Round Five has now passed with some considerable fireworks, one of the main takeaways from the weekend being a number of standout performances in firing Irish provinces to the top of the Conferences.

Champions Leinster remain the only team with an unbeaten record after beating Dragons 50-15 at the RDS Arena to open up a five-point lead over Ulster in Conference A.

You can also download our app to keep all with Guinness PRO14 news by clicking HERE.

Meanwhile Munster and Connacht both claimed away victories over Cardiff Blues and Ospreys respectively, with the former leading the Conference B pack by a single point.

We’ve picked out seven individuals who played an influential role in their team’s results – these are our heroes of the weekend.

Byrne-ing up a heatwave

A grand total of 15 points on Friday night saw Leinster fly-half Harry Byrne give a strong account of his promise. Great with ball in hand, a try to boot and astute game management, Byrne controlled everything good on the night.

Byrne has been hotly-tipped for some time now and there’s plenty of excitement at seeing the 20-year-old develop, Leinster have an excellent batch of No.10 options.

Congratulations, @jamieheaslip!

Winner of the Special Merit Award at today's #WorldRugbyAwards! 🏆🙌 pic.twitter.com/hOyWakkfOY
— Leinster Rugby (@leinsterrugby) November 3, 2019

Pack in action

On his ninth Guinness PRO14 start, 24-year-old Kiran McDonald held the Glasgow Warriors pack together and their strength up front was integral to never giving the Isuzu Southern Kings an opportunity in the game.

Named man of the match for his performance, McDonald stood head and shoulders above his returning World Cup teammates as the most influential player on the pitch.

Marshalling the Kingspan

Ulster made it four wins out of five in the Guinness PRO14 as they downed Zebre 22-7 at Kingspan Stadium, an excellent start for Dan McFarland’s men that has supporters dreaming once again.

Centre Luke Marshall has been in fine form this season, scoring in Round 4 against Cardiff Blues, and continued to go from strength to strength against Zebre – controlling the back line and making dangerous line breaks when the opportunities arose.

Which of the 7️⃣ MOTMs was the stand-out in Round 5? 🌟@harrybyrne23 🔹@kiran_mcdonald 🛡@lukemarshall121 ⚪️@JoshMacleod1 🐉
Peter Robb 💚
Juan Ignacio Brex 🦁@JjHanrahan 🦌

Have a read then vote on the poll on the #GuinnessPRO14 app 📲 https://t.co/7G5meVWKm4 pic.twitter.com/3ebstvNrFG
— PRO14 RUGBY (@PRO14Official) November 4, 2019

Macleod Nine

Another man who has started the season on fire, no player won more penalties on the Parc y Scarlets pitch than the omnipresent Josh Macleod on Saturday, working tirelessly for his team at the breakdown to help engineer a pivotal 17-13 victory over the in-form Toyota Cheetahs.

It was the openside who won the decisive final penalty that led to the hosts’ margin of victory – just rewards for his effort and commitment throughout the game. There is plenty of talk around right now about just how good this 23-year-old can become, fuelled by performances like the weekends.

Every point counts.

After a narrow victory over @cheetahsrugby, MOTM and @scarletsrugby star @JoshMacleod1 reflects on the enthralling dynamic of the #GuinnessPRO14 🤩#SCAvCHE pic.twitter.com/Fsu6L3P5BZ
— PRO14 RUGBY (@PRO14Official) November 3, 2019

Ospreys get Robb-ed

Filling in for the injured Tiernan O’Halloran at full-back, Darragh Leader made plenty of yards when he carried, asking the Ospreys defence a myriad of questions.

But his teammate Peter Robb took the man of the match award for his performance at centre making 46 metres, drawing several defenders and scoring a try to help steer the Galway-based side to a hard-earned win.

Brex the man for Benetton

Benetton centre Juan Ignacio Brex was in the middle of much of the play in the hard-fought win over Edinburgh on Saturday.

The Buenos-Aires born centre is in fine form right now in the No.13 shirt, grabbing a try last week against the Kings and following it up with man of the match to help fire Benetton to successive wins.

So good they named him twice

JJ Hanrahan managed the game expertly in tricky conditions at Cardiff Arms Park, helping Munster to their impressive win on the road and top spot in Conference B.

Hanrahan dictated play perfectly to put Munster in the right places and broke through the lines on several occasions to set up a number of dangerous attacks.