The Blues scored two tries to follow Edinburgh in staying unbeaten in Pool 2 following last week’s impressive success at Racing Metro 92 but Irish secured a valuable losing-bonus-point.

T Rhys Thomas and Heineken Man of the Match Lloyd Williams touched down in the first half for the 2010 Amlin Challenge Cup winners against an Exiles side who had Steve Shingler sent off with less than a quarter of the game played.

Former Scarlets midfielder Shingler saw red for a tip tackle on Dafydd Hewitt but the Blues failed to truly capitalise after establishing a two-score advantage prior to his dismissal.

An impressive kicking display from visiting full back Tom Homer kept Irish in the hunt as the 21-year-old slotted six penalties from seven attempts to claim the full compliment of his side’s 18 points.

Irish could even have snuck a sensational win as they found themselves encamped in the Blues 22 late on but the home side held firm to set up a mouth-watering double header with Edinburgh in December.
 
The Blues started superbly in the Welsh capital as they raced into a 10-point lead inside eight minutes.

Dan Parks slotted a third-minute penalty to hand the Blues an early advantage before hooker Thomas crossed for the game’s opening try.

Thomas burrowed over from a driving maul after the Blues had turned down a shot at the posts in favour of a close-range lineout. Skipper Paul Tito leapt highest to secure possession seven metres out and the Blues pack then showed their power to gift Thomas his fifth Heineken Cup try in 38 appearances.

The impressive Casey Laulala could have claimed a second try just before the quarter-of-an-hour mark after deft hands from flanker Michael Paterson created space for Alex Cuthbert out on the left-hand side of the pitch. Cuthbert, who had come around from the opposite wing, sliced through the first line of defence but Laulala failed to hang on to his offload with the line at his mercy.

The Exiles’ hopes of hitting back following a slow start were dealt a major blow with the sending off of Shingler on 19 minutes. Having lifted fellow centre Hewitt from his feet and failed to support his return to the safety of level ground, Shingler and the vast majority of the 10,358-strong crowd knew what was coming next.

But despite the disappointment of losing a man so early in proceedings, Irish refused to drop their heads and enjoyed the lions’ share of territory for the remainder of the half.

Homer slotted three penalties to a single strike from Parks in the second half of the opening 40 minutes as the visitors closed the gap to 13-9. But just as things seemed to be going Irish’s way, Williams intervened with the final play before the break to hand the Blues a healthy half-time lead.

The young scrum-half, who was a surprise inclusion in the Wales World Cup squad and won plenty of plaudits in New Zealand, showed his pace as he darted through from the base of a ruck 25 metres from the tryline.

Parks was off-target with the touchline conversion but the Blues had the boost they wanted prior to referee Jerome Garces’ whistle.

The Blues pressed hard for a third score immediately after the break but the second period soon became a cagey affair dominated by the boot.

Parks kicked the Blues further ahead on 50 minutes after Homer had produced a try-saving tackle on Cuthbert three minutes earlier. Homer then produced the goods at the other end of the field with a brace of penalties on 53 and 63 minutes to narrow the gap to 21-15 and keep Irish’s hopes of an upset on the cards.

Parks looked to have settled matters by opening up an eight-point gap once again with just over 10 minutes to go but Homer’s 74th-minute strike led to a nervy finish and ensured Toby Booth’s men left with the least they deserved for a fully-committed display at the Cardiff City Stadium.