James Lowe helped himself to four tries and Robbie Henshaw bagged a double; Leinster await the winners of the Leicester-Clermont Auvergne tie in the quarter-finals; Sale Sharks also progress in Champions Cup after thrilling 35-29 over Bristol at Ashton Gate
Sunday 17 April 2022 16:41, UK
Leinster blew Connacht away with a 56-20 win at the Aviva Stadium - winning 82-41 on aggregate - to set up a likely Heineken Champions Cup quarter-final trip to Leicester Tigers.
James Lowe helped himself to four tries and Robbie Henshaw bagged two, leaving Leo Cullen's men to await the winners of the Leicester-Clermont Auvergne tie.
Jamison Gibson-Park, who had his citing for a high tackle from the first leg dismissed, started the try-scoring as Leinster ruthlessly opened up a 28-3 half-time lead.
Connacht captain Jack Carty's early penalty was cancelled out by converted scores from Gibson-Park, Henshaw, Tadhg Furlong and Lowe, the latter one coming after Bundee Aki's sin-binning.
The blue hordes in a 32,604-strong crowd had a Good Friday to remember, with Henshaw and Lowe, the Heineken star-of-the-match, crisply adding to their tallies.
Despite a Jack Aungier yellow card, a gallant Connacht salvaged some pride with second-half tries from Tiernan O'Halloran, Sam Arnold and Abraham Papali'i.
The visitors immediately ate into their five-point deficit from last week's game. Cian Prendergast was quickest to the breakdown and Carty knocked over the penalty.
The Connacht fly-half frustratingly pulled a penalty wide soon after, and Leinster duly thundered clear in the 10th minute.
Sale Sharks overcame wing Arron Reed's first-half red card to reach the Champions Cup quarter-finals for a second successive season, beating Bristol 35-29 at Ashton Gate.
The thrilling win ensured that Sale, who lost by a single point on home soil last weekend, emerged with a 44-39 aggregate victory.
Reed was sent off for a shoulder-led challenge to the head of his opposite number Luke Morahan six minutes before the break, and Sale played part of the second half with 13 men following prop Nick Schonert's sin-binning.
Bristol scored 14 points while Sale were two players down as they tried to erase a 24-3 deficit, which they eventually managed in a rollercoaster encounter before the Sharks closed out the game magnificently.
The Sharks now look set to face French heavyweights Racing 92 in next month's quarter-finals.
Tries from Sale lock Lood de Jager, hooker Akker van der Merwe and fit-again wing Tom Roebuck rocked Bristol early on.
The Bears hit back with tries from Morahan, replacement hooker Harry Thacker and captain Joe Joyce, while Sheedy booted a penalty and three conversions, but Sale fly-half Robert du Preez finished with three conversions and three penalties as he landed decisive 63rd- and 73rd-minute strikes before Jono Ross' decisive try. Morahan's late second was in vain.
Bristol's season is now effectively over, as they languish 10th in the Gallagher Premiership with no chance of making the play-offs and trailing badly in the European Cup qualification race for next term.
