Earls powers Munster to semi-final of Heineken Champions Cup

Edinburgh 13-17 Munster, Murrayfield Stadium
Scorecard

Munster have progressed to the semi-final of the Heineken Champions Cup riding on a double from Keith Earls after defeating Edinburgh 13-17 at BT Murrayfield Stadium on Saturday.

As a result, Munster will now face Saracens in the semi-final clash that will be played at Ricoh Arena on 20th April.

Edinburgh went attacking in the opening six minutes but that could not translate into points with Joey Carberry clearing the field.

The Irish side suffered a setback when Tadhg Beirne was sin-binned in the 11th minute for an offence close to their own try line but despite the numerical disadvantage, they slotted their opening try when Earls breached the defence of the home side that was improved by Joey Carberry.

Edinburgh though took control of the remainder of the first half with them replying through a touchdown from Chris Dean in the 27th minute and Jaco van der Walt slotted the conversion to make it 7-7 before the Edinburgh fly-half kicked a penalty goal in the 36th minute to take the scoreline 10-7 heading into the second half.

The opening 10 minutes of the second half saw Tyler Bleyendaal and van der Walt trade penalties as Edinburgh maintained their three point lead. As the game entered the closing stage, it was Earls, who once again proved decisive with his 71st-minute try - second in the game - and a conversion from Bleyendaal ensured Munster completed a close 13-17 victory.