Most of the damage was done during a fast-paced first half at Energia Park.
PLAYER-OF-THE-MATCH Katie Whelan touched down in each half as defending champions Leinster began the new interprovincial campaign with a double-scores 38-19 win over Connacht at Energia Park.
19 points was as close as it got thanks to further Leinster scores from Caoimhe Molloy and Whelan, yet Rosser’s charges, who travel to Munster in the second round, let their discipline slip and lost Molly Boyne and Jane Neill to yellow cards. Sarah Delaney’s crooked throw robbed them of a gilt-edged maul opportunity, but Connacht were still pinned back inside their own half until Méabh Deely’s big right boot got them moving downfield.
Deely was soon back on the defensive, midway through the first half. She had to make an important tackle to bring down Whelan, who had broken menacingly from a ruck 60 metres out. A Whelan knock-on, a few phases later, lifted the pressure off Connacht. Connacht gave themselves a timely boost with a quick-fire seven-pointer, 31 minutes in. Vice-captain Ava Ryder’s turnover sparked some of their best play, and replacement Oviawe showed impressive strength to score after Nic Dhonnacha and Roisín Maher had both gone close.
O’Dowd made four replacements as the visitors pressed for an elusive try. Whelan denied Ireland U20 scrum half May Goulding via a close-in scrum, but their dominance of possession resulted in the quick-reacting Laoise McGonagle grounding the ball from a Fowley cross-field kick.
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