Skipper, Alan O'Connor ran out at DHL Stadium on his own ahead of the team to mark his 150th appearance for the province. It was an afternoon of perfect conditions for free-flowing rugby, as Ulster went through the hands early doors. However, the Stormers soon went on the counter, with winger Leolin Zas making the initial break to send Paul de Wet over for the try with just two minutes on the clock. Manie Libbok landed the conversion to put the hosts 7-up.
Ulster struggled to contend with the Stormers’ early attacking game, and on six minutes, the hosts were over for their second try through Leolin Zas in the corner and Libbok nudged over the extras.
Ulster had a great opportunity when Mike Lowry broke down the left wing and the men in white carried in-field to a promising position, but smart work at the breakdown by Deon Fourie gave the hosts a penalty just metres from their own line to get out of danger.
Momentum started to shift Ulster’s way after a succession of penalties due to Stormers’ ill-discipline a few metres from their line. Following the 5-metre line-out, Rob Herring carried back inside and Ulster recycled the ball for Marty Moore to drive over for their first try. John Cooney made no mistake with the conversion to close the gap to seven points.
Stormers stretched their lead seven minutes later after Ulster were penalised for not releasing, and Manie Libbok obliged with the penalty. Just four minutes later, Ulster were handed a penalty opportunity from a more difficult position. John Cooney stepped up and slotted home the three points.
Ulster closed the gap to four points after DHL Stormers were pinged for collapsing the scrum, and John Cooney nudged over the penalty. That gap was short-lived however as DHL Stormers bagged another three points through the boot of Manie Libbok.
Ulster started the second half brightly, keeping the DHL Stormers pinned inside their half for much of the third quarter. Eventually, their pressure paid off when Stuart McCloskey evaded two Stormers tacklers to score under the posts. John Cooney knocked over the conversion to bring the gap to three points.
Luke Marshall, making his first appearance this season after returning from injury, had an instant impact when he probed the Stormers’ defence seconds after entering the fray, but the hosts were quick over the ball to force the turnover and get out of danger.
A chance came Ulster’s way when they looked to go wide, with Ethan McIlroy and Rob Lyttle coming to the fore on both wings. An Ulster knock-on gave the home side a 5-metre scrum, from which they earned the penalty to kick clear.
Ulster looked to have taken the lead on 77 minutes when Callum Reid forced his way over, but Stormers’ Hacjivah Dayimani got his hand in to disrupt and after a TMO review, referee Gianluca Gnecchi deemed there to be a knock-on by Reid and awarded the scrum to the hosts. Ulster were unable to respond in the remaining time, and the DHL Stormers took the spoils.
Full-time score: DHL Stormers 23 Ulster 20
Worth Another Look
57' | 𝙒𝙃𝘼𝙏. 𝘼. 𝙏𝙍𝙔!@Stuart_Mc12 evades two Stormers tacklers to dot down! @JCooney09 knocks over the 2⃣!
— Ulster Rugby (@UlsterRugby) March 26, 2022
🔵 23-20 ⚪️#STOvULS #SUFTUM ⚪️🔴 pic.twitter.com/rlvt32lMLb
Scorers
DHL Stormers
Tries: Paul de Wet, Leolin Zas
Cons: Manie Libbok (2)
Pens: Manie Libbok (3)
Ulster
Tries: Marty Moore, Stuart McCloskey
Cons: John Cooney (2)
Pens: John Cooney (2)
Line-ups
DHL Stormers
(15-9) Warwick Gelant, Seabelo Senatla, Ruhan Nel, Damian Willemse, Leolin Zas, Manie Libbok, Paul de Wet;
(1-8) Steven Kitshoff (Capt.), Chad Solomon, Frans Malherbe, Andre Smith, Marvin Orie, Deon Fourie, Ernst van Rhyn, Evan Roos.
Replacements: JJ Kotze, Brok Harris, Neethling Fouche, Connor Evans, Hacjivah Dayimani, Junior Pokomela, Herschel Jantjies, Rikus Pretorius.
Ulster
(15-9) Mike Lowry, Craig Gilroy, Stewart Moore, Stuart McCloskey, Rob Lyttle, Billy Burns, John Cooney;
(1-8) Eric O'Sullivan, Rob Herring, Marty Moore, Alan O'Connor (Capt.), Kieran Treadwell, Greg Jones, Marcus Rea, Duane Vermeulen.
Replacements: Tom Stewart, Callum Reid, Gareth Milasinovich, Mick Kearney, Jordi Murphy, David Shanahan, Luke Marshall, Ethan McIlroy.
Up next at Kingspan Stadium
After facing Vocacom Bulls in the URC next weekend, Ulster will then travel to face Toulouse in the Heineken Champions Cup Round of 16, before coming home to Kingspan Stadium to play the second leg against the French giants on 16 April (8pm kick-off).