Madigan maddens Townsend as Leinster pip Glasgow

The coach wore the expression of a man who had just had his pocket picked. “We are desperately disappointed not to get a win,” he said.

“The weather played a factor. The team that played into the wind held possession. I thought we did a lot of good things in attack when we did have that ball”.

The losing bonus point just about keeps Glasgow on course for a home semi-final by points-difference from Ulster.

“To have led for most of the game, it is really disappointing to pick up only one point.,” he added. “We’ve got a very tough match against Munster. We’ve got to bounce back with a win”.

By the hour game time came around, it was second versus third with the carrot of the winner moving to the head of the PRO12 table.

Ulster faltered on Friday, while Ospreys, twice winners in the last three seasons, and Scarlets won to squeeze the top five places.

Glasgow decided to let their intentions be known when their scrum-half Niko Matawalu immediately took Isa Nacewa out in the air. This soon turned to indiscipline when captain Ali Kellock hauled down a lineout. It was enough to hand Leinster territory on a bitterly cold night.

The Scots held firm in defence, showing the confidence that has taken them to seven straight victories and they had Matawalu and No 8 Josh Strauss to take them over the gain line.

It was Strauss’s go-forward and release out of the tackle that put prop Ed Kalman through for the opening try in the tenth minute. Duncan Weir added the conversion.

Glasgow dropped their concentration from the restart, their backs advancing ahead of their kicker, gifting Madigan a kick at goals which he duly slotted from just short of 40 metres.

Strauss was soon back on the front foot, tempting Gordon D’Arcy into an indiscretion in the eyes of referee Nigel Owens. Weir punished him from 30 metres in the 18th minute.

The Warriors were beaten to Ian Madigan’s restart by Isa Nacewa. Scrum-half Isaac Boss scampered clear, but Kalman pinched the ball.

Leinster weren’t finished. D’Arcy travelled the hard yards. Wing Andrew Conway popped up in midfield where he was smashed by Moray Low. The prop forgot to roll away and Madigan kicked his second penalty in the 23rd minute.

Glasgow certainly came to play. Quick throw-ins and breaking from deep were the order of the evening, while the home side varied their approach using the Garryowen frequently in the direction of full-back Peter Murchie and right wing Tommy Seymour.

Fancy footwork by wing DTH van de Merwe was too much for No 8 Jordi Murphy and centre Peter Horne was in splendid support to cash in on the left.

Weir’s conversion made it 17-6 in the 33nd minute. Leinster needed to hit back quickly. Nacewa’s outside break on Horne looked like doing the trick until his pass forced speedster Andrew Conway to check his stride. Referee Owens took Madigan back to an earlier infringement for his third penalty.

Then, Conway simply sizzled for 40 metres to fray the defence. A penalty was forthcoming for offside and Madigan cracked a three-pointer to leave it 17-12 at the interval.

Leinster’s lust for quick ball was fed by Matawalu’s deteriorating delivery from the base, but thwarted by the textbook work of prop Moray Low and centre Alex Dunbar on the floor.

The continuity was disrupted by Horne’s spill on one side; Madigan’s on the other.

Then, Matawalu tried to be too clever and Madigan went for an outrageous chip from behind his own line, albeit with a scrum advantage on his side.

The main point of all this was that it was taking place in Leinster’s 22. They were forced to hang in there against a powerful and threatening Glasgow attack.

Leinster had to take the ball away. They did so when Murphy won a loose one on the ground. Sean Cronin flew down the left flank to trigger an attack that came to nothing due to Shane Jennings’s side entry into a ruck.

A lightning raid by Leinster looked like paying dividends from a series of pick-and-drives, but the ball was spilled forward.

It wasn’t long before Sean Lamont halved Eoin O’Malley in the tackle.

Out of nothing, Madigan seized on a mistake and set off for 60 metres only to ruin his work by ignoring Sean Cronin on the left.

It didn’t seem to disturb the fly-half. Madigan soon slipped in between Weir and Horne for a try and added the conversion to catapult Leinster to the front in the 72nd minute, confirming his international status with a 77th minute penalty when Dominic Ryan forced Kellock to hold on too long on the floor.

There was still time for Glasgow to launch one more assault and this word was appropriate, given the way players hurled themselves at each other with scant regard for personal safety, Glasgow’s final chance falling on Horne’s forward pass.

“It was just one of those games that was always going to be a skinny divide and we managed the advantage in our favour,” said Leinster coach Joe Schmidt.

“I think they are a very good team, very big, very physical. I would be delighted if we didn’t see them again this year,” said the Leinster coach.

What an advert for the PRO12 League. The rematch would make for a wonderful final.

Leinster: I Nacewa; D Kearney, E O’Malley, G D’Arcy, A Conway; I Madigan, I Boss; H van der Merwe, S Cronin, M Bent, L Cullen (capt), Q Roux, K McLaughlin, S Jennings, J Murphy. Subs: J Hagan for Bent 47 mins; D Toner for Roux 50 mins; D Ryan for McLaughlin, J McGrath for Van der Merwe both 61 mins; A Dundon for Murphy 77 mins.

Glasgow: P Murchie; T Seymour, A Dunbar, P Horne, DTH van der Merwe; D Weir, N Matawalu; M Low, D Hall, E Kalman, T Ryder, A Kellock (capt), R Harley, J Barclay, J Strauss. Subs: J Welsh for Kalman, R Wilson for Harley both 52 mins; S Lamont for Seymour 56 mins; H Pyrgos for Matawalu, P McArthur for Hall, G Reid for Low 61 mins; J Eddie for Strauss 74 mins.