[tag=image]http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/e ... y_logo.jpg[/tag][tag=content]Ulster moved up to third in the Pro12, albeit temporarily, with a thoroughly convincing 41-17 victory over Edinburgh at Ravenhill last night.
With the new grandstand steelwork looming over the pitch, Ulster ran riot with five tries coming from Paul Marshall, stand-in captain Robbie Diack, James McKinney and two from Craig Gilroy.
Edinburgh scored three tries themselves through Cornell du Preez, Grayson Hart and Dougie Fife, however the Scottish side were unable to cope with a man-of-the-match performance from fly-half James McKinney.
The visitors were the first to strike, as number eight du Preez managed to hold off Michael Allen’s attempted tackle and score in the corner.
Worryingly for Ulster fans, Iain Henderson limped off injured after that try, and Michael Allen was forced off moments later as well, but James McKinney got off the mark soon afterwards with his first penalty of the evening.
It was to get better for the home fans as a strong attack on the Edinburgh line was finished by full-back Craig Gilroy who spun out of a tackle to score his first try of the match. McKinney managed to convert from the touchline.
It didn’t take long for Ulster to register their second score either when Paul Marshall managed to hack on Darren Cave’s pass and then dive on it to score. McKinney once again added the extras.
The scrum and breakdown continued to be dominated by the home side and McKinney made Edinburgh pay for their high penalty count by slotting over his second penalty of the evening to take Ulster into the break with a 20-5 advantage.
Similarly to the first half, it was the Scots who were stronger to begin with, attacking repeatedly in the Ulster 22. However, the home side held out well to maintain their fifteen point lead.
Referee Neil Hennessy then decided to sin bin Edinburgh lock Izak van der Westhuizen for repeated offences in the sixtieth minute and from the resulting penalty, Paul Marshall fed captain for the evening Robbie Diack who slipped between two tackles to score Ulster’s third try.
The tries came thick and fast from there as firstly Craig Gilroy intercepted the ball on the halfway line and ran under the posts for the bonus point try Ulster craved, then James McKinney capped off a great performance at fly-half with a try of his own in the corner.
In the final ten minutes Edinburgh were able to capitalise on a number of walking wounded in Ulster’s back line with two late tries from Grayson Hart and Dougie Fife as they sought possibly a try bonus point, but it was all in vain as the Ulstermen held on for a crucial bonus-point win.
Next up for Ulster is an away trip to Italian side Zebre ahead of the Heineken Cup double header against Treviso. However, the coaching staff will be eager to find out the extent of the injuries sustained by Iain Henderson, Michael Allen, Lewis Stevenson and Luke Marshall.
The scorers:
For Ulster
Tries: Gilroy (2), P. Marshall, Diack, McKinney
Cons: McKinney (5)
Pens: McKinney (2)
For Edinburgh
Tries: du Preez, Hart, Fife
Cons: Leonard
ULSTER RUGBY
(15-9) Craig Gilroy, Andrew Trimble, Darren Cave (Paul Marshall xx), Luke Marshall (Peter Nelson 65), Michael Allen (Ricky Andrew 22), James McKinney, Paul Marshall (David Shanahan 69); (1-8) Callum Black (Tom Court 59), Rob Herring (Niall Annett 62), John Afoa (Ricky Lutton 66), Lewis Stevenson (Mike McComish 49), Iain Henderson (Dan Tuohy 18), Robbie Diack (c), Sean Doyle, Roger Wilson.
EDINBURGH RUGBY
(15-9) Greig Tonks, Dougie Fife, Joaquin Dominguez (Sam Beard 63), Ben Atiga, Jack Cuthbert (Tom Brown 25, 66), Harry Leonard, Sam Hidalgo-Clyne (Grayson Hart 63); (1-8) Wiccus Blaauw (Robin Hislop), Aleki Lutui (James Hilterbrand 65), Willem Nel (Geoff Cross 72), Ollie Atkins, Izak van der Westhuizen (Ben Toolis 71), Tomas Leonardi (Ross Rennie 40), Roddy Grant (c), Cornell du Preez.
Subs not used: Robin Hislop
Yellow card: Izak van der Westhuizen (61)
Man of the Match: James McKinney
Referee: Neil Hennessy (WRU)[/tag]
Match Report: Ulster 41-17 Edinburgh
Moderator: Moderators
