Ulster 39 Cardiff Blues 21

Two-try hero Dan Tuohy was one of several standout performers tonight at Ravenhill as Ulster outscored Cardiff Blues by five tries to two to join Glasgow Warriors atop the Pro12 table on 20 points.Stuart Olding and Jared Payne – switching their regular positions to play at full-back and centre respectively – also caught the eye with exhilarating offensive displays, the latter joining Luke Marshall and Andrew Trimble on the scoresheet. Cardiff, for their part, were outplayed for vast periods ...

Two-try hero Dan Tuohy was one of several standout performers tonight at Ravenhill as Ulster outscored Cardiff Blues by five tries to two to join Glasgow Warriors atop the Pro12 table on 20 points.

Stuart Olding and Jared Payne – switching their regular positions to play at full-back and centre respectively – also caught the eye with exhilarating offensive displays, the latter joining Luke Marshall and Andrew Trimble on the scoresheet. Cardiff, for their part, were outplayed for vast periods of the encounter, but made the most of the two pockets of dominance they enjoyed, staying in contention thanks to a try in each half, and the accuracy of Leigh Halfpenny’s boot.

Ulster enjoyed the upper hand for the lion’s share of the first period, and, to all intents and purposes, could have had the match sewn up before referee Guiseppe Viverini’s half-time whistle, had it not been for a late resurgence from the visitors.

Cardiff started poorly, Rhys Patchell’s over-zealous kick-off travelling straight into touch, and Ulster made good ground from the resulting scrum on half way, with Olding proving particularly fleet of foot as he outstripped several opponents in midfield. Paddy Jackson kicked over the first points of the encounter on eight minutes as Cardiff infringed at the scrum, cancelled out moments later by Halfpenny from the Ulster ‘22’.

Ulster’s regular full-back Payne proved equally at home in the centre as Olding was at 15, and was instrumental in the first try on 16 minutes, leaving four comers for dead before setting up a chain of passes from Marshall to Robbie Diack and finally Tuohy, who comfortably grounded by the left-hand corner flag.

Jackson’s missed conversion attempt was a minor blow for Ulster – overshadowed by the exits of Johann Muller and Rory Best to injury in quick succession – but with Lewis Stevenson and Rob Herring slotting effortlessly into the pack in their lieu, Ulster continued to boss the scrum, and indeed the second try came about as a direct result of this superiority. Twice a floundering Cardiff infringed at the scrum on their own ‘22’,  and a quickly taken tap-penalty from Ruan Pienaar after the second caught Blues unawares, creating the space for Payne to cross over on 23 minutes, courtesy of a long pass from Tommy Bowe.

Jackson missed the conversion but added a penalty five minutes later, before Cardiff’s best spell of possession ended with Number Eight Robin Copeland touching down on 34 minutes as the Ulster defence seemed to momentarily go to sleep metres from their own try-line. Halfpenny followed Jackson’s trend with an errant conversion kick followed by a well-struck penalty moments later, to send the teams off with a mere five-point gap at half-time.

Half-Time Score Ulster 16 Cardiff 11

Normal service resumed as soon as the second half got underway, with Ulster surging down both wings before Olding made the difference in the middle with a neat sidestep to find Marshall metres from the line. The young centre used all his bulk to withstand a trio of tackles and stretch over the whitewash at the second attempt, the validity of the try soon confirmed by the Television Match Official.

Jackson missed out on the extras once more, but kicked his next penalty to touch as Ulster probed for the bonus-point try. After winning the line-out, however, Ulster were illegally impeded in the ruck by try-scorer Copeland – who saw yellow for his indiscretion – and the out-half opted for a simple three points on 46 minutes.

Again Cardiff responded admirably, winger Richard Smith sliding over on the very edge of the left touchline despite the attentions of Jackson and Trimble, the score this time converted with a low drive from Halfpenny. Disappointed with the soft concession, Ulster regrouped immediately, Pienaar steadying the ship on 54 minutes courtesy of a trademark long-range penalty.

Halfpenny kept the Blues in touch with a penalty of his own just before the hour mark, and with Pienaar and Jackson missing a kick apiece moments later, the score still hung in the balance well into the final quarter. Confirmation of the victory – and the bonus point – only came in the 67th minute when an overlap on the right wing allowed Trimble in by the flag, the ever-impressive Olding contributing his second direct assist of the night.

Yet another conversion went begging, but it mattered little as a succession of late Ulster raids kept the Blues hemmed back in their own half, and when the fifth try came on 79 minutes through Tuohy once more, it owed much to the quick hands of both Payne and Roger Wilson, who kept the protracted move going at two vital stages as Cardiff battled to disrupt the Ulster flow. Pienaar closed out the game with what was, remarkably, Ulster’s first successful conversion of the evening.

Full-Time Score Ulster 39 Cardiff Blues 21

Ulster (15 – 9) S Olding; A Trimble, J Payne, L Marshall, T Bowe; P Jackson, R Pienaar (1 – 8) C Black, R Best, J Afoa, J Muller (c), D Tuohy, R Diack, C Henry, R Wilson

Replacements (16 – 23) R Herring, T Court, R Lutton, L Stevenson, M McComish, P Marshall, D Cave, M Allen

Cardiff (15 – 9) L Halfpenny; R Smith, C Allen, D Hewitt, H Robinson; R Patchell, L Williams (1 – 8) G Jenkins (c), M Breeze, S Andrews, B Davies, F Paulo, J Navidi, S Warburton, R Copeland

Replacements (16 – 23) K Dacey, S Hobbs, T Filise, L Reed, R Watts-Jones, L  Jones, G Davies, C Czekaj