Rugby

Ulster far from fluent despite six-try victory over Zebre on return to URC action

Iain Henderson returns to action for the first time since June in win over Italians

Ulster’s Tom Stewart on the way to scoring a try during the BKT United Rugby Championship match against Zebre at Kingspan Stadium. Photograph: Ryan Byrne/Inpho
Ulster’s Tom Stewart on the way to scoring a try during the BKT United Rugby Championship match against Zebre at Kingspan Stadium. Photograph: Ryan Byrne/Inpho
Michael Sadlier at Kingspan Stadium
Fri Nov 25 2022 - 22:05

Ulster 36 Zebre 15

It was a bit of a mixed bag really as though the ultimate victory was never exactly in doubt, Ulster looked rather out of sorts at times on their journey towards this six-try result.

Two yellow cards – shown in either half to Sam Carter and Nathan Doak – hardly helped but there were other issues in what felt like a fairly flat display against the URC’s basement team.

Leading 26-8 at the break, Ulster lacked rhythm and consistency and only managed to register 10 points in the second half. Still, the five points were banked, and now much more robust challenges await Dan McFarland and co.

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One plus, at least, was the sight of Iain Henderson entering the fray for his first match involvement of any kind since last June and he appeared to put in a reasonable enough 28 minutes of work considering all his time away.

There were just four minutes on the clock when Ulster put a second penalty into the corner and after Sam Carter’s take, Tom Stewart peeled around the front to cross the line.

Doak was wide with the extras but nailed his next shot four minutes later after Ulster moved the ball through the middle with Marty Moore offloading to James Hume who, in turn, put Matty Rea in enough room to charge over.

The Italians then struck back through a penalty from Geronimo Prisciantelli, the visitors opting to ignore the chance of going to the corner. This seemed to stall Ulster and prompt the visitors to dominate possession and territory which led to Carter’s yellow card in the 29th minute for blocking Prisciantelli.

Zebre promptly went for the corner and then moved the ball right with Jacob Stockdale missing Lorenzo Pani who made the line. Prisciantelli was wide with the conversion but, suddenly, Ulster looked rather rattled.

Opting to take a tap penalty they hammered away on the Zebre line before Callum Reid, with extra ballast provided by Moore, made it over the line.

Doak’s conversion put Ulster 19-8 ahead six minutes after the half hour to settle things down again.

As such, it was hardly surprising when the bonus-point try arrived, Moore slaloming his way through on the left, with Stockdale free outside him.

Doak’s conversion put Ulster 26-8 ahead at the break when, doubtless, the chat involved keeping control of this game and cutting out the errors.

The new half was only two minutes old when Doak was shown yellow for upending Simone Gesi – it could even have been red – and the hosts were down to 14 again.

But the Italians failed to score and with the Ulster scrumhalf back on the field, Henderson also coming on, Ulster launched a maul which saw Stewart score again, though Doak missed the conversion.

Stewart Moore then came close to his second only for Gesi’s hand-trip to fell him with the line in sight but try number six came five minutes after the hour when John Andrew got over from another maul. Doak was again wide.

With eight minutes to go, Andrew had a second score scrubbed out for an offence at the lineout and the game ended with a whimper from the home team as Erich Cronje crept over with Prisciantelli converting.

ULSTER: S Moore; E McIlroy, J Hume, L Marshall, J Stockdale; J Flannery, N Doak; C Reid, T Stewart, M Moore; C Izuchukwu, S Carter; Matty Rea, Marcus Rea, D Vermeulen (capt).

Replacements: J Toomaga-Allen for Moore (h-t), I Henderson for Izuchukwu (52), D McCann for Matty Rea (54), J Andrew for Stewart, A Warwick for Reid, M McDonald for Flannery (all 61), A Curtis for Marshall (64), B Moxham for Stockdale (77).

ZEBRE PARMA: L Pani; J Trulla, R Kriel, E Lucchin (capt), S Gesi; G Prisciantelli, C Cook; J Pitinari, J Du Toit, M Nocera; J Uys, A Zambonin; G Volpi, G Ferrari, M Kvesic.

Replacements: J Caputo for Lucchin (h-t), L Krumov for Uys (42), D Rimpelli for Pitinari (45), M Manfredi for Du Toit (52), I Bianchi for Volpi (54), E Cronjé for Trulla (57), R Jelic for Kriel (64), R Genovese for Nocera (67).

Referee: AJ Jacobs (SARU).

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