In front of a roaring home crowd, the province produced one of the most dramatic games of the season, a relentless, breathless contest packed with huge momentum swings, stunning tries, heroic defence and late heartbreak. In the end, nothing could separate the sides as an astonishing encounter finished level after 80 unforgettable minutes.
Ulster exploded out of the blocks from the opening whistle. After regaining possession immediately from the kick-off, the province quickly applied pressure deep inside Stormers territory.
By the 3rd minute, Ulster struck first. Slick handling from Nathan Doak and Jack Murphy created the opening before Murphy produced a beautiful looping pass for Werner Kok to dive over in the corner for the opening try of the night. Doak added an excellent touchline conversion to make it 7-0.
The visitors responded immediately though. Stormers’ dangerous attack burst into life in the 6th minute as Ntuthuko Mchunu sliced through midfield before Evan Roos reacted quickest to crash over for the equalising score. Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu converted to level matters at 7-7.
The game swung again moments later when Iain Henderson was shown a yellow card, later upgraded to a 20-minute red card for a croc roll challenge. Stormers capitalised almost instantly. In the 13th minute, Feinberg-Mngomezulu burst through a gap from close range to score under the posts and suddenly the South Africans led 14-7.
When Feinberg-Mngomezulu added a penalty in the 19th minute, Ulster found themselves ten points behind and under serious pressure but this Ulster side refused to fold.
With remarkable resilience, the province fought their way back into the game. In the 27th minute, after relentless forward pressure on the Stormers line, Doak whipped the ball wide once again to Kok, who stepped brilliantly inside the final defender to grab his second try of the night. Doak’s conversion clipped the upright and dropped over to reduce the deficit to 17-14.
Then came one of the biggest moments of the half.
After outstanding defensive work forced a penalty deep in Stormers territory, Ulster attacked again from close range. In the 34th minute, Doak darted from the breakdown and released Zac Ward, who powered through contact to score beside the posts and send the Affidea Stadium crowd into full voice. Doak converted to complete a stunning turnaround as Ulster led 21-17 at the break despite playing much of the half a man down.
Half Time: Ulster 21-17 DHL Stormers
The opening forty minutes had everything, intensity, bravery, physicality and some sensational attacking rugby from both sides. Ulster’s resilience was simply immense.
Stormers thought they had struck early in the second half when Leolin Zas crossed in the corner, only for the TMO to correctly rule the try out for taking Michael Lowry in the air.
Ulster made the visitors pay immediately. In the 43rd minute, Nathan Doak spread the ball brilliantly through the hands before Werner Kok released Michael Lowry diving into the corner for another superb Ulster try. Although Doak’s conversion drifted over after the shot clock expired and didn’t count, Ulster had stretched their lead to 26-17.
Again Stormers hit back quickly. In the 47th minute, scrum-half Imad Khan sniped brilliantly around the fringes to force his way over after sustained pressure near the Ulster line. Feinberg-Mngomezulu converted and the gap was back to just two points.
The game continued at a ferocious pace. Stormers eventually regained the lead in the 62nd minute when Feinberg-Mngomezulu produced a moment of class, spotting space close to the line and darting through to score his second try of the night before converting himself to make it 31-26.
Ulster responded in sensational fashion in the 68th minute. A huge break from Academy replacement prop, Tom McAllister, carried the province deep into Stormers territory before quick hands eventually released Werner Kok out wide. The winger flung himself over in the corner to complete a magnificent hat-trick and ignite wild celebrations around the stadium. Doak narrowly missed the difficult conversion, leaving the scores tied at 31-31.
In the 74th minute, it looked as though they had found it. After relentless pressure right on the Stormers line, replacement loosehead, Eric O’Sullivan, burrowed over beneath the posts to send the home support into absolute bedlam. Doak added the conversion and Ulster suddenly led 38-31 heading into the closing minutes.
With the clock deep in the red, Stormers launched one final attack. After a high tackle decision against Nathan Doak in the closing moments, the referee awarded a penalty try in the 79th minute to level the game at 38-38 in heartbreaking fashion for the province.
FT: Ulster 38-38 DHL Stormers
The final whistle brought an end to one of the most extraordinary games seen at Affidea Stadium this season, a match packed with courage, attacking brilliance and relentless intensity from start to finish. A breathtaking night in Belfast ends with 3 points a piece.
Player of the Match - Juarno Augustus
Ulster's South African number eight produced his second POTM performance in succession, as the powerful forward made his presence felt around the park. Augustus carried hard, tackled with intent and was a force throughout match against a very physical Stormers side.
'Trokkie' is hitting top form at just the right time for the province, with his impact clear to see.
Scorers:
###### Ulster:
###### Tries – Werner Kok (3), Zac Ward, Michael Lowry, Eric O’Sullivan.
###### Cons – Nathan Doak (5).
######
DHL Stormers:
###### Tries – Evan Roos, Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu (2), Imad Khan, Penalty Try.
###### Cons – Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu (4),
###### Pen - Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu
Teams
Ulster Rugby: 1. Angus Bell, 2. James McCormick, 3. Scott Wilson, 4. Iain Henderson (Capt), 5. Charlie Irvine, 6. Cormac Izuchukwu, 7. Nick Timoney, 8. Juarno Augustus, 9. Nathan Doak, 10. Jack Murphy, 11. Zac Ward, 12. Jude Postlethwaite, 13. Ethan McIlroy, 14. Werner Kok 15. Michael Lowry
Replacements: 16. Tom Stewart, 17. Eric O’Sullivan, 18. Tom McAllister, 19. Harry Sheridan, 20. Bryn Ward, 21. Conor McKee, 22. Jake Flannery, 23. Wilhelm De Klerk
DHL Stormers:
DHL Stormers: 15 Warrick Gelant, 14 Wandisile Simelane, 13 Dan du Plessis, 12 Damian Willemse, 11 Leolin Zas, 10 Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu, 9 Imad Khan, 8 Evan Roos, 7 Ben-Jason Dixon, 6 Deon Fourie (captain), 5 Ruben van Heerden, 4 Adré Smith, 3 Sazi Sandi, 2 André-Hugo Venter, 1. Ntuthuko Mchunu.
Replacements: 16 Paul de Villiers, 17 Oli Kebble, 18 Zachary Porthen, 19 Connor Evans, 20 Hacjivah Dayimani, 21 Keke Morabe, 22 Stefan Ungerer, 23 Jurie Matthee.
###### Referee: Andrea Piardi