It makes you wonder how we cope when there is no European rugby. Yes, the Guinness Premiership is tense and competitive, the Magners League improving, the Six Nations historic. But the fizzy competition beats them all for drama, intensity, quality and cross-border rivalry.

This was the kind of soaring epic that only the Heineken Cup seems able to provide. When Munster are in town it does strange things to people, and Northampton were never going to treat this as anything less than their biggest guaranteed fixture of the season. If they carry on playing like this, though, they will find even bigger fixtures further down the line.

"As soon as we got Munster in the draw we got excited about it," said Jim Mallinder, Northampton's beaming director of rugby. "Not just the players, but the club and the town. I don't think Munster have let themselves down in helping to create the occasion tonight."

The ability of Munster fans to find tickets is a marvel, but Northampton fed off the vibe. Shane Geraghty was at the centre of it all. Martin Johnson was watching, so Geraghty's timing was perfect, never more so than when he seized control either side of the break. Awarded a penalty in front of the posts on the stroke of half-time, at 14-14, he tapped the penalty and scampering between a host of Munstermen for a try. Five minutes after the resumption, he nipped through some more defenders to set up Chris Ashton for his second try, having set him up for his first.

Geraghty's challenge is to underpin the brilliance with something more steady and reliable. He also missed three goals, none particularly difficult. But this is not the place to quibble. Northampton had done the physical and furious, as well as the deft and outrageous. Next they dug in. The Irish had closed to within a point with 12 minutes to play. But Geraghty did not miss the late penalty that took Northampton out of range of a Ronan O'Gara goal.

Johnson will also have appreciated the display of Courtney Lawes, the young lock who outshone two Munster Lions."Courtney was born very close to Franklin's Gardens," said Mallinder, "and these young, English players are what you want for the making of a club."

You had better start searching for tickets now for the return in Limerick in January. It'll be better than England v Ireland.

Northampton Foden; Ashton, Clarke, Downey (Mayor, 67), Reihana; Geraghty, Dickson (Dickens, 70); Tonga'uiha, Hartley (capt), Bonorino (Mujati, 58), Lawes (Lobbe, 67), Kruger, Dowson, Best, Wilson.

Tries Ashton 2, Geraghty Cons Geraghty 2 Pens Geraghty 4.

Munster Warwick; Howlett, Mafi (Dowling, 61), De Villiers, Earls; O'Gara, O'Leary; Horan, Flannery, Buckley (Brugnaut, 67), O'Callaghan, O'Connell, Quinlan (Ryan, 65), Wallace, Leamy.

Tries Wallace, O'Leary. Con O'Gara. Pens O'Gara 4. Drop-goal Warwick.

Referee C Berdos (France). Attendance 13,550.