Caerphilly ... 15 Ulster ... 67 No sooner had Ulster departed from Caerphilly's small Virginia Park home than thoughts were immediately turning to greater challenges ahead, most notably the start of the Europen Cup with a trip to Northampton on Sunday.
For while this comprehensive victory over the Pool A part-timers kept quarter-final qualification hopes for Alan Solomons side very much alive, with victory in a winner-takes-all showdown with Llanelli in Ravenhill on October 25th now guaranteeing a last-eight place, such was the gulf in standards between the two sides that the eight-try demolition job had something of a hollow ring to it.
Caerphilly are still to register a win in the Celtic League after six rounds.
Incredibly, they have scored 17 tries in those six defeats - three more than Ulster, but on the evidence of their display on Saturday, it was hard not to agree with the views of some of their officials that the club will not be in Welsh senior rugby next season, with relegation from a revamped Welsh league looming large.
Such games can see the superior side lose their way, but Ulster admirably stuck to their task with David Humphreys kicking 27 points on his return from Ireland duty and up-and-coming flanker Neil Best scoring a brace of tries in the second half.
There were outstanding performance too from hooker Matt Sexton, flanker Warren Brosnihan and centre Shane Stewart, who had to replace Ryan Constable midway through the first half with suspected concussion from a high tackle.
From such a position of strength, and with superiority in every facet of the contest, it was only a matter of time before the tries came.
Tony McWhirter went over for the first in the 26th minute and seven followed in devastating fashion in little over half an hour either side of the interval with Shane Stewart, Best (2), Brosnihan, Bell, Sexton and Tyrone Howe all touching down despite twice being reduced to 14 men with the sin-binning of Sexton and Kempson.
Caerphilly did at least add to their try total with a brace from scrum-half Allen Chiltern but they will now travel to Munster for their final pool game with grave trepidation.
SCORING SEQUENCE: 2 mins: D Humphreys pen, 0-3; 6: Humphreys pen, 0-6; 19: Humphreys pen, 9-0; 21: Humphreys pen: 12-0; 26: T McWhirter try, 0-17; 29: F McLoughlin pen 3-17; 30: Humphreys pen 3-20; 37: S Stewart try, Humphreys con, 3-27; 39: A Chiltern try, 8-27; 41: N Best, Humphreys con, 8-34; 44: W Brosnihan try, 8-39; 50: J Bell try, Humphreys con, 8-46, 57: M Sexton try, Humphreys con, 8-53; 61: N Best try, Humphreys con, 8-60, 75: Chiltern try, McLoughlin con, 15-60; 79: T Howe try, Humphreys con, 15-67.
CAERPHILLY: J Thomas; O Ashman, R Boobyer (S Headington 53), S Cox, T Taufahema; F McLoughlin, A Chilten; R Bilton, C Ferris (F Vunipola 70), R Skuse, N Watkins, N Rouse (P Jones 42), G Jones (A Williams 42), J El-Abd, M Workman (A Williams 36-40).
ULSTER: B Cunningham; S Young, R Constable (S Stewart 7), J Bell (A Larkin 65), T Howe; D Humphreys, N Doak (K Campbell 60); J Fitzpatrick (S Best 50), M Sexton (P Shields 60), R Kempson, G Longwell (M Blair 55), J Davidson, W Brosnihan, M McMillan (P Shields 32-40, Fitzpatrick 78), T McWhirter.
Referee: J Steele (Scotland)
