Ulster and Leinster tie thriller as Munster survive Connacht scare

Ulster and Leinster played out a thrilling tie on the opening day of the Interprovincial Championship at Lee Valley yesterday while defending champions Munster survived a few anxious moments in mid-afternoon to emerge 7 ½-3 ½ winners over Connacht.

The splendid Christy O’Connor Junior-designed course came in for considerable praise from all concerned and benefited even more from the frequent heavy showers that took some of the sting out of the parched fairways and firm greens.

It certainly provided the ideal setting for some tremendous matches, which augur well for today’s second session which sees Munster lead the way against Leinster followed by Ulster and Connacht.