Even the die-hard Munster fan must admit that the Leinster back-line is something special to behold.

Last Friday I was in Donnybrook for the Celtic Magners League game against the Ospreys . Leinster put in a poor performance, never getting out of second gear.

After conceding a really early try you might wonder about their resolution… then Kearney , try. O’Driscoll , try. Half-time respite for the Ospreys, then… Hickey , try. Kearney, try (magic). O’Driscoll, try. All within 9 minutes. Back off the gas, make a few substitutions.

Up in the stand we wave goodbye to the nice fellows from Swansea who were sitting in front of us. Subs caused lack of concentration, concede 2 tries – panic? Hell no, let’s score a few more. Only got the one more for Gleeson and beaten by the final whistle in the search for their seventh try. Final score: 45-22. Awesome , in the true “shock and awe” sense of the word.

Fast forward to today’s bitter cold and windswept Donnybrook and a Heineken Cup visit from Edinburgh . A guaranteed place in the next round at stake. A strong Edinburgh team visiting. A capacity 6,400 stadium (!).

4th minute: Kearney, try. Period of good Edinburgh pressure but not converted to points. 21st minute: Phillipe “Dr. Phil” Contepomi , try. Lovely play from the Edinburgh back-line to put Southwell in, try! Couple of penalties from ” The Doctor “.

After the break, an inattentive pass from Leinster disappointingly gives Cairns a score in the corner after some good pressure from the Cappuccino Cowboys. Not to worry – Horgan try. From their 10m line, Keogh , try. Horgan, try. Horgan, try (the hat-trick). Contepomi man of the match with a try, 5 conversions and 3 penalties (, but D’Arcy was up there with some scintillating breaks. Final score: 49-10

A poor Leinster performance , nothing convincing on display.