Ulster put in a performance to remember when they needed it most. The province knew that tonight's match with Sale Sharks had last 16 qualification on the line and that it was a must win.
The Ulster men clearly had redemption on their minds after the 39-0 defeat in the return fixture at the AJ Bell Stadium.
On a very windy night in Belfast, Sale started more brightly than the home side, with Rob du Preez kicking an early penalty to put points on the board.
Ulster then got their game going and piled on the pressure in Sale's '22. A few moves collapsed due to some handling errors but the home side's pressure paid off as referee Pierre Brousset sent Sale prop Bevan Rodd to the sin bin for a penalty.
Ulster - with a man advantage - kept the foot on the gas and scored the first try of the game as Rob Lyttle darted his way across to score. Nathan Doak was unable to score the conversion which left the scoreline at 5-3 to the home side.
The away side responded a few minutes later as Rob du Preez converted a Sale penalty.
Late Ulster pressure in the half paid off as Sale conceded a penalty at the scrum which allowed Nathan Doak to nail a penalty to ensure Ulster went into the break in the lead.
Half-Time: Ulster 8 - 6 Sale Sharks
Ulster came out for the second half looking to extend their lead in the match but were dealt an early blow as Nathan Doak was sent to the sin bin for a knock on.
Sale kept pushing and got their reward as they scored following a lineout, captain Ben Curry getting over the tryline for the away side.
Rob du Preez was unable to add to the points and this left Sale with a slender 8-11 lead.
Ulster then rallied and took the home crowd with them. After being held up over the Sale try line, the resulting drop-out was collected by Duane Vermeulen and the stands shook as the big Springbok powered his way through the middle of the field and bulldozed into Sale players.
Ulster pushed forward and thought they had scored a try but Sale's defence celebrated as the TMO couldn't confirm whether it had been touched down.
The home crowd continued to drive Ulster on and the breakthrough came via Ulster's maul weapon. A lineout close to Sale's line resulted in hooker Rob Herring breaking off to dive over the line to send Kingspan Stadium into rapture.
Cooney nailed his conversion to send the home side 15-11 up.
With some nerves being felt over Ulster's recent late defeats, the home side kept their second half assault going with Duane Vermeulen powering over to score Ulster's third try of the match.
A win that was long overdue and reward for the battling performance shown with qualification on the line.
Full-Time: Ulster 22 - 11 Sale Sharks
Ulster's opponents in the Round of 16 will be confirmed following the completion of the pool stage games on Sunday. The Round of 16 ties are due to be played on the weekend of 31 March - 2 April.
Reaction:
Dan McFarland:
"It’s brilliant. It gives us the chance to play a Round of 16 game which is what our aim was.
"We knew that once we were back at home in front of our fans – and I thought the atmosphere was electric tonight – the guys would pull everything out. It was a tough physical game, as it always is against teams like Sale, but the team did very well.
"I’ve never been in doubt about the character of this squad, the effort has been 100% the whole time, and that showed again tonight. We showed a degree of physicality tonight. We were able to produce quick ball and I thought our defence was excellent and obviously the forwards really stood up when they were asked to.
"The bench was magnificent too when they came on - there was a lot of experience in there and they gave us some additional punch later in the game. I thought the backs were excellent today, our two wingers in particular excelled in very very difficult conditions."
Nick Timoney:
"We knew that it was going to be a tough game. They’ve got an unbelievably physical pack, one of the best and most physical we’ve played against, so we knew what was coming.
"We felt like we were up for it. We obviously needed a big result given the recent run of form we’ve had, so it was a big important win for us.
"It felt great to be back here in front of our fans and get a huge win. For us it’s the best place in the world to play rugby. A night like this when the crowd are getting involved and its hostile, it’s the best place in the world to play – it’s unbelievable. It’s huge for us.
"We needed this. We needed a big day out in front of our fans. We needed to get back on the right track – there’s still plenty work to do but it feels like a step in the right direction."
Scorers:
Ulster:
Tries: Lyttle, Herring, Vermeulen
Con: Cooney x2
Pen: Doak
Sale Sharks:
Try: Curry
Pens: R du Preez x2
Heineken Star of the Match
⭐️ Star of the Match ⭐️@NickTimoney 👏 pic.twitter.com/ji45Neqs6S
— Ulster Rugby (@UlsterRugby) January 21, 2023
Teams
Ulster: Lowry; Lyttle, Hume, McCloskey, Stockdale; Burns, Doak; Warwick, Stewart, Toomaga-Allen; O'Connor (capt), Carter; Sheridan, Timoney, Vermeulen.
Replacements: Herring, O'Sullivan, O'Toole, Treadwell, Murphy, Cooney, Madigan Moxham.
Sale: Carpenter; O'Flaherty, S James, Tuilagi, Reed; R Du Preez, Warr; Rodd, Ashman, Harper; Beaumont, Hill; Ross, B Curry (capt), JL Du Preez
Replacements: Taylor, Harrison, Jones, Birch, Dugdale, Quirke, Curtis, Roebuck.
Referee: Pierre Brousset