Ulster v Treviso

[mr chips]

Dunno if anyone's watching this - my Sky box decided to have a fit so I missed the opening minutes. So far Treviso are putting all the pressure on and are 0-3 ahead. Ulster scrum no better than it has been in the past couple of games, and Jared Payne has gone off injured after only a quarter of an hour. iHumph is back for them this week though and it shows in terms of a couple of decent touchfinders so far. Treviso are very up for this game though and look like they fancy coming away from Ravenhill with a scalp.

[mr chips]

Lack of decision making by the backs means Ulster had to take a lineout on their own 5m, instead of taking a quick one from one to the other and hoofing it on up towards the 10m. A Treviso penalty let them away with it but the play is nearly all in/around Ulster's 22. If they don't start playing more intelligently there's a third defeat on the trot on the cards.

[mr chips]

Treviso are generally stronger at the breakdown, commited in defence and aren't giving away much in the way of penalties. Ulster have put several phases together just beyond the halfway line, but haven't managed to get beyond the Treviso 10m and eventually give away a ruck penalty back inside their own half, which is kicked superbly to the corner flag for a 5m lineout. Crystallises the way this half has gone so far. Ulster's only saving grace is another Treviso penalty for holding on.

[mr chips]

Tremendous break and run by Williams for Treviso from his own 10m and is only stopped by Cave about 4m short of the tryline. Treviso continuity wins them the attacking 5m scrum, from which they win a penalty for poor Ulster binding (although the Treviso hooker popped up before the whistle was blown). Second penalty conceded, binding again (Fitzpatrick). Third reset is a collapse. Fourth attempt and the Treviso front row pop up again, led by their hooker, but the same put-in is given. Fitzpatrick is binned for not binding for the third time. Nigel Brady comes on to go to LH with Jerry Cronin moving over to THP, with McComish going off. Treviso front row seems to pop up first, led by their hooker once again, but the ref awards a penalty try against Ulster anyway. Slightly harsh IMO as the Treviso hooker popped up three times in that series, but no denying that Ulster's scrum was under a lot of pressure throughout.

[Drick]

half time 0 - 10 to treviso. :confused:

baby hump with a shocker of a kick.

[mr chips]

Ulster awarded a penalty just before HT for Treviso instruction, but iHumph's kick is worse than anything my 16 year old girly-girl niece would attempt, and the score remains 0-10 at half time.

[McCloud]

Bloody hell what's happened to Ulster?

[mr chips]

First scrum of the second half and no binding whatsoever by the Treviso LH is allowed to slide by the officials. Feckin ridiculous, the guy's arm is just hanging down vertically. Ulster managed to kick for a deep touch anyway.

[Cathal]

Ulster scrum getting destroyed.

[CR45]

Any online streams for this?

[mr chips]

Ulster pinged in another scrum for not binding, but the ref again ignores a poor bind by the Treviso LH. I wasn't able to see what was happening in that earlier phase of scrums as it was on the far side from the camera angle, but certainly in this second half that's two scrums in a row where the Treviso loosie has gotten away with zero/minimal binding.

[mr chips]

Any online streams for this?

Dunno, but it's on BBC2 NI.

[mr chips]

iHumph misses a second penalty, score remains 0-10.

[mr chips]

0-13 now. Ref bottles a penalty reversal when one of the Treviso players shoulders an Ulster player after the whistle has gone - warning, but no reversal.

He's Italian, btw.

[bazzyg]

For the penalty try, the lad who came on for Fitz did not even try to bind, he put his hand on his knee on the engage to try support himself long before the hooker popped.

[Drick]

intercept. joan burton scores for the eyetalians

[mr chips]

Paddy Jackson attempts a chip through, but Burton intercepts and sprints from inside his own 22 to score another try. Brutal stuff from Ulster. They're still scoreless, 0-20 with 20 minutes left.

[mr chips]

Try Ulster, Wannaburger under the posts. 7-20.

[bazzyg]

That was probably the time over 5 phases where they didn't lose the ball and they scored very easily, keep it simple and they could still come back and win

[bazzyg]

Knock on again, keep it simple is - I pass, You catch

[mr chips]

Decent maul by Ulster off a Treviso lineout gives them the put-in to a scrum inside the Treviso 22m. Decent effort and Spence manages a half-break through a few yards but a knock-on gives the put-in back to Treviso, about eight yards out from their own posts. They manage to clear to touch, but still inside their own 22. Thirteen minutes left and a try from here could put Ulster in a position to steal this game back ....

[mr chips]

TRY WANNENBURG!!! Off the lineout.

... but iHumph misses the crucial conversion, leaving the score at 12-20. That could well be the difference between defeat and victory as Ulster now have to score twice rather than once in 10 minutes to win the game.

[mr chips]

Massive touchfinder from Gilroy from inside his own 22 to just on the Treviso 22 ... but the AR thinks it was about eight metres shorter. Treviso definitely getting the better of the decisions from this game's officials.

[sewa]

Are Ulster better than ever? :)

[sewa]

Fortress Ravenhill :)

[mr chips]

12-23 now after another penalty, bit of a landmark victory coming up for Treviso as according to Neilly this will be the first time Ulster have lost to an Italian side at Ravenhill. In spite of the uneven officiating, Treviso still deserve the victory anyway, and Ulster have a lot of homework to do if they are to keep their hopes alive for this season.

And that's that.

[sewa]

Never mind the excuses Chippy. Ulster are simply awful - three losses in a row. Also the scoreline flattered Ulster and they are missing half the number of players Treviso are to the RWC

[Call999]

The Bretheren had a poor night by the sounds of it. Hopefully tomorrow will be better for the Irish sides

[Viigand]

Great result for Treviso though, considering they are missing a lot of players at the World Cup.

[mr chips]

Never mind the excuses Chippy. Ulster are simply awful - three losses in a row. Also the scoreline flattered Ulster and they are missing half the number of players Treviso are to the RWC

Not making excuses for them at all - like I said, regardless of the ref they didn't play well enough to win that game. Might have gotten the losing BP though. But Treviso were up for it from the outset and Ulster had less than 10 minutes of decent play through the whole contest. Being pedantic, I think I read/heard that the numbers of players missing from each side is actually the same - but you'd still expect better from Ulster even so. Have to wonder how much input Muller has into coaching the pack, as they've been brutal three weeks on the trot now.

[Rooster]

The Bretheren had a poor night by the sounds of it. Hopefully tomorrow will be better for the Irish sides
Feckin serious bad night, worst I have seen up here in a few years and to make matters worse it looks like Payne is out for the season with a busted achilles :(

[isola ciarrai]

Feckin serious bad night, worst I have seen up here in a few years and to make matters worse it looks like Payne is out for the season with a busted achilles :(
Feel your pain, Rooster - losing at home, for a second consecutive loss, and with you having a Felix type situation with Payne - it was this weekend last season, v Ospreys where we lost Felix and Fogs for five months, and the great Ian Dowling permanently. When it rains, it pours.