Blues move top

Cardiff Blues went top of the Magners League on points difference on Thursday night after beating Connacht 22-6.

The Blues might have expected to go clear of previous leaders Munster when faced with the smallest Irish province of all but in the event they only crossed the Connacht line the once.

It was some try though - a brilliant individual effort by man of the match Casey Laulala. The visitors' stout defence was otherwise helped by an error-strewn Blues display.

The entertainment on offer was, in truth, dire but Cardiff coach Dai Young still preferred to put a positive gloss on the result, saying: "It shows how far we've come that we can play really poorly and still win."

A tedious opening quarter saw Blues fly-half Dan Parks outkick opposite number Ian Keatley by two penalties to one, with the only excitement coming courtesy of a couple of scything runs by Connacht wing Fionn Carr.

The first decent move put together by the Blues backs fizzled out when Parks sent a crossfield-kick straight to a waiting defender, but the Australian-born Scot soon made amends with a drop goal to extend the lead.

Keatley then dispossessed Blues flanker Michael Paterson on halfway and reached the home 22 before a desperate last-ditch tackle by Leigh Halfpenny saved the day.

Flair

After half an hour, the game finally saw some flair when Laulala, who was returning from injury, cut inside two defenders to cross for a superb touchdown, converted by Parks.

Keatley kicked a penalty at the start of the second half, before a kick ahead by Blues wing Chris Czekaj forced a lineout near the visitors' line.

However, the opportunity was squandered when Parks' drop-goal attempt was charged down.

That end result was typical of an evening when both sides' attacking efforts were ruined by basic handling errors.

Cardiff in particular suffered at the set-piece and the breakdown and were frequently turned over or penalised after the tackle.

Replacements came and went but both teams still failed to find any rhythm. Even so, Connacht almost broke through with an angled run by hooker Adrian Flavin, who was held up just short.

With chances few and far between, the Blues were grateful for a penalty from halfway by Parks and another, from even further, by Halfpenny to make the game safe.