Cardiff Rugby 20
Ulster 42
Rob Cole reports from Cardiff
ULSTER HEADED TO the Welsh capital knowing that a bonus-point win was the minimum standard to keep alive their hopes of bagging a home quarter-final in the URC and keep apace with the other teams at the top.
They got off to a dream start when centre Stewart Moore sliced clean through the fragile home defence in only the second minute and they finally reached their goal of four tries in the 52nd minute when Billy Burns raced between two defenders on the home line to score after constant pressure from the forwards.
In between those two scores the visitors had flexed their muscles to such good effect that barring a moment of magic from Samoan centre Rey Lee Lo, playing his 150th game for Cardiff, they were under little or no threat.
That Lee Lo moment came after eight minutes when he bounced off two would be tacklers and somehow released a one-handed pass out of the back of his hand. That fed Owen Lane who ran in unopposed.
Moments later Jarrod Evans landed a penalty and somehow Cardiff led 8-7. Not for long, though.
Some magic up to the left touchline from Jacob Stockdale, with a trademark chip and chase, saw him crash over in the corner. This time Nathan Doak added the extras off the other touchline.
The scrum half, who managed to converted all six tries, sniped over for one of his own to make it three tries in 25 minutes. The only surprise was they didn’t get a fourth just before the break after ignoring a kick at goal to kick to the corner.
Cardiff became increasingly passive in contact and the heavy carries from the Ulsterman eventually battered the home team into submission. Once Burns had bagged the bonus there was time for replacement hooker Tom Stewart to enjoy himself with two tries – the first only a minute after he had taken to the field.
Cardiff rallied late on with a second try for Lane, set-up once again by Lee Lo and then replacement wing Aled Summerfield went on a solo run after his fellow wing Jason Harries had intercepted in his own 22 and created a rare attacking chance for the Blue & Blacks.
Evans converted the latter, but it was much too little too late.
Scorers:
Cardiff:
- Tries: Lane (8. 63), Summerhill (68).
- Con: Evans (69).
- Pen: Evans (17).
Ulster:
- Tries: Moore (2), Stockdale (19), Doak (25), Burns (52), Stewart (60, 73).
- Cons: Doak (3, 20, 26, 53, 61, 4)
Cardiff
Thomas (Morgan 64); Lane , Lee-Lo (Summerhill 65), Llewellyn, Harries; Evans, Williams (Bevan 26); Carre (Domachowski 53), Dacey (Belcher 53), Lewis (Assiratti 53-56), Timani, Davies (Williams 57), Turnbull (captain), Jenkins, Ratti (Lewis-Hughes 57)
Ulster
Lowry; Moxham, Hume (Postlethwaite 69), Moore, Stockdale (McIlroy 65); Burns, Doak; Sutherland (Reid 59), Herring (captain, Stewart 59), Toomaga-Allen (Milasinovich 69), Treadwell, Carter (O’Connor 49), McCann, Rea, Timoney (Sheridan 70)
Reps Unused: Cooney
Referee: Hollie Davidson (SRU)