Leinster cruise past Treviso

Leinster 57 Treviso 17

Leinster ran nine tries past toothless Treviso to confirm themselves as number one seeds for April’s Heineken Cup quarter-finals.

Declan Kidney’s side booked a home date in the last eight as Ireland internationals Denis Hickie, Shane Byrne, Shane Horgan (3), Gordon D’Arcy, Girvan Dempsey and future flanker star Shane Jennings (2) shared the glory in another Lansdowne Road rout.

The Irish province though, will have to set a historical precedent if they are to win the competition, following their sixth pool victory.

Wasps (1997-98), Bath (2001-02) and a Matt Williams-coached Leinster two seasons ago, all came through the six-game pool stages with a 100% record – but all three failed to make the winners’ podium.

Allowing Treviso’s outstanding players Brendan Williams and Marius Goosen in for late scores will have encouraged Leinster’s doubters.

Centre Goosen’s sole penalty was the Italians’ only hit of a one-sided first half, despite full-back Williams’ evident pace, as Leinster went about their business with an unerring professionalism.

It took just two minutes for the visitors’ try line to be breached. Guy Easterby’s fringe snipe and overhead pass sent Hickie scampering over in the left corner for his third try of the tournament.

Holwell’s conversion bounded back off an upright but the Kiwi, Europe’s leading scorer with 84 points in the five previous rounds, made amends when adding the extras to hooker Byrne’s 10th minute rumble over.

The Irish international began the forward move with a lineout dart to Malcolm O’Kelly and he burrowed over on first phase ball.

Goosen’s straight-on penalty dig sailed over on 21 minutes to reel it back to 12-3, but the contest was put beyond doubt as Horgan and D’Arcy rallied up Leinster’s bonus point inside 35 minutes.

The all-action Eric Miller set up clean ball on 26 minutes for 26-year-old Horgan to round Goosen from Holwell’s delayed pass.

D’Arcy outdid both Franco Smith and the unfortunate Williams as he set up a 26-3 half-time buffer for Kidney’s charges.

Ninety seconds into the second half, Brian O’Driscoll and Holwell combined to give Dempsey the momentum to power over. Then a suicidal cross-field kick inside his own 22 from Williams gifted Horgan his second.

Man-of-the-match Jennings scored the try of the night on 54 minutes as he finished off a brilliant D’Arcy-Holwell break, on the right wing.

Horgan, scoring his seventh try of the pool stages, and Jennings again shared late touchdowns with Williams and Goosen as Leinster deservedly took their foot off the gas, following an attacking master class.

Leinster’s final try tally for the pool came to a record-breaking 33.