The hosts started the game very strongly, playing into a very stiff wind as the rain was pouring down. Ulster showed great patience and control with ball in hand to work their way up the pitch and into the Munster 22, coming away with two Chris Cousens penalties in the first ten minutes to lead 6-0.
They continued to work hard against the elements and were rewarded on 15 minutes after great work from the forwards manoeuvred Bangor’s Curtis Stewart into a position to force his way over the try line. From the restart Ulster made their way back up the pitch into Munster territory and after a good build up play which involved multiple phases, left wing Mark Widdowson was set free down the touchline, outstripping the covering defence to finish a fine move in the corner. Both of Cousens’ conversion attempts were wide of the mark, leaving the score at 16-0.
Ulster maintained their grip on the game and a dominant scrum yielded a penalty try, which Cousens had little difficulty converting for a 23-0 to lead after just 23 minutes. The visitors then gained a foothold in the match and there were no further scores before the break.
Munster started the second half brightly and from a series of Ulster penalties, they worked themselves deep into the Ulster 22. Under pressure, Ulster’s James Carleton was sin binned and his second row colleague Eugene McKenna also saw yellow inside the opening ten minutes of the half. With a two man advantage Munster had an opportunity but the defence and commitment of the remaining 13 Ulster men was outstanding and there was no way through.
Having weathered the storm, Ulster then hammered home their advantage with Man of the Match, number 8 Stewart, again smashing his way over from short range with the help of his pack. With Munster trying to force the game in an attempt to salvage something for their efforts, they spilled the ball close to the half way line and replacement winger Andy Pollock (pictured) scooped it up and sprinted under the posts unchallenged to score Ulster’s fifth try. Cousens added the extras to bring the final score to 35-0.