Edinburgh temporarily took over at the top of the Magners League on Friday night as four penalty goals from Chris Paterson guided them to a hard-fought 12-7 victory over defending champions Munster.

A converted try from Lions back rower David Wallace was not enough to prevent Munster from slipping to their second successive Magners League defeat and their fifth loss in their last six away games in all competitions.

Once again, Chris Paterson, back fully fit after a viral infection, took on the mantle of match winner as his 100% goalkicking return drove Edinburgh to their first win over Munster since October 2006.

Chances were few and far between and the visitors will rue missing out on a first half try, when television match official Iain Ramage ruled out a Wallace effort, and Ronan O’Gara was also wayward with three attempts at goal.

Edinburgh coach Rob Moffat brought full-back Paterson, centre Ben Cairns and number 8 Scott Newlands back into the starting line-up, making three changes to the side that beat Ulster last week in European fare.

Munster were much-changed from the team that overcame Treviso, particularly in their injury-hit front row, with props Darragh Hurley and Julien Brugnaut starting. Flanker Niall Ronan and winger Ian Dowling also gained recalls.

Edinburgh took the lead in the second minute when Paterson punished a Munster offside with his first success penalty goal.

Moffat’s men had the better of the possession in the opening quarter but both defences proved difficult to break down and a couple of handling errors ended Munster’s advancements into the hosts’ half.

Full-back Paul Warwick was off target with a drop goal attempt and Edinburgh out-half Phil Godman missed a ninth minute penalty from distance.

Edinburgh looked to have the edge at ruck time and they upped the intensity around the midpoint of the first half, helped by some forceful carries by Lions hooker Ross Ford, Roddy Grant and Newlands.

But just when they looked set to strike, mauling forward off a lineout close to the Munster line, the ball was ripped free on the Munster side and Tomas O’Leary kicked clear.

Munster moved the ball wide with menace on a couple of occasions and Keith Earls, another Lion on show, was left frustrated when he was called back for a forward pass as he chased down his own kick with the Edinburgh rearguard sliced wide open.

Tony McGahan’s charges maintained their presence in the hosts’ 22 and despite a missed penalty from O’Gara, Munster rumbled forward through their pack – picking and driving towards the whitewash.

Number 8 Wallace looked like he had found a way over, burrowing over to the right of the posts. Replays showed him inching towards the line under a pile of bodies and Ramage said it was no try, mainly due to the scrambling efforts of Grant and Mike Blair.

Ford produced a telling tackle on Munster captain Paul O’Connell and Edinburgh were soon able to gain territory, lifting the tempo in attack as the first half came to a close.

Paterson landed two more penalties before the break, the first after an offside by Donncha O’Callaghan, to give his side a 9-0 buffer for half-time.

Dutch winger Tim Visser was closed down by Jean de Villiers as he threatened for Edinburgh on the restart and Munster wide man Dowling ran out of pitch when attempting to ground the ball after deftly controlling it near the right touchline.

O’Gara missed his second penalty effort but O’Connell and company carved out enough space for Wallace to muscle his way over on a close range drive, assisted by de Villiers.

The 52nd minute try, which O’Gara converted, gave Munster some much-needed hope after a scoreless first 40 minutes.

But, seven minutes later, Paterson was able to boost Edinburgh’s lead back to five points when he fired over his fourth penalty for what turned out to be the match-winning score.

O’Gara was just short as he tried to reply with a penalty of his own – he had the accuracy but not the distance – and Munster, with strike runners Lifeimi Mafi and Earls getting on the ball, just could not find the space to get back within scoring range.

They also encountered some problems in the scrum, and an injury to Darragh Hurley led to former Ireland Under-20 international Stephen Archer coming on for his Magners League debut.

Edinburgh’s strong-willed defence put in tackle after tackle – Geoff Cross, Alan MacDonald and Ben Cairns stood out in that regard – and Nick De Luca and John Houston threatened on the counter as the pattern of the game began to break up.

The final minutes saw a number of turnovers and both Paterson and Earls attacked from deep. Munster, whose discipline at the breakdown let their down, had to settle for a losing bonus point in the end as the Scottish capital outfit battled their way to the top of the league standings – for 24 hours at least.

Speaking afterwards, a pleased Rob Moffat said: "It was a good win and I thought we deserved it as well. I thought we showed a lot of character.

"There are lots of different ways to win a game of rugby and it wasn’t the prettiest game in the world.

"But you have to react to what is in front of you. Every game is a bit different and I thought we showed a lot of maturity to beat a good side.

"A lot of people will probably say that Munster aren’t perhaps playing that well right now, but Munster are a good team and they always compete.

"That win was a real squad effort. Everyone in our squad played well tonight and the spirit, once again, was magnificent. We showed maturity and didn’t panic at any point."