Celtic League / Leinster 8 Munster 15: A pulsating contest, before a raucous capacity crowd, with the only incident to mar a wonderful evening's entertainment at Donnybrook a torn bicep suffered by Rob Henderson, an injury that looks like finishing any chances he had of going to Australia.
Munster's greater composure, the ability of the experienced Alan Quinlan, Anthony Foley, and the outstanding Jim Williams to play the percentages allowed them to emerge victorious. Donncha O'Callaghan was a towering presence, Leo Cullen no less hard working for Leinster.
It was an emotional occasion for Frankie Sheahan, the gesture of leading the Munster team out leading to a shy acknowledgement of the warm applause. The rustiness of two month's inactivity can not be scraped away in an evening, however. In mitigation, only two of the four early lineouts Munster lost might be laid at his door.
Given the ancillary objectives for several individuals in terms of World Cup aspirations and watched by Ireland team manager Brian O'Brien and forwards' coach Niall O'Donovan there was no shortage of commitment.
The only incident that threatened the borderline shoeing and grappling was a couple of swinging forearms from Mike Mullins on Brendan Burke but that was nondescript compared to the Jason Jones Hughes - a replacement for the injured Henderson - late, high, shoulder lunge that caught Burke in the face.
The officials saw nothing untoward but that was pretty much their stance on most of the opening 40 minutes. Burke had given his side the lead on six minutes with a cracking try.
Gordon D'Arcy made the initial thrust and when the ball was recycled Matt Leek's long pass was flicked on by Des Dillon with Keith Gleeson putting Burke over in the corner. The Barnhall wing, winning only his second cap, settled impressively. Leek hit the post with the conversion.
Munster not only coped with the setback of conceding the try but the loss of Henderson and Jason Holland, who hadn't looked fit from the start. Killian Keane came on to replace the Munster outhalf.
Leinster were winning enough possession but Leek's distribution and punting were ragged at times. The home side looked the more dangerous side behind the scrum, manifest in the strong running of Christian Warner, D'Arcy, Burke and Kieran Lewis.
Munster's pack continued to edge the contest, everywhere but the lineout - Cullen, Ben Gissing and Dillon were edging that facet of play - and took the lead on 50 minutes after a concerted series of drives saw Leinster concede a penalty in their own 22.
Staunton landed from 22 metres. Munster were more conservative in their patterns but certainly not ineffective but Leinster on going behind discovered their appetite for the grind. Disrupting yet another Munster throw deep inside the visitors' 22, Denis Hickie hit Dillon from the ensuing lineout and Munster conceded the penalty. Leek screwed the ball wide from 22 metres.
O'Callaghan got himself on the wrong side of a ruck minutes later but pinned there didn't deserve the shoeing he received and Cullen was fortunate not to see yellow.
On the intervention of the touch judge, D'Arcy was the one spoken to and Staunton exacted maximum retribution with the penalty to push Munster 9-5 ahead. Leinster's replacement prop Niall Treston was penalised at a scrum on 67 minutes and the deficit became seven points for the home side, Staunton striking superbly from long range.
Leek was withdrawn, John McWeeney went to the right wing, Warner to outhalf and D'Arcy, Leinster's likeliest game game-breaker, moved to full back.
Munster played the patterns, driving, working the ball through the pack, although they were facilitated by a sniping performance from Eoin Reddan at scrumhalf.
Treston was again singled out by referee Paul Adams and Staunton landed another prodigious penalty to make it 15-5 only for D'Arcy to respond with a similar effort.
As the contest edged into injury time, Leinster won a series of penalties inside the Munster 22, opting for a scrum eight metres out against a Munster side that had been reduced to 14 players with prop Simon Kerr's sin binning. They tried to work a back row move and Munster forced the turnover. Munster's defence copper-fastened their triumph.
SCORING SEQUENCE: 6 mins: Burke try, 5-0; 31 mins: Staunton penalty, 5-3. Half-time: 5-3. 50 mins: Staunton penalty, 5-6; 59 mins: Staunton penalty, 5-9; 66 mins: Staunton penalty, 5-12; 76 mins: Staunton penalty, 5-15; 81 mins: D'Arcy penalty, 8-15.
LEINSTER: C Warner; G D'Arcy, K Lewis, D Quinlan, B Burke; M Leek, B O'Meara; J Lyne, G Hickie, E Byrne; L Cullen, B Gissing; A McCullen, D Dillon, K Gleeson (capt). Replacements: N Treston for Byrne half-time; D Blaney for Hickie 41-47 mins; J McWeeney for Leek 68 mins; S Jennings for Gissing 79 mins.
Munster: J Staunton; S Payne, M Mullins, R Henderson, M Lawlor; J Holland, E Reddan; S Kerr, F Sheahan, M Cahill; D O'Callaghan, E Halvey; J Williams (capt), A Foley, A Quinlan. Replacements: J Jones Hughes for Henderson 17 mins; K Keane for Holland 17 mins; T Hogan for Halvey 64 mins; J Danagher for Cahill 67 mins; D Leamy for Williams 77 mins; Cahill for Foley 83 mins; Foley for Cahill 87 mins.
Yellow cards: S Kerr (Munster) 77-87 mins.
Referee: P Adams (Wales).
