Leinster 57 Gloucester 0
When the teams were announced on Thursday this - barring an unforeseen disaster - was destined to be a nice early Christmas present for Leinster.
So it proved, delivered with a nine-try bow on top and another big score after last week's demolition of Racing 92.
The only intrigue if and when would the faithful get to see Johnny Sexton back in blue after his calf injury, and on he came in the 60th minute to the biggest cheer of the night from the 15,469 attendance. The skipper had plenty of rust to shake off.
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The vast majority of those who braved the cold to visit the RDS Arena got what they were expecting, a bit of a festive party while watching their side run in a glut of tries in the Blues' last fixture before the URC clash at Munster on St Stephen's Day
Not a great look for the Champions Cup, of course, but it was Gloucester's call to field only two of the players who started the hard-earned win over Bordeaux-Bégles six days earlier and boss George Skivington had done the maths.
Why bother fielding a full strength side when, with a bumper set of seasonal fixtures to come, priorities lay elsewhere.
The decision was made that a strong Leinster side at home wasn't worth taking on with a first-choice side, not when last 16 qualification could perhaps still be achieved in the new year without any points accrued in Dublin.
Leo Cullen won't care, that's for sure. The province's head coach spoke on the eve of the game of his side's need to keep pace in the points race that this tournament has become, even if for the most part that race in the pool stages is against rivals Leinster won't play.
Gloucester will be a different proposition when the sides re-engage on January 14 - there should even be a hard edge to the Cherry and Whites, given the punishment dished out in Ballsbridge.
But Leinster can tuck into the Christmas dinner satisfied with a winning run of 11 games from the start of the season.
There was frustration, initially, for the head coach and his players. The opening try should have been chalked up in the fourth minute, after Andrew Porter won a penalty off the first scrum and Ross Byrne kicked into the visitors' 22.
Jimmy O'Brien linked well with James Lowe, Caelan Doris trucked it up to the tryline but O'Brien knocked on and the ball was kicked back down into Leinster territory and was scrambled clear, giving Gloucester's hopefuls some encouragement.
A Luke McGrath knock-on compounded the sluggish start but Gloucester lost their out-half George Barton to a HIA in the 11th minute and that was never going to help their cause.
The first try followed soon after off a scintillating counter. Doris plucked the ball up after Freddie Thomas had taken it into a ruck and the Mayo man hared downfield before launching a skip-pass to Lowe. The flying winger was unstoppable.
Josh van der Flier piled over off a trademark Blues' lineout maul in the 18th minute before Rónan Kelleher converted in a similar fashion five minute later. Unusually for him, Byrne only made one of the first three conversions.
Kelleher then had a try disallowed as his short line-out throw didn't go the requisite five metres.
But, with Gloucester's Henry Walker sent to the bin, the bonus point try followed on 39 minutes when patient play by Leinster's forwards resulted in James Ryan powering over.
And Kelleher was on hand just before the break for his second touchdown, stealing in behind the visitor's cover after another effective lineout maul. Byrne's conversions made it 31-0 at the break.
It was more of the same from the restart. Lowe came close to his second try before Luke McGrath bobbed and weaved his way in all too easily.
The scoreboard kept ticking as both sides made changes. A flowing move saw Lowe tap down in the 54th minute for his second of the night, Byrne adding the extras before Sexton replaced him.
Ironically, the skipper's presence couldn't prevent Gloucester enjoying a rare attacking spell that was broken by Joe McCarthy's lung-busting run upfield. Jordan Larmour squeezed in at the corner as the 50 point mark was hit, though Sexton mis-kicked the conversion.
The unfortunate visitors were denied as Sexton got underneath wing Jake Morris to prevent even a scant consolation and man of the match Doris, just back on the field after a HIA grabbed the final try.
True to form, Sexton nailed his second and last conversion attempt, bringing an end to Gloucester's misery.
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