Munster climbed to the summit of Conference A by beating Connacht 31-24, while there were also Pro14 wins for Benetton Treviso, the Scarlets, Ospreys, Edinburgh and Leinster.
In a frenetic clash at the Sportsground, Munster claimed a vital bonus-point away victory against their Irish rivals to climb to top spot above the Glasgow Warriors in Conference A.
Flyhalf Joey Carbury starred for Johann van Graan’s side as he scored a try to go along with four conversions and a penalty for a personal haul of 16 points.
It was the hosts who got off to a fast start as impressive centre Tom Farrell stole the ball from Munster No 8 Arno Botha and raced away for the opening score.
However, it took less than five minutes for Munster to reply as Chris Farrell crashed through midfield, and from the ensuing ruck captain Peter O’Mahony drove over the line.
Inside centre Dan Goggin then went over for his first try of the evening to put Munster ahead as the away side started to dominate possession and territory. Connacht flyhalf Jack Carty slotted a penalty to cut the lead to just four points at half-time.
Just as they did in the first half, Connacht went into the lead minutes into the second after Farrell broke through the defence and offloaded to wing Cian Kelleher to touch down. Munster again took control of the clash as Goggin scored his brace. Carbury slotted a conversion and went over for a self-converted try to suddenly raise the gap to 14 points.
A late converted try from Carty made it a nervous finish to the match, but Munster held out to claim what could be a vital victory, with Glasgow losing earlier in the day.
In other results, Treviso continued their impressive form at home this season as a brace from lock Dean Budd to go along with a try from flank Braam Steyn pushed them to a nailbiting 20-17 win over Glasgow. The victory takes Treviso level in second place in Conference B with Edinburgh, who hammered the Kings 38-0.
REPORT: Edinburgh put Kings to the sword
Earlier, defending champions Leinster continued their dominance of Conference B by thrashing Ulster 40-7, a late rally from the Dragons was not enough to prevent them from slumping to a 22-13 loss to the Scarlets, while first-half tries from Scott Williams and George North gave the Ospreys a 20-11 win over the Cardiff Blues.
In the only match on Sunday, the Cheetahs beat Zebre 27-12 in Parma.
REPORT: Cheetahs too good for Zebre
Round 13 results:
Connacht 24 Munster 31
Treviso 20 Glasgow Warriors 17
Leinster 40 Ulster 7
Scarlets 22 Dragons 13
Edinburgh 38 Kings 0
Ospreys 20 Cardiff Blues 11
Zebre 12 Cheetahs 27
Photo: Ashley Cahill/Action Plus via Getty Images
