Doughty Connacht hit their target

RUGBY Connacht 19 Leinster 18: MICHAEL BRADLEY has earned the ire of many in the West for blatantly targeting matches, but he targeted this one pretty well.

On an extraordinary evening when the sun-drenched Sportsground seemed almost becalmed before witnessing a frenzied finale under lights, Connacht revived old demons for Leinster six days before the League champions head to their Murrayfield bogey.

To put this in perspective, for Connacht, this was a first league win in 14 attempts over Irish opposition, dating back to a win over Ulster on New Year's Eve, and it ended a run of eight defeats to Leinster since November 2004.

Connacht's lineout was shredded, their scrum creaked and they undoubtedly rode their luck; a calmer Leinster would surely have taken one of their many chances to win the game.

But not only did Connacht individually and collectively play with more heart, they had many of the game's outstanding performers, played with more ambition and width than of late in creating several openings and deserved this sensational win alone for conjuring the game's only try - and a beauty it was too.

The big men had big games. John Muldoon and Andrew Farley led from the front. Johnny O'Connor was everywhere. Frank Murphy was a livewire at scrumhalf. Ian Keatley excelled at outhalf in general play, line-kicking and landing five from five.

Leinster will wonder where the recent directive on support ruckers going to ground went as Connacht ran down the clock, but most of all they will be furious with themselves for their profligacy. Again, their game lacked continuity and direction at times, and so, suddenly, they face a critical test of themselves in almost every department. The next six days will tell us much about them.

Admittedly, playing at outside centre, Luke Fitzgerald always looked the man most likely, with his dancing footwork and eye for space, and given Connacht's scars from their record defeat the week before, the game's psychic energy might have flowed in a different direction had Fitzgerald's sharp finish off CJ van der Linde's offload in the first few minutes not been adjudged forward by the well-placed George Clancy after a charge-down and pick-up by Seán O'Brien. But they were struggling in the scrums, with CJ van der Linde packed down at loose-head.

Felipe Contepomi marked his 100th Leinster cap by kicking them to a 6-3 lead. And when Michael McCarthy became the seventh Connacht player of the season to see yellow, for pulling down Devin Toner, Contepomi made it 9-3, but it was Connacht who won the remainder of the half 6-0 with two Keatley penalties.

Leinster ended the half tetchily and nervously, Shane Horgan and Luke Fitzgerald knocking on, and within four minutes of the restart the game exploded into life. First O'Connor charged through from a Connacht maul outside their own 22, cleverly angling his run to link with Frank Murphy and in turn Gavin Duffy and Fionn Carr.

From the recycle, Keatley ran hard on an angle at a dishevelled Leinster midfield, Seán Cronin cutting through on an excellent straight line before offloading for McCarthy to dive under the posts.

Advantage Connacht, but then all hell broke loose. As Connacht players grabbed McCarthy in celebration, Leo Cullen seemed to be the instigator, with an elbow on Keatley, which he appeared to plead was accidental. McCarthy then appeared to lead with his head on Rocky Elsom, whose team-mates could not prevent him landing a retaliatory punch in the kerfuffle.

After consulting his assistants, Clancy showed Elsom a yellow card and a second one to McCarthy, which equated to the red he could have received automatically.

Keatley converted to make it 16-9 before exchanging further penalties with Contepomi, either side of Murphy's visionary skip pass to Duffy, which took out Cameron Jowitt and John Fogarty, who had shot up. Duffy having moved it on to Michael Roberts, the winger opted for a chip over the last man and kicked the ball dead.

Contepomi kicked Leinster back to within a point. Elsom made one huge gallop through a gaping hole in the green line from half-way, but Keatley tackled him by the ankles and the Wallaby flanker lost the ball forward.

It was one of four times Leinster turned over ball in the Connacht 22 in the last quarter, on top of which van der Linde - back at tight-head - was penalised when one more strong scrum on the seven-man Connacht pack would have yielded a penalty try.

As the chances went, Connacht upped their intensity in defence and could sense their big kill. They ran down the minutes with an exhausting sequence of close-in drives. Cue manic pitch invasion.

SCORING SEQUENCE: 16 mins : Contepomi pen 0-3; 25 : Keatley pen 3-3; 27 : Contepomi pen 3-6; 31 : Contepomi pen 3-9; 36 : Keatley pen 6-9; 39 : Keatley pen 9-9 (half-time 9-9); 44 : McCarthy try, Keatley con 16-9; 50 : Contepomi pen 16-12; 55 : Keatley pen 19-12; 65 : Contepomi pen 19-15; 75 : Contepomi pen 19-18.

CONNACHT: F Carr; L Bibo, G Duffy, K Matthews, M Roberts; I Keatley, F Murphy; B Wilkinson, S Cronin, R Loughney; M McCarthy, A Farley; J Muldoon (capt), J O'Connor, C Rigney. Replacements : R Morris for Loughney (51 mins), M Swift for Rigney (67 mins), C Muldoon for Cronin, J Hearty for Roberts (both 70 mins), T Nathan for Keatley (77 mins). Not used : A Browne, K Campbell. Sinbinned : McCarthy (30 mins). Sent off : McCarthy (47 mins).

LEINSTER: R Kearney; S Horgan, L Fitzgerald, F Contepomi, S Keogh; J Sexton, C Keane; S Wright, J Fogarty, CJ van der Linde; L Cullen (capt), D Toner; R Elsom, S O'Brien, S Keogh. Replacements : C Jowitt for O'Brien (42 mins), C Healy for Wright (47 mins), T Hogan for Toner (67 mins). Not used : B Blaney, F McFadden, F Jones, G Brown. Sinbinned : Elsom (47 mins).

Referee: George Clancy (IRFU).