Leinster claimed their place in the M Donnelly Interprovincial hurling final with a hard-fought 3-14 to 1-16 win over Munster at Nowlan Park on Sunday.
The Munster men outscored their hosts after the break, however the concession of three first half goals ultimately left them with too much to do as Leinster set up a final date with Connacht.
Leinster, with a glut of last year’s Kilkenny All-Ireland winners in their starting side, were fastest out of the traps and Brian Hogan pointed to give them an early lead.
Cork’s Patrick Cronin hit back for Munster, only for last year’s Hurler of the Year Michael Fennelly to bound through the middle and send a rasping shot to the back of the southern province’s net.
Tipperary’s Shane McGrath hit another Munster score over the bar, but Leinster shot clear as Offaly men Shane Dooley and Joe Bergin found their range and Richie Power also showed cool scoring prowess.
Clare’s John Conlon, impressive throughout on the way to 1-3 for Munster, got his first score of the day and there were also points for Patrick Horgan and John Gardiner. However, Richie Hogan quickly played in Bergin to ram a second Leinster goal home.
Conlon kept Munster in it, but Power dispatched a penalty to give Leinster a three-goal half-time lead – 3-8 to 0-8.
The Clare forward shot new life into the Munster challenge soon after the restart when he was picked out by Brendan Maher and fired beyond Gary Maguire for his side’s only goal. Gardiner also added another point but Kilkenny men Eoin Larkin and Richie Hogan kept Leinster at arms’ length.
Still Munster pressed and a glut of scores from the likes of Conlon, Patrick Donnellan and Michael Walsh took them within a point at one stage (3-10 to 1-5), only for Power, Dooley and Colin Fennelly to wrap up the win for the Cats-dominated hosts.