Ulster stay afloat after riding tide of emotion
ULSTER captain Rory Best says emotion played a huge factor in motivating Ulster to go top of their pool with a brilliant victory over La Rochelle at Kingspan Stadium.
Best and Jacob Stockdale scored the first-half tries as Ulster held a 20-13 lead at the interval.
But they looked to be in trouble when La Rochelle scored early in the second half. However, a Nick Timoney try turned the game in their favour again.
La Rochelle scrum-half Alexi Bales scored all 13 of his team’s points but they lost for the second time in Pool 1 and qualification will come down to the final round of matches.
Best said: “A lot of hard work went into this. There is obviously a lot of emotion from last week and the way that we performed. The fans and everyone outside of this stadium have been very frustrated.
“We talked about reactions but a lot of hard work goes into reactions. You can’t just talk about it and it happens.
“That was a pleasing win against a quality side.”
La Rochelle had the wind at their backs in the opening quarter and they dominated the early exchanges but wasted chances.
Vincent Rattez should have scored in the seventh minute but Jérémy Sinzelle’s crossfield kick went over his head. But La Rochelle had the advantage and Alexis Bales slotted the penalty.
Ulster’s ill-discipline cost them and Rodney Ah You conceded a scrum-penalty before two more indiscretions saw them mired deep in their own territory.
Bales doubled his tally in the 16th minute after the French lineout was hauled down illegally.
But Ulster were gifted a way back into the game in the 23rd minute. Charles Piutau claimed a crossfield kick but replacement Paul Jordaan infringed with the All Black in the air. Jordaan went to the sin-bin and Ulster got their first try shortly after. The game had swung entirely by the time the La Rochelle winger returned. Ulster finally got some territory and Best’s lineout was collected by Alan O’Connor before Best and Iain Henderson peeled off the front of the rolling maul, and the hooker touched down Ulster’s first try.
It was a huge confidence booster for Ulster and La Rochelle began to make unforced errors which gave Ulster another way back into the game.
La Rochelle strayed offside and Ulster were deep in opposition territory once again, before Stockdale collected a ball on the right wing, shrugged off the challenge from Rattez and dotted down.
That was his 11th try of the season, including his efforts for Ireland in the autumn internationals. Cooney missed again from the conversion but with the wind to come in the secondhalf Ulster held a 10-6 half-time lead.
But it only three minutes at the start of the secondhalf before La Rochelle took advantage of a gaping hole in the Ulster rearguard and scored a magnificent first try.
It all stemmed from a poor clearing kick by Piutau which allowed the French to build up momentum in midfield.
Victor Vito spotted the hole and he raced clear before an off-load to Bales which sent the scrum-half over.
Bales converted his own try but just a minute later he was at fault when he threw a dreadful pass inside his own 22 and Timoney gathered a pass from Darren Cave before he scored his first European try.
Cooney kicked the conversion and a further penalty to give Ulster a 20-13 lead with a half-an-hour remaining.
La Rochelle were still within bonus point territory and they had three scrums five metres out from the Ulster try-line in the 63rd minute but the hosts were resolute and held them out.