Ulster 27 Ospreys 38:ULSTER'S SEASON took another body blow as they fell to their fourth consecutive league defeat and failed even to manage a losing bonus point.

In a game which saw the lead change hands several times, the Ospreys managed to secure maximum points after Tommy Bowe – who else? – got their fourth touchdown right at the end of the game.

Ulster now have two games – away to Glasgow on Friday and away again to Edinburgh – before they meet Connacht at Ravenhill in their final game which could yet prove to be a cup final for Ulster as they seek to finish above Michael Bradley’s side to secure Heineken Cup qualification for next season.

They started well and lived with the star-studded Ospreys – playing their second game in three days – until virtually the end. But the failure to take advantage of Ian Gough’s late second-half sinbinning cost them.

Instead, Dan Biggar – who kicked 18 points – nailed two penalties to put his side four points ahead prior to Bowe’s late score.

They move to second in the table, ahead of the clash with Leinster on Friday night in their breathless schedule.

Ulster had gifted an earlier score to James Hook, his second of the night, when Niall O’Connor saw a speculative chip charged down.

So Ulster end up with an unenviable record of one win and a draw from their last nine league games.

It was a topsy-turvey clash from the outset. O’Connor made up for an opening penalty miss by nailing his first after 10 minutes, but three minutes later Ospreys punished Ulster after Jerry Collins was held up in the corner.

From a free-kick, Ryan Jones drove on, and when the visitors spun the ball left Lee Byrne’s flick pass allowed Shane Williams the room to wriggle between Paddy Wallace and Andrew Trimble.

Referee Neil Patterson consulted the TMO and the score was given, though Biggar’s conversion bounced out off the upright.

Ulster immediately hit back with another O’Connor penalty, and then burst through to score, four minutes before the half hour, when the home side took the ball down the pitch after Mike Phillips lost the ball in contact near Ulster’s line.

A loose kick out his 22 from Byrne was gratefully accepted by Ulster and Isaac Boss, Ed O’Donoghue and Rory Best combined for Simon Danielli to charge round behind the posts to narrow the angle for O’Connor.

His conversion, though, ended up with the TMO after the touchjudges disagreed. The kick was adjudged to have missed.

The Ospreys needed to hit back and did on the half-hour mark when a Biggar chip over the top was collected by James Hook who handed off Wallace to score. Biggar made no mistake with the extras and now the Ospreys led again 12-11.

However, they were unable to build on their lead and, in first-half injury-time, Trimble raced clear down the left. O’Connor this time added the conversion to give Ulster the lead 18-12 at the turnaround.

Biggar narrowed Ulster’s lead with an early second-half penalty, and levelled the scores with another kick after Ulster strayed offside.

O’Connor was then wide with a fairly straightforward effort, and then gifted Hook his second try with a loose pass in Ulster’s 22, allowing Biggar to add the conversion to put the Ospreys 25-18 to the good.

Again, though, Ulster came back with two penalties from O’Connor, the second coming in the 66th minute after Ian Gough was binned for dragging down a driving maul, and Ulster then snatched the lead back 27-25.

But even with 14 men, the Ospreys managed to keep the scoreboard ticking over, and Biggar kicked two more penalties to give his side a 31-27 lead.

Ulster again had a chance to hit back but lost possession on the Ospreys’ line just as Gough returned to the action.

You sensed it was a turning point, and it proved to be with a loose pass from Boss being hacked upfield by Adam Jones allowing Bowe to touch the ball down as it rolled over the line.

ULSTER: Wallace; Trimble, Cave, I Whitten, Danielli; O’Connor, Boss; Young, Best, Botha, O’Donoghue, Tuohy, Ferris, Henry, Diack. Replacements: T Court for B Young (61 mins), P Marshall for I Boss (88 mins), A Kyriacou for R Best (89 mins), N Spence for P Wallace (90 mins). Not used: Caldwell, Pollock, Humphreys.

OSPREYS: Byrne; Bowe, Parker, Hook, Williams; Biggar, M Phillips; Bevington, Bennett, A Jones, Gough, J Thomas, Collins, Holah, R Jones. Replacements: A Wyn Jones for Thomas, F Tiatia for R Jones (both 52mins); P James for Bevington (56 mins); E Shervington for Bennett, J Nutbrown for M Phillips, A Bishop for Parker (all 69 mins); N Walker for Hook (77 mins). Sinbin: I Gough (66-76 mins).

Referee: Neil Patterson (RFU).