Ulster ended a five-match losing run in all competitions with a dogged 17-7 United Rugby Championship win at Connacht.
A hat-trick of tries from Tom Farrell saw Munster win a scrappy opening Irish interprovincial of the festive season 22-19 over Ulster at the Kingspan Stadium.
A dramatic late try with the clock well in the red from David Shanahan ensured that Ulster opened their United Rugby Championship season with a 20-19 win over champions Glasgow Warriors.
Australia felt hard done by in their round two loss to Ireland in Paarl because in the aftermath of their 10-30 defeat, Irish back-rower James McNabney was cited and banned for foul play that happened in the 35th minute that was missed by the officials in real time.
Ireland went into last year’s World Rugby U20 Championship with very high hopes after clinching their second successive Six Nations age-grade Grand Slam and they lived up to that hype in the pool stages, following a high-scoring opening round draw with England in Paarl with victories over Australia and Fiji.
The Belfast-based province have endured a rollercoaster season and shoud reach the play-offs if they can topple mighty Leinster
Double Rugby World Cup-winning prop, Steven Kitshoff, stands on the brink of making his debut for the Irish province Ulster this weekend against Glasgow Warriors.
Ireland have suffered a double blow at the Junior World Championship, starting back-rower James McNabney and replacement Rory Telfer both receiving three-match suspensions following disciplinary hearings in the wake of separate incidents in last Thursday’s pool win over Australia.