Ulster joy as Shanahan try wins it at the death
Ulster players celebrate their match winning try during the United Rugby Championship match between Ulster and Glasgow Warriors at The Kingspan Stadium in Belfast. Photo by Ben McShane/Sportsfile
David Shanahan’s 84th-minute touchdown brought Ulster a dramatic result from their URC opener with champions Glasgow.
Trailing 19-15 with just six minutes left, the northern province rumbled upfield through their forwards and as they had done earlier, when David McCann had touched down on 72 minutes, they kept churning closer to the line.
Shanahan spotted a gap and dived over to bring an end the tension - though not initially as the TMO intervened for a few more minutes - with the score which sealed the deal for Richie Murphy’s men.
Six minutes were on the clock when the Glasgow had the opening score, their lineout maul bringing Johnny Matthews the touch down, though Tom Jordan missed the conversion.
Ulster hit back on 16 minutes when Nathan Doak slotted a penalty and then two minutes later a charge down by Aidan Morgan on Jordan led to the new signing getting over the line after the hosts had recycled just short of the Glasgow line.
Doak converted and Ulster now led 10-5 which had seemed a highly unlikely outcome up to Morgan’s opportunistic charge down.
The lead lasted seven minutes, Henco Venter scoring Glasgow’s second try and Jordan slotting the conversion to put the visitors back in the lead at 12-10.
With more territory and possession to their name plus Ulster continuing to concede penalties, it appeared that the Warriors would inevitably score again.
But they failed to do so, Venter knocking on when being put through a gaping hole in Ulster’s defensive line and then the province managed to win a crucial turnover when defending their try line.
And the final moments of the half also saw Glasgow looking to their maul as a means of advancing the scoreboard, only for Ulster to somehow prevent them from doing so, David McCann and Iain Henderson doing sterling work when on the back foot.
As such, the first half came to an end with Glasgow leading 12-10.
Eight minutes into the new half Rory Darge crashed through and over for the Warriors only for but the try to be ruled out for an earlier forward pass.
On the hour, Jordan was yellow carded for a head contact on Stewart Moore.
Ulster kept up the pressure on and with Richie Gray binned – briefly reducing the visitors to 13 – James McNabney was held up over the line.
Even though they had failed to get the score, the northern province surged forward again and following an extended period of time on the Glasgow line, David McCann scored on 72 minutes, though Morgan was unable to convert.
Ulster had the lead for just two minutes as Glasgow skipper Kyle Steyn got over in the corner, Adam Hastings adding an excellent conversion to put the Scots ahead by 19-15 with six minutes remaining.
With the clock in red, Ulster repeated their earlier advance on the Glasgow line, rumbling, driving and probing.
With momentum and time seemingly up, Shanahan wriggled over from close range and the Kingspan Stadium erupted.
Morgan missed the conversion but it hardly mattered, Ulster had done it.
E McIlroy, M Lowry, S Moore, J Postlethwaite, J Stockdale, A Morgan, N Doak; E O’Sullivan, J Andrew, C Barrett, I Henderson (capt), K Treadwell, J McNabney, D McCann, N TimoneyÂ
J McCormick for Andrew 67mins, A Warwick for O’Sullivan 45mins, T O’Toole for Barrett 45mins, H Sheridan for Henderson 57mins, C Izuchukwu for Treadwell 52mins, D Shanahan for Doak 53mins, J Humphreys unused W Kok for Moore 57mins, Moore for McIlroy 69mins.
J McKay, S Cancelliere, S McDowall, S Tuipulotu, K Steyn (capt), T Jordan, J Dobie; J Bhatti, J Matthews, S Talakai, M Williamson, R Gray, M Fagerson, R Darge, H Venter
G Hiddleston for Matthews 57mins, N McBeth for Bhatti 46mins, Z Fagerson for Talakai 46mins, A Samuel for M Fagerson 69mins, G Brown for Williamson 46mins, E Ferrie for Venter 57mins, B Afshar unused, A Hastings for McDowall 57minsÂ
Adam Jones (WRU,
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