Kearney dazzled for the visitors in a game where Benetton’s pack sought to continually frustrate the champions, but the Irishman’s trio of tries combined with Ross Byrne’s 12 point haul and an early Adam Byrne score was enough to suppress the Italian side’s chances.

Running riot at the RDS

Such close margins were not so visible as Leinster made their return to the fortress-resembling RDS, however. Cullen’s players romped to 93 points in the space of two rounds, seeing off a deflated Ospreys 53-5 and then Edinburgh 40-14 to continue their early hegemony.

There were 11 different try-scorers in the pair of emphatic triumphs, with Ronan Kelleher making it two Leinster hat-tricks in the opening two games as he helped his team romp past Ospreys and become just the fourth hooker to score a Guinness PRO14 trio.

And such a free-flowing, fluent display was similarly on show when Richard Cockerill’s men came to town the following week, as Jamison Gibson-Park, Michael Bent, Caelan Doris, Scott Penny, Michael Milne and Rowan Osborne all dotted down to send them back to Scotland in misery.

A fantastic moment as @RowanOsborne scores his first #LeinsterRugby try!

This is what these RDS nights are all about!#LEIvEDI #RDSMoments pic.twitter.com/qsZZJ4HiaW
— Leinster Rugby (@leinsterrugby) October 11, 2019

It may have only been Round 3, but Leinster were sending out a resounding statement of intent in the competition’s embryonic stages.

Zebre resistance not enough to stop the charge

Back to Italy Cullen and his players went this weekend, travelling to Parma for another early test of their away day credentials.

And it was once again a task they were able to handle competently, encountering a staunch and steadfast opponent in Michael Bradley’s Zebre but Byrne’s first half penalty kicking them to yet another victory.

A hard-fought battle in Parma ends with another @leinsterrugby victory 👊

They held off a spirited @ZebreRugby performance to edge it out 3-0 ⚔️

A sign of champions grinding out the win?? 👀#GuinnessPRO14 #ZEBvLEI pic.twitter.com/1T0mtFnypj
— PRO14 RUGBY (@PRO14Official) October 26, 2019

As Cheetahs and Scarlets both failed to overcome the respective threats of Connacht and Edinburgh in Round Four, that meant Leinster now sit as the Guinness PRO14’s solitary unbeaten side, claiming four wins from four in what has been a thunderous start to the season.

And, with their Irish contingent’s return after international duty now imminent, it is difficult to look past Cullen’s men as the team to beat in this pulsating and unfolding Guinness PRO14 season.