Benetton 31 Ulster 29
Ulster’s stuttering season has now hit a new low after they came up short in Italy to fall to their fifth reverse in six games.
It now puts the northern province in full crisis mode and heaps huge pressure on Dan McFarland who faces a daunting trip to La Rochelle next weekend in the Champions Cup.
Even though they came away from Benetton with two points and managed to fight back from trailing 28-15, there will be no solace from this latest defeat which saw Ulster, once more, succumb to a high error count and failed accuracy in both attack and defence.
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As if all this wasn’t bad enough with just minutes remaining it looked as if the Ulstermen had managed to win the contest after a penalty try - and a yellow card for Benetton’s Giovanni Pettinelli - nudged them in front by a point.
But an offside against them in the 77th minute saw Rhyno Smith’s shot at goal come in off the upright and there was no way back from there for the visitors despite managing a last-gasp surge for the Italian line.
Ulster had started brightly enough and scored through Eric O’Sullivan after seven minutes. Cooney converted and all seemed well.
It didn’t last. Six minutes later Benetton’s presence in Ulster’s 22 led to Tomas Albornoz running a loop line and rounding Billy Burns to touch down with the home team’s outhalf converting his own effort to draw the sides level.
Four minutes later and Benetton had scored again, this time after running back a long Ulster kick, Ignacio Brex’s cross-kick finding Onisi Ratave unmarked and the winger ran in unopposed.
Albornoz again converted to put Benetton 14-7 ahead. Ulster looked rattled and the error count only grew allowing Albornoz slot a penalty with six minutes to play in the half.
Ulster had to get something on the board and Cooney slotted a last-minute penalty to cut the lead to seven points at the break.
Two minutes after the restart Albornoz dropped a goal to make it 20-10 and though Ulster responded they failed to get on the scoreboard after Jacob Stockdale was unable to get the touchdown from Michael Lowry’s chip.
They did come back, though, and on 53 minutes with penalty advantage coming their way, mauled their way over the line with Rob Herring scoring.
However, Cooney hit the upright with the conversion to keep the visitors five points behind.
On the hour, Benetton’s Smith hit a long-range penalty which was shortly followed by Brex dotting down in the left corner following a turnover.
Smith missed the extras but at 28-15 the game looked gone for Ulster.
They came back, though, Cooney converting Lowry’s 67th minute score and then Ben Whitehouse awarded them a penalty try with just three minutes remaining.
That put Ulster in front 29-28 but they couldn’t hold on, Cooney’s offside being punished by Smith’s penalty and the game ending with Stewart Moore losing the ball on the Benetton line.
Benetton: R Smith; E Padovani, I Brex, T Menoncello, O Ratave; T Albornoz, A Garbisi; F Zani, G Nicotera, S Ferrari; N Cannone, F Ruzza; S Negri, M Lamaro (capt), L Cannone.
Replacements: S Maile for Nicotera (60 mins), C Traore for Zani (65 mins), T Pasquali for Ferrari (67 mins), G Pettinelli for Negri (52 mins), S Hidalgo-Clyne for Garbisi (60 mins), M Zanon for Menoncello (52 mins), J Umaga unused.
Ulster: M Lowry; R Baloucoune, J Hume, S McCloskey, J Stockdale; B Burns, J Cooney; E O’Sullivan, R Herring, J Toomaga-Allen; K Treadwell, I Henderson (capt); G Jones, S Reffell, N Timoney.
Replacements: T Stewart for Herring (56 mins), R Sutherland for O’Sullivan (56 mins), A Warwick for Reffell (67 mins), A O’Connor for Henderson (49 mins), D Vermeulen for Jones (49 mins), N Doak for Burns (77 mins), S Moore for Hume (49 mins), E McIlroy for Stockdale (75 mins).
Referee: B Whitehouse (Wales)
