Connacht travelled to Cardiff on Friday night for a clash with the Blues hoping to secure a bit of breathing room ahead of the side placed right behind them in 5th in the Guinness Pro 14 if they could manage to come away with a win.
Kieren Keane's men got off to the perfect start as they were ahead on 13 minutes through a Jack Carty try, but the Blues hit back and were leading 16-13 when the sides went in at halftime.
Once play resumed some issues at the scrum arose for the home side, and after conceding two penalties Cardiff took the decision to replace their starting loose-head prop, but soon the referee became one of the main talking points.
Firstly, a nasty shot to the back of a defenceless John Muldoon by Nick Williams was missed by the officials.
Nick Williams on Muldoon. #CARvCON pic.twitter.com/acVQu0sPyR
— rugby (@theblitzdefence) November 24, 2017
And if that didn't piss the Connacht captain off enough, he let his feelings be known moments later as the referee awarded a penalty to Cardiff at the scrum which looked to be very, very harsh.
Muldoon laughed in the referee's face, and while he avoided a booking, it did not go down particularly well.
You've got to sympathise with Muldoon.
The victim of a cheap-shot, and then having a scoring opportunity denied a minute later? He did well to leave it at just a laugh.
Cardiff would eventually run out 36-30 winners, and the Connacht forwards will be left wondering what might have been if they had been able to get over the line when the score was at 16-13.
