Huff and puff as they might, Connacht just can't secure a prized scalp over a fellow Irish province. They had enough of the ball and the territory at Donnybrook last night to win and thereby elevate themselves into third place in the Celtic League but even a much-changed Leinster had more of a cutting edge.
Connacht often asked more questions, whether launching the hard-running James Downey or Mark McHugh up the middle, or pummelling away closer in, and the game hinged on the odd mistake or moment of inspiration, yet when Leinster came knocking it usually carried a greater threat.
Des Dillon revelled in his role as captain against his one-time province and the Leinster lineout was a superior source of possession - where Connacht, at the very least, needed to secure their own ball to have a chance of forcing an upset.
Connacht came into this game unchanged from their exploits against Narbonne and comforted in the knowledge that they had a week's respite coming up, so could afford to give it one hell of a lash. Leinster, by contrast, were almost completely changed, with only Emmet Byrne and Brian O'Meara remaining from the starting line-up of the previous week, and they had moved from tighthead to loosehead and scrumhalf to outhalf respectively as Declan Kidney employed Felipe Contepomi at full back.
The visitors recycled and retained the ball well enough, but apart from an early incision by McHugh and one later by Andrew Farley, the Leinster defence resumed where they left off against Bath by pushing up hard and cramping Connacht for space and time.
Paul Warwick also resumed where he left off a week before with a ninth-minute penalty when Emmet Byrne was offside. Leinster had little or no territory or ball, a big hit by a beefier looking Johnny Muldoon and sharp work at the tackle area by Matt Lacey typifying Connacht's determination and earning turnovers.
Nevertheless, Des Dillon and co competed well on the Bernard Jackman throw, and Contepomi was finding long-range return kicks. Though forced to live off scraps, Leinster turned them into something when a weaving, 40-metre counter-attack from another Warwick kick by Brown was stopped by a tackle high on the chest by Downey.
It possibly looked worse than it was, all the more so given the accompanying groan and the free-for-all sparked by one Leinster player's retaliatory attack on the Connacht centre. All but two or three players became involved, though it broke up quickly enough, before Downey was binned and Contepomi levelled the scores.
Now Leinster looked to have a sharper cutting edge, particularly when a touch of class by Kieran Lewis released John McWeeney - on for the injured Brown. Connacht survived their 10 minutes without Downey, Contepomi missing one angled penalty after a big debate as to whether they should go for the corner.
But Connacht were overcomplicating things and when they were done a second time for obstruction by decoy runners, Contepomi pushed Leinster ahead with practically the last kick of the half.
A typically tight, low-scoring 'interpro' was always liable to hinge on a few mistakes or moments of inspiration, and it was more a case of the former for the breakthrough try. Such is the nature of sport that the hero of last week, Warwick, was hanging his head in disgust after throwing out a pass blind inside to a grateful Niall Ronan, who duly sauntered in for the 40-metre intercept seven-pointer.
Warwick set about atoning for his mistake, firstly with a penalty and then displaying his running game.
One sustained spell of multi-phase continuity, initiated inside their own 22 and featuring good breaks by Warwick and McHugh, culminated in another Warwick penalty when Nigel Williams, as ever, was alert to Contepomi's delaying a Connacht lineout.
When Byrne was sin-binned after Williams grew weary of him bringing down scrums, Connacht scented their chance. However Downey, who was now making good inroads, was tap tackled when about to break clear with McHugh in support, and then Williams called a decidedly marginal forward pass from McHugh to McPhillips.
The game finally turned when Chris Keane deliberated too long over retrieving an O'Meara kick, and then miscued his touchfind. A couple of recycles off the ensuing lineout, O'Meara threw out a defence-opening double skip pass for Contepomi to break through the outside centre channel and score.
In addition to the difficult conversion, the Puma somehow contrived to miss a routine penalty from in front of the posts, but it didn't matter a whit.
Connacht, crestfallen at the full-time whistle, won't enjoy their week off so much now.
SCORING SEQUENCE: 9 mins: Warwick pen 0-3; 26: Contepomi pen 3-3; 40: Contepomi pen 6-3; (half-time 6-3); 48: Ronan try, Contepomi con 13-3; 52: Warwick pen 13-6; 56: Warwick pen 13-9; 67: Contepomi try 18-9.
LEINSTER: F Contepomi; J Norton, K Lewis, C Warner, G Brown; B O'Meara, B O'Riordan; E Byrne, G Hickie, R Nebbett, C Potts, B Gissing, A McCullen, D Dillon, N Ronan. Replacements: J McWeeney for Brown (34 mins), G Easterby for O'Riordan (half-time), J Lyne for McCullen (64-72 mins) and for Byrne (72 mins), L Cullen for Potts (64 mins), D Blaney for Hickie (71 mins). Sinbinned: E Byrne (62-72 mins).
CONNACHT: M McHugh; M Mostyn, D Yapp, J Downey, C McPhillips; P Warwick, C Keane; R Hogan, B Jackman, S Knoop, A Farley, C Short, M Swift, M Lacey, J Muldoon. Replacements: J Fogarty for Jackman (50 mins), D McFarland for Hogan (57 mins), C O'Loughlin for Keane (68 mins), E Elwood for Warwick (70 mins). Sinbinned: Downey (25-35 mins).
Referee: Nigel Williams (WRU).
