Leinster produced a stunning response to Cian Healy’s first-half sending-off as captain Garry Ringrose’s classy second-half brace inspired a 38-29 bonus-point win over Ulster at the RDS.
Leo Cullen’s men trailed by 19 points at one stage, with tries from Rob Herring, Kieran Treadwell and Ethan McIlroy punishing Healy’s head-on-head tackle on Tom Stewart in the 20th minute.
However, with Ronan Kelleher reducing the deficit to 22-10 by half-time, the BKT United Rugby Championship leaders somehow cruised to their ninth straight victory thanks to scores from Ringrose (two), Andrew Porter and James Lowe.
It was a huge missed opportunity for the Ulstermen, who had tasted victory here last year. They lost both James Hume and Nick Timoney to the sin bin, but gained a late bonus point through replacement Sam Carter.