AFTER A MONTH-LONG hiatus, three Irish provinces settled back down to the bread and butter of the RaboDirect Pro12 this evening.
Ulster were the first to get the league back under way, but after leading 9-6 at half time they were undone with little over 10 minutes on the clock when prop Ryan Bevington galloped over for a try after a frantic period of play to give the Welsh side a 12-16 lead.
Predictably, with the reigning champions and the current leaders locking horns, the opening exchanges were tight. Though Ulster conceded the majority of possession and territory to the Welsh side, the first half was marked by Ruan Pienaar and Matthew Morgan’s exchange of penalties.
With Ulster able to call upon the experienced Paddy Wallace in midfield, their carries counted and Pienaar would end the half with three successful attempts to two from Dan Biggar’s understudy. Morgan would have been ruing a missed drop-goal attempt, taken after a quick-tapped penalty, when the scores were three apiece.
The scores were soon level for a third time in the 50th minute, but while the Ospreys were shorn of a man by a yellow card, Ulster were left to make do without Pienaar who left the field with a shoulder injury.
Stuart Olding took up kicking duties and did not disappoint, but Bevington’s lung-bursting breakaway was converted and Ulster could not build enough pressure despite the efforts of Wallace, Andrew Trimble and Darren Cave.
Away in Wales
In Wales, Connacht could not sustain an impressive start against the Llanelli Scarlets as they fell to a 25 -15 defeat at Parc y Scarlets.
Just five minutes had passed when Danie Poolman, playing out of position on the wing, crossed for his fourth try of the season.
Fly-half Dan Parks would miss a crucial conversion, and soon a long-range penalty, allowing Owen kick the hosts back into the lead.
Parks would restore the advantage with a drop-goal, but it proved to be the Westerners last meaningful score.
Williams would add two more scores to give his side 12-8 lead at the break and his tally for the evening would end at 20 points made up of six penalties and a conversion of Joe Snyman’s 53rd minute score.
Veteran lock Michael Swift grounded a 76th minute try to take Connacht into double figures, but by then Scarlets had closed off the possibility of a bonus point.
New era?
Over in Cardiff, Leinster took some inspiration from Ireland’s first half display in the overshadowing Millennium Stadium last week to beat Cardiff Blues 26 -11 at the Arm’s Park.
Ian Madigan began the post-Jonny-Sexton era with three penalties to give Joe Schmidt’s side a 9-3 lead after 32 minutes despite Tom Denton’s early yellow card.
Restored to a full compliment, Isaac Boss and Jordi Murphy stretched out the eastern province’s lead to 23-3 with quick-fire tries in the final minutes of the half.
Last year’s beaten finalists would contribute just one score in the second period, Madigan taking his tally to 16 points with a fourth penalty, after Jason Tovey’s consolation score for the Blues.
