Leinster can only sit and hope

Celtic League Rugby/ Cardiff Blues 40 Leinster 31: Leinster can only sit and hope after losing against Cardiff Blues at the Millennium Stadium yesterday to leave Ulster within touching distance of the Celtic League title.

A bonus point for scoring four tries through Shane Horgan, Gordon D'Arcy, Denis Hickie and Rob Kearney saw Leinster draw level with leaders Ulster at the top of the table. But Ulster have a game in hand to equal or better whatever Leinster manage against Edinburgh in their final game of the season and coach Michael Cheika, who would much rather be returning to this venue on Saturday for the Heineken European Cup final, faces ending a promising campaign empty-handed.

Cheika said: "That defeat hurt because we have worked so hard this season and now we have to rely on someone else doing us a favour because a point was not enough. Until this game it was all in our own hands but now we need other results to go our way.

"We made far too many mistakes in key areas, especially at this stage of the season. We hung in there right to the end but you simply can't give away 40 points and expect to win. That's where mental toughness comes in and we didn't have that.

"I was disappointed with the standard of the refereeing as there were a lot of calls that weren't right. There has to be accountability in a professional sport but you would have to say that Cardiff deserved it. You don't win if you don't earn and in this game we didn't earn."

One glimmer of good news was that Cheika expected Brian O'Driscoll to recover from a bruised arm to lead Leinster in their final game at Murrayfield.

Last night's match was switched to the Millennium Stadium from Cardiff's usual Arms Park pitch next door, which had been used to host hospitality services surrounding the previous day's FA Cup final, and a Celtic League record crowd of 15,327 were treated to a thrilling nine-try encounter.

Leinster began the game a point behind their title rivals and soon found themselves 11 points behind Cardiff on the field as early as the 12th minute, after failing to match their opponents' spark in an error-strewn opening.

Felipe Contepomi would have put through O'Driscoll's replacement, Kieran Lewis, in the opening minute had his pass not been forward, and Leinster were made to pay when Cardiff escaped upfield to score after three minutes.

Jamie Robinson's pace was the catalyst, Craig Morgan and Mike Phillips followed before Nick MacLeod burrowed over from less than a yard.

Nick Robinson missed the conversion but swiftly added two penalties after misdemeanours by Malcolm O'Kelly and Bernard Jackman.

However, the luck of the bounce turned in Leinster's favour after the first quarter with two of the most fortuitous tries either side of a scorching solo score from Cardiff's Phillips.

Horgan was first to benefit after Hickie turned defence into attack with his searing thrust from deep inside his own half. Cardiff dealt with the chip ahead but when Guy Easterby blocked the clearance kick of his opposite number, Phillips, the ball spun into the grateful hands of Horgan, who shrugged off two tacklers to touch down.

Phillips then made amends with a stunning score that Girvan Dempsey will not want to be reminded of after he was left floundering on the floor, but the Wales scrumhalf was helpless moments later as Leinster pulled themselves back to within a point.

Adam Byrnes pounced on a mix-up in Cardiff's ranks and though Phillips looked odds-on to win the race, he could only look on in horror as the ball bounced over his shoulder for D'Arcy, who juggled possession before touching down. Contepomi converted.

The difference remained the same following an exchange of tries between Chris Czekaj and then Hickie, off Lewis's long pass, and an exchange of blows between John Yapp and Byrnes that earned both a yellow card, before Leinster took the lead for the first time in the 70th minute.

Contepomi kicked a penalty before his slide-rule kick rested against the post after Horgan and Robinson collided for Kearney to pick up and dive over.

Yet mistakes continued to undermine Leinster and allowed Cardiff back in as Martyn Williams stepped off the bench to score before Morgan settled it in injury-time.

Cardiff tries: N MacLeod, M Phillips, C Czekaj, M Williams, C Morgan. Cons: N Robinson (3). Pens: N Robinson (3). Leinster tries: S Horgan, G D'Arcy, D Hickie, R Kearney. Cons: F Contepomi (4). Pen: F Contepomi.

CARDIFF BLUES: N MacLeod; C Czekaj, J Robinson, M Stcherbina, C Morgan; N Robinson, M Phillips (R Powell, 79 mins); J Yapp, R Thomas, G Jenkins; D Jones (K Schubert, half-time), R Sidoli; M Molitika (M Williams, 67 mins), X Rush (capt), R Sowden-Taylor (S Roberts, 55-65 mins).

LEINSTER: G Dempsey; S Horgan, G D'Arcy, K Lewis (R Kearney, 64 mins), D Hickie; F Contepomi (capt), G Easterby; R Corrigan, B Jackman (B Blaney, half-time), E Byrne (W Green, half-time); A Byrnes, M O'Kelly; E Miller (N Ronan, 15 mins), J Heaslip, K Gleeson.

Referee: R Dickson (Scotland).