Backline bungles bugger Ulster
In a much improved performance Ulster were put to the sword by a slick set-piece move from the Ospreys who despite the scoreline flattered to deceive at times.
The match started with Ulster ominously looking like the were yet again going to struggle keeping possession and two penalties from the boot of James Hook gave the Ospreys a 6-0 cushion mid-way through the first half.
Initial fears would prove unfounded as the team upped the ante with Justin Harrison and Rory Best to the fore, carrying well and hitting tackles with real venom. Ulster managed to keep hold of the ball for a sustained period of time sucking in Ospreys defenders and forcing them into conceding penalties which O’Connor put between the uprights.
With the bit between their teeth the forwards took the fight to the opposition making hard yards up the pitch. A well worked move saw Danielli skin two opponents before making the whitewash under pressure from Justin Marshall. O’Connor missed a tricky conversion to leave it 8-6 to Ulster and that is how the half finished.
The second half saw the Ospreys get into the game a bit more and were rewarded with a wonderfully executed lineout move which saw Marshall make it two from two aginst Ulster. Hook converted to make it 13-8. Ulster looked like pulling a try back on a couple of occasions only for bad handling or decision making letting them down at the last which is unfortunate.
Caldwell’s discipline once again proved an issue with two successive penalties from the big man landing him in the sin-bin and costing his team 3 points. Soon after his return to action Ulster were once again down to 14 men with Carlo Del Fava sent to the bin for hair pulling after dealing out his own form of discipline on the continually infringing Jones.
The match finished 16-8 a scoreline that flattered the Ospreys and was overly harsh on Ulster who deserved, at the very least a losing bonus point after very committed and generally much more accurate performance. It has been reputed to have been interim coach Steve Williams’ last game in charge and as he is apparently not in the running for head coach I would like to wish him well and thank him very much for his short contribution to Ulster Rugby, taking over at a very difficult time and with half our backrow out of contention.
Finally a big thank-you to Malcolm Changleng who was once again his usual appalling self. His officiating is enough to make one cry with frustration and whilst it is often all to easy to blame the referee tonight’s performance was absolutely unacceptable and it rankles that there is as yet no official body to deal with performances like his. If it had occurred in the premier league in football Malcolm would be languishing in the lower divisions next weekend and rightly so. Upon hearing that he or he equally incompetent brother is in charge of a match is enough to strike a sense of forboding in ones heart that all to often proves correct.
“O” No! Not Again!
Ulster entertained the Ospreys for the reverse leg of their Heineken cup fixture at Ravenhill on Friday. Coming on the back of one of the worst drubbings Ulster have ever received from a Welsh team and with all hope of Heineken cup glory already gone you could have been forgiven for thinking that Ulster were just gong to roll over and let the Ospreys take whatever they wanted. But thankfully Steve Williams and the Ulster boys had other ideas. Don’t get me wrong, this was not a vintage Ulster Performance at Fortress Ravenhill, that is still some way off, but this was improved in every area and if the Ospreys thought all they had to do was turn up at Ravenhill to collect five points they were very much mistaken.
When the team was announced with Campbell and O’Connor as the starting half-back pairing some claimed Ulster were throwing the match while others admired Williams bravery in replacing the out-of form Boss and Wallace and giving young Niall O’Connor a shot at some real big-match experience.
The improvement was apparent from the first kick-off when Ulster actually gathered clean ball and cleared to touch instead of knocking on and gifting possession to the opposition in our own 22. It continued with some strong tackling and decent scrimmaging especially when considering the strength of the Osprey’s front row. Nevertheless it was first blood to the Ospreys when Ulster were penalised for ruck infringement and James Hook slotted a touchline penalty for a 0-3 lead. The lead doubled a few minutes later when a second penalty attempt from a Neil Best infringement gave the ospreys an easy shot at goal. Niall O’Connor took a chance to pull back three points almost immediately from the restart when Justin Marshall was penalised and the game reached stalemate with both defences able to snuff out the attacking threat of the other team. It was good to see Ulster tackling and mauling successfully for a change showing some real grit and determination and taking it to the Ospreys.
With the clock ticking down towards half time it was important that Ulster got some more points in the board and they duly obliged with a great move started by Bowe who fielded an Ospreys high ball and fed Bryn who made good ground before taking the ball to ground around the half-way mark. For a change Ulster got the ball away quickly and Dewey crashed it up the centre to be recycled again to find O’Connor combining with the two wingers to finish with Danielli over in the corner to put Ulster into the lead.
From the start of the second half the Ospreys pressed again looking to turn the game in their favour and on 55 minute Justin Marshall crossed the line from a well-executed training ground move to put the birdies back in the lead. In the space of a few minutes all Ulster’s hard work of the previous half was undone Hook converted Marshall’s try to extend the Ospreys lead then Ryan Caldwell was carded for lying over the ball and Hook slotted the penalty to extend the Ospreys lead to 8 points.
Steve Williams then chose to bring on the cavalry with some well timed substitutions and Ulster steadied the ship but the damage had been done and though Ulster nearly came back with a second try when Danielli combined again with Bowe but Tommy chose the wrong option ant tried to cut back inside the last defender when the better option might have been to head for the corner. Del-Fava was unlucky to be sin-binned when he came to the rescue of Isaac Boss who was receiving some pretty nasty treatment from and off-side Jones brother. Unfortunately the touch-judge only saw Del-Fava’s intervention although anyone who saw Boss afterwards could be in no doubt about what had been going on. Nevertheless, neither side was able to take advantage of any further scoring opportunities and the clock would down with the score Ulster 8 – 16 Ospreys.
I didn’t think that I’d ever leave Ravenhill happy that we had lost a match without conceding a bonus-point but without securing a losing bonus of our own. Perhaps this just shows how far we have fallen. But it was also true to say that there was much in the attitude of the players and the style of play to take comfort from. We may not have won but perhaps we saw the first green shoots of a recovery.
There were plus points: Our tackling, set-pieces and handling were much improved. Deccie and the Bear held up well against a pretty ferocious front row. O’Connor is short on experience but he’s not short of potential and we may have found a good Out-half for the future. Naz was mixed but some of the old magic is still there. Our wingers are really starting to combine well together and even Dewey was showing a little more of what he was hired for. On the negative side Ryan Caldwell may well be a hot prospect but he costs us points almost every game with stupid penalties and he spends too much time off the pitch.
Next up Leinster in the RDS on Boxing day. If we carry on improving we might just giove them a run for their money, but a first win over Leinster in three years is probably too much to hope for.
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