ULSTER 38 OSPREYS 14

Ulster took maximum points from the 2019-20 Guinness Pro14 curtain-raiser tonight at the Kingspan Stadium, with cultured kicking from Billy Burns instrumental in a five-try defeat of the Ospreys. Craig Gilroy was the main beneficiary of the out-half’s accuracy from the boot, plucking two tries from the air after exquisite crossfield placements from Burns. Greg Jones and new arrival Matt Faddes were the other try-scorers, with a late penalty try and 11 points from the boot of John Cooney completing the resounding win. Three new signings ran out for their first competitive appearance in Ulster colours, Jack McGrath starting at loosehead while Sam Carter was named at lock, and Faddes made his debut at full-back. Elsewhere among the backs Gilroy made a welcome return on the wing after missing virtually the entirety of last season through injury, with Luke Marshall and James Hume in the centre, and Rob Lyttle lining up on the opposite flank. Skipper Rob Herring and Tom O’Toole completed the front row alongside McGrath, with Kieran Treadwell partnering Carter in the engine room, while Matthew Rea and Sean Reidy flanked Number Eight Jones in the back row. Ospreys, despite missing some key names away on World Cup duty with Wales, made the brighter start and deservedly drew first blood on five minutes courtesy of a Luke Price penalty. Two minutes later full-back Dan Evans topped up the lead after scything all too easily through the heart of the Ulster defence, and just dotting down on the line despite the tracking Lyttle’s best efforts to hold him up. Early signs of Ulster rustiness continued with Cooney spraying a relatively routine penalty wide of the posts, but as the hosts began to enjoy a much greater share of the ball, two successive rolling mauls followed by an inch-perfect chip to the corner from Burns saw Gilroy collect on the line and ground with aplomb. Cooney squeezed his conversion in from wide, and after an impressive penalty from half-way at what must have been the very limit of Price’s range, another sublime crossfield kick from Burns – this time plucked from the air by Lyttle – eventually brought Ulster a penalty and wing Luke Morgan a yellow card for offside. The lineout drive worked well again, and phases of recycling culminated in a touchdown – and his first senior points – for Jones, with Cooney again adding the extras. A second Price penalty just before the break looked to have restored parity at 14 – 14, but not to be outdone, Ulster had just enough time from the restart to tear deep into the Ospreys half where, thanks to an expertly looped pass from Marshall to Gilroy, Faddes was soon sliding in at the corner to mark his debut with a fine try, again converted by Cooney. Half-Time Score Ulster 21 Ospreys 14 Cooney added a penalty to his personal scorecard within six minutes of the restart, but the boot of Burns was not to be upstaged as yet another pinpoint diagonal kick once again found Gilroy by the corner flag, and the winger this time had the luxury to run behind the posts to ground and make his scrum-half’s conversion a formality. Bonus point secured and comfortable as the game moved into its final quarter, Ulster drafted in multiple replacements, and while they enjoyed a virtual monopoly of possession and territory, the next try would not come until the 72^nd minute, when an electric combination of Faddes and Lyttle down the left wing – the full-back making the break and the winger finishing the move with a kick-and-chase – eventually brought a penalty try after much deliberation between referee Marius Mitrea and the TMO. As Lyttle stretched to touch down his own kick behind the line, Ospreys’ 14 Morgan was adjudged – somewhat harshly perhaps – to have taken the youngster out without the ball, resulting in the award of the penalty score and a second yellow, hence red, card for the unfortunate Welshman. Ospreys played out the remaining minutes toiling on the Ulster ‘22’ until scrum-half Matthew Aubrey finally found a gap in the white-and-red rearguard, only for his touchdown to be ruled out for a forward pass in the build-up, capping a thoroughly miserable night for the visitors. Next up for Ulster is a trip to South Africa to face the Toyota Cheetahs and the Isuzu Southern Kings on Saturday 5^th and 12^th October respectively, before hosting the Cardiff Blues back at the Kingspan Stadium on Friday 25^th October. Full-Time Score Ulster 38 Ospreys 14 Ulster (15 – 9) Matt Faddes; Craig Gilroy, Luke Marshall, James Hume, Rob Lyttle; Billy Burns, John Cooney (1 – 8) Jack McGrath, Rob Herring (c), Tom O’Toole, Kieran Treadwell, Sam Carter, Matthew Rea, Sean Reidy, Greg Jones Replacements (16 – 23) John Andrew, Eric O’Sullivan, Ross Kane, Alan O’Connor, Clive Ross, David Shanahan, Michael Lowry, Louis Ludik Ospreys (15 – 9) Dan Evans; Luke Morgan, Cory Allen, Scott Williams, Keelan Giles; Luke Price, Matthew Aubrey (1 – 8) Rhodri Jones, Sam Parry, Tom Botha, Lloyd Ashley, James King, Dan Lydiate (c), Olly Cracknell, Gareth Evans Replacements (16 – 23) Scott Otten, Gareth Thomas, Gheorge Gajion, Sam Corss, Dan Baker, Reuben Morgan-Williams, Cai Evans, Tiaan Thomas-Wheeler