Munster spoil Harley's party
Tries from Niall Scannell and James Cronin, and the boot of marksman Tyler Bleyendaal helped the Munstermen, the second-placed side in Conference A of the Pro14, claim the scalp of the leaders.
Back-rower Harley racked up his 178th Warriors game, making more appearances for the club than anyone else, but he was unable to prevent his team from slipping to their second loss of the season.
Bleyendaal's 10th-minute penalty saw Munster nose in front as the home side attempted to set the tone, turning the screw on the Warriors.
The visitors found themselves firmly under the cosh and their defensive bulwark was finally breached with 25 minutes on the clock, Scannell hitting the deck just in front of the line before reaching out to score the game's first try.
Bleyendaal used the swirling wind inside Thomond Park to curl a gorgeous conversion through the posts and Munster had carved out a 10-0 lead.
Just past the half-hour mark, Alex Wootton's superb try-saving tackle prevented Matthew Smith from finishing off a sublime Glasgow break, and then Bleyendaal added to his highlight reel with a well-executed long-range penalty.
Three minutes after the break, Adam Hastings' penalty got Glasgow on the scoreboard at long last and, shortly afterwards, George Horne finished off a stirring Warriors move to chip away at the deficit, grabbing the visitors' first try of the game, Hastings adding the extras.
But, with 49 minutes on the clock, Munster's Cronin reacted quickest to seize upon a loose ball before bunding his way over the line to make it 18-10.
Calvin Nash though he had added to the hosts' total shortly afterwards as he claimed an aerial ball before dotting down but he had narrowly gone into touch as he finished, letting Glasgow off the hook.
With 18 minutes to go, Bleyendaal booted his team into an 11-point lead, an advantage that they would go on to defend right through to the final whistle as Johann Van Graan's men racked up a fine triumph.
The scorers:
For Munster:
Tries: Scannell, Cronin
Con: Bleyendaal
Pens: Bleyendaal 3
For Glasgow Warriors:
Try: Horne
Con: Hastings
Pen: Hastings
Teams:
Munster: 15 Simon Zebo, 14 Andrew Conway, 13 Sammy Arnold, 12 Dan Goggin, 11 Alex Wootton, 10 Tyler Bleyendaal, 9 James Hart, 8 Robin Copeland, 7 Chris Cloete, 6 Dave O’Callaghan, 5 Billy Holland (captain), 4 Jean Kleyn, 3 Stephen Archer, 2 Niall Scannell, 1 James Cronin.
Replacements: 16 Rhys Marshall, 17 Dave Kilcoyne, 18 Brian Scott, 19 Gerbrandt Grobler, 20 Jack O’Donoghue, 21 Duncan Williams, 22 Ian Keatley, 23 Calvin Nash.
Glasgow: 15 Ruaridh Jackson, 14 Lee Jones, 13 Sam Johnson, 12 Brandon Thomson, 11 Ratu Tagive, 10 Adam Hastings, 9 George Horne, 8 Matt Fagerson, 7 Matt Smith, 6 Rob Harley (captain), 5 Scott Cummings, 4 Kiran McDonald, 3 Siua Halanukonuka, 2 James Malcolm, 1 Oli Kebble.
Replacements: 16 Grant Stewart, 17 Alex Allan, 18 Zander Fagerson, 19 Lewis Wynne, 20 Chris Fusaro, 21 Henry Pyrgos, 22 Richie Vernon, 23 Niko Matawalu.
Referee: Marius Mitrea (Italy)
Assistant referees: Andrea Piardi (Italy), Manuel Bottino (Italy)
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