Ulster Head Coach, Richie Murphy, said he had a lot of pride in the team following the loss at Thomond Park. The loss with a losing bonus point meant the province finished 6th in the table and they would look ahead to a huge Quarter-Final against Leinster at Aviva Stadium.
On the performance
"I loved my team’s performance, I thought they were brilliant. We came down here, went after Munster from the word ‘go’ and really stuck in the game. We lost our way in the second half a little, lost control of the ball, a couple of decisions that didn’t go our way and Munster just got back on top. I suppose the hometown feel just got them over the line.
Performances are great but at this level you have to win games. We would have loved to have come here and won. We are very early on our journey as a team but the great thing is there are signs that we are becoming a tough team to play against and a team that looks after the ball much better."
Injuries in the warm-up
"Ethan pulled out in warm-up with a back spasm. Stuart McCloskey woke up with a little niggle that has been going on for a couple of days. The right thing to do was pull them out so we are very happy with our squad. Jude and Stew Moore fit seamlessly into the team, it’s satisfying that they can do that."
Leinster clash
"Next week we will prepare to beat Leinster and if we do then we move onto the semi-final. We don’t go crystal-balling. We are trying to improve every week.
I’m proud of the lads. They have come a massive way in the last few weeks and are really playing for each other. We are very early in our journey as a team, come the summer there are things we will want to work on and get better at, but we are definitely moving in the right direction.
From the coaches point of view, they have done an incredible job. Roddy Grant has done an incredible job with the forward pack, John Fogarty, Jonny Bell and Dan Soper have done an incredible job. We are becoming a tight team."
Flanker, David McCann, spoke following the match and said that he was pleased with how the team performed despite the loss, and that the team would now focus on Saturday's Quarter-Final v Leinster.
Thoughts on the match
"Their bench had a big impact in the game, our bench might have had to come on a bit too early in the game. We lost our structure a little, bits of discipline and then you are going to be under the pump a little. It was a combination of their bench and us losing our way."
Confidence
"I think you can see theres been a progression over the last four or five weeks and perofrmances have got better. We had a good performance but didn’t get the result. I feel we can take confidence into the Quarter-Final against Leinster.
I think how quickly we have bene able to advance and get into a position where we are competitive and taken seriously in the play-offs is credit to Richie and credit to the team who have got behind the messages and the other coaches over the past few weeks. We are going into the Quarter-Final with confidence."
On playing with Cormac Izuchukwu and Nick Timoney
"Izzy is special at times, so physical and athletic, he’s able to do things other people can’t. Nick is just really good at everything, it’s great to play alongside them."
Leinster focus
"We have played them away a lot, beaten a couple of times, lost a couple. We know what it takes and if you go down there and aren’t at 100%, you will get caught cold by them and they will show you the door. We know what we need to do."