Munster saw off a determined Ulster side in Musgrave Park tonight to end their recent poor league form and keep the title chase on for one week more. Munster will be delighted that the experiment of trying Frank Murphy at scrum-half payed off with him being named Man of The Match.
Ulster have made their second Southern Hemisphere signing of the year with the news that veteran Wallabies and Waratahs lock Justin Harrison has opted to sign a three year deal with the province.
Last night was a good night for the Irish sides in action in the Celtic League with both Connacht and Ulster seeing off their opposition. Ulster destroyed Glasgow by 30 points to 3 in Ravenhill while an Eric Elwood penalty was the difference between Connacht and their opposition Edinburgh.
Mark McCall has named his Ulster side to face Glasgow on Friday night in the Celtic League. Ulster will be deperate to win and put some daylight between themselves and Connacht in the race for the third Heineken Cup qualifier spot for Ireland.
A long, late Percy Montgomery penalty ended a terrible day for the Dragons with a victory over Ulster. Having heard earlier in the day that coach Chris Anderson would be shown the door at the end of the season, the home side trailed 11-10 on 75 minutes but Ulster’s Roger Best held onto the ball in a tackle to give Montgomery his winning penalty shot from 47m.
Ulster have signed Wellington Hurricanes scrum-half Isaac Boss under a two year deal. Boss, who qualifies for Ireland via his grandparents - who come from Armagh - spent four seasons with New Zealand Super 12 side Waikato Chiefs before switching to the Hurricanes this season.
Ulster will have all their players at their disposal for the Celtic League match away to the Dragons on Friday night. Kevin Maggs who started last weekend against Scotland will return to the side along with David Humphreys and Tommy Bowe who were also involved with the Irish squad.
Springbok Coach Jake White watched from the Ravenhill stand as tries from Warren Brosnihan, Danie Rossouw, Ettienne Botha and Pedrie Wannenburg gave The Bulls 24 – 9 at Ravenhill.
Ulster fans have an extra match to look forward to this weekend with the visit of South African Super 12 side The Bulls to Ravenhill for a friendly. Ulster are obviously weakened by the absense of some of their Internationals but coach Mark McCall will see the match as an opportunity to try some new things and to give his players an extra game before the Celtic League restarts next weekend.
Leinster will have all their Irish Internationals available for their match against The Dragons on Saturday at Lansdowne Road. In contrast The Dragons will be missing their Welsh internationals for the clash. Leinster will be looking to bounce back from their defeat to The Borders last weekend and a win would put some distance between themselves and The Dragons who are one place below them in fourth in the League.