ULSTER 47

OSPREYS 17

ULSTER WILL HAVE much tougher nights to navigate this season but they will gladly take an easy return to the win column at Kingspan Stadium as they ran in six tries on their way to a 47-17 thumping of the Ospreys.

Luke Marshall and Sam Carter both crossed for two tries each in the rout, with John Andrew and Stuart McCloskey also going over in a performance that was the perfect tonic to last week’s first defeat of the season at the hands of Leinster.

In front of new short-term signing Rory Sutherland, who was in attendance at Kingspan Stadium, and with Springbok number eight Duane Vermeulen back in tow, it’s probably not the test that Dan McFarland would have wanted his side to have ahead of their South African trip which begins next week as the Ospreys offered very little.

But Ulster still had to do the business and they did it emphatically, securing the bonus point before half-time and then seeing it out to the end – although they will be concerned over injuries to both fly-halves Ian Madigan and then Billy Burns who replaced him at the break.

Ulster’s Craig Gilroy in full flow. Bryan Keane / INPHO Bryan Keane / INPHO / INPHO

It took just 100 seconds of the game for Marshall to get on the board as Ulster came out of the blocks fast, the centre taking the flat pass from Madigan at the line and powering over, and things would follow a similar pattern throughout the game.

Their second would also come inside the opening ten minutes as this time the maul flexed its muscles, yielding a score for Andrew as he emerged from the bottom clutching the ball over the whitewash, but the visitors briefly threatened to make a game of it shortly after.

A fine burst from midfield by Morgan Morris – who was only elevated to the starting line-up shortly before the game – set up the chance in the 22, with a penalty giving them the five-metre line-out, and off the back of it Jac Morgan was the one to bury his way over the line.

But that was the exception rather than the rule, and just as soon as they had been pegged back, Ulster restored their advantage.

There was even time for Nick Timoney to have a try ruled out when he failed to ground the ball having been sent over by Craig Gilroy’s off-load, but only two minutes later they were over again and this one stood, Carter working his way over the line from close range after a nice off-load from McCloskey to Timoney.

Walsh knocked over a penalty shortly after, but that was just a temporary reprieve for the visitors and it didn’t take long for Ulster to wrap up the bonus-point shortly before the break as Marshall went over for his second, picking a beautiful line off another Madigan pop pass to waltz in under the posts.

Madigan took his leave at half-time, his injury bringing Burns into the game, but it didn’t disrupt Ulster’s momentum any as they struck inside the first two minutes of the second half, Mike Lowry’s excellent off-load sending McCloskey over in the corner to ensure there would be no second-half comeback.

A dancing run down the touchline from Gilroy nearly set up another score for Ulster, only for a Marshall forward pass to end their momentum, while the Ospreys had another shot at a second score when they worked their way up to the five-metre line but found Ulster’s resistance too tough to break through.

Bryan Keane / INPHO Bryan Keane / INPHO / INPHO

Instead, the hosts rounded things off with another pair of scores, first Carter burrowing his way over from close range after Timoney had another burst off a scrum, followed by replacement flanker Marcus Rea working his way over from all of a metre out to wrap up the hosts’ scoring.

The Ospreys would get one more consolation score as number eight Morris forced his way over with the last play of the game, but this had long been Ulster’s night.

Scorers

For Ulster

Tries: Marshall (2), Andrew, Carter (2), McCloskey, Rea

Cons: Cooney (6)

For Ospreys

Try: Morgan, Morris

Cons: Walsh (2)

Pen: Walsh

ULSTER

Mike Lowry; Craig Gilroy, Luke Marshall, Stuart McCloskey (Aaron Sexton 43), Rob Lyttle; Ian Madigan (Billy Burns 40 (David Shanahan 62)), John Cooney; (1-8) Eric O’Sullivan (Andrew Warwick 53), John Andrew (Declan Moore 77), Marty Moore (Tom O’Toole 12); Alan O’Connor (Frank Bradshaw-Ryan 53), Sam Carter; Nick Timoney, Jordi Murphy, Duane Vermeulen (Marcus Rea 62).
OSPREYS
Max Nagy (Joe Hawkins 62); Luke Morgan, Owen Watkin, Michael Collins (Cai Evans 62), Keelan Giles (Rhys Webb 71); Jack Walsh, Reuben Morgan-Williams; (1-8) Gareth Thomas (Nicky Smith 4), Dewi Lake (Scott Baldwin 62), Tom Botha (Rhys Henry 62); Rhys Davies, Huw Sutton; Will Griffiths (Jack Regan 53), Jac Morgan (Harri Deaves 66), Morgan Morris.

Man of the Match: Luke Marshall (Ulster)

Referee: Ben Blain (Scotland)