Much changed Leinster return to winning ways in style against Zebre Parma

It was a night when no fewer than six Leinster players made their debuts.

Sat, 25 Oct, 2025 - 19:59

Daire Walsh, Aviva Stadium

LEINSTER 50 ZEBRE PARMA 26

Despite facing a stubborn resistance from Zebre Parma in the opening 40 minutes of the action, an experimental Leinster side returned to winning ways in the United Rugby Championship this evening with a bonus point triumph over Zebre Parma at the Aviva Stadium.

On a night when no fewer than six Leinster players made their debuts, Joshua Kenny marked his first start for the province by touching down in fine style with just 70 seconds gone on the clock.

This bright opening from the hosts continued when Alex Soroka (a late addition to the starting line-up) crossed over via an Andrew Osborne offload, before Zebre came roaring into contention when Mirko Belloni applied the finishing touches in the right-corner to a crossfield delivery from scrum-half Thomas Dominguez.

After opposition winger Albert Einstein Batista spilled possession on the left-flank moments later, the highly-motivated Soroka gobbled up the loose ball and raced over the whitewash for his second try of the game.

This helped Leinster to reinforce their authority and even though Dominguez secured a second Zebre try off a ‘tap and go’ penalty just shy of the first-quarter mark, Leo Cullen’s men subsequently sealed a bonus point when Kenny joined Soroka in registering a brace of opening period scores.

RG Snyman scores his side's seventh try. Pic: Seb Daly/Sportsfile.

A Leinster victory was far from certain at this stage, however, and the home team suffered a set-back when Osborne retrospectively received a 20-minute red card for tackling Zebre full-back Lorenzo Pani in the air.

The visitors also finished the first half with 14 players after a Dominguez challenge on James Culhane warranted a yellow card and an off-field review, but an earlier converted try from Giovanni Quattrini off a line-out maul meant Leinster’s lead stood at just five points (26-21) during the interval.

It was revealed on the resumption by referee Ian Kenny (an Irish native that represents the Scottish Rugby Union) that Dominguez’s instance of foul play was also being upgraded to a 20-minute red card. This was a welcome boost for Leinster and despite team skipper Luke McGrath having a try ruled out for a knock-on, loosehead prop Jerry Cahir celebrated his professional debut by powering over underneath a slew of bodies for a 48th minute try.

Before being named player of the match for the second time this month in the URC, the aforementioned Byrne found space on the left-wing to break over for a five-pointer that he also converted on 55 minutes.

This provided Leinster with some much-needed breathing space moving into the final-quarter and with two-time World Cup winner RG Snyman getting on the end of a fine team move for their seventh try on 68 minutes, the defending champions were well on their way towards a maximum haul of five points.

Marco Zanon crossed over at the end of a fast-paced move to ensure Zebre came away with a richly-deserved bonus point from this fixture, but Leinster did have the final say when Will Connors touched down under pressure with just over three minutes of normal time remaining.

Scorers for Leinster

Tries: A Soroka 2, J Kenny 2, J Cahir, H Byrne, RG Snyman, W Connors.

Cons: H Byrne 5.

Scorers for Zebre Parma

Tries: M Belloni, T Dominguez, G Quattrini, M Zanon.

Cons: G Da Re 3.

LEINSTER: H McLaughlin; J Kenny (F Gunne 59), H Cooney, C Tector, A Osborne (C Mangan 50 for red card); H Byrne (C Gabriel 75), L McGrath; J Cahir (A Usanov 65), J McKee (B Sheehan 61), R Slimani (A Sparrow 66); B Deeny (RG Snyman 43), D Mangan (B Deeny 57-69); A Soroka, S Penny, J Culhane (W Connors 37).

ZEBRE PARMA: L Pani (L Morisi 65); M Belloni (M Roger Farias 45), G Bertaccini, M Zanon, A Einstein Batista; G Da Re, T Dominguez (M Prinsloo 57 for red card); M Hasa (M Gallorini 61), G Quattrini (T Di Bartolomeo 44), M Nocera (P Buonfiglio h-t); F Carrera (G Milano 65-80), L Krumov; G Ferrari (G Licata 59), S Locatelli, D Odiase.

Referee: I Kenny (SRU).