Munster (8) 16
Tries: Horan, Deasy Pens: Deasy 2
Edinburgh (9) 12
Pens: D Blair 3 Drop-goal: D Blair

Munster's Ian Dowling is tackled by Alan MacDonald at Musgrave Park

Munster lost three players to early injuries and had two sent to the sin-bin but they still managed a Magners League win at Musgrave Park.

A David Blair drop-goal put Edinburgh in front before Ireland prop Marcus Horan drove over for the hosts.

Blair added two penalties and Scott Deasy fired over for Munster to leave Edinburgh 9-8 ahead at the break.

Blair made it 12-8 before Deasy landed a penalty and a 58th-minute try to give the Irish side victory.

Munster's best-laid plans were torn up when they lost Donnacha Ryan, Paul Warwick and Niall Ronan to injury - all around the quarter-hour mark.

But, despite five missed place-kicks, Warwick's replacement, academy player Deasy, stamped his mark on the game with a decisive try.

Blair's drop-goal gave the Scots a deserved lead but the hosts responded quickly and Ian Dowling was held up just metres out before fit-again prop Horan burrowed over from close range.

Deasy pulled his conversion attempt across the posts and Edinburgh, eager for work and protecting the ball well, set up Blair's first successful penalty on 25 minutes.

Deasy crashed a penalty of his own off the post, three minutes later, but he did punish an Edinburgh scrum infringement to move Munster two points clear.

Edinburgh nipped back ahead before half-time though, as a superb line break by Nick De Luca saw them rampage up close to the Munster line. Alan Quinlan was ruled offside and Blair booted his side into a 9-8 lead.

Deasy had the distance but not the accuracy from a long-range penalty just after the break, and an absorbing match swung back in Edinburgh's favour when flanker Quinlan was sin-binned for a ruck offence and Blair converted the penalty.

Deasy missed an immediate chance to reply but held his nerve to fire over a 57th-minute penalty.

From the restart, Munster snaffled back possession before Deasy broke the Edinburgh line, dangled a chip kick towards the line and took advantage of a favourable bounce to grab a priceless try.

Deasy failed to convert and Munster had to show some defensive steel to keep Edinburgh at bay in the closing stages.

Mark Robertson was thwarted by Mike Sherry with the line in his sight, Lifeimi Mafi saw yellow for taking out support runner De Luca as the visitors probed out wide once again, and there were two vital turnovers close to their line as Tony McGahan's charges defiantly held on.

Munster: D Hurley; D Howlett, L Mafi, J de Villiers, I Dowling; P Warwick, P Stringer; M Horan, D Fogarty, T Buckley; D Ryan, M O'Driscoll (capt); A Quinlan, N Ronan, J Coughlan. Replacements: Gleeson for Dowling (69), Deasy for Warwick (13), Sherry for Fogarty (70), Brugnaut for Buckley (58), Holland for D. Ryan (12), O'Donnell for Ronan (14). Not Used: D. Williams.

Edinburgh: B Cairns, M Robertson, N De Luca, J Houston, T Visser, D Blair, G Laidlaw (capt), K Traynor, A Kelly, G Cross, J Hamilton, S MacLeod, A MacDonald, R Grant, D Callam. Replacements: Webster for Visser (69), Jacobsen for Traynor (47), R. Grant for G. Cross (62), C. Hamilton for J. Hamilton (57). Not Used: MacKenzie, Samson, Hutton.

Att: 8,000

Ref: Tim Hayes (WRFU).

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