Ravenhill crowd some New Year cheer

The unorthodox transfer found Jacob Stockdale, who shouldn’t have scored, However, with Piutau distracting cover, he stepped outside and made it to the line in the tightest of confines.

The sublime finish set the scene for an explosive start to the second half, Rochelle retaking the lead off an unconvincing kick clear. A halfway ruck ensued and instead of policing it properly, Ulster allowed Victor Vito to smash through the middle and usher in Bales from the 22 for the converted riposte.

Three points down, a mountainous hard slog was anticipated if Kiss’ side were to hit the front again. Instead, it was easy-peasy and immediate. Pressure on the restart kick led to Rochelle spilling, Darren Cave astutely picking up to send Nick Timoney in for the gift Cooney not only converted but added a 50th minute penalty too.

This created a seven-point margin and it remarkably remined intact all the way to the tension-filled finish, Vito making a desperate mess of Rochelle’s best opportunity of salvation at a five-metre scrum.

It was the break Kiss deserved. His frustrating team had finally pulled its finger out for him. ULSTER: C Piutau; C Gilroy (D Cave, 27), L Ludik, S McCloskey, J Stockdale; C Lealiifano (J McPhillips, 73), J Cooney; C Black (K McCall, 58), R Best (R Herring 73), R Ah You (R Kane, 64), A O’Connor, I Henderson, M Rea (K Treadwell, 58), S Reidy (C Henry, 64), N Timoney. ScoRERS – TRiES: Best (28), Stockdale (35), Timoney (45). con: Cooney (46). Pen: Cooney (50). LA RocHELLE: K Murimurivalu; G Lacroix (P Jordaan, 11; B Noble, 65 for Jordaan), G Doumayrou, P Aguillon, V Rattez; J Sinzelle, A Bales (T Kerr-Barlow, 61); D Priso (V Pelo, 64), P Bourgarit (JC Orioli, 64), U Atonio (M Boughanmi, 64), J Eaton, M Tanguy (G Lamboley, 65), B Veivuke, K Gourdon, V Vito (A Amosa, 64). ScoRER – TRy: Bales (43). con: Bales (44). Pen: Bales (9, 16). yellow card – Jordaan (23). REfEREE: W Barnes (Eng).