Scots fight back to stay top
Edinburgh cemented their place atop the Magners League standings with a 16-13 triumph at Ulster on Friday night.
Last Updated: 18/09/09 11:11pm
Edinburgh cemented their place atop the Magners League standings with a 16-13 triumph at Ulster on Friday night.
But they were made to work hard for the points as Simon Danielli broke through Edinburgh's defensive line and, when the ball was recycled, returning British and Irish Lion Stephen Ferris bludgeoned over for Ulster's 15th-minute score which Humphreys failed to convert.
Five minutes later, Clinton Schifcofske crossed in the left corner for an unconverted try after a break from Darren Cave as the home side leapt into a 10-0 lead.
However, the home side then had to absorb some real pressure for the first time in the game and were unable to do so as winger Tim Visser barged over on the left after half an hour.
Chris Paterson added the extras with a great strike from the touchline to narrow Ulster's lead to five points but Humphreys was on target five minutes later with a penalty.
Mistakes
For all their dominance, Ulster should have been further ahead than 13-7 at the break and in the half's final play Humphreys again erred with what seemed another kickable penalty.
Humphreys made way for Paddy Wallace soon after, but Ulster encountered further difficulty just after the hour mark after again failing to convert pressure into points when the replacement was sent to the bin for a professional foul in tackling an Edinburgh player from an offside position.
Paterson added the three points and Ulster's lead was cut to 13-10 and then, seven minutes later, Ulster were penalised at a ruck following a defensive lineout. Paterson made no mistake to draw the sides level.
But even with Wallace back on the pitch, the Scots grabbed the lead with a 75th-minute drop goal from Phil Godman and the remainder of the game was scrappily played out mostly in Ulster's half.
