Ulster take win against Connacht

Ian Humphreys had a hand in all three tries and kicked the rest of the points as Ulster beat Connacht to keep on course for the Magners League's last four.

Rory Best's sixth-minute try set Ulster on their way to a 14-6 half-time lead, with Adam D'Arcy crossing the whitewash on the half hour mark.A drop goal and penalty from Ian Keatley kept Connacht in touch after a high tempo first half, and Eric Elwood's men should really have been closer.
Sean Cronin's superbly-taken try, adding to five more points from Keatley's boot, closed the gap to 17-16 with Humphreys kicking his first penalty.
The Ulster out-half added another in the 66th minute and the win was secured when Darren Cave broke through for a seven-pointer.

Trimble and Wallace out for Ulster

Irish internationals Andrew Trimble and Paddy Wallace have been ruled out of the remainder of Ulster's Magners League campaign.

Wing Trimble and centre Wallace have both suffered fractured a thumb and will be forced to undergo surgery. As a result they will be sidelined for approximately six weeks, ruling them out of the remainder of the domestic season.

South African BJ Botha is rated as doubtful heading into Friday's clash with Connacht, with the prop awaiting the results of an MRI scan on a knee injury sustained against Leinster over the weekend.

There is some good news for the Ulstermen though, with Ian Humphreys and Tom Court passed fit for the encounter. Humphreys was forced off during the Leinster clash, while Court missed the game altogether having suffered a concussion the previous week.

Ulster Line-Up Announced

Captained by Rory Best, there is just once change in the starting line-up from the side which defeated Llanelli Scarlets at Ravenhill in the Magners League last week, with Chris Henry starting in the openside berth ahead of Willie Faloon who is named on the bench.

The only other change amongst the replacements is the inclusion of prop Bryan Young who comes in with Declan Fitzpatrick unavailable having picked up a wrist injury.

Craig Gilroy, Ulster's top try-scorer in the Magners League with seven tries from nine appearances could make his Heineken Cup debut if he comes off the bench during the game, having been registered for the competition as an additional player. 

The match will be shown live on Sky Sports and there will also be commentary on Radio Ulster 1341 MW from 2pm.

ULSTER: (15-9) Adam D'Arcy; Andrew Trimble, Nevin Spence, Paddy Wallace, Simon Danielli; Ian Humphreys, Ruan Pienaar (1-8) Tom Court, Rory Best (Captain), BJ Botha, Johann Muller, Dan Tuohy, Robbie Diack, Chris Henry, Pedrie Wannenburg

Replacements: (16-23) Andi Kyriacou, Paddy McAllister, Bryan Young, Tim Barker, Willie Faloon, Paul Marshall, Ian Whitten, Craig Gilroy

Ulster announce squad to meet Saints

Ulster head coach Brian McLaughlin has named a 31-man squad for the Heineken Cup quarter-final against the Saints.

 

Out-half Ian Humphreys and prop BJ Botha came through their return game against the Scarlets unscathed last weekend and have been pencilled in for Ulster's first European quarter-final since 1999.

Ireland flanker Stephen Ferris is the only player unavailable to the province as he is still suffering with a knee problem.

If Brian McLaughlin's men manage to beat Northampton on Sunday, they will face either Perpignon or Toulon in a semi-final in Dublin.
Ulster come into the game on the back of six straight Magners League wins, while Northampton have won their previous three matches.

Humphries and Botha included in Ulster squad

Ulster head coach Brian McLaughlin has named a 35-man squad ahead of Friday's Magners League match against the Scarlets at Ravenhill (kick-off 7.05pm).


Ian Humphreys and BJ Botha return to Ulster's preliminary squad for their showdown with fellow play-off chasers, the Scarlets.

Prop Botha has not played since injuring his elbow before Christmas, while Humphreys pulled a hamstring during training last month.

The return of both players will be a timely boost for Ulster with a string of important matches coming up for Brian McLaughlin's side.

Glasgow 19-22 Ulster

Ruan Pienaar was the hero for Ulster at Firhill, his man-of-the-match haul of all 22 points ensuring his side snatched a last-gasp victory against a typically dogged Glasgow side to climb to second in the Magners League.
 A self-converted try and five penalties, the last of which came in the final seconds, were enough to see off the Warriors, whose sole try came from Ryan Grant.

Scotland fly-half Ruaridh Jackson booted 11 points, while his replacement Duncan Weir set up a tight finish with a late penalty.

The hosts held the upper hand in the opening exchanges, an early Jackson up-and-under causing havoc in the Ulster ranks.

From the ensuing pressure, the home stand-off notched the game's first points, converting a straightforward penalty after Pedrie Wannenburg was penalised for a short-armed tackle.

Parity was restored in the 12th minute when Ulster fly-half Pienaar slotted a 40-metre penalty resulting from a front-row infringement in the scrum. Moments earlier, he had failed with a more challenging attempt from the touchline after Glasgow prop Moray Low had been penalised for a cynical block on Scotland colleague Simon Danielli.

Ulster 23-10 Aironi Rugby

Ulster kept their Magners League play-off hopes alive with their third win in a row but they were made to fight hard by a spirited Aironi effort which managed to deny the hosts a bonus point.
 

The result could have been a lot closer had Aironi been more precise with their finishing after a number of chances were blown by the Italians, who tumbled to their 16th defeat in as many outings in the competition.

Ulster, with Ruan Pienaar at outside half for the injured Ian Humphreys, made several errors after initially streaking to an early 15-0 lead.

Tries from Tom Court and Craig Gilroy inside seven minutes helped them to a 15-10 half-time lead before a score from replacement Declan Fitzpatrick plus two Pienaar penalties in a second half which skipper Johann Mueller was yellow carded.

With only three minutes on the clock Court drove over the line after Ulster had kicked to the corner from a penalty.

Pienaar's conversion hit the upright but he made sure with his second attempt which came four minutes later after Ulster had moved the ball at pace for Chris Henry to send Gilroy over for a seventh try in seven appearances.

Ferris to miss rest of Six Nations

Ulster flanker Stephen Ferris has been ruled out for the rest of this year's RBS Six Nations campaign.

Ferris has been struggling with a persistent knee problem, which he aggravated while on Heineken Cup duty for his province against Aironi.

The 26-year-old is to see a consultant in London to examine the true extent of the problem but has been told he will play no part in the remainder of this season's Six Nations.

Ireland head coach Declan Kidney also has concerns over the availability of Tomas O'Leary.

O'Leary is continuing his rehab from his ongoing back problem and at this stage has not been ruled out of the games with Wales and England.

Caldwell to leave Ulster for Bath

Bath have announced the signing of Ireland international lock Ryan Caldwell with Harlequins' Lewis Stevenson set to move to join the province.

Caldwell, 25, has agreed a two-year deal and will move to the Recreation Ground from Ulster this summer.

He has made 79 appearances for Ulster and was capped twice during Ireland's tour to the USA and Canada in 2009.

Bath rugby director Ian McGeechan said: 'Ryan will be a very good addition to the club.

'He has very good skills already, and he will develop these further as he matures. He is a big, powerful young lock, and so will create some real problems for the opposition.'

Caldwell follows another new second-row addition to the Bath squad, England international Dave Attwood, who has been recruited from Gloucester for next season.

Ulster have signed Stevenson as a replacement for Caldwell, who has been released a year early from his contract.

Ulster squad named for trip to Ospreys

Ulster coach Brian McLaughlin has named a 31-man squad for the clash away to the Ospreys in the Magners League on Sunday.

McLaughlin's side have won three games on the trot in all competitions and will be determined to keep up momentum. A win on Sunday would see them move ahead of the fifth placed Ospreys, with a real chance of pushing for a play-off spot.

Nevin Spence, Ian Humphreys, Declan Fitzpatrick, Willie Faloon and Chris Henry, Nigel Brady and Paul Marshall are all included after representing the Irish Wolfhounds last week.

Heineken Cup quarter-final details released

Leinster will face Leicester on Saturday, 9 April in the Heineken Cup quarter-final while Ulster face a trip to Milton Keynes to face Northampton the following day.

Dates for the quarter-final round were announced today by ERC and the clash of Leinster, the highest seeded Irish province, and Heineken Cup blue-bloods Leicester has been given the prime Saturday evening spot in the schedule.

In a repeat of the 2009 final won by Leinster, the pair will face off at Aviva Stadium in a 6pm kick-off.

Ulster will face Northampton Saints at stadium:mk in Milton Keynes the following day (Sunday) at 2pm.

The other quarter-finals are all French affairs but both will take place in Northern Spain. Perpignan's clash with Toulon will get the weekend underway on Saturday at the 55,000 capacity Olympic Stadium in Barcelona.

The clash of Toulouse and Biarritz at Estadio Anoeta in San Sebastian, near Biarritz, will round of the weekend's action in the second Sunday match.

The semi-finals will pit the winners of the Leinster v Leicester clash against either Biarritz or Toulouse and the winners of Ulster v Northampton against Perpignan or Toulon.

If Leinster or Ulster win their quarter-final matches, their semi-final will take place in Ireland.

Trimble ruled out of Six Nations opener

Andrew Trimble has been ruled out of Ireland's opening game in the RBS 6 Nations Championship against Italy after breaking a bone in his right hand.

Trimble picked up the injury during the Heineken Cup match at the weekend playing for Ulster against Aironi and follwoing an x-ray today, it was found that he had broken a metacarpal in his hand.

This will definitely keep him out of the Italy game and he will have a specialist review this week to determine how long he will be unable to play for.

On other injury news, both Stephen Ferris and Tommy Bowe underwent scans on knee problems and an update on their progress will be available in the next 24 hours.

Leinster and Ulster face English opposition

Leinster will host Leicester in the Heineken Cup quarter-finals, while Ulster must travel to top-seeded Northampton.


Pool 2 champions Leinster will host the Tigers at home, potentially at the Aviva Stadium instead of regular home ground, the RDS, in what is a repeat of the 2009 Heineken Cup final - a match Leinster won 19-16 at Murrayfield.


Ulster face a very tough examination as they travel to England to face Northampton Saints. That match is currently fixed for Franklin's Gardens, but there are discussions ongoing to change the match to Stadium:mk. Franklin's Gardens has a capacity of 13,591, while Stadium:mk holds 22,000.


Ulster will consider themselves lucky to have avoided European giants Toulouse. A last-minute David Lemi try gave Wasps a surprise 21-16 win over Toulouse, a result which pushes Guy Noves' charges into an away tie against Biarritz.

Aironi 6-43 Ulster

Ulster secured their place in the quarter-finals of the Heineken Cup for the first time in 12 years with a bonus-point victory over Aironi at Stadio Luigi Zaffanella.

That was not enough to clinch top spot in Pool Four following a bonus-point victory for Biarritz over Bath. Ulster finished level on 22 points with the French club but missed out due to an inferior head-to-head record.

However, this win did secure one of two places in the last eight for best runners-up, the first time Ulster have reached the knock-out stage of the Heineken Cup since they won the trophy back in 1999.

Number eight Pedrie Wannenburg scored twice in a man-of-the-match display while tries from Andrew Trimble and a penalty try wrapped up a bonus point before Chris Henry and Simon Danielli capped the victory with late scores.

Fly-half Ian Humphreys also booted 13 points, including the opening points of the game with a third-minute penalty to help settle Ulster nerves.

Botha ruled out for Ulster

BJ Botha has been ruled out of Ulster's final Heineken Cup pool match against Aironi at the Stadio Zaffanella on Saturday.
 Botha sustained an elbow injury during the second half of last Saturday's win over Biarritz.
The province has named a 32-man squad for the tie. Captain Rory Best, who also left the field with a rib injury, is included.

The starting XV and replacements will be named on Friday before noon.

Ulster squad for Heineken Cup match with Aironi on Saturday, kick-off 1:30pm:

Tom Court, Declan Fitzpatrick, Jerry Cronin, Bryan Young, Andi Kyriacou, Rory Best, Nigel Brady, Ryan Caldwell, Tim Barker, Dan Tuohy, Johann Muller, Neil McComb, Willie Faloon, Pedrie Wannenburg, Stephen Ferris, TJ Anderson, Chris Henry, Robbie Diack
 Adam D'Arcy, David McIlwaine, Jamie Smith, Mark McCrea, Andrew Trimble, Simon Danielli, Paddy Wallace, Nevin Spence, Ian Whitten, Ian Humphreys, Niall O'Connor, Ian Porter, Paul Marshall, Ruan Pienaar.

Ulster 9-6 Biarritz

Ulster coach Brian McLaughlin hailed his side's second-half defensive effort after Ian Humphreys kept their Heineken Cup hopes alive with a last-gasp penalty to secure a 9-6 win over Biarritz at Ravenhill.

Their European fate now hangs on next weekend's final round of games as Ulster and Biarritz, who grabbed a vital losing bonus point, sit joint top of Pool Four with 17 points each. The French side hold the trump card - thanks to a better head-to-head record - should the sides still be level after next weekend's games.

The odds are against Ulster topping the group, although they could still sneak through in one of the two best runners-up slots available.

McLaughlin was delighted with the result, and in particular the way his side stood firm in the final quarter.

Trimble signs new IRFU contract.

Andrew Trimble has commited his future to playing in Ireland by signing a two-year extension to his current deal with the IRFU.

The versatile Trimble, who plays on both the wing and the centre, has put pen to paper on a new deal that will see him remain with Ulster a further two years until the end of the 2012-13 season.
Ulster Director of Rugby David Humphreys welcomed the news and said: 'We're delighted that Andrew has chosen to continue and further his rugby career in Ireland.

'He's enjoying a rich vein of form, and as one of the senior members of the Ulster Squad he's played an integral part in the improvements we've made this season.

'As we saw from his performance last weekend against Teviso, he's certainly back to his best.'
Trimble, meanwhile, is only focused on playing rugby. 'We have some big games coming up, so I am really happy that I was able to agree my new contract before we went into the busy period,' he insisted.

'As well as the challenges we have in the Heineken Cup and Magners League coming up, I was conscious that I also wanted to concentrate on playing as well as possible here with Ulster so I can challenge for a place with Ireland ahead of the Six Nations and the World Cup this year.
'Our game this weekend against Biarritz is my first priority and everybody in Ulster Rugby is firmly focused on that,' he added.

Tuohy signs new Ulster Contract

Ulster received a boost ahead of this weekend's crucial Heineken Cup clash against Biarritz with the news that lock Dan Tuohy has signed a new two year deal with the club.

Tuohy, who won his first international caps for Ireland during last summer's tour of Australia and New Zealand, moved from Premiership side Exeter Chiefs, on a two year contract with Ulster ahead of the 2009-10 season.

Meanwhile, prop Paddy McAllister and centre Nevin Spence have upgraded from development to full contracts.

McAllister and Spence are both products of the Phoenix Ulster Rugby Academy.

Ulster 32-13 Benetton Treviso.

Ulster ended their two-game losing run with a valuable bonus-point win over Treviso to keep them in touch with the top four in the Magners League.

Tries from Ruan Pienaar, Nevin Spence, Adam D'Arcy and Rory Best in an impressive first 34 minutes gave Ulster a commanding position in dreadful conditions.

But coach Brian McLaughlin will hardly be pleased that his charges failed to score a single point in a second-half display which saw them largely on the back foot and conceding a converted try to the Italians.

Returning outside-half Ian Humphreys contributed 12 points with the boot and Stephen Ferris also came through well as a second-half replacement for a win which keeps Ulster sixth in the table.

Connacht sign Ulster duo as Naoupu returns.

Connacht have completed the signings Ulster duo Niall O'Connor and Mark McCrea along with the re-signing of former favourite George Naoupu from Japan.

Scrum-half O'Connor, who played over 50 times for Ulster, and McCrea, who plays on the wing and played 25 times for the northern province will both join on a two-year contract at the end of the season.

And Naoupu will return to the Sportsground for the 2011/2012 season.
 

The 6'5, 115kg 27-year-old backrow joined Connacht in 2009 before moving to the Kobe Steelers in Japan last season.

He appeared 14 times in his six-month spell at Connacht, including scoring a try in the famous victory over Bourgoin in the Amlin Challenge Cup quarter-final last season.
Naoupu, who has represented New Zealand Schools, U19, Colts and 7's, will rejoin Connacht on a two-year contract.