The News Review:
- Stirring final act in store as curtain falls at Lansdowne
- Hook hits the spot
- Drop goal: Wallace
Stirring final act in store as curtain falls at Lansdowne
Times nline – Dec 31, 2006
Ulster were the first team to make it creak at the start of the month. They retain the big guns to hurt Leinster again. With a Heineken Cup quarter-final place drifting away leaving just the plain broth of the Magners League to sustain a talented squad Ulster need their few remaining big days this season to go well. “We’ve got a lot of younger players who’ve got their first caps with Ireland and now aspire to become 30-40 cap internationals” says coach Mark McCall. “Then we’ve another group the likes of Justin Harrison David Humphreys Justin Fitzpatrick. To get another bite of the cherry would be great for them. But there’s plenty of individual motivation for everyone to measure themselves against the best especially as a European Cup quarter-final place is a remote possibility now.
Hook hits the spot
Times nline – Dec 31, 2006
Where most of what New Zealand faced from Wales France and England in the autumn was as predictable as a wet winter’s day Hook’s two-handed ball-carrying and sinuous running was anything but. It was the biggest accolade Hook has received but there have been plenty more. It is only a matter of months since he was playing for Neath in the semi-pro Principality Premiership but having signed for the spreys in the summer he showed big-match temperament from the off grabbing headlines with a last-minute winning conversion against Sale in the first round of the Heineken Cup in ctober. His extraordinary composure was evident again a few weeks later when he made his first home appearance for Wales in the 29-29 draw against Australia after winning his first two caps on tour against Argentina last summer and he was feted after coming on as a first-half replacement for captain Stephen Jones and giving Wales a share of the spoils kicking 13 points including the match-saving last penalty. n Boxing Day he kicked 23 points in the spreys’ 50-24 destruction of Llanelli Scarlets and he has been rewarded with the No 10 shirt for a second successive outing against the Dragons today.
Drop goal: Wallace
BBC News – Jan 1, 2007
Ulster coach Mark McCall:”It was fantastic to have 20000 Ulster fans here today and they kept cheering us at every stage of the match so all credit to them. “It’s been a tough month for us. We’ve struggled since we lost away to London Irish in the Heineken Cup and we’ve lost a bit of belief since them even though we have dragged out a couple of wins. “Again we didn’t play as well as we can today but I can’t fault the effort and application of the players. Man-of-the-match Stephen Keogh:”I don’t know how I got man-of-the-match because I dropped the ball when I was over the Ulster line in the first half. “ur rucking improved a lot from Wednesday’s game (against Munster) and we turned over a bit of ball. “And when you have guys in the backs like Brian ‘Driscoll Denis Hickie and Shane Horgan they can create something out of nothing.