Northern Edition

Select Edition

Northern Northern
Southern Southern
Global Global
New Zealand New Zealand
France France

Ulster end losing run by beating Connacht

By PA
Galway , Ireland - 28 December 2024; Matty Rea of Ulster and Finlay Bealham of Connacht tussle during the United Rugby Championship match between Connacht and Ulster at the Dexcom Stadium in Galway. (Photo By Seb Daly/Sportsfile via Getty Images)

Ulster ended a five-match losing run in all competitions with a dogged 17-7 United Rugby Championship win at Connacht.

ADVERTISEMENT

Without an away victory since last May, a converted Eric O’Sullivan try and a Nathan Doak penalty had injury-hit Ulster leading 10-7 at half-time, with Mack Hansen crossing for Connacht.

Nick Timoney, Ulster’s stand-in captain and player-of-the-match, then forced his way over from a 54th-minute maul, condemning error-strewn Connacht to their seventh straight interprovincial derby defeat.

Ulster head coach Richie Murphy handed first starts to his 20-year-old son Jack, whose older brother Ben came off the Connacht bench in the second half, and Rory Telfer.

Both sides were forced into late changes to their line-ups, with Dylan Tierney-Martin and Niall Murray drafted in for Connacht and Kieran Treadwell and John Andrew brought in for the visitors.

James McNabney and Ben Carson stood out during a strong start from Ulster, who pressed initially from a Jack Murphy 50:22 kick. The pressure told when prop O’Sullivan crashed over beside the posts, giving Doak a simple conversion.

Match Summary

0
Penalty Goals
1
1
Tries
2
1
Conversions
2
0
Drop Goals
0
147
Carries
77
2
Line Breaks
2
21
Turnovers Lost
9
5
Turnovers Won
7

A bustling break from McNabney led to Doak extending the lead to 10 points, before Connacht slowly made gains.

ADVERTISEMENT

Finlay Bealham ensured the hosts’ scrum got on top but they remained scoreless until the 35th minute.

Jack Carty used a penalty advantage to chip into the Ulster 22, and with the ball bouncing loose off Michael Lowry, the inrushing Hansen gleefully accepted the gift.

Ulster’s impressive work-rate was rewarded during a tight third quarter. Successive penalties gave them a shot at the posts, but they turned it down and Timoney burrowed over from a well-directed maul, with Doak also adding the extras.

Although Bundee Aki and replacement Sean Jansen’s direct running was having an impact, Connacht’s handling errors increased. They also suffered a maul turnover and Cathal Forde kicked a subsequent penalty dead.

ADVERTISEMENT

Ulster earned important late penalties in defence – via a five-metre scrum and from a terrier-like Timoney at the breakdown – as the hosts lost successive league matches in Galway for the first time since May 2021.

Related

Top 100

Rugby’s best of the best, ranked by experts. Check out our list of the Top 100 Men's Rugby Players and let us know what you think! 



ADVERTISEMENT

Boks Office | Episode 37 | Six Nations Round 4 Review

Cape Town | Leg 2 | Day 2 | HSBC Challenger Series 2025 | Full Day Replay

Gloucester-Hartpury vs Bristol Bears | PWR 2024/25 | Full Match Replay

Boks Office | Episode 36 | Six Nations Round 3 Review

Why did Scotland's Finn Russell take the crucial kick from the wrong place? | Whistle Watch

England A vs Ireland A | Full Match Replay

Kubota Spears vs Shizuoka BlueRevs | JRLO 2024/2025 | Full Match Replay

Watch now: Lomu - The Lost Tapes

Trending on RugbyPass

Comments

1 Comment
R
RedWarrior 87 days ago

Disastrous result for conaught almost an impossible task to make top 8 now

The fixture may have been overly friendly recently, and connaught appeared to be a bit unstuck by the venom and vitriol from Ulster. Doak had an amzing game shooting out with perfect timing to disrupt onnaught on every attacking phase. On paper connaught should have had this. Well done to Ulster. connaught were suckered a bit.

Join free and tell us what you really think!

Sign up for free
ADVERTISEMENT

Latest Features

Comments on RugbyPass

E
EllenMoody 3 hours ago
Great moments in Lions tour history – JPR’s drop goal and the All Blacks' brutal revenge

A Crypto Theft Victim's Journey: How Morphohack Cyber Service Restored My Assets

By: Ellen Moody, Crypto Investor and Advocate

I was left reeling after discovering that my digital wallet had been compromised, resulting in the loss of 39.5 Ethereum. This devastating experience left me desperate for a solution. I reached out to Morphohack Cyber Service. Their team responded with exceptional professionalism and expertise, promptly launching a comprehensive analysis of the blockchain network to track the stolen funds.

Their specialists employed cutting-edge blockchain analytics tools to follow the digital footprint, providing detailed explanations of their methods. It was evident that they possessed a profound understanding of hacker strategies and vulnerabilities. Despite encountering obstacles, they persevered, meticulously tracking the ETH as it navigated various wallets and tumblers.

Throughout the process, Morphohack Cyber Service maintained seamless communication, providing regular updates on the case. Ultimately, their efforts culminated in the successful recovery of 37 ETH, seized from the wallets holding my stolen assets.

I’m profoundly grateful for Morphohack Cyber Service expertise and genuine commitment to helping victims of crypto theft. Their specialized knowledge of blockchain forensics is unmatched. I highly recommend their services to anyone facing a similar situation. In the complex world of crypto, they are truly a trusted ally.

Need Help Recovering Stolen Crypto? Contact Morphohack Cyber Service:

Email: Morphohack@cyberservices.com

Info@morphohackcyber.com

Morphohackcyber.com

1 Go to comments
J
JWH 5 hours ago
'Matches between Les Bleus and the All Blacks are rarely for the faint-hearted.'

Do you hear yourself? Do you have any concept of world view? Have you tried looking into why people call Ireland ‘arrogant’? Obviously not.


We started calling you arrogant when you called our captain a ‘shit Richie McCaw’. In New Zealand. On our turf. Don’t think that kind of behaviour really calls for respect, does it.


NZ don’t really talk ourselves up, if anything the rugby does it for us. No kiwi goes in the media and says: ‘We are gonna win the RWC’. However, I have found many instance of IRISH media saying that the Irish should win, without a doubt. THAT is disrespectful.


The All Blacks have played good rugby, even some of the best rugby ever, at many points in history, but I don’t think you could find a single instance of one of those players, or the NZ media, saying that they should whitewash their opponents. Ever.


Now, onto your analysis. Ireland DID choke the QF. They beat the champions, they were ranked first coming into it, a lot of players at the peaks of their powers. Its hard to say that they didn’t choke. Obviously, their preparation was just not as good as NZ, and thats all there really is to it.


If Ireland had repsected that ABs team and that QF more, maybe they would’ve prepared properly for it and won. But they didn’t.


Maybe if Ireland had won their QF last RWC, they wouldn’t have to be in the same pool as SA and Scotland. I mean, its called a draw for a reason. NZ got third last RWC, so of course they should get a reasonable pool, and they were ranked pretty highly too. If you want to talk about easy pools, look no further than Pool 3 with England, Australia, Fiji, and Georgia I think?


Now, obviously you don’t remember how that QF ended, so I’ll go ahead and rectify that. Ireland reclaimed the ball off kickoff and marched for 20ish phases into the opposition half. Savea then won a turnover, but the referee refused to give it, so play went on. Finally, at the NZ 22, after not giving up a single penatly in 25 phases of hard defense, Sam Whitelock, the most capped All Black of all time, wins the game with an incredible steal.


Now, NZ players having a go at Ireland. Do you cry when you get hit after making the first swing? We all know Sexton is a prick on the field, its just the truth. And Ioane never backs down from a clash, so he thought he should humble a player who has never won an international knockout game who thought he was all that. Don’t really see the issue, its poetic justice really.

83 Go to comments
TRENDING
TRENDING Departing Quins boss Billy Millard in talks over huge Test job Departing Quins boss Billy Millard in talks over huge Test job
Search