Guinness PRO12: Ulster survive Treviso scare
Last Updated: 11/01/15 7:18pm
Ulster survived a strong rally from Treviso to record a vital 24-20 victory in the Guinness PRO12 on Sunday.
Ulster were impressive in the first half as they racked up three tries through Paddy Jackson, Ruan Pienaar and Tommy Bowe – all converted by Jackson who also landed a penalty – to go 24-0 up inside of 30 minutes.
However, Treviso hit back late in the first half with a try of their own through Sam Christie before Francesco Minto went over in the second half and Jayden Hayward added 10 points with the boot to almost cause an upset.
Ulster may have won only one of their last four games but looked full of confidence in the first half. They were rewarded for their early domination after six minutes when Jackson collected his own kick and dotted down under the posts.
Ulster continued to pile up the points despite wing Craig Gilroy being shown a yellow card after 10 minutes. Jackson landed a penalty and Pienaar soon crossed for his first try of the season which was also converted by the accurate Ulster outside-half.
When Bowe went in for another converted try, Ulster had scored 24 points in as many minutes and were seemingly on their way to a convincing bonus-point victory.
But Treviso soon discovered the spirit which had brought them back-to-back wins over Zebre and had them chasing a third successive victory for the first time since December 2012.
Outside-half Christie's try two minutes before the break gave Treviso hope before replacement Minto crossed and Hayward added his second conversion to reduce the deficit to 10 points.
Hayward kicked two penalties in the final quarter but Treviso were unable to get the try which would have capped a remarkable comeback.
