Ulster Rugby 15 Toulouse 13

Ulster booked their place in the Heineken Cup semi-final for the first time with a stirring home victory over inaugural tournament champions Toulouse at Ravenhill.

With the game played out in front of a packed vocal crowd of 12,000, Ulster surged into a 9-0 half-time lead and then had to withstand the expected fierce Toulouse response before holding out for a famous success.

Full-back Simon Mason landed three penalties and skipper David Humphreys, who injured his shoulder making a match-saving tackle near the end, was on target with two drop-goals.

The visitors scored the game’s only try through lock Fabien Pelous, which was converted by full-back Stephane Ougier, and fly-half Yann Delaigue added two penalties.

A fireworks display off the pitch just before kick-off set the scene for one on it from Ulster in the first half, when Humphreys capitalised on the strong wind with a series of high kicks that tested the visiting defence to the full.

He also used the wind to land his two drop-goals in the 11th and 35th minutes, either side of a 50-metre penalty on the half-hour by Mason, which opened up that 9-0 interval gap.

Toulouse finally got on the scoreboard with Delaigue’s 46th minute penalty, only for Mason to nudge Ulster 15-3 in front with two more penalties – in the 52nd and 60th minutes.

However, that was the signal for Toulouse to launch their fightback, with Delaigue kicking his second penalty before Pelous crossed for his converted try, and it needed that superb cross-field covering tackle by Humphreys on wing Michel Marfaing to deny the French club.

Ulster Rugby: S Mason; S Coulter, S McDowell, J Bell, J Cunningham; D Humphreys (capt), A Matchett; J Fitzpatrick, A Clarke, R Irwin, M Blair, G Longwell, S McKinty, T McWhirter, A Ward. Replacements: A Park for McDowell (10 mins); D Topping for Ward (48 mins), G Leslie for Irwin (54 mins), R Weir for Irwin (64 mins), B Cunningham for Humphreys (78 mins).

Toulouse: S Ougier; X Garbajosa, R Paillat, L Stensness, M Marfaing; Y Delaigue, J Cazalbou (capt); C Califano, Y Bru, JL Jordana, F Belot, F Pelous, C Labit, S Dispagne, D Lacroix. Replacements: H Miorin for Lacroix (53 mins), C Desbrosse for Paillat (61 mins).

Referee: B Campsall (England).

As Toulouse prepare to host Ulster Rugby in the Heineken Champions Cup quarter-finals, we look back at the only other time the two teams have met at this stage of the competition, in 1998.