Battling Munster beat Edinburgh in bruising Pro12 encounter
Last Updated: 08/11/15 4:10pm
Munster held off a desperate final push from Edinburgh to win a bruising Guinness PRO12 encounter 16-14 at Murrayfield.
John Ryan touched down for the visitors and the reliable boot of Ian Keatley contributed 11 points, while Will Helu scored his first try for the hosts and Sam Hidalgo-Clyne kicked the rest.
With the clocking ticking towards 80 minutes, the Irish side looked to have the win secured. But an interception and lung-bursting run by Edinburgh winger Damien Hoyland created the platform for a series of surges that almost yielded the match-winning score.
And, with almost four minutes of injury time played, Hidalgo-Clyne made a bid for glory with a drop goal attempt. However, it was charged down and Munster recorded a result that leaves them unbeaten in Edinburgh for four years.
Both teams welcomed returning World Cup players and that added to the intensity of the clash.
Munster reached the break with a 10-6 lead that was scant reward for their territorial domination in the opening 40 minutes.
They took the lead on seven minutes when Ryan touched down next to the posts after a five-metre scrum, Keatley adding the extras.
On a rare foray into the opposition half, Hidalgo-Clyne clawed back three points with a straightforward penalty after Tom Brown was tackled in mid-air by Gerhard van den Heever and he saw yellow for the offence.
However Edinburgh failed to capitalise on the extra man, and it was the visitors who were next on the score sheet, capping another spell of pressure with a successful penalty conversion by Keatley.
Then, in the final minute of a half Hidalgo-Clyne trimmed the deficit to four points when he thumped over a long-range penalty of his own.
The hosts grabbed the lead on 47 minutes when Hamish Watson sparked a move, continued by Brown, who then provided Helu with scoring pass.
Hidalgo-Clyne's conversion attempt rattled the post but he was back on target with his next effort, a penalty that gave Edinburgh a four-point advantage entering the final quarter and saw Francis Saili yellow-carded.
However, Keatley banged over a three-pointer then nudged his team in front with another.
The hosts lost Greig Tonks to the sin bin and the game appeared to be petering out when Hoyland's intervention created the breathtaking finish that almost delivered a home win.