2008–09 Leinster Rugby season

The 2008–09 Leinster Rugby season was Leinster's eighth competing in the Celtic League alongside which they competed in the 2008–09 Heineken Cup. Though Leinster were ultimately to lose their Celtic League crown to rivals Munster, they were to cap a great year for Irish rugby with their victory over the Leicester Tigers in the Heineken Cup Final at Murrayfield.[1]

Squad

Note: Flags indicate national union as has been defined under WR eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-WR nationality.

Player Position Union
John Fogarty Hooker Ireland
Bernard Jackman Hooker Ireland
Cian Healy Prop Ireland
Ronan McCormack Prop Ireland
CJ van der Linde Prop South Africa
Stan Wright Prop Cook Islands
Leo Cullen (c) Lock Ireland
Trevor Hogan Lock Ireland
Malcolm O'Kelly Lock Ireland
Cameron Jowitt Lock New Zealand
Devin Toner Lock Ireland
Rocky Elsom Flanker Australia
Shane Jennings Flanker Ireland
Kevin McLaughlin Flanker Ireland
Seán O'Brien Flanker Ireland
Jamie Heaslip Number 8 Ireland
Stephen Keogh Number 8 Ireland
Player Position Union
Chris Keane Scrum-half Ireland
Paul O'Donohoe Scrum-half Ireland
Chris Whitaker Scrum-half Australia
Felipe Contepomi Fly-half Argentina
Jonathan Sexton Fly-half Ireland
Gordon D'Arcy Centre Ireland
Fergus McFadden Centre Ireland
Brian O'Driscoll Centre Ireland
Luke Fitzgerald Wing Ireland
Shane Horgan Wing Ireland
Simon Keogh Wing Ireland
Isa Nacewa Wing Fiji
Girvan Dempsey Fullback Ireland
Rob Kearney Fullback Ireland
Felix Jones Fullback Ireland

Match Attendance

Leinster's average Celtic League attendance was 14,728, up 415 on the 2007-08 season.[2]

Leinster's Heineken Cup semi final against Munster, held in Croke Park set the record for the highest attendance in club rugby history at over 82,000.[3]

2008–09 Celtic League Fixtures
DateHome TeamScoreAway TeamScoreVenue
5 September 2008 Cardiff Blues16 Leinster16Cardiff Arms Park, Cardiff
12 September 2008 Leinster52 Edinburgh Rugby6RDS Arena, Dublin
19 September 2008 Leinster19 Ospreys13RDS Arena, Dublin
28 September 2008 Leinster0 Munster18RDS Arena, Dublin
5 October 2008 Connacht19 Leinster18Sportsgrounds, Galway
24 October 2008 Glasgow Warriors15 Leinster12Firhill, Glasgow
29 November 2008 Leinster29 Newport Gwent Dragons13RDS Arena, Dublin
27 December 2008 Ulster13 Leinster21Ravenhill, Belfast
2 January 2009 Leinster26 Connacht18RDS Arena, Dublin
10 January 2009 Leinster21 Cardiff Blues20RDS Arena, Dublin
21 February 2009 Scarlets17 Leinster31Parc y Scarlets, Llanelli
6 March 2009 Ospreys8 Leinster13Liberty Stadium
29 March 2009 Leinster32 Ulster6RDS Arena, Dublin
4 April 2009 Munster22 Leinster5Thomond Park, Limerick
17 April 2009 Edinburgh Rugby27 Leinster16Murrayfield, Edinburgh
25 April 2009 Leinster36 Glasgow Warriors13RDS Arena, Dublin
8 May 2009 Leinster45 Scarlets8RDS Arena, Dublin
16 May 2009 Newport Gwent Dragons18 Leinster9Rodney Parade, Newport

League Table
Team Pld W D L PF PA PD TF TA Try bonus Losing bonus Pts
1Munster 181404405257+14849236163
2Edinburgh 181107416296+12040306555
3Leinster 181116401270+13138204252
4Ospreys 181107397319+7839283552
5Scarlets 18909376395−1941463140
6Cardiff Blues 18819322361−3931362238
7Glasgow Warriors 187011349375−2636414537
8Ulster 187011298331−3330332636
9Newport Gwent Dragons 187011305429−12426391433
10Connacht 184014224460−23620541320
Correct as of 13 May 2009 MagnersLeague.com

2008/09 Heineken Cup Fixtures/Results
Round Date Home Team Score Away Team Score Venue
Round 1 11 October 2008 Edinburgh 16 Leinster 27 Murrayfield, Edinburgh
Round 2 17 October 2008 Leinster 41 Wasps 11 RDS Arena, Dublin
Round 3 6 December 2008 Leinster 33 Castres 3 RDS Arena, Dublin
Round 4 12 December 2008 Castres 18 Leinster 15 Stade Pierre-Antoine, Castres
Round 5 17 January 2009 Wasps 19 Leinster 12 Twickenham, London
Round 6 25 January 2009 Leinster 12 Edinburgh 3 RDS Arena, Dublin
Quarter-Final 12 April 2009 Harlequins 5 Leinster 6 The Stoop, London (Report)
Semi-Final 2 May 2009 Munster 6 Leinster 25 Croke Park, Dublin (Report)
Final 23 May 2009 Leicester 16 Leinster 19 Murrayfield, Edinburgh (Report)

Pool Table
Team Pld W D L TF PF PA +/− BP Pts
Leinster (6) 64021514070+70420
Wasps 64029114112+2117
Edinburgh 6204891103−1219
Castres 6204673133−6019

Knock-out stages
 
Quarter-finalsSemi-finalsFinal
 
          
 
11 April – Millennium Stadium
 
 
 Cardiff Blues9
 
3 May – Millennium Stadium
 
 Toulouse6
 
 Cardiff Blues26 (6)
 
11 April – Walkers Stadium
 
 Leicester Tigers (p)26 (7)
 
 Leicester Tigers20
 
23 May – Murrayfield
 
 Bath15
 
 Leicester Tigers16
 
12 April – Thomond Park
 
 Leinster19
 
 Munster43
 
2 May – Croke Park
 
 Ospreys9
 
 Munster6
 
12 April – Twickenham Stoop
 
 Leinster25
 
 Harlequins5
 
 
 Leinster6
 
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See also

References
  1. "European Rugby Cup : Leicester Tigers v Leinster". Archived from the original on 2009-07-24. Retrieved 2009-06-23.
  2. "Magners League : Match Centre : Match Centre". Archived from the original on 2009-07-24. Retrieved 2009-06-23.
  3. Graham Jenkins. "Rugby Union | Heineken Cup | Rugby Match Pack | Leinster stun Munster to book final berth | Scrum.com". Archived from the original on 2009-07-24. Retrieved 2009-06-23.
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