Harlequins number eight Nick Easter has admitted that his side showed ill-discipline during the second half of their Aviva Premiership opener against London Irish today.

Quins were well on top at half time as they went into the break with a 14-point lead, but two yellow cards in the second half threatened to allow Irish back into the match.

As it happened, Harlequins held out for a 20-15 victory and, despite being happy with the win, Easter acknowledged that his side should not have been drawn into giving penalties away at the breakdown.

"We played some good rugby in the right areas in the first half but we allowed them to get to us at the breakdown and should have left it to the referee," he told reporters.

"We allowed them back into it in the second half but we'll take that every time."

Quins director of rugby Conor O'Shea was also unhappy with his side's second-half performance.