Leinster will be without Adam Byrne for the rest of the season.

PRO 14 Scoreboard here with this one Leo Cullen said Sunday’s Champions Cup semi-final will be a litmus test for him and his coaching team’s player management system.

Sean O'Brien starts at openside flanker and will captain the side.

Leo Cullen saw this coming.

Dan McFarland wore a knowing smile as he entered the auditorium for the evening's main press duties.

Brexit may have been delayed this week but Ulster have crashed out of Europe despite their best efforts tonight.

Rhys Ruddock will captain the Leinster Rugby team taking on Ulster tomorrow, while Johnny Sexton has been ruled out following an injury.

The sight of Jonathan Sexton and Joey Carbery watching from the sidelines while their Ireland colleagues went full throttle with the U20s in Belfast yesterday prompted mixed emotions.

If the Cheetahs thought they might get an easy run out against Leinster during the Six Nations, the South Africans were sadly mistaken.

Ultan Dillane, Caolin Blade, Jack Carty and Tom Farrell will line-out for Connacht after their Ireland call-ups.

Keith Earls has been here before, bounding towards a new Six Nations campaign on the back of an uplifting November window and with the kudos of a Grand Slam title in the team’s kitbag from the year before.

So, no Jonathan Sexton to set the tone and dictate the tune.

Andrew Porter's last-gasp try topped off a fantastic late fight-back as Leinster overcame Connacht 33-29 in an enthralling nine-try PRO14 derby at the RDS.

Jonathan Sexton has been given the green light to face Bath today but Rob Kearney misses out with an unspecified injury which raises again the touchy subject of a player’s medical information.

Leinster moved five points clear at the top of Guinness Pro14's Conference B with a 31-3 win at Benetton.

Leinster 17 Newcastle Falcons 42

James Lowe and Max Deegan scored two tries each as Leinster kept their Guinness Pro14 home semi-final hopes on track with a 41-6 bonus-point win over Zebre.

OSPREYS 32 LEINSTER 18: Leinster limped back into Dublin late on Saturday night having fluffed their lines in their dress-rehearsal for the Champions Cup quarter-final with Saracens and licking their wounds after a mauling by the Ospreys.

O'Brien has been out for three months after surgery on a hip injury.

Leinster 20 Scarlets 13: Leinster landed a significant blow in the scramble for Guinness PRO14 play-off places on Saturday afternoon with a hard-earned and at times entertaining victory against the 2017 league champions in Ballsbridge.

Garry Ringrose will need to take a big step to replace teammate Robbie Henshaw in Ireland’s Six Nations clash against Wales in two weeks’ time.

Jack McGrath became the latest victim of the painful Lions hangover when he was dropped by Joe Schmidt for Ireland’s autumn clashes with South Africa and Argentina.

Those who insist there is no such thing as a ‘friendly’ in Test rugby found their argument undermined on Saturday as a stadium slumbered and two teams went about their largely bloodless and perfunctory business.

The win against Argentina offered us a glimpse into the future as, on this evidence, there is plenty to look forward to, writes Donal Lenihan.

Jacob Stockdale's first try on 20 minutes put Ireland on the road to victory against their old foes.

Joe Schmidt insists this evening’s match with Argentina has nothing to do with revenge, but he does not deny that the 2015 World Cup quarter-final defeat has informed the Ireland boss’s approach to this Guinness Series finale.

Joe Schmidt has challenged his Test rookies to survive on their wits, not rely on the experience of those around them, after naming an inexperienced backline to face old foes Argentina tomorrow.

Simon Lewis looks at what Ireland boss Joe Schmidt will be looking to gain from three games in November

Meanwhile, Leinster have made nine changes for their trip to Glasgow.

Leo Cullen could have landed on any number of superlatives to describe Jonathan Sexton as he stood in departures at Dublin Airport yesterday deliberating on the out-half’s return for this Champions Cup engagement in Glasgow.

Johnny Sexton set a new Leinster points-scoring record in the 23-17 Guinness PRO14 victory over Munster at the Aviva Stadium.

Devin Toner will likely earn his 200th Leinster cap this Friday evening when Cardiff come to the RDS and the memory of his first appearance in January of 2006 hasn’t been compromised by the passing years and the litany of events since.

It took a while in coming, but this was a more than decent start to the new Guinness Pro14 season for Leo Cullen’s Leinster as they emerged deserved winners over the Dragons.

Scarlets reached their first ever Guinness PRO12 final after defeating much-fancied Leinster 27-15 at the RDS despite having Steff Evans sent off before half-time.

There will be no-one moaning in Leinster if Isa Nacewa lifts the Guinness Pro12 trophy at Aviva Stadium on May 27 but the lack of players from the province making the league’s Dream Team this season has ruffled some blue feathers.