Leinster will defend their Pro14 title against Munster on 27 March having secured their final berth by beating 14-man Ulster 38-19.

Michael Bent, Josh van der Flier and Ed Byrne replied for Leinster while Ulster had prop Andrew Warwick sent off.

Rhys Ruddock gave the visitors the crucial bonus point before Nick Timoney and Dan Sheehan traded late scores.

The result puts Leinster 11 points ahead of Ulster in Conference A with just two games remaining.

Leo Cullen's side are seeking their fourth straight league title, and will arrive into the final as favourites to continue their total dominance of the competition.

For Ulster, whose only two defeats in this season's competition have come at the hands of Leinster, it is another reminder of the steps still to be taken if they are to join their provincial rivals in the elite tier of European rugby.

The European Challenge Cup and the inaugural Rainbow Cup, both of which will be played in April, are now the northern province's remaining avenues to silverware this season.

Unflappable Leinster turn first-half tide

Although undoubtedly a pivotal moment that played into Leinster's hands, it should be noted that Warwick's 31st minute red card was not the game's turning point.

By the time the prop was dismissed for leading with his elbow, the reigning champions had already turned the tide on Ulster, who produced the start they would have dreamed of.

With Devin Toner in the sin-bin for a high tackle, Ulster pounced early and drove towards the line with Coetzee punching the final hole in the defence to announce his return to the side.

Another returning figure was wing Baloucoune, making his first start in 13 months and instantly producing the clinical finishing that has so quickly endeared him to the province's fans.

He fought off a challenge to finish in the corner after an outstanding Stuart McCloskey offload had allowed John Andrew to feed Baloucoune.

It was the perfect opening quarter for Ulster, made better by Leinster being reduced temporarily to 13 with Jimmy O'Brien yellow carded for making contact with Ian Madigan's head in the build up to the try.

Ulster had built up enough momentum to break the spirit of perhaps any other Pro14 side but Leinster, without their array of first team stars who remain with the Ireland squad, stuck to their gameplan in the knowledge that results would come.

Their first sustained spell of pressure saw Bent eventually crash over, and just three minutes later a smart Max O'Reilly break brought the visitors to within inches of the line again, with Stuart McCloskey sent to the sin-bin for illegally disrupting the move.

From the tap-and-go penalty Van der Flier crossed, and having been up against it, Leinster were ahead.

Warwick's red card followed and to compound Ulster's misery, Coetzee was forced from the field having picked up a hamstring injury.

Leinster were playing with momentum and confidence, Ulster were scrambling and could do little as their opponents created space out wide with Byrne extending their lead before the break.

Leinster claim all-important bonus-point

With 40 minutes left to salvage their campaign, Ulster's 14-men were in need of a moment of magic to spark the game back into life.

The hosts thought they had found it in the 50th minute when a strike play on halfway saw Baloucoune slalom through to score, but the effort was chalked off after McCloskey was judged to have obstructed a tackler as the wing sliced through.

It was another demoralising blow for the hosts, and a reprieve that immediately focussed Leinster minds once more.

Seven minutes later Ruddock drove over for the fourth try, to effectively deliver the knock-out blow that ended not only Saturday's contest, but the race for top spot in Conference A.

Ruddock was himself sin-binned shortly before Timoney put another Ulster score on the board and when Cormac Izuchukwu was shown the fifth yellow of the day, replacement hooker Sheehan added the final try of the game.

Ulster: Lowry; Baloucoune, Hume, McCloskey, Stockdale; Madigan, Cooney; O'Sullivan, Andrew, O'Toole; O'Connor, Treadwell; Timoney, Murphy, Coetzee.

Replacements: McBurney, Warwick, Moore, Izuchukwu, Reidy, Mathewson, Moore, Lyttle.

Leinster: O'Reilly; Kelleher, O'Brien, O'Loughlin, Kearney; R Byrne, McGrath; E Byrne, Tracy, Bent; Toner, Fardy; Ruddock, Van der Flier, Penny.

Replacements: Sheehan, Dooley, Clarkson, Molony, Murphy, R Osborne, J Osborne, Dunne.

Beating former Premiership and European champions Saracens is an "iconic moment" for Cornish Pirates, according to joint head coach Alan Paver.

Rhodri Davies' late score secured a famous win for the Pirates, who trailed three times.

"What an arm wrestle, what a game, what a special moment," Paver said.

Saracens were lacking their England contingent, including captain Owen Farrell, but still fielded a XV which had seven internationals boasting 165 Test caps between them.

Tries from Sean Maitland and Alex Lewington gave the north London club a 10-8 lead at the break, with Luke Scully kicking a penalty and Tom Duncan crossing in reply for the hosts.

Sarries director of rugby Mark McCall had said his side would "have a target on their backs" in their bid to win immediate promotion, and the visitors found themselves in a see-saw battle in Penzance.

The Pirates came storming back at the start of the second half, with hooker Dan Frost squeezing over and Scully converting to make it 15-10.

Tim Swinson muscled his way over and Manu Vunipola added the extras to edge Sarries ahead once more, but Scully's second penalty hauled the hosts 18-17 in front.

And, when the visitors let the ball bounce from a big up-and-under, Davies pounced to collect and scamper over with four minutes left to complete an unlikely win for the Pirates.

"The only thing it was missing was 5,000 Cornishmen shouting their heads off," Paver told BBC Radio Cornwall.

"But they were there in spirit, and I hope they can be proud of what we did."

In a truncated second-tier season, shortened because of the coronavirus pandemic, the 11 clubs will play the other 10 competing sides once in a bid to qualify for a two-leg promotion play-off between the top two.

Reaction - A 'standout moment' for Pirates

Cornish Pirates joint head coach Alan Paver:

"I am so pleased for the lads. It has been tough through the Covid [pandemic], but we said we were going to bring meaning to the rest of the season.

"I have got to say right through the board it was a massive effort.

"You can have British Lions in your team, you can be Bristol or London Irish - it doesn't matter. We are capable of beating anyone.

"It is a lovely standout moment, especially because of all the hype around it."

Saracens centre Juan Pablo Socino:

"Obviously we are really disappointed. It is not the result we wanted and, more importantly, not the performance we wanted.

"First game, we knew it was going to be tough.

"It is just one game. It is a short season and we just need to keep going.

"We let ourselves down a little bit with our performance but we move on to the next game."

Cornish Pirates: Holden; Wedlake, Parata, Tucker, O'Meara; Scully, Bruzulier; Walker, Frost, Tyack, Lemalu, Cutmore, Caulfield, Stevens, Duncan (capt).

Replacements: Andrew, Channon, Rodman, Bolwell, Kiri Kiri, Davies, Bazalgette, Wyatt.

Saracens: Obatoyinbo; Lewington, Taylor, Socino, Maitland; Manu Vunipola, Davies; Barrington, Pifeleti, Koch, Hunter-Hill, Swinson, Rhodes, Reffell, Wray (capt).

Replacements: Crean, Mawi, Clarey, Kpoku, Christie, Whiteley, Morris, Segun.

Referee: Sara Cox.

DILLSBURG, Pa. – Anthony Macri made some of the biggest strides in all of sprint car racing last year.

After two wins in 2019, the 21-year-old ballooned that mark to 11 in 2020, vaulting from tied for 171st nationally in victories to tied for eighth.

Externally, it was a breakthrough year for Macri. But internally he accomplished his goals: win 10 or more races, amass more than $150,000 in earnings, score an All Star Circuit of Champions win, and set fast time against the World of Outlaws.

Now, as the new season gets fully underway over the next two weeks in Central Pennsylvania, Macri is trying to maintain his upward trajectory and become a more complete racer.

“Last year, it was a big feat,” Macri said. “It puts even more weight on our shoulders to kind of duplicate what we did last year. We just have to keep working hard, stay to ourselves, and not have any outside distractions.”

What got Macri to this point has been his prowess on high-banked half miles, where an aggressive approach near the top of the track shines through.

The Dillsburg, Pa. native scored nine of his 11 wins last year on half-mile race tracks, with seven of those coming at Port Royal Speedway.

In the end, he had the same number of open-wheel victories as Brad Sweet, Brady Bacon, Chris Windom, and Tyler Courtney. He also came seven points shy of the Central Pennsylvania points title to Danny Dietrich.

What will get him to the next level, however, is a better understanding of short tracks like Lincoln Speedway and a sharpened focus.

Macri compiled an average finish of 10.3 in nine features at Lincoln Speedway last year and failed to qualify for the track’s two Pennsylvania Speedweek shows. He also let some races slip away because of a misplaced focus.

In last year’s Night Before the Tuscarora 50 at Port Royal Speedway, Macri admittedly raced Kyle Larson too hard for the win. Because Larson had set an extreme precedent for most of last year, Macri found himself racing overzealously.

By the end of the feature, Macri faded with a bald right-rear tire, while Lance Dewease won in tactical fashion.

“Staying focused is a big part of it,” Macri said. “Obviously I want to think about last year and how good we did but at the end of the day, last year is last year, and now this year is this year. I have to focus on what we need to do this year.”

This year, with Jimmy Shuttlesworth back as his crew chief, Macri knows there will be more eyes following him.

“There are way more eyes on me,” Macri said as his eyes widened. “And I try not to think about it when I’m at the races.

“When I’m not at the races, it’s pretty cool to have the following I’m getting with how young I am, to be known across the country, really,” he added. “All of that is pretty cool. But when we get to the races, it’s time to do work.”

As for personal goals, Macri wants to win at Lincoln Speedway, as well as Williams Grove Speedway in a 410, where he came close numerous times last year. A World of Outlaws win is also on Macri’s to-do list, something every PA Posse driver sets out to do yearly.

But last year, the Posse failed to beat the Outlaws for the first time since 1997, and Macri feels some of that responsibility.

“A little bit,” Macri said. “I’m kind of labeled as one of the main Posse drivers now. I feel like it’s kind of my job to keep the Outlaws from winning. It’s a little bit of pressure but you have to do your job.

“I’m not here to make friends,” he said. “I’m here to make money, really. This is my living. I’m going to be focused. If something’s not right, I’m going to point it out. It’s not just my ass on the line, it’s Jim’s ass on the line.

“This is our income. We have to do our jobs the best we can.”

PLACERVILLE, Calif. – Placerville Speedway will hear racing engines for the first time this year by hosting a test and tune on March 13 from Noon to 4 p.m.

Pit passes cost $25 for adults, $10 for minors ages four to 13 and $5 for infants/ toddlers up to age three.

Pit passes for the test and tune are available to pre-purchase via the Pit Pay Mobile Pit Pass App. To use Pit Pay, participants will download the app from the Apple App Store or Google Play and create a profile. They can then purchase passes for Placerville Speedway events, signing all waivers electronically. At the track, they will simply proceed to the Pit Pay Priority Line, show their mobile pit pass, and get an armband.

Please note the grandstands are closed to the public during the test and tune. The pit area will open at 11 a.m. For those that don’t have a smart phone you can still purchase pit passes the traditional way upon arrival to the speedway.

One week after that the Placerville Speedway is then slated to open its 56th season of competition on March 20. Divisions set to tackle the famed quarter-mile during the event will include the Thompson’s Family of Dealerships Winged 360 Sprint Cars, Limited Late Models, Pure Stocks and Mini Trucks.

Details on the regulations and protocols for the March 20 opener will be released as soon as possible.

NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- The Nashville Predators placed Matt Duchene on injured reserve Saturday with a lower-body injury that is expected to sideline the veteran center for three to five weeks.

Duchene becomes the fourth Nashville player placed on IR since Tuesday, when defenseman Ryan Ellis and forward Luke Kunin were ruled out. Goalie Juuse Saros went on injured reserve Thursday.

The Predators went into Saturday's game with Florida having lost two straight and in sixth place in the Central Division.

Duchene, 30, has eight points in 23 games this season along with a minus-11 rating. He is under contract with Nashville for $8 million a year through the 2025-26 season.

The Predators also called up forward Mathieu Olivier and defenseman Alexandre Carrier from the taxi squad. They reassigned Michael McCarron to the taxi squad and moved forward Tanner Jeannot to AHL Chicago from the taxi squad.

ORLANDO, Fla. – Tyrrell Hatton is used to being on the receiving end of a joke. And don't worry, he plays along well.

Whether it's from the European Tour social media team, who recently highlighted the often combustible Hatton in their Anger Management Training segments. Or his fellow Tour peers, including Rory McIlroy, who ribbed his playing competitor on Friday after Hatton chipped in on the 14th hole, one shot after he took his frustrations out on a tee marker.

And then there's this gem of a screenshot from Golf Twitter:

In the image, Hatton looks to be about halfway through a somersault or like he's just been thrown out of a moving car.

"Yeah, it looks like I've absolutely battered and I've kind of slipped and gone down like that," Hatton said, laughing. "That wasn't the case, I was just checking for mud."

Hatton further explained: "I've seen the picture. It's not flattering. I was actually checking for mud on the ball because there was actually quite a lot of mud on the sort of under side and to the left. So, yeah, I was just kind of trying to see how much mud like there was, because obviously that affects how the ball's going to fly."

Hatton, who opened his title defense at the Arnold Palmer Invitational with a 5-over 77, has since shot 67-66 to rocket up the leaderboard. With favorable and soft conditions on Saturday, Hatton doesn't expect to win, but he can't complain about the rally.

"The beer certainly tasted better," said Hatton, who enjoyed a few Hazy IPAs and some red wine on Friday night. "Obviously, you always sort of feel good going home when you've had a good finish to get through to the weekend. No one likes missing cuts, although we're all going to miss cuts throughout your career, it's just part of what we do. Yeah, so always good to finish strong and make the weekend.

"Thursday was a little bit of a low blow to start that way. But happy with how I've responded since."

ORLANDO, Fla. – As Jordan Spieth was getting off to a scorching start Saturday at Bay Hill, his playing competitor, Justin Rose, still hadn't gotten warmed up.

Rose began the third round at 5 under and just four shots off the lead at the Arnold Palmer Invitational, but he said he woke up Saturday morning with some back issues. As Spieth began his day birdie-ace and then orchestrated an unreal par save at the third hole, Rose was laboring.

The Englishman put three balls in the water at No. 3, made a quintuple-bogey 9 and then chose to withdraw before completing four holes.

"Disappointing to have to WD," Rose said. "It's been an exciting week, playing back in front of fans and, obviously, quite a visible WD playing with Jordan out there. ... Just kind of woke up with a bit in a sort of spasmmed lower back today and tried to kind of get through it. My warm-up was hard work, and I just couldn't stay down in a shot. I missed basically every golf shot left to start the day. Even my little chip into the fourth hole out of the rough from the lefthand side was creating pain.

"And with the eye on next week and what have you, I just felt like it was a prudent call, just to call it at that point. But I felt bad with Jordan having momentum to sort of change, change the vibe of the group."

Spieth will now play the rest of the round as a single.

ORLANDO, Fla. – Back in 1932, at Wrigley Field, during Game 3 of the World Series, George Herman Ruth supposedly called his shot, pointing to centerfield and hitting one of the most legendary home runs in baseball history.

Fast forward to now, and Bryson Aldrich DeChambeau, golf's modern-day version of the Sultan of Swat, had been trying to call his own shot. For months he vowed to drive the par-5 sixth green at Bay Hill Club and Lodge, a poke that would require at least a 345-yard carry and tons of courage.

On Saturday, he finally delivered on his promise – sort of.

For two days, DeChambeau took the conservative line at the 555-yard hole, declaring that the wind just wasn’t right. He had tried twice in a similar breeze during the practice round, coming up well short on both tries. Yet, when he arrived at the sixth hole and felt the fan blowing downwind, DeChambeau decided to give it go – not at the green, but at a still-mindboggling-aggressive line about 70 yards from the putting surface.

“Let the big dog eat!” shouted one fan in the sizeable gallery crowded around the tee box.

“C’mon, wind! Gimme a breeze!” yelled another.

Feeling the energy, DeChambeau stepped up to the plate, gave it a mighty lash and watched the ball sail over the water. With the ball still in the air, DeChambeau raised both arms in the air and pointed to the sky.

It wasn’t quite the show he had promised, but it was still pretty dang impressive.

Here are some of the numbers:

• Carry: 347 yards

• Total distance: 370 yards

• Clubhead speed: 137 mph

• Ball speed: 196 mph

• Smash factor: 1.43

• Launch angle: 11.9 degrees

• Apex: 124 feet

For the record: Those numbers are good enough to find the green, which could inspire DeChambeau to go all the way on Sunday.

Now, some people will contend that DeChambeau missed his green with his second shot, a pitch from the rough that ended up just short of the putting surface and left of the front bunker, but he did make an easy birdie, which isn’t always a guarantee on the unique, wraparound hole.

Jordan Spieth, who played the first two rounds alongside DeChambeau, joked that the only reason he played this week’s Arnold Palmer Invitational was to watch DeChambeau go for it at No. 6.

“It's a show. It's fun. It was really cool to watch,” Spieth said. “I nudged Michael half a dozen times the last two days, being like, ‘Watch this.’”

That was before Saturday. No, it wasn’t Ruth-like, but DeChambeau’s moonshot was well worth the price of admission.

And we still have one more round.

ORLANDO, Fla. – Jordan Spieth got off to a hot start Saturday at Bay Hill.

After sinking a 20-footer for birdie at the par-4 opening hole, Spieth dunked his tee shot from 223 yards at the par-3 second hole. The hole-in-one was Spieth’s third career ace on Tour, following aces at the 2013 Puerto Rico Open and 2015 BMW Championship at Conway Farms.

Spieth’s birdie-ace start moved him to 8 under, a shot off the lead at the Arnold Palmer Invitational.

He then hit his next shot, a tee ball at the par-4 third, into the water, but he rallied to save par by holing a 32-footer.

The fireworks continued on the next par 3, the 201-yard seventh. No ace this time, but a birdie courtesy a 71-foot bunker hole-out.

Spieth then grabbed sole possession of the lead with this 36-foot birdie putt at the par-4 10th.

Spieth would two-putt for birdie at the par-5 12th but that was the end of his scoring. He missed a 6-footer for par at the 14th and an 8-footer for par at the 17th to drop two shots coming in. He finished with a 4-under 68 and, at 9 under par, was two back of leader Lee Westwood.