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Simon Zebo's hat-trick and all the rest of the weekend's Pro12 highlights

Catch up on all the scores as Connacht secured third position on the league table.

THERE WERE WINS for three of the four Irish provinces in the Guinness Pro12 over the weekend, with Connacht remaining the pick of the bunch in third position.

Pat Lam’s men battled to a 10-9 victory at a thrilled Sportsground on Friday, sending their supporters into chants of ‘We are top of the league.’ That status lasted for only one night as wins for Glasgow on Saturday and then the Ospreys on Sunday pushed the western province down the league pecking order.

Kieran Marmion’s superb individual try was the standout moment of the game, although crunching hits from Dave McSharry, John Muldoon and Robbie Henshaw were memorable too.

PRO12 Rugby / YouTube

Elsewhere on Friday evening, Ulster continued their unbeaten start to the season by securing a 26-9 win away to the Cardiff Blues.

Captain Rory Best was man of the match as tries from Ian Humphreys and Dan Tuohy – who suffered a fractured arm later in the game – as well as 14 Paddy Jackson points and a Humphreys conversion did the damage on the scoreboard.

Ulster lie fourth after the opening three rounds, level on match points with Connacht.

PRO12 Rugby / YouTube

Munster rounded off a good Friday for the Irish provinces with a bonus-point 31-5 victory over Zebre in Thomond Park, bringing to an end their three-game losing streak at the Limerick venue in doing so.

Anthony Foley was understandably enthused by the finishing prowess of Simon Zebo, after the 24-year-old Corkman dotted down three times against the Italian opposition. Further tries from Australian centre Andrew Smith and Dave Kilcoyne allowed Munster to climb to fifth on the league ladder.

PRO12 Rugby / YouTube

Connacht’s league lead concluded on Saturday, with Gregor Townsend’s ever-impressive Glasgow Warriors taking that position, for one night at least, with a 33-13 win away to the Newport-Gwent Dragons.

Despite losing back row Tyrone Holmes to a red card in the second half, the Scots scored four tries – including one from former Ireland U19 wing Tommy Seymour – to ensure a comfortable win.

PRO12 Rugby / YouTube

Later on Saturday, the Scarlets earned their first win of the season with a comprehensive 43-0 hammering of Treviso in Wales, moving up to sixth position as a result.

Wayne Pivac’s men scored seven tries, including two for Liam Williams, to suggest that they can compete this season.

PRO12 Rugby / YouTube

Finally, the Ospreys ended the weekend’s action with a statement of a 62-13 success over Edinburgh yesterday to grab top spot heading into round four.

The Welsh region travel to Thomond Park to face Munster on Saturday buoyed by a ruthless nine-try dismantling of Alan Solomons’ charges. Scrum-half Rhys Webb was particularly effective and will need to be closely watched in Limerick.

PRO12 Rugby / YouTube

Pro12 Round three results:
  • Connacht 10-9 Leinster
  • Munster 31-5 Zebre
  • Cardiff 9-26 Ulster
  • Dragons 13-33 Glasgow
  • Scarlets 43-0 Treviso
  • Ospreys 62-13 Edinburgh

Table Guinness Pro12 Guinness Pro12

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