The Scottish side found themselves 18-9 behind at half-time as JJ Hanrahan and Robin Copeland touched down at either end of the half for the Munstermen.
But a flawless second-half showing from the second-row pair of Leone Nakarawa and Jonny Gray - who both dotted down for the hosts - made it 13 straight GUINNESS PRO12 wins at Scotstoun with a 21-18 triumph.
And with two fixtures against Scottish rivals Edinburgh to come over the Christmas period, Townsend insists the win was certainly a massive boost.
"I am really pleased for the players they have worked really hard in this period since the November tests and they really got their rewards," he said.
"It maybe didn't look that way after the end of the first half with Munster ahead but we played with intent after the break and that drove us to victory.
"It is a really important win at this time of year because we have played against a quality side and to lose at home and come up short would be tough to take going into the games against Edinburgh.
"It shows what is needed to win, the way we played in the second half in both attack and defence is what we need to produce for 80 minutes."
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