Ulster at Europe's top table again

It wasn’t pretty and a bit more nerve-jangling that expected, but Ulster got the victory they needed against a weakened Bath to progress to the Heineken Champions Cup quarter finals for a second consecutive season.
Ulsters Robert Baloucoune scores his sides second try of the gameUlsters Robert Baloucoune scores his sides second try of the game
Ulsters Robert Baloucoune scores his sides second try of the game

Ulster now travel to four-time European champions Toulouse in the last eight and after winning five of their six pool games coach Dan McFarland feels his side deserve their place at the European elite’s top table.

“We’ll go into the preparation and the game itself knowing we are in the right place and we belong in that quarter-final and I think that is really important,” said McFarland.”

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“The real focus for us is performing to the best level that we can, physically preparing ourselves, mentally preparing ourselves and tactically preparing ourselves.

“Wherever we go it is going to be a huge ask because at that stage we’ll be going to one of the top four teams in Europe in their house and if we are anything other than at our best it is going to be very difficult.”

Against Bath, and not for the first time in Europe this season, the Ulster scrum struggled conceding a number of penalties while they lost a quarter of their own line out throws.

The coach knows both aspects of the set piece must improve if Ulster want to repeat their 1999 European success.

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“With the time we opportune to set piece we have to make ourselves good enough to win quarter-finals or semi-finals or finals,” he said.

“It’s good enough to qualify, I’m not sure it’s good enough at the moment to win quarter-finals.

“We’ll have a good look at that, it’s a core component of the game, it’s a sexy bit of the game from my perspective anyway and we want to get that right.

“At the same time, we’re a different side from a lot of teams and I’m going to finish this off by comparing us to Leinster in a minute but we’re a different side.

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“A lot of teams will put a big focus on set-piece so they’ll scrum Tuesday for 30 minutes, they’ll come in Thursday and they’ll do more scrum, they’ll do lots of line-outs, so it’s a huge part of their training session, their available training minutes, that is spent on set-piece, that’s not us.

“Our core is our collective speed, so I work on the basis as forwards coaches and backs coaches, we are efficient enough in the time that we do that we are able to produce set-piece play to a level that is good enough to win these games.”

Ulster went into the Bath game needing just two match points to make the knockout stages.

It was looking like it was going to be a comfortable afternoon for McFarland’s side at a sold-out Kingspan Stadium when Springbok No8 Marcell Coetzee crashed over after six minutes from a driving maul with John Cooney converted.

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Ulster, chasing a 20th consecutive home win, were stunned on 19 minutes.

Following a sustained period of pressure in the 22 Bath out-half Freddie Burns put in a cross field kick.

Jacob Stockdale misjudged the bounce allowing the England winger Ruaridh McConnochie to pick up and dive over the line with Burns landing the conversion from a tight angle.

There was no further scoring in the first half and the sides went into the interval tied at 7-7.

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Tries by Robert Baloucoune and Will Addison put Ulster in the ascendancy.

Bath’s replacement hooker Ross Batty also rumbled over.

Ulster had a fourth try disallowed by the TMO, Cooney’s scoring pass to Kieran Treadwell was adjudged forward.

Batty received a red card for a no arms tackle on Cooney and Billy Burns’ penalty wrapped the game up for Ulster.

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