Munster - 37 Cardiff Blues - 8: In a carnival atmosphere at Thomond Park, the Heineken European Cup champions completed their competitive programme for the season with a demolition of Cardiff on Saturday evening.
With the Celtic League title already gone to Ulster, the match was very much another occasion for Munster's "Red Army" to celebrate. Some 13,000 had come to acclaim their heroes as well as pay tribute to several who are departing the Munster set-up this summer, including Mike Mullins, Rob Henderson, Trevor Hogan and Stephen Keogh.
And a lacklustre Cardiff weren't in the mood to be party-poopers. They offered reasonable resistance in the first quarter, but Munster overwhelmed them thereafter to secure a bonus-point win and third in the table.
Munster ran in five tries, with John Kelly, who later went off with a shoulder injury, grabbing a brace. Prop Federico Pucciariello, winger Mossie Lawlor and replacement Trevor Halstead also crossed for touchdowns.
Soon after the final whistle, the Munster players reappeared on the steps of the stand with the European Cup.
The supporters swarmed onto the pitch and gave the players and staff a massive ovation as each was introduced individually.
"I would like to thank you the supporters from the bottom of my heart," captain Anthony Foley said. "It's been a long time coming. We had a few near misses, but persistence, honesty, belief and a driving force like our supporters paid off.
"We are losing a few players and there are younger guys coming through. That's part and parcel of it. But all these who are leaving have given everything to us. And that cannot be overstated."
Keogh led the crowd in singing Stand Up And Fight, Henderson offered a rousing rendition of The Fields Of Athenry and Tipperary's Trevor Hogan blasted out Slievenamon.
Munster coach Declan Kidney was pleased with how his players applied themselves just a week after winning the European Cup.
"We saw great application from the lads at the start of the game in the way they went at it," he said. "Obviously, Cardiff were there to check out what sort of humour we were in, but the lads were in the humour to play a game. And similar to the lads last week, they certainly put themselves about.
"There were a lot of different emotions. We knew there were some guys moving on to different parts of their careers and different parts of their lives.
"They are good professionals and more than anything they are good people. I think everyone finished on a positive note.
"I said the support the team receives is humbling. I cannot overstate that. Last Sunday when we were driving around Limerick, to see people drenched to the skin and still smiling was something else. To be part of that is a great experience.
"We will enjoy today. It is important to do that. You do get the bad days too. Today is well up there on being one of the good ones."
The brilliant Cardiff and Wales flanker Martyn Williams could only look on and marvel at what Munster had achieved.
"This is a special place to play at any time, but to come here a week after Munster won the European Cup, the atmosphere is fantastic," he said.
"I went to watch the Heineken Cup final at the Millennium Stadium . . . As a nation, we were all behind Munster as well. It is great for the Celtic League."
MUNSTER: S Payne; P Devlin, J Kelly, R Henderson, M Lawlor; J Manning, T O'Leary; M Horan, D Fogarty, F Pucciariello; T Hogan, M O'Driscoll; A Quinlan, D Leamy, S Keogh. Replacements: P Burke for Manning (44 mins), J Flannery for Fogarty (56 mins), M Prendergast for Devlin (65 mins), J O'Sullivan for Leamy (69 mins), T Halstead for Kelly (70 mins), E McGovern for Horan, D Ryan for O'Driscoll (both 83 mins).
CARDIFF BLUES: N Macleod; R Williams, J Robinson, M Stcherbina, C Czekaj; D Flanagan, M Phillips; J Yapp, D Goodfield, B Evans; D Jones, R Sidoli; M Molitika, R Sowden-Taylor, M Lewis. Replacements: C Morgan for Williams (47 mins), M Williams for Lewis (55 mins), B Davies for Sidoli (58 mins), R Gill for Yapp, R Thomas for Goodfield, T Riley for Robinson (all 66 mins).
Referee: A MacPherson (Scotland).
