Scots clinch close contest

Ulster 18 Edinburgh 19

Brendan Laney was Edinburgh’s last-gasp hero as he slotted the penalty which claimed a tense Celtic League victory at Ravenhill.

Laney had looked destined to lose out to Paddy Wallace in the duel of the boots but came up trumps when it mattered most.

The opening exchanges were nervous in the extreme with both sides making a spate of basic handling errors but it was Ulster who broke the deadlock.

Scott Murray secured clean line-out ball but Edinburgh were unable to use it profitably.

Referee Huw Watkins spotted a high and late tackle close to the ensuing ruck, leaving Wallace with a formality of a kick.

The capital men then suffered four more setbacks in quick succession. First, Wallace added another goal when referee Watkins reversed a penalty decision for an off-the-ball incident.

Then centre Marcus Di Rollo was carried off with an ankle injury after pulling up abruptly while launching an attack.

Wallace completed his treble when the Gunners were guilty of holding onto the ball on the deck in a ruck. And a few minutes later, at the other end, Laney badly hooked a penalty attempt from the 22 line.

He was to make amends, however, by bagging 10 points before the break to haul Edinburgh back into the contest.

Laney began his run of success by claiming the first try of the match after a patient and phased build-up, which he converted himself.

Wallace replied with penalty number four, but there was still time for Laney to have the last word of the half with an identical score.

Edinburgh looked more urgent after the restart and they snatched the advantage for the first time with a superbly executed drop-goal from Duncan Hodge.

But they were soon on the back foot again when Simon Taylor was yellow-carded for failing to release and Wallace added to his penalty tally before trading further kicks with Laney to keep the margin at two points going into the closing stages.

Then came Laney’s clincher which settled the match.