Gerry Thornley: Leinster’s success masking alarming fault lines which have emerged in Irish rugby

On the surface, all seems hunky dory.

The Ireland men’s team are ranked third in the world, the ever-improving women’s side are ranked fifth and Leinster are one more home semi-final win away from becoming the first side ever to reach four successive Champions Cup finals.

Scratch underneath, though, and the gap between Leinster and the other three provinces has never been bigger, nor more alarming.

For sure, there is nothing particularly new in Leinster being the last Irish team standing in Europe. They have been the only Irish team in the semi-final stages of the Champions Cup for six seasons in a row now, while Ulster haven’t been in a final for 13 years and Munster for 17 seasons.

However, it’s not just that the other three provinces are so far away from dining at European rugby’s top table, it’s that there is no sign of this changing any time soon.

Furthermore, take the URC, a competition which the Irish teams used ...
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