Celtic League/Munster - 21 Ulster - 13: More and more Ulster players have earned places in the Ireland squad over the last couple of years, and hence more and more friendships have been strengthened. Watching and listening to them after this game, you'd swear they and the Munster lads were the best of buddies. Not, mind, that you'd have thought it for the 80-plus minutes beforehand.
As with the tetchy Connacht-Leinster game the night before, this was a full-on, internecine interprovincial that also happened to be a hugely important Magners League tie.
"Be the best team in our own country, boys," is a mantra of one Munster forward, and no doubt he echoes the sentiments of many who took to the field on Saturday.
That so many more Ulster players have broken into the national team has, of course, further personalised the collective rivalry, and the palpable edge to proceedings made this game compulsive viewing.
David Humphreys afterwards said the intensity was just like a European Cup match, but the wincingly ultraphysical nature of the exchanges had a cost.
Three players from each team were escorted from the field with injuries.
One could only fear the worst for the cruelly unlucky Christian Cullen when he left the fray after just nine minutes with a shoulder injury, and he was followed by Shaun Payne (hip) and the equally unfortunate Anthony Horgan (knee).
It also transpired Ian Dowling has a strained hamstring.
Ulster's medical bulletin today will reveal the well-being or otherwise of Tommy Bowe (hamstring), Paul Steinmetz (shoulder) and Justin Fitzpatrick, their difficulties compounding the loss on Friday of Mark Bartholomeuz (hamstring), though Fitzpatrick confirmed his late departure was merely the result of a dead leg.
Next Friday? More of the same: Leinster and Connacht hosting Munster and Ulster. Ouch.
It's assuredly a back-handed compliment of sorts to Ulster that their mere presence in Musgrave Park brought out the best in Munster's returning Euro heroes. The memory of Ulster's double over them last year and a packed Musgrave Park ensured Munster would dig deep.
Struggling for rhythm - their lineout (missing the human forklift that is John Hayes) malfunctioned only in part because of Andy Kiriacou's debut at 26 hours' notice after Frankie Sheahan cried off with a twinged hamstring - Munster were quickly 10 points adrift.
In trademark style, they picked up their intensity, especially through their pack, to work their way back into the game. After the break, they simplified and sorted out their lineout, Kiriacou keeping his nerve as Paul O'Connell, in a colossal first effort of the campaign, took on most of the responsibility.
After another Ulster storm had been weathered, the endgame was vintage Munster as a two-point lead became a mountain. By dint of ball retention and territorial control, they squeezed the life out of Ulster, punishing every error as Peter Stringer and Ronan O'Gara masterfully steered them past the winning post courtesy of a 9-0 second-half shut-out.
Ulster won't have needed much time to pick over the bones of this defeat. Where two years ago they'd been as cool as ice, here their discipline let them down, as did their composure when on top. Ironically, their captain, Justin Harrison - who should have been immune to some of the parochial stuff - was their biggest culprit.
Initially, he did more damage to Munster than anyone, Ulster getting himself at the front and Matt McCullough in the middle into the air quickly to fiercely contest almost every Kiriacou throw.
With Humphreys striking the ball beautifully and Isaac Boss a livewire behind their pumped-up pack, the former landed a 50-metre penalty before converting a try by Paul Steinmetz in which Boss was creator-in-chief. It also originated in one of six lost Munster throws in the first half.
Whether through their pack or through O'Gara's chips, Munster could hardly get out of their own half, let alone manufacture much go-forward ball.
Humphreys just missed a chance to make it 13-0, and fierce, low rucking forced a turnover, O'Connell chasing down the quick-witted box kick by Stringer. A huge lineout maul and successive close-in drives culminated in David Wallace scoring.
Harrison, as was his wont, became heavily embroiled in the scuffle that followed, prompting a warning all round by Donal Courtney, which made the Australian's blatant spoiling at the wrong side of a Munster ruck moments later all the dafter.
During Harrison's 10 minutes' cooling off, Trevor Halstead made the initial inroads from which Stringer changed course to a huge overlap to put Horgan over with a cut-out pass and Ulster were grateful for the interval lead afforded them by another Humphreys penalty.
O'Gara having regained the lead when Bowe was penalised for not releasing, Ulster upped their intensity but couldn't make it count. Donncha O'Callaghan, who also had a big game, retrieved a lost lineout by intercepting Bryn Young's pass and galloped after his own agricultural touchfinder, galvanising home crowd and team alike.
John Kelly, ultra-effective as ever, was impeded by Kieran Campbell in the ingoal area after Halstead competed in the air with Bryn Cunningham for an O'Gara Garryowen. Television replays showed Kelly probably wouldn't have made the touchdown, which made Campbell's sinbinning harsh; although in mitigation of Courtney, who kept the lid on the bubbling undercurrent, it all happened in a flash.
O'Gara landed the penalty anyway, and again when Humphreys was a little harshly penalised for tackling his counterpart on the deck when chasing his own chip, thereby denying Ulster even a bonus point. Their comebacks are legendary but Munster are the champions of Europe in part because - among other attributes - they are probably the best front-runners in Europe.
SCORING SEQUENCE
TWO MINUTES: Humphreys pen 0-3; 7: Steinmetz try, Humphreys con 0-10; 20: Wallace try, O'Gara con 7-10; 28: Horgan try 12-10; 38: Humphreys pen 12-13 (half-time 12-13); 53: O'Gara pen 15-13; 73: O'Gara pen 18-13; 80: O'Gara pen 21-13.
MUNSTER: C Cullen; A Horgan, J Kelly, S Payne, I Dowling; R O'Gara, P Stringer; M Horan, A Kyriacou, F Pucciariello; D O'Callaghan, P O'Connell (capt); A Quinlan, D Wallace, A Foley. Replacements: T Halstead for Cullen (9 mins), E Hickey for Payne (40+1 mins), T McGann for Horgan (56 mins), T Ryan for Pucciariello (79 mins), M O'Driscoll for Foley (83 mins). Unused: F Roche, B O'Meara.
ULSTER: B Cunningham; T Bowe, P Steinmetz, P Wallace, A Trimble; D Humphreys, I Boss; J Fitzpatrick, R Best, B Young; J Harrison (capt), M McCullough; N Best, N McMillan, R Wilson. Replacements: S Ferris for N Best (53 mins), K Dawson for McMillan (58 mins), T Barker for McCullough, K Maggs for Steinmetz (both 64 mins), K Campbell for Bowe (65 mins), P Shields for R Best, D Fitzpatrick for Young (both 79 mins), Young for J Fitzpatrick (86 mins). Sinbinned: Harrison (23 mins), Campbell (75 mins).
Referee: Donal Courtney (IRFU).
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