Joey Carbery thrills on European debut as Leinster claim bonus win

Leinster 33 Castres 15

Flare is a brief burst of flame, burning brightly with sudden intensity. Also known as Joey Carbery’s European debut.

76th minute: flash of orange boots goes 22 to 22 in 11 seconds. Ross Molony whips a pass to the new Leinster outhalf. Mini-goose step fixes the defence before Carbery's footwork humiliates Castres sub hooker Brice Mach, sprinting to halfway with ball in two hands, he stalls, drawing the cover, before feeding Jamison Gibson-Park.

The attack falters when Robbie Henshaw's looping skip pass over Dan Leavy to Garry Ringrose is judged forward.

Look at those names. They are Leinster rugby today.

Pause in play allows the BT Sport director to earn a crust. Big screen shows Johnny Sexton who, perhaps realising history is repeating itself, smiles as this poor enough 13,890 crowd goes wild. Screen flicks back to Carbery sucking air. Crowd goes wilder.

Still some way to go before this 20 year, part of Leinster’s Academy system since 2014, reels in the 31 year old master.

But still, a lovely narrative, of which Leo Cullen took the briefest glance: "I thought Joey acquitted himself well. He's coming into the team this year - made his debut last season - and he's come in in pre-season and had a really good run of games early in the Pro 12.

“He’s getting better all the time, he works incredibly hard. He’s a pleasure to coach, because you can see the energy he brings. He’s a brave player and I thought he went well, similar to what he’s done this season. It wasn’t a great surprise, but we were just delighted that it’s another positive experience for him because he works hard and wants to get better.”

No hope the boy wonder - who journeyed to now from Auckland via Athy RFC, Blackrock College, UCD and Clontarf - would be put before the media afterwards. Shame because Carbery is the story right now, Carbery sells tickets, and he has to be an intelligent young man. You can see it by the way he moves.

Instead, South Africa’s French international scrumhalf Rory Kockott was asked about him.

“What position?”

Joey Carbery, number ten?

“Number ten...”

Orange boots.

“I didn’t follow him but certainly the last 20, 30 minutes sped up a lot. Found the ball moving a lot so maybe that’s a sign he was pushing. Can’t comment much if I don’t notice him a hell of a lot.

“Although the ten at the end took a few gaps. Was that him?”

Yes.

“He made a few yards. I’d say he enjoyed playing behind a strong Leinster pack.”

Some European introduction nonetheless: smooth distribution, plenty off-the-cuff play and sublime line kicking. All behind a power surging eight where Cullen now has a serious amount of backrow options while Connacht and Ulster naturalise kiwi upon kiwi flankers. Sean O’Brien made his long awaited return for the A team in Richmond and incumbent Ireland openside Jordi Murphy was sitting beside Sexton in the stand as Josh van der Flier took flight.

Sexton may or may not recover from a grade one hamstring injury for Montpellier next weekend but Isa Nacewa was kicking the goals against a French side unsurprisingly on the periphery of the Top 14 relegation zone.

Otherwise outstanding, Nacewa’s was the usual return from a part-time marksman, employed to allow Carbery focus on what he does better than anyone else in Ireland.

“Isa’s the captain and he just said ‘I’m kicking’, hard to argue with that really,” Cullen said ending that line of questioning for now.

But Carbery’s natural fluidity as the ball slides off his fingertips allowed Ringrose - remember him? - puncture two early holes in the Castres defence.

It took eight minutes for Sean Cronin to pilot over try number one.

Carbery put Ringrose through a gap and his offload saw Henshaw subtly change direction to seemingly release Nacewa. A foot in touch gave Castres an exit route but here began the dominant Leinster lineout maul. Nacewa missed the conversion to go with an earlier penalty.

Another flash of Carbery’s vision came on 12 minutes when he intercepted Alex Tulou’s offload, fumbling it backwards to deny himself a wonder try but he at least secured a valuable turnover.

Ringrose's next gliding break and offload for Rob Kearney, after Carbery directed the attack short side off a scrum, came to nothing when Jack McGrath knocked on after multiple frenetic phases.

But it was one way traffic.

Cronin was on the war path, tearing off a fractured maul, nimbly stepping outhalf Benjamin Urdapilleta before spinning and reaching for his second try. Nacewa converted, 12-0 with 25 minutes played, and Castres looked disinterested.

A day for the frontrow, 100 cap man Jack McGrath powered over on 32 minutes, thanks to Tadhg Furlong’s heavy load behind him, as Leinster’s maul could lay claim to a third try.

But any thoughts of an easy afternoon disappeared when Matthew Carley ran under the posts and sent Luke McGrath to the sin bin for "going in from the side" as Castres turned to their own lineout drive into points. Urdapilleta, who scuffed an earlier penalty, chipped over the conversion to make it 19-10 at the turn.

Nacewa played scrumhalf for 10 minutes after half-time. It went well.

The bonus point was secured when the Fijian leaped through a ruck and held off the last defender for a score any nine would love.

That was the game, Leinster continued to out-muscle their visitors, bringing their scrum penalty count up to six as Mike Ross replaced the hamstrung Furlong. The sixth penalty prompted Carley to trot under the uprights again.

Even considering the Sexton, Furlong and Rhys Ruddock (calf) injuries, Cullen takes plenty of positives to Montpellier (who lost 16-14 in Northampton); Leavy’s growing presence, O’Brien’s return, the imminent Ireland centre partnership and of course the new kid.

Maybe, like Kockott, we won’t remember Joey Carbery’s European debut at all. Maybe it will be swallowed whole by the days that follow.

Scoring sequence – 8 mins: S Cronin try, 5-0; 25 mins: S Cronin try, 10-0; I Nacewa con, 12-0; B Urdapilleta pen, 12-3; 32 mins: J McGrath try, 17-3; I Nacewa con, 19-3; 39 mins: Pen try, 19-8; B Urdapilleta con, 19-10. Half-time. 47 mins: I Nacewa try, 24-10; I Nacewa con, 26-10; 64 mins: pen try, 31-10; I Nacewa con, 33-10; 68 mins: A Jelonch try, 33-15.

LEINSTER: R Kearney; Z Kirchner, G Ringrose, R Henshaw, I Nacewa (capt); J Carbery, L McGrath; J McGrath, S Cronin, T Furlong; D Toner, I Nagle; R Ruddock, J van der Flier, J Heaslip.

Replacements: M Ross for T Furlong (38 mins, inj), D Leavy for R Ruddock (49 mins, inj), C Healy for J McGrath, J Tracy for S Cronin (52 mins), Jamieson Gibson-Park for L McGrath, R Molony for I Nagle (both 58 mins), N Reid for I Nacewa (67 mins), C Marsh for R Kearney (70 mins).

CASTRES: G Palis; R Grosso, T Combezou, R Ebersohn, D Smith; B Urdapilleta, A Dupont; A Tichit, J Jenneker, D Kotze; V Moreaux, R Cap Ortega (capt); M Babillot, S Mafi, A Tulou.

Replacements: B Mach for J Jenneker (19-25 mins, blood and 38 mins), M Lazar for A Tichit (51 mins), R Kockott for A Dupont, T Lassalle for R Cap Ortega (both 53 mins), D Tussac for D Kotze, A Jelonch for V Moreaux (both 59 mins), F Vialelle for R Ebersohn (66 mins), M Javaux for B Urdapilleta (70 mins).

Referee: Matthew Carley (England).