Match Report | Lions 49-31 Ulster Rugby

The home side struck early with a well-worked try. Tighthead prop Asenathi Ntlabakanye charged toward the Ulster line, drawing in two defenders before offloading to SJ Kotze, who broke through to score. Fly-half Chris Smith added the extras to give the Lions a 7–0 lead.

Ulster hit back quickly. A slick passage of play saw the ball moved wide to Robert Baloucoune, who stepped his man and burned past Lions full-back Quan Horn to score under the posts. Nathan Doak converted to level things at 7–7.

Not long after, it was the Lions who got their second of the afternoon. The home side capitalised on the space out wide, and despite Ulster’s best efforts, Quan Horn’s neat offload put winger Eduan Keyter in at the corner. Smith was on target again from the tee to make it 14–7.

Ulster pressed hard in response, building momentum through several phases to within five metres of the line, but a crucial turnover from lock Etienne Oosthuizen and a subsequent penalty allowed the hosts to relieve the pressure.

The Lions thought they had extended their lead through Keyter, but a forward pass in the build-up was spotted on review, handing Ulster possession back just before the first water break.

Ulster bounced back after the restart, with Mike Lowry splitting the defence before a tidy offload to Doak, who dropped the ball to his laces for Dave McCann to chase. They kept possession and worked through phases across the pitch, gathering a penalty advantage. Fly-half Jack Murphy then chipped the ball over a rushing defence, with outside centre James Hume catching it over the Lions’ try line. After a brief TMO review, the try was awarded, and Doak converted to make it 14–14.

The Lions were then reduced to 14 men as Ntlabakanye saw yellow for a high tackle on Jude Postlethwaite. However, moments later, a penalty against Rob Herring for not rolling away allowed Smith to edge his side back in front, 17–14.

Ulster finished the first half strong. Sustained pressure from the forwards created space out wide, and Murphy fired a pinpoint pass to Baloucoune, who produced an outstanding finish in the corner for his second try of the match. Doak’s conversion attempt drifted narrowly wide, but Ulster led 19–17 at the break.

Half-time: Lions 17–19 Ulster

The Lions started the second half as they did the first, punishing Ulster from the restart. Following a scrum on Ulster’s 22, Scrum-half Nico Steyn took a quick tap to set up Ruan Venter for the score, with Smith converting. The out-half then added a long-range penalty to stretch the lead to 27–19.

Ulster responded again, and Baloucoune completed an impressive hat-trick. Hume’s chip and chase set up Tom Stewart, who linked with Murphy to find Baloucoune in space for the finish. Doak’s conversion drifted wide, leaving Ulster trailing 27–24.

The Lions’ bench then made an impact, with Renzo du Plessis grounding the ball despite Postlethwaite’s tackle, confirmed by the TMO. Smith’s conversion stretched the lead to 34–24.

Ulster kept fighting and got their reward when McCann powered over from close range. Replacement fly-half Jake Flannery added the conversion to bring it back to 34–31.

Centre Henco van Wyk scored to stretch the Lions’ advantage, with replacement Gianni Lombard’s kick firing wide.

The Lions maintained their pressure, scoring again through replacement prop Conrad van Vuuren after some strong carrying and an offload from Jarod Cairns.

The clock struck 80 minutes at Ellis Park, and the home side scored the final try of the game as van Vuuren crashed over for his second. Another missed conversion saw the game finish 49-31.

The result means that Ulster leave South Africa with six points from two difficult away matches against the Sharks and Lions.

Full-time: Lions 49–31 Ulster

Scorers

Lions

TRY: Kotze, Keyter, venter, Du Plessis, van Wyk, van Vuuren X2

CON: Smith

PEN: Smith

Ulster Rugby

TRY: Baloucoune X3, Hume, McCann

CON: Doak, Flannery

Teams

Ulster

Sam Crean, Rob Herring (Capt), Tom O’toole, Harry Sheridan, Joe Hopes, David McCann, Tom Stewart, Bryn Ward;  Nathan Doak, Jack Murphy, Zac Ward, Jude Postlethwaite, James Hume, Robert Baloucoune, Mike Lowry

Replacements: James McCormick, Callum Reid, Scotty Wilson, Matthew Dalton, Marcus rea, Conor Mckee, Jake Flannery, Werner Kok

Lions

Lions: Q Horn; Keyter, Van Wyk, Mills, Davids; Smith, Steyn; Kotze, Marais, Ntlabakanye, Oosthuizen, Nothnagel, Cairns, Venter, F. Horn (Capt).

Replacements: Brandon, Schoeman, van Vuuren, Landsberg, du Plessis, L Horn, Lombard, Mpeku.