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Last-minute John Cooney penalty lifts Ulster to victory over Cardiff
A last-gasp penalty from John Cooney saw Ulster keep their United Rugby Championship play-off hopes on track with a 19-17 win over Cardiff after being behind for most of the game at the Kingspan Stadium.
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Theo Cabango went over for a pair of tries for the visitors with Tinus de Beer converting both and adding a penalty.
David McCann scored Ulster’s only try but a pair of penalties from Nathan Doak and two and a conversion from Cooney proved crucial.
Cardiff opened the scoring after 11 minutes when winger Cabango ran through some soft defence after coming in on an angle from a lineout. De Beer converted to put the visitors 7-0 ahead.
This had followed an error-ridden opening period from the Irish province which had seen Doak miss touch with two penalties and Will Addison throw a forward pass to Michael Lowry.
There were no further scores until the 27th minute – by which stage Ulster had lost centre James Hume to injury – when Doak got Ulster off the mark with a penalty much to the relief of the home crowd.
After failing to score from two driving mauls, Ulster did register a score, Doak landing the penalty to narrow Cardiff’s lead to a solitary point.
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The new half opened with Cabango’s second try, the winger skinning Ulster out wide and arcing in to score under the posts and allow De Beer the conversion to take Cardiff’s lead to 14-6.
More damage then came Ulster’s way when Jacob Stockdale was yellow-carded for a deliberate knock-on after 48 minutes though the province survived his 10-minute absence without conceding.
Indeed, just before Stockdale returned a penalty was kicked to the corner and though the possession was scrappy, McCann was the one to surge over the line.
John Cooney, on for Doak, converted and Cardiff now led 14-13.
Cooney then stepped up again and kicked a long-range effort in the 65th minute when Cardiff were penalised at a breakdown, putting the home team in the lead for the first time in the game.
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Then with less than 10 minutes to go Jude Postlethwaite was pinged at a breakdown and De Beer put the visitors back in the lead.
With two minutes remaining, and Ulster on the attack Rhys Carre was adjudged to have knocked on from Cooney’s pass and play was called back – Cabango having scored what he believed was his hat-trick at the other end – the replacement hooker was yellow carded, and Cooney was presented with the chance to go for the posts.
He nailed it and Ulster held on for what remained to win.
Comments on RugbyPass
The Melbourne Rebels lineout is a complete disaster so not surprisingly a kiwi coach of the Wallabies hires the worst lineout coach in the country and a foreigner to boot. No surprises whatsoever here…….
3 Go to commentsThank your for wasting 2 minutes of my life Daniel. There is a useful message in there somewhere but your delivery sucks.
7 Go to commentsBen Smith, you are cry baby
213 Go to commentsSux that homophobia is still a thing though. I wonder how many players who could have become legends never kept playing rugby because they felt unwelcome.
7 Go to commentsCrazy he’s only 28, feel like he’s been around forever - don’t mind the move, safe pair of hands and creates depth in a thin position for ABs. Hopefully aides Kemara’s growth also without thrusting too much responsibility on him
1 Go to commentsMen should show strength and be mean, but they should be able to show emotion to those close yo them in certain times, birth of your child, death of family, proud moment. This article is stupid
7 Go to commentsWhat a weak article…absolute drivel and clickbait, well done. Will stick to rugby365 thanks
7 Go to commentsHonest, discipline, humility… Priceless.
2 Go to commentsSo many excuses. No mention of the SA number 2 being taken out illegally in the 2nd minute. That act of foul play had a massive impact on the SA game. Face it, NZ play pretty dirty very regularly, and it’s only since 2016 they’ve been held to higher officiating standards via stricter officiating and TMO reviews. They deserved to have a man down. Sorry. Fix the yellow and red cards and NZ will win more RWCs. Plus, there WAS a knock on invalidating the one try, so it was NOT a try. Period. Here’s a Kleenex…
213 Go to commentsOverheard conversation between NZ and SA rugby fans everywhere: We’re the greatest! No! we’re the greatest! We’re the greatest! No we’re the greatest! Ireland are arrogant! True but they beat you! We’re the greatest! No! we’re the greatest! Etc. etc, etc.
33 Go to commentsTypical crap Aussie weather
11 Go to comments“If they’d have beaten England, I still feel we would have been talking ‘is this the best team ever,’ ‘is this the best team that’s ever played in the Six Nations'” he said. “I still think they’re not quite that good. I actually don’t think they’re that good.” So Trimble is saying he doesn’t think this is the best 6N team of all time. He is silent on if it is the best Irish team of all time. Can’t disagree with him. Just another misrepresentative clickbait headline from the guys at RP.
33 Go to commentsWow, do we really still have to listen to all the excuses and “unfairness” of it all. Even blaming the bounce of an egg shaped ball for the loss. But the article is about context, so what about the Springboks having to play the other 5 teams in the top 6 and still beating a comparatively rested AB team on a very empty tank.
213 Go to comments“Teams would generally have three coaches below their head honcho; attack coach, defence coach, forwards coach” do they? I’m not sure what the NZ set up is tbh, but the other 4 sides top 5 sides all have very different structures to the one outlined in the article! As well as attack, defence, and forwards coaches, SA, Ireland, and France also have specialist scrum coaches. England have a specialist scrum coach too, but arguably don’t have a forwards coach, with that role taken on by Borthwick. SA also have a backs coach in addition to defence and attack, and Ireland and England have fitness coaches, with England also having two skills coaches.
3 Go to commentsWorst article I've read in a while. Trying to disguise a backhand slap as a compliment. The whole article is a bit weird and negative. I think South African men are emotional in general… think Clad le Clos’s father 2012 London Olympics.
7 Go to commentsIreland are going to win the world cup.
33 Go to commentsIt was the strangest result ever. Etzebeth should've been yellow card for his cynical retiring move and a penalty try. Birth second half tries by the Allblacks were fantastic and the TMO operating outside the law to rule out the first try was egregious. Yes, the boks got the win but it was through some bizarre officiating that allowed them to sneak home against 14 men that dominated them. The quieter Bok supporters know and acknowledge the Allblacks were the better and dominant side. Justifying the win because they beat a pre world cup Allblacks selection is silly.
213 Go to commentsA very English thing to do hey Courtney, blerrie kant
4 Go to commentsIt sounds like Andrew is trying to convince himself or has just lost all perspective. The team did look jaded for the last couple of games of the six nations but a few things were wrong there. Italy tackled their hearts out and made Ireland work hard for every try. Outsmarted by Scotland? Huh? Ireland got held up over the line about 4 times. Scotland did nothing on attack the whole game other than one breakaway near the end. A recharge and reset is needed which they hopefully will have had before the SA your.
33 Go to commentsIncluding SA and Argie teams was great for the quality of rugby, but middle of the night games and player travel/ jet lag make that unworkable. I think that SA in Europe and Argie building an American league with USA, Canada etc would be better long term. If Oz can't sustain Rebels then next cab off the rank should be a Japanese team. Keep regional comps to time zones, both club and test rugby. Then existing test windows for test tours plus RWC.
8 Go to comments