RECAP: Ulster v Connacht
READERS’ FORUM: Welcome to our live coverage of the Pro14 Rainbow Cup Round One match between Ulster and Connacht in Belfast.
Ulster narrowly missed out on the Pro14 Final, but should have plenty of confidence to take into their Rainbow Cup campaign.
Fourteen wins from their 16 matches were not quite enough to pip eventual champions Leinster to top spot in Conference A, while Connacht also claimed runners-up spot in their group but suffered eight defeats.
* To read our pre-match predictions, CLICK HERE!
* Our live blog will appear below, it might take a little while to load, please be patient. We apologise for the inconvenience!
[livecentre-blog id=”13828″]
Teams:
Ulster: 15 Jacob Stockdale, 14 Robert Baloucoune, 13 James Hume, 12 Stewart Moore, 11 Ethan McIlroy, 10 Billy Burns, 9 John Cooney, 8 Nick Timoney, 7 Sean Reidy, 6 Matty Rea, 5 Iain Henderson (captain), 4 Kieran Treadwell, 3 Tom O’Toole, 2 Rob Herring, 1 Andrew Warwick.
Replacements: 16 John Andrew, 17 Eric O’Sullivan, 18 Ross Kane, 19 Alan O’Connor, 20 Greg Jones, 21 David Shanahan, 22 Michael Lowry,23 Will Addison.
Connacht: 15 John Porch, 14 Ben O’Donnell, 13 Sean O’Brien, 12 Tom Daly, 11 Matt Healy, 10 Jack Carty, 9 Caolin Blade, 8 Paul Boyle (captain), 7 Conor Oliver, 6 Eoghan Masterson, 5 Gavin Thornbury, 4 Ultan Dillane, 3 Finlay Bealham, 2 Dave Heffernan, 1 Jordan Duggan.
Replacements: 16 Shane Delahunt, 17 Matthew Burke, 18 Dominic Robertson-McCoy, 19 Niall Murray, 20 Abraham Papali’i, 21 Kieran Marmion, 22 Conor Fitzgerald, 23 Peter Sullivan.
Referee: Andrew Brace (Ireland)
Assistant referees: Frank Murphy (Ireland), Rob O’Sullivan (Ireland)
TMO: Brian MacNeice (Ireland)