Fans were treated to 453 tries - 4.1 per match- as Ospreys, Cardiff Blues and Leinster and Scarlets fought it out to claim Celtic rugby's biggest prize.
The Early Winners:
Lyn Jones' Ospreys began the season as they were to end it, sealing victory through the boot of a certain 21-year-old fly-half called James Hook.
Hook was to make his Wales debut that year and turned in one of the most exceptionally assured debuts in international history. He rose from the bench to replace Stephen Jones, score 13 points and be named Man of the Match as Wales secured a then-rare 29-29 draw with Australia in Cardiff.
And it was a steel built with the Ospreys throughout a bruising league campaign. In a back-line including Gavin Henson, Shane Williams, Sonny Parker, Lee Byrne, Hook started alongside Justin Marshall at half-back.
Current Ospreys coach Steve Tandy started at openside for the region against Edinburgh, in a game they won 17-11 through a combination of Hook's four penalties and Tandy's relentless work-rate.
It was far from sunshine and rainbows for the Ospreys in the early part of 2006.
Although they had talent at their disposal the envy of most international sides, they were demolished at Kingspan Stadium by reigning champions Ulster 43-7 through scores from Rory Best, Tommy Bowe, Paul Steinmetz and Neil McMillan, as well as Humphreys unerring boot.
It was a win that would return Ulster to the top of the pile in week four as they threatened to reign supreme for a second year running.
And Ulster did not look like slowing up when they came from behind to put Borders to the sword 32-8 at Kingspan Stadium in round eight to build their lead at the league summit.
The festive period was a critical time at the thick end of the league, Cardiff laid down a serious marker as Ben Blair contributed 25 points in a 30-24 win over Ospreys, while Leinster put Ulster to bed in 'The Last Stand' at Lansdown Road.
The Run-in:
Jones' men began to motor as the season rolled towards its conclusion. As Leinster downed Ulster at Lansdowne Road, Henson and Hook booted Ospreys to a gritty 12-6 win over local rivals the Dragons in a mud-bath at Liberty Stadium.
The final game at the old Lansdowne Road
Ospreys lost just two games from the turn of the year, winning eight - chief among those were gutsy wins over Leinster, Munster and Ulster, though they also suffered a momentum sapping 44-22 away loss to Leinster at Donnybrook in round 13.
Cardiff Blues, under current Wasps Director of Rugby Dai Young, kept up the pressure on their Welsh rivals, clocking up bonus-point wins over Borders and a huge 48-0 win over Edinburgh.
Michael Cheika's Leinster too ran the title race to the final game of the season, but for the second-year running, they missed out as Young's blues romped to a bonus point win to put themselves in with a shout of the league, but break Leinster hearts again.
Gareth Williams, Marc Stcherbina, Robin Sowden-Taylor, Rhys Williams all ran in for scores at BT Cardiff Arms Park, doing everything within their power to secure a first Celtic League, but the league's fate remained in Ospreys hand.
Final Day:
And it was fittingly Hook - with a supporting role from Parker - whose boot took the title back to South Wales, in the second of their four league titles.
They met a fired up Borders side, playing their last ever game as a professional rugby side, but All Black Filo Tiatia's crossed after just five minutes and then right before half-time a textbook Hook dummy took him past the Borders' line, he then fed Richard Webster for his first score.
Parker profited from some Williams magic after the break to score again, but it was then Townsend's turn to spark the game into life.
His sharp thinking sent over prop Ed Kalman as the Borders began to put the cat amongst the pigeons.
Hook though extended Ospreys' lead in the closing stages with a cool long-range penalty and to clinch the title.
Top Points Scorer:
The prolific Dan Parks, who leads the GUINNESS PRO12 all-time chart with 1582, top scored with 197 for Glasgow Warriors while Felipe Contepomi followed up his remarkable 2006 season with 187 more from the shoe in second place.
The top five is rounded off by Cardiff Blues' Ben Blair, Ulster's David Humphreys and Dragons' Ceri Sweeney.
The Scarlets' attacking style is evidenced in them having two players top of the try-scoring charts in Darren Daniel and Barry Davies - with seven each.
But they were both matched by Leinster's Jamie Heaslip and Ulster's Andrew Trimble and Heaslip's fellow Leinsterman Dennis Hickie completing the top five with six tries.
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