Ulster 10 Stade Francais 26: The French giants proved too strong for a brave but outclassed Ulster, comfortably winning this Heineken Cup clash. Stade's finishing was simply too strong for the home side and Ewen McKenzie's squad were able to end a four-match losing run in the competition at Ravenhill with some ease.
Tries in either half were converted by Lionel Beauxis, with the Stade full-back adding a wonderful long-range drop goal to sit alongside man of the match Juan Martin Fernandez Hernandez's two great strikes.
Stade are sure to face sterner challenges ahead than the bottom side in the Magners League, but their strength up front and finishing ability should easily be enought to take them into the quarter-finals.
Stade did not waste any time trying to trouble the scoreboard and Hernandez tried a snap drop goal after only a minute of play which seemed to just dip under the crossbar.
Ulster managed to escape again, five minutes later, when Beauxis looked rather too casual with a penalty and pushed it wide.
But the pressure continued on the home side and, inevitably, Hernandez had another drop goal attempt which, this time, sailed through the posts on eight minutes after some good approach work from his pack.
The Pumas star then missed another drop goal before, just before the quarter of an hour, Beauxis made no mistake with his second penalty effort giving Stade a deserved 6-0 lead.
Despite Ulster's best efforts at breaking the siege, Stade were still playing the majority of the game in the home side's territory and something had to give.
When Sergio Parisse ran a quick penalty he caught the Ulster defence slightly off-guard, but a moment of Hernandez magic — when he interchanged with Brian Liebenberg — gave Guillaume Bousses some space and the centre beat the scrambling cover to score.
Beauxis added the easy extras and Stade were coasting at 13-0 after only 23 minutes.
But Stade still were not finished and five minutes later Hernandez gathered an Ulster clearance out on the right wing and boomed over a mighty drop goal from just short of 40 metres.
Ulster did, at least, show they had plenty of fire left in their bellies after going behind 16-0 and most of what remained of the half saw the home side try to force themselves back into the game.
Centre Darren Cave came close to scoring as did Isaac Boss and then BrynCunningham was driven over in the right corner — but was held up.
Ulster brought more effort and industry to the start of the second half and a lovely line run by Cave saw Paddy Wallace held up short of the line.
At least the hosts did manage to get on the scoreboard with a Niall O'Connor penalty after 51 minutes, but it only heralded a response from Stade that took the game well beyond Ulster's reach.
On the hour mark a powerful surge from replacement Mathieu Bastareaud saw the centre stopped inches short of the line, but after hooker Dimitri Szarzewski burrowed over referee Nigel Owens went to the television match official and
Stade were awarded the score which Beauxis converted.
Eight minutes later Beauxis emulated Hernandez with a 40-metre drop goal to
make it 26-3, with Wallace's 80th-minute try being mere consolation for a well beaten Ulster in this Pool Four clash.
