McFarland delighted as Ulster execute kicking plan to perfection to beat Leinster

URC: Leinster 21 Ulster 22

Ulster showed tremendous courage and resilience to eke out a superb victory over Leinster, their first at the RDS in two years in a pulsating, topsy-turvy contest that defied the driving wind and rain. It wasn’t just a rearguard action, Dan McFarland’s side took their chances on a more modest diet in possession terms, ruthlessly exploiting a cleverly devised gameplan, one predicated on Billy Burns’ astute game management.

The Ulster outhalf turned Leinster’s aggressive line speed in defence against them in the opening 40-minutes, a gambit predicated on the variety and accuracy of his kicking, that directly led to three first half tries, two for their excellent number eight Nick Timoney and another for left wing Jacob Stockdale.

Ulster head coach Dan McFarland said: “I don’t think that it is new knowledge. If you play the kind of defence that Leinster are going to play this year, they are susceptible to kicking. There was some high quality and accurate kicking, Billy [Burns] is one of the best in the game at that; I genuinely mean that.

“Yeah, definitely it was a plan, but you have to have variety in that, be able to do it in different ways and not be obvious. They have to execute it well.” Burns did so beautifully, a chip kick, a diagonal grubber kick and a cross-kick, deliciously flighted, pinpoint accurate. Ulster led 12-0 and by the time the interval came around, 19-14.

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At 12-0 Leinster needed a response and it came following some good play initially from Will Connors, followed by a powerful lineout maul and after several sallies around the fringes, Cian Healy powered over. Sam Prendergast converted.

Television match official Brian MacNeice alerted Frank Murphy to obstruction in a lineout that led to Will Connors dotting down; the try chalked off for the Leinster flanker following a review. Ulster’s gutsy defence saw them thwart their hosts by managing to hold up another Leinster front assault over the line.

The problem for the visitors was that mistakes and ill-discipline continued to provide their opponents with access to the 22 and Leinster availed of the largesse on 24 minutes in fortunate circumstances. Jamison Gibson-Park’s chip came back off the upright, Prendergast was quickest to the loose ball and Tommy O’Brien gave Rob Russell the scoring pass.

Sam Prendergast kicked a brilliant touchline conversion to give the home side a 14-12 lead, but it was Ulster who were next to strike, Burns, again, with another pinpoint delivery with the boot, this time a cross-kick that was gathered by Timoney hugging the touchline.

The number eight raced over for his second try of the game which Cooney improved upon with a superb conversion to give Ulster a 19-14 interval lead. In some respects, it was a contest between Leinster’s power game up front and Burns’ top class kicking from hand.

The visitors did manage to win a couple of scrum penalties, but Leinster ruled the air at lineout time, nabbing a couple of turnovers. The breakdown was a mess, lawless at times, the offside line not rigorously enforced. It was up to the players to respond and Ulster, to their credit, were marginally cuter.

Prendergast kicked away possession on a couple of occasions when there wasn’t space in the Ulster backfield to do so. Replacement prop Jack Boyle was penalised at a scrum, McCarthy for offside, the upshot of which was that Cooney nudged his side out to a 22-14 lead on 55 minutes.

Leinster’s power game saw them clambered back into the contest, kicking a penalty to the corner, and then the lineout maul was powerful enough to allow Dan Sheehan to squeeze over. Harry Byrne’s touchline conversion was a beauty.

Luke Marshall saved his side with a superb intercept, reading Gibson-Park’s long pass 15-metres from the Ulster line, to win possession in front of Frawley and save the try. When Russell caught Michael Lowry, at a ruck after chasing his kick through, Murphy penalised what was possibly the third offence, and Ulster won a relieving penalty. The visitors held on to the final whistle.

Scoring sequence – 4 mins: Timoney try, Cooney conversion, 0-7; 12: Stockdale try, 0-12; 11: Healy try, Prendergast conversion, 7-12; 24: Russell try, Prendergast conversion, 14-12; 36: Timoney try, Cooney conversion, 14-19. Half-time: 14-19. 55: Cooney penalty, 14-22; 62: Sheehan try, Byrne conversion, 21-22.

Leinster: C Frawley; T O’Brien, L Turner, R Henshaw, R Russell; S Prendergast, J Gibson-Park; C Healy, D Sheehan, T Clarkson; J Jenkins, J McCarthy; R Baird, W Connors, C Doris (capt). Replacements: J Boyle for Healy 48 mins; M Ala’alatoa for Clarkson 48 mins; J van der Flier for Connors 48 mins; L Barron, H Byrne for Prendergast 61 mins; R Molony for Jenkins 61 mins; J Conan for Doris 67 mins; L McGrath for Gibson-Park 77 mins.

Ulster: W Addison; R Baloucoune, L Marshall, S McCloskey, J Stockdale; B Burns, J Cooney; S Kitshoff, R Herring, T O’Toole; K Treadwell, I Henderson (capt); Matty Rea, S Reffell, N Timoney. Replacements: T Stewart for Herring 49 mins; M Lowry for Baloucoune 50 mins; S Wilson for O’Toole 63 mins; A O’Connor for Henderson 63 mins; A Warwick for Kitshoff 63 mins; D Ewers for Reffell 63 mins; N Doak for Burns.

Referee: F Murphy (IRFU).

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