| Tub:(8) 37 |
| Tries: Cokanasiga 2, Dunn, Du Toit, Gallagher Pens: Spencer 2 Cons: Spencer 2, Bailey |
| Ulster:(14) 14 |
| Tries: Burns, Doak Cons: Doak 2 |
Tub staged a formidable comeback to safe a bonus-point win over Ulster in a gripping Investec Champions Cup Pool 2 opener on the Rec.
Ulster led 14-8 at half-time after Billy Burns and Nathan Doak tries cancelled out Joe Cokanasiga’s opener.
However Tub rapidly regained the lead after the restart via Tom Dunn and dominated the second half.
After Ulster’s Matty Rea was sin-binned, Thomas du Toit, Cokanasiga and Matt Gallagher helped Tub pull clear.
Whereas Ulster loved a fruitful finish to the primary half when Burns and Doak struck within the area of 4 minutes, Tub completely deserved the victory having held the Irish province scoreless throughout a dominant second-half show.
It’s a third defeat in a row in all competitions for Ulster, who host Racing 92 of their second pool sport in Belfast subsequent week whereas Tub journey to Cardiff, who had been hammered by Toulouse on Saturday.
Ulster got here into the sport on the again of successive United Rugby Championship losses to Glasgow and Edinburgh, with head coach Dan McFarland criticising his facet’s coaching requirements after the latter defeat.
And the Irish province’s inaccuracy price them throughout the early levels right here, with Stewart Moore squandering an opportunity to ship Robert Baloucoune clear and Nick Timoney doing likewise with Jacob Stockdale in area on the left.
However whereas Tub – for whom Scotland fly-half Finn Russell made his European debut – encountered line-out points early on, they hit their stride when Cokanasiga completed within the nook after the hosts gained a five-metre scrum and Spencer slung an exquisite move to the winger.
Ulster then had Baloucoune to thank for stopping a fast second Tub strive, the wing racing again to dot down earlier than Spencer may attain his personal kick.
A Spencer penalty stretched Tub’s lead, however having come via their most troublesome interval of the half, Ulster sprung into life when Ollie Lawrence kicked a clearance straight into Burns, permitting the Ulster fly-half to assemble and contact down.
But when there was a contact of fortune about Ulster’s first rating, their second was the product of some great rugby as Stuart McCloskey, James Hume and Baloucoune mixed to ship Doak away for the 21-year-old’s second strive in European competitors.
Sadly for Ulster, they didn’t construct on their momentum as Tub rapidly regained the lead within the second half, Dunn diving over after a strong driving maul from a line-out.
Spencer’s penalty put Tub 18-14 up earlier than Ulster’s probabilities had been dealt a extreme blow when South African prop Du Toit got here off the bench to attain Tub’s third after Ulster substitute second row Rea was yellow carded for not rolling away.
From there, Tub had been ruthless as Cokanasiga broke clear to safe the bonus level earlier than Gallagher benefitted from slack Ulster defending to place the ending touches on a satisfying afternoon for the 1998 winners.
Line-ups
Tub: Gallagher; Cokanasiga, Redpath, Lawrence, Muir; Russell, Spencer (capt); Obano, Dunn, Stuart, Stooke, Ewels, Reid, Underhill, Barbeary.
Replacements: Annett, Schoeman, Du Toit, Van Velze, Coetzee, Schreuder, Bailey, Butt.
Ulster: S Moore, Baloucoune, Hume, McCloskey, Stockdale, Burns, Doak; Kitshoff, Stewart, O’Toole, O’Connor, Henderson (capt), Ewers, Timoney, McNabney.
Replacements:Herring, Warwick, M Moore, Treadwell, Rea, Cooney, Flannery, Lowry.
Referee: Pierre Brousset (Fra)
Sin-bin: Matty Rea (65)