Late drama at Kingspan Stadium tonight saw the lead change hands twice in the last five minutes as Paddy Jackson’s drop goal two minutes from time cancelled out Gareth Steenson’s effort to secure the slenderest of victories (19-18) for Ulster over Exeter Chiefs.
VIDEO HIGHLIGHTS: ULSTER 19 EXETER CHIEFS 18
Ulster bagged the only try of the game through Sean Reidy after stellar work from man-of-the-match Charles Piutau, but the high standard of kicking from Belfast native Gareth Steenson on his old stomping ground kept the Chiefs in touch throughout this Champions Cup clash – and the out-half was desperately unlucky not to snatch a victory in the dying seconds with another drop that veered just wide.
Ulster sit third in Pool 5 with four points on the back of this victory, a point behind Bordeaux-Bègles who picked up a late bonus point in Clermont, while Exeter now face a mammoth task to progress to the knockout stages, sitting bottom on a single losing bonus point from tonight’s game.
Piutau, Kyle McCall, Peter Browne and Roger Wilson all returned to the province’s starting line-up for the Chiefs’ visit, with Piutau on the left wing the only change to the back-line which had started against Bordeaux-Bègles. The New Zealander was joined by Jared Payne at full-back, captain Andrew Trimble on the other flank, Luke Marshall and Stuart Olding in the centre, and the half-back pairing of Jackson and Ruan Pienaar.
McCall made up a bulky front row with Rory Best and Rodney Ah You, supported by locks Browne and Franco van der Merwe, and a back row of Iain Henderson and Reidy either side of Wilson.
Flashes of individual brilliance from Piutau lit up an otherwise lacklustre first half where try-scoring opportunities were in scant supply and well-drilled defence from both sides was the order of the day.
Both teams had plenty to prove after poor round 1 showings, and Ulster made all the running straight from the off, Jackson slotting an early penalty after a neat combination between Payne and Browne.
Steenson equalised within moments, and while Ulster enjoyed a good spell of pressure with first an abortive attempt from van der Merwe and two menacing rolling mauls, the killer punch was lacking and Chiefs eventually cleared their lines on 18 minutes.
Exeter made no better use of their subsequent period of possession until the ever-reliable Steenson kicked over his second three-pointer just before the half hour mark – at which point Ulster exploded into life. Piutau was the architect with a jinking run through the heart of the Chiefs defence, Reidy finishing off the move with a smart sidestep of his own to elude the last man.
Jackson converted for 10-6 and it was not long before Piutau was off again, slaloming past three would-be tacklers to make good ground towards halfway, then sliding in to make a try-saving interception metres from his own line once possession had been surrendered and Chiefs had spotted a gap.
A late tackle on Piutau minutes after the restart got Ulster a five-metre rolling maul which Exeter defended stoutly, but a great aerial take by Trimble as Chiefs cleared their lines kept play just in the visiting half, from where Jackson coolly slotted a penalty on 49 minutes.
However, poor concentration at the restart allowed Julian Salvi to pick up the ball unchallenged in the Ulster 22, setting up a chain of events which culminated in a simple kick in front of the posts for Steenson.
Jackson missed the chance to restore a seven-point advantage for the hosts with a wayward 63rd minute penalty, and soon it was cut to a single point (13-12) as Steenson once again split the posts from close range.
Quick hands from Olding, Marshall and Pienaar were instrumental in the next attack, drawing the infringement on the 22 from where Jackson’s kick was never in doubt. However, neither was Steenson’s fifth successful penalty on 73 minutes, as replacement Rob Herring – playing in the back row – was pinged right in front of the posts for failing to roll away in the tackle.
Exeter pressed high, Steenson biding his time until the opportunity presented itself – and when it did on 76 minutes, the out-half dropped the goal with plenty of time to spare to put his side 18-16 to the good.
With the clock running down, Ulster wasted no time in pouring down the other end of the pitch, crafting the opportunity for Jackson to do just the same. 90 seconds remained for the final Exeter chance, and when it came once again in the form of a Steenson drop goal, KIngspan Stadium held its breath as the kick drifted inches wide of the right hand upright.
Giving his reaction afterwards, Ulster skipper Trimble said: “It was one of those finishes to a game that was entertaining and I think a lot of supporters got their money’s worth, but it was a little bit too entertaining at the end, we had to dig really deep.
“That is an Exeter side that is hurting a bit from last week’s result (against Clermont) and they came out fighting. The first 15-20 minutes when it was dry we were able to take them through phases and move them about the pitch and keep the tempo up, then it just became a proper old school dog-fight out there.
“Whenever it comes down to that it’s about who wants it more and who has more character and who is going to be brave enough to stand up and take the game by the scruff of neck, and we had to do that a couple of times.
“Whenever there is three or four minutes left and you have to get down there, we put Jackie in the pocket and he delivered. I am very proud of the performance and there are definitely things to work on.”
The province’s director of rugby Les Kiss commented: “I think we were good for the win. We made a few line-breaks and I think if we went the right way we would have had another try or two. We were a bit out of sorts at times, but the quality of the team to stay committed to the little things we talked about that may make a difference, was pleasing.
“At the moment it’s frustrating for us all not to be playing that style of rugby that we know we can play – we saw snippets of it tonight, but not enough.
“There were moments when we just gave them easy territory which kept them in the hunt and you can’t give Steenson easy territory with his boot. That kept them in the hunt and I think we’re our own worst enemies at times.
“I think there were things from us that showed we created a little bit more than them, we just didn’t tidy it up and finish them off.”
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