Ulster's five-try victory over Cardiff on Saturday saw them go into the European break with a five-point lead over Llanelli at the top of the Magners League table.
Meanwhile Scottish teams provided two major upsets on Friday night as they turned over two of Ireland's leading provinces.
Edinburgh Gunners came away from Thomond Park with four points against Heineken Cup champions Munster, thanks to three tries from Alasdair Dickinson, Chris Paterson and Simon Webster. Munster fans also had the dispiriting sight of Ronan O'Gara's early departure due to a shoulder injury.
At Netherdale the Border Reivers earned their first victory of the season over a Leinster side near full strength. Steve Jones was the hero with a late drop goal, but it was a real team effort, especially in defence.
Glasgow Warriors did not fare so well eventually losing out to the Ospreys, who also secured a try bonus point, after taking an early lead. And in Galway a resurgent Connacht inflicted a first away defeat on the Newport Gwent Dragons.
Edinburgh and the Ospreys both leapfrog Leinster in the league table, although Reivers remain at the foot.
...Ulster full-back Bryn Cunningham, on the attack against Edinburgh last month, is Ireland's top try scorer in the league so far...
MAGNERS LEAGUE TABLE -
| Team | P | W | D | L | F | A | TB | LB | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ulster | 7 | 5 | 0 | 2 | 190 | 118 | 3 | 1 | 24 |
| Llanelli Scarlets | 5 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 140 | 106 | 3 | 0 | 19 |
| Edinburgh | 6 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 108 | 87 | 0 | 1 | 19 |
| Ospreys | 6 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 108 | 107 | 1 | 1 | 18 |
| Leinster | 6 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 128 | 120 | 2 | 2 | 16 |
| Connacht | 7 | 3 | 1 | 3 | 130 | 148 | 0 | 1 | 15 |
| Newport Gwent Dragons | 5 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 100 | 102 | 0 | 3 | 11 |
| Cardiff Blues | 5 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 86 | 88 | 0 | 2 | 10 |
| Glasgow Warriors | 7 | 2 | 0 | 5 | 116 | 135 | 0 | 2 | 10 |
| Munster | 6 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 86 | 115 | 0 | 1 | 9 |
| Border Reivers | 6 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 66 | 132 | 0 | 1 | 5 |
TOP TRY SCORERS -
| Name | Team | Tries |
|---|---|---|
| Darren Daniel | Llanelli Scarlets | 5 |
| Bryn Cunningham | Ulster | 4 |
| Aled Brew | Newport Gwent Dragons | 3 |
| Gavin Evans | Llanelli Scarlets | 3 |
| Denis Hickie | Leinster | 3 |
| Regan King | Llanelli Scarlets | 3 |
| Matt Mostyn | Connacht | 3 |
| Paul Steinmetz | Ulster | 3 |
| Lee Byrne | Ospreys | 2 |
| Chris Czekaj | Cardiff Blues | 2 |
| Thom Evans | Glasgow Warriors | 2 |
| Trevor Hogan | Leinster | 2 |
| Shane Horgan | Leinster | 2 |
| Dafydd James | Llanelli Scarlets | 2 |
| Brian O'Driscoll | Leinster | 2 |
| Chris Paterson | Edinburgh | 2 |
| Shane Williams | Ospreys | 2 |
| Andrew Trimble | Ulster | 2 |
| David Wallace | Munster | 2 |
| Paul Warwick | Connacht | 2 |
| Simon Webster | Edinburgh | 2 |
TOP POINTS SCORERS -
| Name | Team | T | C | PG | DG | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| David Humphreys | Ulster | 1 | 15 | 20 | 0 | 95 |
| Mark McHugh | Connacht | 1 | 6 | 19 | 1 | 77 |
| Chris Paterson | Edinburgh | 2 | 6 | 14 | 0 | 64 |
| Ceri Sweeney | Newport Gwent Dragons | 1 | 6 | 14 | 1 | 62 |
| Felipe Contepomi | Leinster | 0 | 8 | 13 | 0 | 55 |
| Stephen Jones | Llanelli Scarlets | 0 | 11 | 11 | 0 | 55 |
| Dan Parks | Glasgow Warriors | 1 | 5 | 11 | 0 | 48 |
| Colin Gregor | Glasgow Warriors | 0 | 1 | 10 | 1 | 35 |
| Calum MacRae | Border Reivers | 0 | 1 | 11 | 0 | 35 |
| James Hook | Ospreys | 0 | 5 | 7 | 0 | 31 |
| Nick Robinson | Cardiff Blues | 1 | 1 | 5 | 2 | 28 |
| Ben Blair | Cardiff Blues | 1 | 3 | 5 | 0 | 26 |
| Darren Daniel | Llanelli Scarlets | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 25 |
BEST KICKERS -
| Name | Team | Good | Att | Kick% |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Colin Gregor | Glasgow Warriors | 11 | 11 | 100 |
| Dan Parks | Glasgow Warriors | 16 | 19 | 84.21 |
| Ben Blair | Cardiff Blues | 8 | 10 | 80 |
| Ronan O'Gara | Munster | 8 | 10 | 80 |
| Mark McHugh | Connacht | 25 | 32 | 78.13 |
| David Humphreys | Ulster | 35 | 45 | 77.78 |
| Ceri Sweeney | Newport Gwent Dragons | 20 | 26 | 76.92 |
| James Hook | Ospreys | 12 | 16 | 75 |
| Calum MacRae | Border Reivers | 12 | 16 | 75 |
| Jeremy Manning | Munster | 8 | 11 | 72.73 |
| Chris Paterson | Edinburgh | 20 | 28 | 71.43 |
| Stephen Jones | Llanelli Scarlets | 22 | 31 | 70.97 |
| Felipe Contepomi | Leinster | 21 | 30 | 70 |
| Nick Robinson | Cardiff Blues | 6 | 13 | 46.15 |
| Gavin Henson | Ospreys | 4 | 11 | 36.36 |
| Qual: 10 place kicks at goal. |
Friday October 13, 2006 at Netherdale
Border Reivers (13) 22: Craig Hamilton(T) Calum MacRae(C/4P) Steve Jones(D)
Leinster (13) 19: Stephen Keogh(T) Felipe Contepomi(C/4P)
Attendance: 1,661
Friday October 13, 2006 at Sportsground
Connacht (16) 16: Ray Ofisa(T) Mark McHugh(C/D/2P)
Newport Gwent Dragons (0) 9: Ceri Sweeney(3P)
Attendance: 1,356
Friday October 13, 2006 at Thomond Park
Munster (3) 10: Denis Leamy(T) Eoghan Hickey(C/P)
Edinburgh (14) 21: Alasdair Dickinson(T) Chris Paterson(T/3C) Simon Webster(T)
Attendance: 8,000
Friday October 13, 2006 at Liberty Stadium
Ospreys (21) 26: Nikki Walker(T) Sonny Parker(T) Steve Tandy(T) Shane Williams(T) Gavin Henson(3C)
Glasgow Warriors (9) 9: Colin Gregor(3P)
Attendance: 6,288
Saturday October 14, 2006 at Ravenhill
Ulster (13) 32: David Humphreys(2C/P) Paddy Wallace(T) Neil Best(T) Andrew Trimble(2T) Bryn Cunningham(T)
Cardiff Blues (2) 12: Chris Czekaj(T) Wayne Evans(T) Nick Macleod(C)
Attendance: 9,979
