Connacht get themselves within range

European Challenge Cup, semi-final, first leg/ Harlequins 31; Connacht 22: A curate's egg of a performance and a mixed bag of feelings. It could, undoubtedly, have been worse for Connacht at one point yesterday, it then could have been better, but perhaps ultimately it was about right.

Making up a nine-point deficit in the return leg of this Parker Pen European Challenge Cup semi-final at the Sportsground next Sunday week is just about within Connacht's range.

Well though they played for much of the middle chunk of the game, Connacht will also know they've left themselves plenty of room for improvement - their set-pieces, and especially their lineout, an obvious starting point.

Budget-wise, this shouldn't have been a contest and - given Harlequins also bossed the physical exchanges at the start, Will Greenwood, Ugo Monye and George Harder giving them oodles more pace and power out wide - to concede four tries and still limit the first-leg damage to nine points was, in many respects, a result for Connacht.

Michael Bradley's men will need a huge performance from their pack and their target runners to tie Quins down in the return leg, but with a better platform there was enough evidence yesterday to suggest that was possible. Though the yards were generally harder than they've been this season, the straight ball-carrying of Bernard Jackman, Mark McHugh, John O'Sullivan and Peter Bracken provided enough of a focal point for Connacht to finally start keeping the ball.

There were big games from Andrew Farley, a skilful, ball-carrying lock, and Damien Browne, as well as openside Matt Lacey, and the influential Darren Yapp, while Wayne Munn looked elusive whenever he got some ball.

Eric Elwood continues to defy time and looks as fit as a flea; his influence growing as the match wore on.

The first quarter was decidedly ominous for the sizeable but subdued travelling support. Whereas Connacht seemed mindful of being whistled for offside, Harlequins pushed up harder and cramped them for space. Not alone did this mean Harlequins had more go-forward ball, but with Connacht often too flat, and over-eager ball receivers taking the ball on their heels, the visitors struggled to recycle.

Furthermore, their scrum was in trouble, Quins were putting intense pressure on their lineout and the Quins pack made an early statement of intent with an imposing lineout rumble, which led to Paul Burke nailing a drop goal after an early exchange of penalties between him and Mark McHugh (this followed a "Good afternoon" rib tickler from Elwood on Burke).

A dodgy scrum award to Quins under the Connacht posts after a ruck steal led to the inevitable breakthrough try. Although big Monye was brilliantly stopped by Lacey close in, the halves and Greenwood moved it wide for Mel Deane to score against his old province.

The damage could have been worse. Greenwood broke the line and chipped ahead invitingly for Monye, but the bounce checked his stride, and on the other flank Harder's inside pass eluded Gavin Duffy.

It took 32 minutes for Elwood to push Connacht into the Quins 22, but a more significant factor was the way Mike Walls changed tack in probing the blind side, where Quins were less numerous and Jackman and co queued up.

Patient recycling led to a procession of penalties, but although McHugh and Elwood missed in turn, it kept Connacht on top territorially. It also meant they then opted for kicks to the corner either side of Simon Keogh denying Elwood a try inches from the line, and the reward was a trademark drive off a Farley take, which Lacey grounded.

Elwood converted to make it a healthy 11-10 at the break, and the psychological benefits of a seven-pointer were far greater anyhow. As penalty misses go therefore, they were probably good ones.

Alas a catalogue of errors - Elwood missing a penalty to touch, putting one out on the full, a lost lineout, O'Sullivan fumbling a pick-up at the base - led to Monye beating Conor McPhillips on one flank and Harder sauntering through a big gap inside Munn on the other before stepping inside Browne for a try, which Burke converted.

Another followed, again wide out, when Greenwood made the incision and put Monye over. But each time Connacht responded with bouts of recycling and Elwood penalties, albeit after Browne had palmed the first restart forward, volleyball-style, for Michael Swift to gather, before a Burke penalty made it 26-19.

Cue Connacht's best spell, patiently recycling, and they were within inches of levelling when the excellent Yapp made a clean incision but was stopped just short by Duffy - blast him.

Connacht were also competing better in the tackle, and with the penalty count heavily in their favour, a double hit by Lacey and Jackman on Larder enabled Elwood to make it 26-22.

But Quins upped the ante, the distinctly unconvincing Giulio de Santis preposterously sin-binning Mike McCarthy late on even though Quins had been repeated transgressors, and after a couple of lineout drives and another rumble by Monye, Greenwood reached out for the line.

Burke's conversion miss was a minor boost. Nine points is doable. Just about.

SCORING SEQUENCE: 3 mins: McHugh pen 0-3; 6: Burke pen 3-3; 9: Burke pen 6-3; 19: Deane try 11-3; 40 (+4 mins): Lacey try, Elwood con 11-10 (half-time 11-10); 51: Harder try, Burke con 18-10; 54: Elwood pen 18-13; 55: Monye try, 23-13; 59: Elwood pen 23-16; 62: Elwood pen 23-19; 64: Burke pen 26-19; 76: Elwood pen 26-22; 80: Greenwood try 31-22.

HARLEQUINS: G Duffy; G Harder, W Greenwood, M Deane, U Monye; P Burke, S Keogh; M Worsley, T Fuga, J Dawson, S Miall, J Evans, R Winters, T Diprose, A Vos (capt). Replacements: C Jones for Worsley (63 mins), B Davison for Evans (67 mins), B Willis for Deane (63 mins).

CONNACHT: M Mostyn; C McPhillips, D Yapp, M McHugh, W Munn; E Elwood, M Walls; D McFarland, B Jackman (capt), A Clarke, D Browne, A Farley, M Swift, J O'Sullivan, M Lacey. Replacements: P Bracken for Clarke (52 mins), M McCarthy for Browne (63 mins), C O'Loughlin for Walls (70 mins), S Moore for Mostyn (82 mins). Sin-binned: McCarthy (79 mins).

Referee: Giulio de Santis (Italy).