ULSTER 17 BENETTON 17

Ulster got out of jail in the dying seconds against Benetton tonight at the Kingspan Stadium, needing a last-gasp penalty try to share the spoils with the combative Italians, who remain two points ahead in the Guinness Pro14 standings. Referee Nigel Owens awarded the penalty try – and the extras added with no need for the conversion - with the clock in the red after a fantastic final push from the Ulster pack - much to the chagrin of the Italians who, in truth, deserved to leave Belfast with the full four points. Dan McFarland’s side started both halves well, with 2^nd- and 44^th-minute tries from Louis Ludik and Rob Herring, but in both periods Benetton forced their way back convincingly, fully earning their jump to second place in Conference B on 37 points, while Ulster remain in fifth on 35. Despite the unavailability of half a dozen first team regulars away on Six Nations duty, Head Coach McFarland was able to name a strong starting XV, which numbered only two personnel changes to the backline that played in last week’s much-feted comeback win at Welford Road. Michael Lowry came in at full-back to replace Ludik, who shifted to the wing in the absence of Ireland call-up Jacob Stockdale, while James Hume was a direct replacement for Will Addison at outside centre. Otherwise the backs lined up with Robert Baloucoune on the wing, Stuart McCloskey at inside centre, Billy Burns at out-half and David Shanahan at scrum-half. Multiple changes to the pack saw only tighthead prop Marty Moore and lock Kieran Treadwell retain their starting berths, with the front row completed by loosehead Andrew Warwick and hooker Herring. Captain Alan O’Connor partnered Treadwell in the second row, while a new-look back row featured flankers Ian Nagle and Nick Timoney, and Number Eight Greg Jones. Ulster got off to the best of starts with five points on the scoreboard with less than two minutes on the clock, McCloskey making the hard yards from Lowry’s pass and unselfishly supplying Ludik five metres from the line for the easiest of finishes in the corner. The early score gave Ulster licence to play a creative game, with an audacious exchange between Ludik and McCloskey on the Benetton ‘22’ just failing to pay off before some right-wing wizardry from Baloucoune tied the Italians in knots and almost set up a clean break for Shanahan. However a well-engineered try from lock Federico Ruzza on 10 minutes brought the hosts back down to earth with a bump, all the more so when Ian McKinley’s conversion from wide sailed between the posts. Buoyed by their score, Benetton began putting some slick passes together, while in defence all their tackles repeatedly hit the mark, making them good value for the extension of their lead two minutes before half-time courtesy of a McKinley penalty from the Ulster 10-metre line. Half-Time Score Ulster 5 Benetton 10 Ulster retook the field with Darren Cave in place of McCloskey, and in real need of inspiration from one quarter or another. It wasn’t long in coming, Herring bundling over on 44 minutes through the tried-and-tested method of a rolling maul. Lowry, taking over kicking duties for the second half, was unlucky to see his conversion attempt come back off the upright, and Benetton proved unfazed by the concession when winger Ratuva Tavuyara broke several tackles too easily and stretched over for the try just before the hour. McKinley dispatched his conversion with zen-like concentration to raise the deficit to seven, and with Jonny Stewart and Rob Lyttle now in the fray in place of Shanahan and Baloucoune, Ulster set about trying to redress the balance. However a combination of stout defending from the Italians and an inability on the part of the hosts to find the killer pass meant a good 10 minutes of attack came to naught on 70 minutes, with Ulster eventually penalised for holding on in the tackle deep in the ‘22’. Impressive strength and resilience from Lyttle moments later saw him beat three men on his wing, but with Lowry crowded out on receipt of the ball the chance went begging once more. The final chance to salvage a draw seemed to have evaporated with a crooked put-in at a 78^th-minute lineout, but a penalty seconds from full-time gave Ulster the get-out-of-jail card, the penalty try called by Owens as Benetton tried to illegally prevent Ulster’s final rolling maul from rumbling over the line. Full-Time Score Ulster 17 Benetton 17 Ulster (15 - 9) Michael Lowry; Robert Baloucoune, James Hume, Stuart McCloskey, Louis Ludik; Billy Burns, David Shanahan (1 - 8) Andrew Warwick, Rob Herring, Marty Moore, Alan O’Connor (c), Kieran Treadwell, Ian Nagle, Nick Timoney, Greg Jones Replacements (16 - 23) John Andrew, Wiehahn Herbst, Tom O’Toole, Matthew Dalton, Clive Ross, Jonny Stewart, Darren Cave, Rob Lyttle. Benetton (15 - 9) Luca Sperandio; Ratuva Tavuyara, Tommaso Iannone, Marco Zanon, Monty Ioane; Ian McKinley (c), Dewaldt Duvenage (1 - 8) Nicola Quaglio, Hame Faiva, Marco Riccioni, Irné Herbst, Federico Ruzza, Marco Lazzaroni, Michele Lamaro, Toa Halafihi Replacements (16 - 23) Tomas Baravalle, Cherif Traore, Simone Ferrari, Marco Fuser, Giovanni Pettinelli, Marco Barbini, Edoardo Gori, Ignacio Brex.