Dupont masterclass leaves Ulster spinning as Toulouse claim big win

Antoine Dupont lit up the Kingspan Stadium as Toulouse ran in seven tries in a Champions Cup rout of Ulster.

The diminutive half-back will soon take a leave of absence from his club and miss the Six Nations in order to acclimatise to Sevens duty as he hopes to secure Olympic gold in Paris.

But he had business to attend to in Belfast and demonstrated how much he will be missed by rugby fans as he delivered a tour de force, scoring two tries and assisting two more.

The same player broke Ulster hearts at the venue two years ago in the round of 16; Dan McFarland's men knew what was coming, they simply couldn't stop it.

His second try seven minutes into the second half ended the game as a contest and try as they might, Ulster couldn’t secure a try bonus.

Hooker Peato Mauvaka also grabbed a brace, while Mattis Lebel, Alexandre Roumat and Emmanuel Meafou crossed for tries.

The loss leaves Ulster on five points in Pool 2 ahead of next weekend’s trip to Harlequins, who secured a bonus point win at Cardiff this evening.

Racing 92 play second-placed Bath tomorrow, while Toulouse remain top with maximum points and qualification to the knock-out stage assured.

Both sides looked determined to play from the early exchanges, backs and forwards seeking to keep the ball alive at every opportunity in front of a sold-out Ravenhill Stadium.

Steven Kitshoff and Iain Henderson made themselves available to carry the ball, making hard yards for the hosts, while Dupont's snappy service gave Toulouse’s backs time to run.

But the French side were able to edge the kicking battle and that ultimately led to a healthy half-time lead.

Two Billy Burns' up and unders went nowhere and Mike Lowry and Jacob Stockdale both had kicks blocked down.

An Ulster scrum