Rugby Celtic League/Connacht 8 Cardiff Blues 18: Faced with their biggest Celtic League game of the season, and a chance to put themselves in pole position for the play-off route against the third-ranked Italian side into next season's Heineken European Cup, Connacht failed to rise to the occasion. More than anything else, that will rankle with them.
A few of referee Malcolm Changleng's decisions went against them as, ultimately, did the bounce of the ball, but in the heel of the hunt the under-par home side were clinging on long before the end against a markedly superior team on the day. Coming after the high of their Challenge Cup quarter-final two-legged win over Dean Richards' Grenoble, there's also a bit of a trend here.
With an over-achieving, injury-hit squad (Mark McHugh's return being offset by the broken collarbone which has prematurely ended James Downey's season) whose performances have arguably outstripped the component parts, an inability to rescale the heights of their Euro exploits in more exotic French climes amid the more humdrum fare of the Celtic League is perhaps understandable.
Nevertheless, in their last five Celtic League games within a week of their European exploits, Connacht have followed up 42-27 and 32-14 defeats to Ulster and the Celtic Warriors last season with a flat performance in an 18-9 defeat to a Leinster side minus their front-line players in November, most distressingly a 35-0 defeat in Glasgow last month, and now this.
To their credit they still lead the Blues by a point in the scramble for that play-off place, but a win here would have given them a handy buffer entering into the last six games. Furthermore, Cardiff's performance in registering a first away win in 14 attempts (though a fourth in a row against Connacht) rather supported the feelings of their coach Dai Young that his under-performing, mercurial Blues were finally getting their act together, especially up front.
Furthermore, this was Connacht's fourth successive Celtic League defeat ahead of a visit to the rejuvenated Borders next weekend. For them to have a chance of scalping the likes of Cardiff, Connacht needed to get their basics right. Alas, three overthrows and a crooked throw by Bernard Jackman - admittedly Robert Sidoli and co really challenged the Connacht lineout - along with a pressurised scrum contrived to ensure Connacht had no possession or territory for much of a wind-assisted first half.
John O'Sullivan did his best to turn water into wine at the base with quick pick-ups, and with John Muldoon and Matt Lacey tackled his socks off. Only some outstanding fringe defence and scampering cover defence when they were busted a few times out wide ensured that Cardiff didn't lead until the final 10 minutes.
"We did not play well," conceded coach Michael Bradley. "We didn't have any sort of rhythm so we could not control position or possession. Cardiff played well in the first half and we were lucky to go in ahead. It was an injustice. We were not as fluent in the lineouts or the scrums as we would like to be."
On a forebodingly dark, wet day, even when the enthusiastic but ultimately subdued 1,750 crowd launched into chants of "Conn-acht" as the game began to drift away in the second half, the team's response was strangely flat and you also have to wonder about the ill-timed "leak" regarding the latest Connacht-IRFU run-in, and its psychological effect on the home team.
Despite a brilliantly conceived and executed second-minute try, things started to go wrong for Connacht immediately. Detecting a flaw in Cardiff's defensive system, Paul Warwick had chipped expertly for Conor McPhillips to gather and send Downey over, but as Warwick addressed the ensuing conversion, Cardiff flanker Nathan Thomas advanced to kick the ball off its tee.
Changleng, a fastidious referee who often seems to infuriate as he holds centre stage, adjudged that Warwick had begun his run-up despite still being in a crouched position. It was a risible decision, compounded by Changleng entering into discourse about it with Warwick fully five minutes later. Bradley also ventured that it had a destabilising effect on their Australian playmaker.
Nonetheless, there was an inevitability about the equalising score when the classy Tom Shanklin, easily the game's outstanding back, beat Darren Yapp on the outside to send Dean Dewdney over for his first try.
Two other key decisions went against the home side in the second half, notably when Yapp brilliantly won the race to a grubber by Warwick but was adjudged to have pushed it forward rather than touch it down (admittedly Changleng was well placed) and later when Dewdney palmed his own chip above the advancing Chris Keane to gather 10 yards further ahead and score under the posts.
Many a referee would have deemed it a deliberate knock-on. Not that the result could be quibbled with but Changleng's propensity for making curious decisions remains undimmed.
"Curious decisions?" retorted an exasperated Bradley. "Don't even go there."
SCORING SEQUENCE: 2 mins: Downey try, 5-0; 14: Dewdney try, 5-5; 40: Warwick pen, 8-5; (half-time 8-5); 55: Macleod pen, 8-8; 69: Dewdney try, Macleod con, 8-15; 74: Macleod pen, 8-18; 78: Macleod pen, 8-21.
CONNACHT: M Mostyn; C McPhillips, D Yapp, J Downey, T Robinson; P Warwick, C Keane; R Hogan, B Jackman, S Knoop, C Short, A Farley, J Muldoon, M Lacey, J O'Sullivan. Replacements: M McHugh for Downey (27 mins); J Fogarty for Jackman, P Myburgh for Short (both 62 mins); D McFarland for Hogan (64 mins); D Slemen for Robinson (73 mins).
CARDIFF BLUES: C Morgan; D Dewdney, T Shanklin (capt), T Davies, T Vaughton; N MacLeod, R Powell; J Yapp, R Thomas, G Jenkins, D Jones, R Sidoli, N Thomas, R Sowden-Taylor, K Schubert. Replacements: M Molitika for N Thomas, J Bryant for Davies (both 70 mins); M Jones for Yapp (79 mins).
Referee: M Changleng (SRU).
