Connacht 28 Edinburgh 15
The Clan stand are chanting again. Connacht delivered their first winning performance in this season’s Guinness PRO 12 and grabbed a bonus point to kick-start their title defence after three successive losses.
Led by captain John Muldoon, Connacht produced a display akin to their championship run last season - not without mistakes, but with an intensity in attack, a ferocity in defence, and with their passes going to hand.
They held a deserved lead 18-10 at the break, playing the brand which was the hallmark of last season’s success, before finally put ing to bed their poor start to the season and securing the bonus point in the 73rd minute.
Their desire to keep ball in hand was evident from the kick-off, but having lost Matt Healy after three minutes with a wrist injury, they also conceded an opening penalty after six minutes, providing a straightforward kick for outhalf Jason Tovey to open Edinburgh's account.
Connacht's ambition was matched by a superior scrum which they used as a scoring platform, and in a move similar to last weekend's try against Scarlets, Carty fed Niyi Adeolokun who skipped past Chris Dean's attempted tackle and used his electric pace to grab the opening try after nine minutes. Carty converted and added a 17-minute penalty to push Connacht into a 10-3 lead.
Connacht's sense of adventure, however, came unstuck when once again exiting their 22 with ball in hand. It proved risky when Edinburgh replied from a turnover in the 19th-minute try, Tovey providing big lock and captain Craig Gilchrist who had the momentum to dive over. Referee Owens awarded the try after consulting with the TMO for a forward pass, and Tovey added the extras to draw the sides level after 19 minutes.
Connacht, however, continued to find holes in the Edinburgh defence, and Tiernan O'Halloran's counterattack from deep set up the second try. The influential backrow played its part with Eoin McKeon and Jake Heenan breaking from the ruck, and lock Quinn Roux finished off out wide to push Connacht into an 18-10 lead.
Although Connacht made hard work of winning line-out possession, missing several at key times, a secure ball from the talismanic Muldoon provided another scoring platform. Replacement scrumhalf Caolin Blade made the initial burst before Carty supplied Adoleokun, who injected pace before replacement Cian Kelleher raced in from 20 metres for his first Connacht try. Although Carty's touchline conversion shaved the upright, Connacht looked secure with a 23 - 10 lead after 46 minutes.
However they struggled to push on when the Scottish visitors, who had a turbulent week with the sudden departure of coach Alan Solomons, enjoyed a period of territorial dominance, capitalising on some poor clearance kicks. However excellent defence kept the Scots out on three occasions - good work from Tom McCartney providing a relieving penalty, and a strong defensive maul - but the visitors were finally rewarded after 71 minutes when fullback Glen Bryce countered from half way, and eventually left wing Mike Allen scored from the overlap. Tovey missed the conversion, but closed the gap to eight points.
The home side, however, delivered the bonus point try before the whistle, and from a slow build-up, centrePeter Robb, in his first match of the season, did well to inject the necessary pace and sidestep right wing Damien Hoyland for the fourth try, capping a significant must-win performance from the champions.
Connacht: T O'Halloran, N Adeolokun, B Aki, P Robb, M Healy, J Carty, Kieran Marmion, D Buckley, T McCartney, C Carey, Q Roux, U Dillane, E McKeon, J Heenan, J Muldoon (cpt). Replacements: C Kelleher for Healy (3m), C Blade for Marmion (41m), F Bealham for Carey (46), J Connolly for McKeon (58), R Loughney for Buckley (67), D Heffernan for McCartney (71m), L Stephenson for Dillane (74), S O'Leary for Aki (75m).
Edinburgh: G Bryce, D Hoyland, C Dean, S Rasolea, M Allen, J Tovey, S Kennedy, R Sutherland, R Ford, WP Nel, B Toolis, G Gilchrist (cpt), M Bradbury J Hardie, C Du Preez. Replacements: S McInally for Ford and H Watson for De Prez (both 58), A Dell for Sutherland and S Hidalgo-Clyne Kenneddy (62),L Carmichael for Gilchrist and Kinghorn for Tovery (79).
Referee: Nigel Owens (Wales)
