Tom Farrell heroics give Munster late win against Ulster

Tom Farrell pulled off a Christmas miracle as Munster snatched a dramatic bonus-point win away to Ulster, and inflicted a fifth defeat in a row on their hosts.

The Munster centre pulled his side kicking and screaming over the line on a night that produced a sensational final quarter, after a game that had been slow to get going.

Farrell scored a hat-trick as he continued his brilliant season at his new province, the last of those scores coming with the final play of the game to seal a 22-19 win.

Munster played the bulk of the game with 14 players after Ulster's Tom O’Toole had been sent off just after the 30-minute mark for a dangerous clearout on Alex Nankivell, falling into the Munster man’s standing leg, and receiving a red card from referee Ben Whitehouse.

O’Toole had scored Ulster’s early try to make it 7-0, while they led 7-5 as Farrell’s first of the night kept Munster in touch.

With both sides coming into this game in poor form, it looked like one of those nights where neither team knew how to win. They traded tries after half-time when Farrell scored his second, only for Harry Sheridan to put Ulster back in front with 15 minutes left on the clock.

Farrell turned provider for Shane Daly to restore the Munster lead, but with Jack Crowley missing his third conversion from three, Munster’s lead was only 15-12 heading into the final 10 minutes, and it looked like they would be left to rue those misses when McNabney’s try gave Ulster a late lead.

But Farrell completed his stunning individual performance with the final play of the game to cap off the win, while Ulster’s players and supporters were furious about a potential head contact in the build-up, which went unchecked.

After conceding 17 penalties in last week’s defeat to