URC, round three: Ulster 28 Bulls 7
Ulster surged through to put the Bulls to the sword in Belfast, their second-half scoring spree, three tries in seven minutes, sealing the deal and giving them maximum points from their two games played.
Stuart McCloskey’s first-half effort was added to by second-half scores from Juarno Augustus, Rob Herring and Cormac Izuchukwu, and the northern province could have had others if more passes had stuck.
True the Bulls were profligate and very loose, but there was no taking this away from Richie Murphy’s side, their ambition with the ball and determination in defence standing to them in style.
Ulster set their stall out from the start, Augustus rumbling off a scrum on his first start for the province though the ball ended up being lost when moved into midfield.
RM Block
Yet Ulster stuck at it, defending a maul on their own line and forcing a turnover and then moving the ball with pace and width, David McCann and Stuart McCloskey featuring heavily.
Jack Murphy also showed he was fully tuned-in, chipping over the rush defence to nearly allow McCloskey collect.
But it was the Bulls who nearly made the first breakthrough, Sebastian de Klerk cutting through leaving Jacob Stockdale to make a try-saving tackle.
The visitors kept the pressure up but were adjudged to have knocked on when mauling over the line which prompted Ulster to draw first blood, McCloskey winning a race with Marco van Staden from Nathan Doak’s hack through.
Doak converted and that was 7-0 to the hosts though the tables quickly turned after Stockdale knocked on from the restart, the situation ultimately leading to the binning of Rob Herring on 26 minutes and Wilco Louw’s try, Handre Pollard’s conversion making it seven points apiece.
Doak then hit an upright with a 31st minute penalty and though things got frantic for the Bulls, they did clear the danger, and Ulster had missed an opportunity to nudge ahead.
The half ended with the scores locked together, Canan Moodie’s chip being meat and drink for Doak in the red zone.
The second half began with a sweeping Ulster attack which the South Africans cleared, but Ulster came again, and when Jeandre Rudolph was binned Ulster looked primed to score.
It was Augustus who burrowed through after Ulster laid siege to the Bulls line. Doak converted to put his side 14-7 ahead.
Shortly afterwards, Herring had their third, spinning off a driving maul which Doak again converted.
Ulster were now on a roll, Stockdale’s break and McCann’s collect and feed to Izuchukwu bringing the bonus-point try in the 56th minute. Doak again did the needful.
With the clock running down, the Bulls threw everything at their hosts, winning penalties in the red zone and ultimately going for a tap-and-go, though Nama Xaba lost the ball with the line in sight.
The game ended with Ulster still pressing though there were no further add-ons in scoring.
SCORING SEQUENCE – 22 mins: McCloskey try, Doak con 7-0; 27: Louw try, Pollard con 7-7, Half-time 7-7; 49: Augustus try, Doak con 14-7; 53: Herring try, Doak con 21-7; 57: Izuchukwu try, Doak con 28-7
ULSTER: J Stockdale; R Baloucoune, J Hume, S McCloskey, Z Ward; J Murphy, N Doak; S Crean, R Herring, T O’Toole; I Henderson, C Izuchukwu; D McCann, N Timoney, J Augustus.
Replacements: J Postlethwaite for McCloskey (22 mins, 69), T Stewart for Baloucoune (32-37), S Wilson for O’Toole (51), T Stewart for Herring (58), S Reffell for Augustus (61), H Sheridan for Izuchukwu (63), E O’Sullivan for Crean (64), J Flannery for Murphy (71), C McKee for Doak (75).
Yellow card: Herring (27 mins).
BULLS: D Williams; S de Klerk, C Moodie, H Vorster, S Jacobs; H Pollard, Z Burger; G Steenekamp, J Grobbelaar, W Louw; C Wiese, N Janse van Rensburg; M van Staden, M Gumede, J Rudolph.
Replacements: W le Roux for Williams (14 mins), N Xaba for Staden (51), P de Wet for Burger, R Ludwig for Rensburg (both 58), J Wessels for Steenekamp (64), J Else for Grobbelaar (69), D Kriel for Vorster (71).
Yellow card: Rudolph (47 mins).
Referee: M Adamson (SCO).
