Munster 22-20 Glasgow

Munster (3) 22
Try: Wallace Con: O'Gara Pens: O'Gara 5
Glasgow (10) 20
Tries: Gregor, van der Merwe Cons: Jackson, Gregor Pen: Jackson Drop goal: Jackson

James Coughlan makes a break for Munster as Dougie Hall looks on
Munster consolidated their position at the top of the Magners League with a hard-earned win over Glasgow who left Musgrave Park with a bonus point.
The visitors led 10-3 at half-time thanks to a Colin Gregor try and five points from the boot of Ruaridh Jackson to a penalty by Ronan O'Gara.
O'Gara kicked four penalties in the second half while David Wallace scored a try which O'Gara converted.
Gregor converted a DTH van der Merwe try and Jackson landed a drop goal.
Jackson gave Glasgow the perfect start with a seventh-minute penalty.
O'Gara replied with his first penalty four minutes later after Richie Gray made no attempt to roll away after a tackle, an offence for which second row Gray was yellow-carded.
Jackson was off-target with his next kick at the posts, skewing an effort wide in the 23rd minute.
Munster enjoyed the majority of territorial advantage but were unable to breach a stubborn Glasgow defence.
The visitors made the Irish province pay when Gregor touched down in the 36th minute after Max Evans went on a darting run and shrugged off a couple of attempted Munster tackles before providing the pass for the scrum-half to score.
Jackson added the two points with the conversion and then Keith Earls was yellow-carded in the dying moments of the first half.
O'Gara reduced the home side's deficit with a penalty two minutes after the break and followed that up with another successful kick at the posts four minutes later.
The Ireland fly-half's fourth penalty nudged Munster ahead in the 48th minute.
Wallace barged over for the try after a strong push by the Munster forwards in the 61st minute and O'Gara kicked the conversion to extend Munster's advantage to nine points.
Glasgow responded emphatically when Jackson made a break and fed van der Merwe who ran in for a try under the posts, Gregor adding the conversion on this occasion.
A Jackson drop goal gave the Scottish side a one-point lead but Glasgow were then forced to defend their line as their opponents exerted pressure and Mick O'Driscoll was held up just short.
Bernardo Stortoni was sent to the sin-bin for a deliberate knock-on which appeared to prevent a try-scoring opportunity and O'Gara knocked over the resultant penalty to give Munster a two-point advantage with five minutes remaining.
A late long-range attempt at a drop goal by Jackson went wide of the posts and Glasgow had to settle for a losing bonus point against the Magners League leaders.
Munster: P Warwick; D Hurley, K Earls, L Mafi, J Murphy; R O'Gara, P Stringer; D Hurley, D Varley, J Hayes; D O'Callaghan, M O'Driscoll; J Coughlan, D Wallace, D Leamy capt.
Replacements: P Borlase for Hayes (44), D Ryan for Coughlan (62), N Ronan for Wallace (67), T O'Leary for Stringer (62).
Not used: M Sherry, D Kilcoyne, T Gleeson, B Murphy.
Glasgow: B Stortoni; A Dunbar, M Evans, P Murchie, D van der Merwe; R Jackson, C Gregor; R Grant, D Hall, M Low; R Gray, A Kellock (capt); R Harley, J Barclay, J Beattie.
Replacements: P MacArthur for Hall (59), K Tkachuk for Low (67), J Welsh for Grant (52), R Wilson for Beattie (67), D McCall for Dunbar (55), P Horne for Murchie (51).
Not used: A Muldowney, H Pyrgos

This article was posted on 8-Jan-2011, 21:28 by Hugh Barrow.