Ulster hold on for one-point URC victory over Connacht

The visitors, who ended Ulster’s season on their last visit to Belfast back in May, have now lost five in a row in all competitions and never led in this one despite outscoring their opponents by three tries to two.

After the game settled into its rhythm after a back-and-forth first quarter that saw three tries shared among the teams, Ulster essentially held Connacht at arm’s length and no more with Dan McFarland’s old side undermined by a struggling set-piece and a failure to hold onto the ball at key moments.

But this was to be another nervy night for Ulster who saw their lead cut to just one-point with ten minutes to go and had to cling on for victory on what was another narrow home victory.

While the conditions worsened as the game wore on, making for more typical festive fare, there had been a bright start to the contest with Ulster essentially carrying on where they left off against Racing last weekend.

Indeed, they were on the board after less than three minutes thanks to their second quick start here in the space of a week.

Keeping the ball alive with some sharp offloading out of the tackle, the hosts patiently worked their way to the Connacht line and, when there, John Cooney’s show and go gave prop Andy Warwick the job of applying the finishing touch.

When Kieran Treadwell was pinged for not rolling away, Connacht went to the corner rather than take a shot at the posts on a blustery evening.

They looked to have opened their account for the evening only for Iain Henderson to stop Tom Farrell in his tracks and hold the Connacht centre up over the line.

The westerners were playing with penalty advantage, however, and their next drive for the whitewash would produce the game-tying score with Bundee Aki crashing over.

Sean O’Brien’s burst through the Ulster defensive line almost produced a second for Connacht but winger Shayne Bolton just couldn’t dot down before the ball went dead off Mack Hansen’s grubber.

Instead, it would be Ulster who grabbed the game’s third score.

After James Hume’s kick over Hansen’s head found grass and the Irish international sliced into the crowd, the hosts had a couple of bites at the cherry from their maul, both out of touch and from the tap penalty that proved so successful against Racing, before Nick Timoney went over from close range for his third score in two games.

As the weather worsened, the tempo of the game slowed with a missed kick to touch from Ulster robbing them of what looked to be their best chance to extend their lead before the turn.

Connacht’s issues at the line-out were denying them a vital way back into the game but they’ll have headed to the sheds most frustrated about the knock-on at the base of a ruck five metres from the Ulster line that brought an end to the first-half.

With Ulster playing into the wind in the second-half, they would spend a prolonged period in the Connacht half before a Cooney penalty pushed them into a ten-point lead with half an hour to go.

At that point there looked only one winner but in the middle of what has been a testing run for the western province and their new coaching ticket, they would launch a comeback attempt that had hitherto felt unlikely.

They would reduce the arrears to just five with Shamus Hurley-Langton’s score on the hour mark, a try awarded after a lengthy TMO review to ascertain whether the flanker had stepped into touch and one that won’t make pleasant viewing in the video review for the would-be tacklers that missed the eventual scorer.

Carty couldn’t add the extras, a miss that appeared to loom large when off another line-out turnover, Connacht were penalised to allow Cooney to make it an eight-point game once again.

Again, though, Connacht weren’t quite finished.

But missed tackles would again haunt Ulster. Jacob Stockdale went for the all-or-nothing hit on Bolton but the winger evaded his lunge to score his side’s third of the night.

JJ Hanrahan, by this stage on for Carty, nailed the testing conversion to leave the score 20-19 with just ten minutes to go.

There was plenty of tension in the air as the game inched ever closer to the 80 minute mark with both sides turned over in the opposition half.

Ultimately, though, as Connacht launched one last attack from deep Mack Hansen’s forward pass sealed the deal for the Ulstermen in what is their final fixture of 2023.

The victory, their first in the URC since beating the Lions here in November lifts the side, temporarily at least, back into the top four.

Ulster: W Addison; R Baloucoune, J Hume, S McCloskey,, J Stockdale; J Flannery, J Cooney; A Warwick, T Stewart, M Moore; K Treadwell, I Henderson; M Rea, S Reffell, N Timoney. Replacements: S Kitshoff (for Warwick, 50), T O'Toole (for Moore, 50), A O'Connor (for Treadwell, 69), H Sheridan (for Reffell, 53), N Doak (for Flannery, 60), J Postlethwaite (for Hume, 64), S O'Brien (for Addison, 76). Not used: J Andrew.

Connacht: M Hansen; S Bolton, T Farrell, B Aki, B Ralston, J Carty, C Blade; D Buckley, T McElroy, F Bealham; D Murray, G Thornbury; C Prendergast, S Hurley-Langton, S O'Brien (for Addison, 76). Replacements: D Heffernan (for McElroy, 51), P Dooley (for Buckley, 64), J Aungier (for Bealham, 64), N Murray (for D Murray, 61), C Oliver (for O'Brien, 13), JJ Hanrahan (for Carty, 65), S Jennings (for Bolton 76). Not used: M McDonald.

Referee: E Cross.