Penalty for Montpellier as Ulster fail to get their set-up right in the scrum. The referee issued a warning and reset the scrum but punished them on the second whistle and Montpellier will get the clearance out.
15 mins ago
8:24PM
21 mins: Ulster 7-14 Montpellier
That’s a big blow for Ulster. An overthrow from their lineout puts them under pressure and Donovan Taofifenua completes the move as he collects the pass out wide and dives over.
The teams are out on the field now and it is sweltering in the stadium.
40 mins ago
7:59PM
As Leinster prepare for the Champions Cup final tomorrow against Bordeaux-Begles, can Ulster get the weekend off to a winning start for Irish provinces this evening?
The big news for Ulster is that Robert Baloucoune will make his first start for the province since getting injured against Scotland in March.
As expected, Jacob Stockdale, Stuart McCloskey and Rob Herring are all sidelined, with Iain Henderson missing out through suspension. Werner Kok also misses out on his final game for Ulster.
Ulster Rugby:
15. Mike Lowry
14. Robert Baloucoune
13. James Hume
12. Jude Postlethwaite
11. Zac Ward
10. Jack Murphy
9. Nathan Doak
1. Angus Bell
2. Tom Stewart
3. Tom O’Toole
4. Harry Sheridan
5. Cormac Izuchukwu
6. Dave McCann
7. Nick Timoney (c)
8. Juarno Augustus
Replacements:
16. James McCormick
17. Eric O’Sullivan
18. Scott Wilson
19. Charlie Irvine
20. Bryn Ward
21. Conor McKee
22. Jake Flannery
23. Ethan Mcilroy
1 hr ago
7:05PM
Hello and welcome along to our coverage of the Challenge Cup final as Ulster take on Montpellier.
This could be a great night for Ulster who won the Heineken Cup in 1999, and the Celtic League in 2006. Richie Murphy’s side will contest this final for the first time this evening against a team who have won this competition twice.
If you’re attending the game this evening, or just want to get involved in the coverage, do leave a comment below and enjoy the updates as they happen.
We’ll have team line-ups for you in the next few minutes as we gear up for the 8pm kick-off in Bilbao.
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LIVE: Ulster v Montpellier, Challenge Cup final
25 mins: Ulster 7-14 Montpellier
Penalty for Montpellier as Ulster fail to get their set-up right in the scrum. The referee issued a warning and reset the scrum but punished them on the second whistle and Montpellier will get the clearance out.
21 mins: Ulster 7-14 Montpellier
That’s a big blow for Ulster. An overthrow from their lineout puts them under pressure and Donovan Taofifenua completes the move as he collects the pass out wide and dives over.
Domingo Miotti adds the extras.
TRY! Ulster 7-14 Montpellier (Donovan Taofifenua ’16)
14 mins: Ulster 7-7 Montpellier
Great grubber kick from Arthur Vincent to push Ulster back into their own corner.
11 mins: Ulster 7-7 Montpellier
What a start for both teams!
Nick Timoney finishes off that brilliant break from Augustus and Nathan Doak adds the conversion.
But Montpellier strike back almost straight away through Gabriel N’Gandebe after a lovely offload from Lennox Anyanwu.
Ulster thought they had a second try then when Harry Sheridan went over but referee Matthew Carley immediately stepped in to signal a knock-on.
TRY! Ulster 7-7 Montpellier (Gabriel N’Gandebe ’6)
TRY! Ulster 7-0 Montpellier (Nick Timoney ’3)
2 mins: Ulster 0-0 Montpellier
A misread in the air sees Juarno Augustus make a break along the touchline. Ulster are already in the Montpellier five-metre line.
Could we be on for an early try? What a start that would be.
1 min: Ulster 0-0 Montpellier
And the 2026 Challenge Cup final is underway as Ulster win a penalty to get things started from a Montpellier kick-off.
Kick-Off! Ulster v Montpellier
The teams are out on the field now and it is sweltering in the stadium.
As Leinster prepare for the Champions Cup final tomorrow against Bordeaux-Begles, can Ulster get the weekend off to a winning start for Irish provinces this evening?
Call it here!
Poll Results:
Pre-match reading:
And here is how Montpellier are named to start:
Replacements:
The big news for Ulster is that Robert Baloucoune will make his first start for the province since getting injured against Scotland in March.
As expected, Jacob Stockdale, Stuart McCloskey and Rob Herring are all sidelined, with Iain Henderson missing out through suspension. Werner Kok also misses out on his final game for Ulster.
Ulster Rugby:
Replacements:
Hello and welcome along to our coverage of the Challenge Cup final as Ulster take on Montpellier.
This could be a great night for Ulster who won the Heineken Cup in 1999, and the Celtic League in 2006. Richie Murphy’s side will contest this final for the first time this evening against a team who have won this competition twice.
If you’re attending the game this evening, or just want to get involved in the coverage, do leave a comment below and enjoy the updates as they happen.
We’ll have team line-ups for you in the next few minutes as we gear up for the 8pm kick-off in Bilbao.
To embed this post, copy the code below on your site
challenge cup final live scores Liveblog Minute-by-Minute Montpellier Rugby Rugby Ulster