Hat-trick hero Darren Cave puts paid to Tigers’ Cup hopes

Ulster 26 Leicester 7: European Champions Cup Pool 3: Darren Cave helped clip the Tigers’ claws in an attritional Champions Cup clash at the Kingspan Stadium on Saturday when Ulster had their bonus point on the board by the 50th minute before a brickwall defence proved almost impenetrable.

Cave scuttled in for his first hat-trick of tries for his province as Ulster buried the demons of last week’s eight-try record hammering in Europe against Toulon. Leicester had travelled to a city where they have never won harbouring hopes of reaching the quarter-finals. But they again left empty handed as tries from Cave and winger Craig Gilroy proved their undoing.

Ulster led 12-0 at the break with Cave’s first two touchdowns and were 26-0 ahead with 30 minutes to go. Leicester finally woke up on the hour, and threatened to over-run Ulster who at one stage were down to 13 men with Callum Black and Wiehehn Herbst in the bin in the last quarter. But a superb defensive performance, particularly the fast first-up tackling, meant there was no way through for the visitors.