared to skill set of players and wasteful. Scrum is dire. It beggers belief that these players are lions yet are asked to be donkeys – one up runs without support, kick chase – all low percentage plays
Eamon Saunders
Trying to beat the South Africans by playing their game not working but another final to try win
Caroline Wynne
👌💪🤘
Dave Murray
Another final and possibly another URC (which isn’t to be sniffed at) but our tactics and style is not great at all, in my opinion anyway. Nienaber opened the door on an early exit and that is fine by me.
Ruairi Niall Eiméid
Not vintage by Leinster, very stuttering and bland attack but ground out another win to get to the URC Final. Feel a little Déjà vu playing Bulls again in Croker but on Friday Night Lights
Click here for real-time thoughts from
the Harpin WhatsApp group during the match
URC WRAP
NEXT BATCH OF HARPIN’
TUESDAY
80+ COLUMN (Substack)
530 : Leinster v Stormers preview
LEINSTER : 15 Hugo Keenan 14 Jimmy O’Brien 13 Rieko Ioane 12 Jamie Osborne 11 James Lowe 10 Sam Prendergast 9 Jamison Gibson‑Park
1 Andrew Porter 2 Rónan Kelleher 3 Thomas Clarkson 4 Joe McCarthy 5 James Ryan 6 Max Deegan 7 Josh van der Flier 8 Caelan Doris (c)
16 Gus McCarthy 17 Alex Usanov 18 Rabah Slimani 19 Diarmuid Mangan 20 Jack Conan 21 Luke McGrath 22 Harry Byrne 23 Garry Ringrose
STORMERS : 15 Damian Willemse 14 Wandisile Simelane 13 Ruhan Nel (c) 12 Dan du Plessis 11 Leolin Zas 10 Jurie Matthee 9 Imad Khan
1 Ntuthuko Mchunu 2 André‑Hugo Venter 3 Neethling Fouché 4 Adré Smith 5 Connor Evans 6 Paul de Villiers 7 Ben‑Jason Dixon 8 Evan Roos
16 JJ Kotzé 17 Vernon Matongo 18 Zachary Porthen 19 Salmaan Moerat 20 Ruan Ackermann 21 Marcel Theunissen 22 Stefan Ungerer 23 Warrick Gelant
BKT United Rugby Championship
2025/26 Semifinal
Saturday, June 6, 2026
Aviva Stadium
KO 5:30pm
Live on : TG4, Premier Sports 1, URC.tv
Referee: Hollie Davidson (SRU)
AR 1: Sam Grove-White (SRU)
AR 2: Adam Jones (SRU)
TMO: Mike Adamson (SRU)
529 : Leinster v Lions wrap
🏉 Turning the page
🏉 Lowe Baller
🏉 Sam & Reiko
🏉 The Joe Show
🏉 …but the Lions…
THIS WEEK’S GUEST
FULL-TIME THOUGHTS
Gavin Hegarty
A win.
Twas nice.
I had wine.
Great to see lowe get the record but can see why he’s going.
Nice to see sam run the show and run it well.
On a side note we have Sheehan, kelleher and McCarthy at two. Three world class hookers. How long before Munster take one?
David Ryle
Sam was excellent. We need him firing with confidence, hopefully he blocks out the noise from the hateful.
David Ross
At last we have complimentary comments about Sam P. His game was not without mistakes but he is human and is certainly Ireland’s future. Good result it would be great to have a Leinster/Glasgow final!!
Craig Grehan
Great to see them bounce back from last week. But two very different teams. Do we know our best starting 15 yet ?
Vincent Duggan
Lions must have been on the beer for two weeks.
Eamon Saunders
Great result after last week ,and great to see Lowe get the record
Christy O’Connor
Obviously a great result, delighted for Lowe and hopefully he stays. Lions were very poor. I expect a much harder test next week
Did I see Neil (keego) Keenan celebrating the 4th try on TV?
Colin Mehigan
Great result. Great performance. Understandable reasons why crowd was so small but Leinster fans need to support our team when the team need it the most – and not only when we win trophies
Kevin Kelehan
Less than 10,000 supporters in the ground but real fans make a lot of noise. Leinster back to Leinstertainment after a harrowing ‘weather experience’ last week. Not saying Leinster would have beat UBB last week but playing a game in Spain mid afternoon in May in the era where climate change is advanced was reprehensible planning.
Pieter Bezuidenhout
We need to stop with the excuses. Connacht, Munster, Cardiff, and the Lions were clearly out of their depth this weekend. Watching a captain like Craig Casey hide behind an injury list rather than admitting they were outplayed is embarrassing. Real leaders show some humility. On top of that, the way Leinster carried on with those celebrations against the Lions was completely classless. It’s not a World Cup final, so stop acting like it is. It is time for everyone to stop the self-congratulations and get a grip.
Click here for real-time thoughts from
the Harpin WhatsApp group during the match
URC WRAP
NEXT BATCH OF HARPIN’
TUESDAY
BONUS CHAT : “REMAINING URC CHALLENGERS” (YouTube)
WEDNESDAY
80+ COLUMN (Substack)
527 : Champions Cup Final wrap
🏉 Not showing up
🏉 A fine Bordeaux
🏉 Decisions, decisions
🏉 “Making your own luck”
🏉 The big boss
THIS WEEK’S GUEST
FULL TIME TAKES
As discussed on the pod, we chose to leave it a few days before going over the comments this week, check them out for yourself here
CLICK HERE FOR THE REAL-TIME REACTIONS FROM
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Get in the conversation yourself by leaving
your own thoughts each week after the full time whistle
in Leinster & Ireland matches on our Facebook page
CHAMPIONS CUP WRAP
NEXT HARPIN’
TUESDAY
BONUS CHAT : “RECOVERING FOR URC”
WEDNESDAY
80+ COLUMN
526 : Champions Cup final preview
LEINSTER : 15 Hugo Keenan 14 Tommy O’Brien 13 Garry Ringrose 12 Robbie Henshaw 11 Rieko Ioane 10 Harry Byrne 9 Jamison Gibson‑Park
1 Andrew Porter 2 Dan Sheehan 3 Thomas Clarkson 4 Joe McCarthy 5 James Ryan 6 Jack Conan 7 Josh van der Flier 8 Caelan Doris (c)
16 Rónan Kelleher 17 Paddy McCarthy 18 Tadhg Furlong 19 Diarmuid Mangan 20 Max Deegan 21 Luke McGrath 22 Ciarán Frawley 23 Jamie Osborne
BORDEAUX : 15 Salesi Rayasi 14 Pablo Uberti 13 Damian Penaud 12 Yoram Moefana 11 Louis Bielle‑Biarrey 10 Matthieu Jalibert 9 Maxime Lucu (c)
1 Jefferson Poirot 2 Maxime Lamothe 3 Carlu Sadie 4 Boris Palu 5 Adam Coleman 6 Pierre Bochaton 7 Cameron Woki 8 Marko Gazzotti
16 Gaëtan Barlot 17 Ugo Boniface 18 Ben Tameifuna 19 Lachlan Swinton 20 Tevita Matiu 21 Boris Vergnes‑Taillefer 22 Arthur Retière 23 Hugo Reus
Investec Champions Cup
2025/26 FINAL
Saturday, May 23, 2026
San Mames Stadium
KO 2:45pm
Live on : Premier Sports 1
Referee : Karl Dickson (Eng)
AR1 : Christophe Ridley (Eng)
AR2 : Hollie Davidson (Sco)
TMO : Marius van der Westhuizen (SA)
525 : Leinster v Ospreys wrap
Leinster tore into the Ospreys with a ruthless 68–14 win at the Aviva, powered by Joe McCarthy’s hat‑trick, a suffocating defensive press, and big returns for Jordan Larmour and James Lowe. Jeff is joined by Ciarán Duffy (Post to Post Sport) for cap number 47 to break down the performance, the selection calls, the defensive resurgence, and what it all means heading into the Champions Cup Final.
We also take a spin around the URC — Munster clinching playoffs, Connacht’s late push, Ulster’s Challenge Cup wrinkle — plus Ireland Women’s record-setting Aviva win.
A full URC season rewind, a look ahead to Bordeaux, and plenty of Harpin flavour.
THIS WEEK’S GUEST
FULL TIME TAKES
Cormac Mannion
No injuries by the looks of it and hopefully Tommy was not started merely as a precaution. I thought Lowe was in with a chance of starting next week but bloody hell Larmour had an absolute stormer. Lowe was out on his feet by the end of the game.
Henshaw had a huge amount of strapping in his right leg so no idea if it’s him or Osborne who start at 12 next week.
If Tommy is fit, I can see 21-23 being McGrath, Frawley and Larmour. It gives a lot of cover across the backline.
Starting to get slightly upbeat about next Saturday 🙈
Conor Cronin
I’ve wondered how much we learned in the past from massive wins like these, but the confidence it will give players next week is worth it. Let these players believe how good they are. Let them build on tonight for next week. Bordeaux have conceded 70+ points over the last 2 weeks, we’ve scored 90+, let’s get out next week and be at our best
Greg Kelly
That was a game that was on the schedule for the Ospreys and they were contracted to fulfill it. They looked from minute one like condemned men going to their death.
Plus side for Leinster was the skill level was on average higher than it has been with there were some sloppy defensive reads that UBB will punish if they happen next week
Christy O’Connor
That was probably our most complete performance all season. Yes Osprey’s were awful, but we have played teams just as poor this season and limped to a win.
Great seeing Lowe and Larmour back as well as scoring tries. Going to be a whole different challenge next week though.
Colm Cunningham
Saved the best till last. Hopefully a sign of whats to come next weekend. 🤞
Cobus Tromp
Slaughter..No other word comes to mind.
CLICK HERE FOR THE REAL-TIME REACTIONS FROM
THE HARPIN WHATSAPP GROUP THROUGHOUT THE MATCH
Get in the conversation yourself by leaving
your own thoughts each week after the full time whistle
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URC WRAP
NEXT HARPIN’
TUESDAY
BONUS CHAT : “THE BILBAO 23”
WEDNESDAY
80+ COLUMN
