Leinster end Munster's reign

Leinster set up a Magners League Grand Final showdown with the Ospreys thanks to a 16-6 victory over Munster at the RDS.

Rob Kearney scored the only try of the contest, while the fit-again Jonathan Sexton kicked 11 points for the regular season table-toppers.

Munster did their best to try and maintain their grip on the title, Ronan O'Gara kicking all their points through a first-half penalty and a drop goal straight after the break.

However the reigning champions couldn't prevent themselves from slipping to a fourth straight loss to their fierce rivals.

Blistering spell

In the end Leinster ran out winners thanks to a blistering 15-minute spell that saw them score 13 points, including Kearney's try.

The opening 40 minutes had finished at three apiece that also saw the home side briefly reduced to 14 men when Shane Horgan was sin-binned.

Having seen Sexton, who was making his return from a broken jaw, miss an early penalty, the Ireland winger was yellow carded for a tackle on an airborne Niall Ronan.

Despite the numerical deficit, Leinster still managed to take the lead in the 18th minute when Sexton punished Tomas O'Leary for straying offside.

Paul Warwick had a drop goal hit the crossbar, before Munster got off the mark in the 29th minute through the boot of stand-in skipper O'Gara, who was filling in as captain for the injured Paul O'Connell.

It took just ten seconds of the second half for the visitors to forge ahead, O'Gara accepting a quick pass from Ronan to knock over a drop goal for an all-too-brief advantage.

But from then on Leinster simply stepped up a level. Led by the superb Jamie Heaslip, they seized control to give themselves a comfortable cushion.

Slick move

A slick back-line move led to Kearney making the breakthrough in the 44th minute, Sexton adding the conversion having set up his full-back with a perfectly-timed pass.

The number 10 added a terrific conversion for a 10-6 scoreline and the margin was extended further when Marcus Horan had a penalty reversed against him for punching and Sexton landed the resulting kick.

O'Gara missed a penalty before his half-back partner O'Leary was fortunate to avoid a yellow card in the 56th minute for a high shot on Cian Healy which prevented a certain try for the Leinster prop.

Sexton slotted over the resulting penalty and from then on relied on their tireless efforts in defence and dominant scrum to keep their opponents at bay.

Leinster's reward is home advantage in the final against the Ospreys on May 29 - a match that could see coach Michael Cheika get a title-winning send-off before he heads to Stade Francais next season.