The impact provided by Rory Best, David Shanahan and James Hume off the bench enabled Ulster to see off Munster’s challenge as they maintained their winning form with a 19-12 GUINNESS PRO14 derby victory in Belfast.
Ulster certainly rode their luck at times, particularly in the opening seconds when Robert Baloucoune avoided a red card for taking out Darren Sweetnam in the air, but they were clinical in attack with captain Rob Herring, Baloucoune and replacement David Shanahan all touching down.
The 16,804-strong festive crowd watched Will Addison’s surging break light up a dour first half, with the momentum leading to Herring’s 32nd-minute try and a 7-3 half-time lead. JJ Hanrahan kicked Munster’s only points while Baloucoune was in the sin-bin early on.
Despite building some promising phases in attack, Munster remained try-less and their frustration with referee Sean Gallagher and his match officials grew as some key calls went against them. Hanrahan kept them in the hunt before replacement Bill Johnston landed two more penalties, his 81st-minute strike snatching a deserved losing bonus point.
Although their lead was reduced to a single point at one stage, Ulster stood firm with regular skipper Rory Best having a key role in their two second half tries. His memorable midfield offload set the wheels in motion for Baloucoune’s first senior try, and good hands from the hooker again sent Shanahan over for his 76th-minute clincher.
Academy youngster Baloucoune’s over-eagerness when chasing down Billy Burns’ kick-off saw him upend Sweetnam. He was fortunate that Sweetnam avoided a head-first landing and the 21-year-old winger was dispatched to the bin following Gallagher’s consultation with TMO Brian MacNeice.
The visitors failed to profit from their immediate numerical advantage, with a Jordi Murphy turnover lifting the early pressure felt by Ulster. Neither side was giving an inch and tempers flared for a short time as the physicality and intensity rose.
Ulster, whose selection was much closer to full-strength than Munster’s, managed the sin-bin period well but did leak three points before Baloucoune’s return. Hanrahan punished an offside from Addison after the red-clad pack had also won a scrum penalty
Much-changed Munster were doing a good job of containing the hosts until Henry Speight followed up a John Cooney clearance with a big tackle on Mike Haley, and as the Ulstermen probed for an opening, Burns’ attempted cross-field kick beat both Baloucoune and Sweetnam into touch
Making his final appearance at Kingspan Stadium, Speight covered a kick in his own 22 and immediately countered, getting past Sweetnam but his attempted kick into space was blocked by Hanrahan with Munster looking exposed.
Ulster lost key man Cooney to a head injury assessment which proved to be a permanent withdrawal, bringing Shanahan, the province’s leading PRO14 try scorer this season, in at scrum half. It was tit-for-tat with defences on top as Munster’s first-time captain Jaco Taute forced a ruck penalty and then Ian Nagle disrupted the resulting Munster lineout.
The breakthrough finally came on the half hour mark when Addison accelerated through a gap out wide and gobbled up the metres before Conor Oliver produced a try-saving tackle on Shanahan. Crucially, Ulster were able to prosper from a subsequent penalty, their maul getting around the corner of Munster’s defence and Herring broke off to beat Hanrahan’s tackle and crash over for the opening try.
Burns added the extras with a well-struck conversion from the left, the final scoring act of a tightly-contested first half. Further defensive pressure forced knock-ons from both sides approaching the interval, with one from second row Jean Kleyn losing a promising position for Munster.
The third quarter produced just a single penalty goal, with Ulster having Marcell Coetzee, Murphy and Nagle to thank for their dynamic defence of Munster’s maul and carries in the loose. Coetzee, who was the eventual man-of-the-match, did have a 51st minute penalty marched forward for his involvement in some afters, and Hanrahan mopped up with the three points.
With both coaches looking to their benches, it was Ulster boss Dan McFarland whose moves made the bigger impact with Best and 20-year-old Academy back James Hume both sent on for the final half an hour. The home fans lapped up a powerful carry from Hume on the right wing.
Former Ulster centre Sam Arnold’s big hit on Martin Moore forced a knock-on in his own 22 to relieve the pressure on Munster, and replacement prop Kyle McCall, who had given away an earlier scrum penalty, redeemed himself with a well-earned breakdown penalty deep in Ulster territory.
The difference between the teams was evident in the final quarter when the Ulstermen were quick to turn two attacking opportunities into tries. Hard-won 60th-minute possession on halfway – courtesy of a McCloskey turnover – led to Best cleverly twisting away from three defenders, his offloading opening up some rare space for Burns and Hume to attack.
The strong-running Banbridge clubman succeeded in evading the clutches of Kleyn and linking with the ever-alert Shanahan who made it into the 22 and the trailing Baloucoune was there to his right to take the final pass and dive in behind the posts.
The Ireland Sevens international’s first PRO14 score was converted by Burns, only for Munster to hit back within five minutes. Replacement Shane Daly was caught with a high tackle from McCloskey, allowing Johnston to swerve the penalty through the posts after the ball had fallen off the tee just seconds earlier.
At just 14-9 down, Munster fancied their chances of manufacturing a late winning try. Their hopes were dashed though, as a harsh penalty against Arno Botha launched Ulster forward. Their pack earned another penalty closer in and the maul provided the ideal platform as Best’s well-timed pass took out two defenders and put Shanahan diving over in the right corner.
Burns was unable to convert on this occasion, keeping the door ajar for a losing bonus point and Johnston duly delivered it with his right boot, rewarding the likes of Botha and replacements Dave Kilcoyne and Gavin Coombes for their ball-carrying efforts late on.
Reacting to the win and his own man-of-the-match performance, number 8 Coetzee said: “Ultimately it was a team effort, we stuck to our guns and showed what we’re made of. To walk away with the accolade is a blessing for me, and I’d like to take this moment to thank my God for blessing me tonight and so far this whole season
“He’s been immense for me, and getting back from long term injury and really pulled me through tonight as well, so thanks to Him. We received the message at half-time, the one thing about Dan is he’s very honest and it was a tough one to swallow that first half.
“We had to readjust our physicality and aggression going into the second half. Luckily rugby is a game of two halves, so you can fix it. By all means it wasn’t a perfect performance from our side, we made a lot of mistakes, particularly in the set piece, lineouts and not keeping the ball in contact.”
Highlighting the province’s improved maul, the South African noted: “There are definitely work-ons for us going into next week, but as the season’s gone on the maul has become stronger and stronger for us and we ideally see it as a hammer, so a lot of emphasis is put on it in the build-up to the week.
“It just shows when it’s a crunch game like tonight then you have to stick to your guns and focus on your set piece, and we’re glad our maul worked out for us. We have put a lot of work into all areas where the pack deliver and there is now a great synergy between the boys.”
Munster head coach Johann van Graan admitted: “There were a lot of errors from both sides but there was pressure. That forces errors. Some of the hits that went in from both sides were really good. Conditions made the game a bit of a physical tussle.
“I think we had one or two opportunities in the red zone. We didn’t use them and Ulster used theirs. We were 10 points behind with two minutes to go so I’m very proud of the guys to fight back and get that losing bonus point.”
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