Harlequins coach Dean Richards said the decision to substitute Nick Evans ahead of a penalty was down to the fourth official.
Quins coach says fourth official pushed through Evans substitution
Harlequins coach Dean Richards has revealed that the fourth official took Nick Evans off the pitch ahead of a penalty that could have set up a grandstand finish in their Heineken Cup match against Ulster.
Playing in appalling wet and windy conditions in Belfast, the Guinness Premiership outfit were at the time 16-10 down and looking for a late victory that would have seen them qualify for the quarter-finals of the competition.
Instead, Chris Malone missed out on the three points with his first kick of the match, an attempted clearance from the replacement subsequently being charged down and allowing Ulster captain Rory Best to seal the 21-10 win.
Richards' apparent decision seemed baffling at the time, but he insisted he had in fact wanted Evans to take the crucial kick - the substitution being taken out of his hands.
"There were a couple of turning points in the game and there were also issues," Richards said.
"It was difficult in those conditions but the timing of our substitution of Nick Evans annoyed me. I was furious with the fourth official who pushed the substitution through.
"The idea was that Evans took the kick but the referee insisted on putting Chris Malone on and he missed it."
Of Quins' overall performance, Richards added: "I thought we gave away far too many silly penalties in the first half, but, look, we're still in Europe with a home game against Llanelli."
Williams delighted
Ulster coach Matt Williams was understandably delighted with the win even though his side are already out of contention for qualification.
"We showed a lot of heart out there today," Williams said.
"We wanted to show that Limerick (when Ulster beat Munster recently in the Magners League) wasn't just a flash in the pan.
"We adapted well to the conditions and showed a lot of courage. At half-time we spoke about defending the lead in the second half and needed to attack the lead.
"We had to monopolise the ball and when they had it they just couldn't get near us.
"It was all credit to our bench as both Paul Steinmetz and Matt McCullough had great impacts."
Ulster built up an early lead and defended it efficiently in worsening weather conditions.
Making the most of the prevailing wind, the visitors scored a penalty try as they narrowed Ulster's 16-0 half-time lead to 16-10.
However, some stout defending from Williams' men allowed them to weather the storm before Best's late score sealed the bonus point.
