Injury-hit Ospreys no match for Ulster after tough night in Ireland

An injury-hit Ospreys were no match for Ulster as they fell to a 36-12 defeat in Belfast.

A much-changed team had Sam Parry and Keelan Giles to thank for their tries, but it was a testing night for a group of young and inexperienced players as the Ospreys fell to their fourth defeat in five games.

Toby Booth had said in the week that he was without around 40 per cent of his playing group this week, with a number of the squad either injured or rested for the trip to Belfast.

As such, hooker Lewis Lloyd started on the blindside flank as the team heading to Ravenhill had something of a makeshift feel about it.

Unsurprisingly, there was a disjointed feel to much of the Ospreys' early actions out in Ireland, with it taking just four minutes for the home side to score.

Ulster had conceded the most scrum penalties in the league this season - with Ospreys sitting just behind them on that particular leaderboard. However, a scrum penalty in favour of the home side handed the Irish province an attacking lineout which they powered over the line for hooker James McCormick to score.

Minutes later, in-form Irish wing Jacob Stockdale cantered over after the Ospreys were caught narrow on the short-side.

Ulster's third score would come just after the midway point of the half, when Wales scrum-half Kieran Hardy illegally stopped a maul on his first start for the Ospreys. That resulted in a yellow card and a penalty try.

Ulster thought they had the bonus point moments later, after a flowing move from deep resulted in Stockdale racing over again - only for the try to be chalked off for a forward pass.

However, the fourth try would come just after the half-hour mark, with openside flanker Marcus Rea forcing his way over from close range.

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