2011–12 Ulster Rugby season

2011–12 Ulster Rugby season
Ground(s)	Ravenhill Stadium (Capacity: 12,500)
Coach(es)	David Humphreys (Director of Rugby); Brian McLaughlin (Head Coach)
Top scorer	Ian Humphreys (168)
Most tries	Andrew Trimble (6); Craig Gilroy (6)
League(s)	Heineken Cup (finalists); Pro12 (6th)
1st kit	2nd kit
← 2010–11	2012–13 →

The 2011–12 Ulster Rugby season was Ulster's 18th season since the advent of professionalism in rugby union, and their third under head coach Brian McLaughlin. They competed in the Heineken Cup and the inaugural Pro12, successor competition to the Celtic League.

They finished sixth in the Pro12, and qualified for next season's Champions Cup as the third highest placed Irish team. Scrum-half Ruan Pienaar, lock Dan Tuohy and prop BJ Botha made the Pro12 Dream Team. They finished second in their pool in the Heineken Cup, beat Edinburgh in the semi-final, and lost to Leinster in the final. Out-half Ian Humphreys was Ulster's top scorer with 168 points. Wings Andrew Trimble and Craig Gilroy were joint top try scorers with six each. Flanker Chris Henry was Player of the Year. Craig Gilroy won the IRUPA Try of the Year award.^[1]

Brian McLaughlin, who was coaching Ulster while on sabbatical from his regular job as a teacher at Royal Belfast Academical Institution, stood to lose his teaching position and pension if he extended his contract with Ulster any further, and as head coach risked losing his job at any time. Director of rugby David Humphreys decided to offer him the security of a full-time position coaching the academy, and to replace him as head coach with Mark Anscombe.^[2]

Staff[]

Position	Name	Nationality
Chief Executive Officer	Shane Logan	Ireland
Director of Rugby	David Humphreys	Ireland
Backs Coach	Neil Doak	Ireland
Defence Coach	Jonathan Bell	Ireland

Squad[]

Senior squad[]

Players in (Season 2011/2012)[]

Lewis Stevenson from Harlequins^[3]
Callum Black from Worcester^[4]
Mike McComish from Connacht
John Afoa from Auckland Blues^[5]
Jared Payne from Auckland Blues^[6]
Stefan Terblanche from The Sharks (On 3 Month Deal)

Players out (Season 2011/2012)[]

Niall O'Connor to Connacht^[7]
Mark McCrea to Connacht
Ryan Caldwell to Bath
BJ Botha to Munster Rugby
T. J. Anderson to Connacht^[8]
Tommy Seymour to Glasgow Warriors
Jamie Smith to Newport Gwent Dragons

Ulster Rugby squad^[9]
Props Tom Court (21 apps, 18 starts, 15 pts) John Afoa (17 apps, 17 starts, 5 pts) Paddy McAllister (21 apps, 9 starts) Declan Fitzpatrick (11 apps, 9 starts) Jerry Cronin (7 apps, 6 starts) Callum Black (9 apps, 2 starts) Adam Macklin (21 apps, 1 start, 5 pts) Hookers Rory Best (13 apps, 13 starts, 5 pts) Nigel Brady (9 apps, 5 starts) Andi Kyriacou (5 apps, 3 starts) Niall Annett (2 apps) Locks Dan Tuohy (28 apps, 27 starts, 15 pts) Lewis Stevenson (25 apps, 13 starts) Johann Muller (c) (18 apps, 18 starts, 5 pts) Tim Barker (9 apps, 3 starts) Neil McComb (5 apps, 2 starts) Iain Henderson (2 apps, 1 start, 5 pts)	Back row Pedrie Wannenburg (25 apps, 25 starts, 20 pts) Chris Henry (24 apps, 24 starts, 10 pts) Willie Faloon (21 apps, 14 starts) Robbie Diack* (21 apps, 10 starts, 15 pts) Stephen Ferris (9 apps, 8 starts, 15 pts) Mike McComish (8 apps, 4 starts) Ali Birch (5 apps, 1 start) Conor Joyce (1 app) Scrum-halves Ruan Pienaar (19 apps, 17 starts, 167 pts) Paul Marshall (24 apps, 16 starts, 20 pts) Ian Porter (5 apps) Fly-halves Ian Humphreys (26 apps, 22 starts, 155 pts) Paddy Jackson (14 apps, 7 starts, 43 pts) James McKinney (2 apps, 1 start, 10 pts)	Centres Darren Cave (21 apps, 20 starts, 25 pts) Nevin Spence (18 apps, 17 starts) Ian Whitten (20 apps, 14 starts, 5 pts) Paddy Wallace (15 apps, 14 starts, 15 pts) Luke Marshall (7 apps, 2 starts, 5 pts) Chris Farrell (2 apps, 1 start) Michael Allen (1 app, 1 start) Stuart Olding (1 app) Wings Craig Gilroy (29 apps, 27 starts, 30 pts) Andrew Trimble (17 apps, 17 starts, 30 pts) Simon Danielli (7 apps, 5 starts) Chris Cochrane (3 apps, 2 starts, 10 pts) Conor Gaston (2 apps, 1 start) Fullbacks Stefan Terblanche (17 apps, 15 starts, 15 pts) Adam D'Arcy* (26 apps, 13 starts, 15 pts) Jared Payne (3 apps, 3 starts) Peter Nelson (2 apps, 1 start) Ricky Andrew (1 app)

(c) denotes the team captain, Bold denotes internationally capped players. ^* denotes players qualified to play for Ireland on residency or dual nationality. Players and their allocated positions from the Ulster Rugby website.

Academy squad[]

Position^[10]	Name	Nationality
High Performance Manager	Gary Longwell	Ireland
Elite Player Development Officer	Jonathan Bell	Ireland
Elite Player Development Officer	Niall Malone	Ireland
Strength & Conditioning Coach	Chris Shiells	Ireland
Strength & Conditioning Coach	Kevin Geary	Ireland

Academy squad
Props Ryan Jablonski (Instonians) Conor Carey (Ballymena) Kyle McCall (Ballynahinch) Hookers Jonny Murphy (Banbridge) John Burns (Ballymena) Locks Iain Henderson (QUB) David O'Mahony (TBA) James Simpson (Ballynahinch)	Back row Ali Birch (Dungannon) Neil Faloon (Armagh) Conor Joyce (Malone) David McGuigan (QUB) Sean O'Connell (Instonians) Scrum-halves Blane McIlroy (Ballymena) Fly-halves Stuart Olding (Belfast Harlequins)	Centres Chris Farrell (Dungannon) Wings Michael Allen (Belfast Harlequins) Chris Cochrane (Dungannon) Conor Gaston (Dungannon) Fullbacks Ricky Andrew (Ballymena) Peter Nelson (Dungannon)

Heineken Cup[]

Pool 4[]

Team	P	W	L	Tries for	Tries against	Try diff	Points for	Points against	Points diff	TB	LB	Pts
Clermont Auvergne [5]	6	4	2	26	5	+21	215	69	+146	2	2	20
Ulster [8]	6	4	2	16	8	+8	158	87	+71	3	1	20
Leicester Tigers	6	4	2	13	8	+5	123	117	+6	1	0	17
Aironi	6	0	6	4	38	−34	51	274	−223	0	0	0

12 November 2011
15:40

Ulster	16 – 11	Clermont Auvergne
Try: Humphreys 69' c Con: Humphreys (1/1) Pen: Humphreys (3/4) 12', 40', 50'	Report Highlights Full game	Try: Nakaitaci 5' m Pen: Skrela (2/2) 17', 38'

Ravenhill, Belfast
Attendance: 9,385
Referee: Wayne Barnes (England)

19 November 2011
18:00

Leicester Tigers	20 – 9	Ulster
Try: Smith 66' m Pen: Flood (5/6) 7', 16', 22', 45', 80'	Report	Pen: Humphreys (3/4) 2', 10', 19'

Welford Road, Leicester
Attendance: 21,473
Referee: Romain Poite (France)

9 December 2011
19:30

Ulster	31 – 10	Aironi
Try: Ferris 16' c D'Arcy 40' m Trimble 42' m Marshall 56' c Jackson 68' c Con: Humphreys (3/5)	Report	Try: D'Apice 78' c Con: (1/1) Pen: Tebaldi (1/3) 20'

Ravenhill, Belfast
Attendance: 7,494
Referee: Andrew Small (England)

17 December 2011
14:30

Aironi	20 – 46	Ulster
Try: Sinoti 56' c Quartaroli 60' m Biagi 74' m Con: Orquera (1/1) Pen: Orquera (1/1) 17'	Report	Try: Trimble 5' c penalty try 22' c Court 37' c Gilroy 69' c Diack 77' c Macklin 80' m Con: Humphreys (3/3) Pienaar (2/3) Pen: Humphreys (2/2) 15', 33'

Stadio Luigi Zaffanella, Viadana
Attendance: 5,000
Referee: Greg Garner (England)

13 January 2012
20:00

Ulster	41 – 7	Leicester Tigers
Try: Trimble (2) 5' c, 39' m Gilroy 69' c P. Marshall 72' c Con: Pienaar (3/4) Pen: Pienaar (5/5) 11', 32', 53', 56', 63'	Report	Try: Murphy 13' c Con: Twelvetrees (1/1)

Ravenhill, Belfast
Attendance: 11,900
Referee: Romain Poite (France)

21 January 2012
16:40

Clermont Auvergne	19 – 15	Ulster
Try: Paulo 62' c Con: Parra (1/1) Pen: Parra (4/4) 14', 21', 48', 73'	Report	Pen: Pienaar (5/7) 17', 32', 45', 56', 70'

Parc des Sports Marcel Michelin, Clermont-Ferrand
Attendance: 17,633
Referee: Dave Pearson (England)

Quarter-final[]

8 April 2012
13:45 IST

Munster	16–22	Ulster
Try: Zebo 34' c Con: O'Gara (1/1) Pen: O'Gara (3/4) 40', 49', 61'	Report	Try: Gilroy 16' c Con: Pienaar (1/1) Pen: Pienaar (4/5) 5', 11', 20', 59' Drop: Humphreys (1/1) 32'

Thomond Park, Limerick
Attendance: 26,500
Referee: Romain Poite (France)

Semi-finals[]

28 April 2012
17:45 IST

Ulster	22–19	Edinburgh
Try: Wannenburg 15' c Con: Pienaar (1/1) Pen: Pienaar (5/5) 5', 38', 58', 63', 75'	Report	Try: Thompson 80' c Con: Laidlaw (1/1) Pen: Laidlaw (4/4) 9', 11', 40', 45'

Aviva Stadium, Dublin
Attendance: 45,147
Referee: Romain Poite (France)

Final[]

19 May 2012
17:00 BST

Leinster	42–14	Ulster
Try: O'Brien 12' c Healy 31' c penalty try 44' c van der Merwe 76' m Cronin 80' c Con: Sexton (3/3) McFadden (1/2) Pen: Sexton (3/4) 51', 67', 73'	Report	Try: Tuohy 60' m Pen: Pienaar (3/3) 7', 40', 49'

Twickenham Stadium, London
Attendance: 81,774
Referee: Nigel Owens (Wales)

Pro12[]

Pro12 Table

· · discuss

Club

Played

Won

Drawn

Lost

Points For

Points Against

Points Difference

Tries For

Tries Against

Try Bonus

Losing Bonus

Points

1

Leinster (F)

22

18

1

3

568

326

+242

48

28

5

2

81

2

Ospreys (C)

22

16

1

5

491

337

+154

44

22

2

3

71

3

Munster (SF)

22

14

1

7

489

367

+122

45

27

5

4

67

4

Glasgow Warriors (SF)

22

13

4

5

445

321

+124

34

23

2

3

65

5

Scarlets

22

12

2

8

446

373

+73

43

30

5

62

6

Ulster

22

12

0

10

474

424

+50

53

41

5

3

56

7

Cardiff Blues

22

10

0

12

446

460

−14

43

45

5

50

8

Connacht

22

7

1

14

321

433

−112

27

36

0

7

37

9

Newport Gwent Dragons

22

7

1

14

370

474

−104

27

41

1

5

36

10

Benetton Treviso

22

7

0

15

419

558

−139

41

57

3

5

36

11

Edinburgh

22

6

1

15

454

588

−134

42

65

2

4

32

12

Aironi

22

4

0

18

289

551

−262

22

54

1

5

22

If teams are level at any stage, tiebreakers are applied in the following order:^[11]

number of matches won;
the difference between points for and points against;
the number of tries scored;
the most points scored;
the difference between tries for and tries against;
the fewest red cards received;
the fewest yellow cards received.

Green background (rows 1 to 4) are play-off places. Qualification for the Heineken Cup is based on each country's allocation, i.e. three highest-ranked Irish teams, three highest-ranked Welsh teams, both Italian teams and both Scottish teams. Because Leinster won the 2012 Heineken Cup Final, Ireland earned an extra Heineken Cup place, which will go to Connacht. Aironi were denied a licence for the 2012–13 season due to financial issues; the newly established Zebre side replaced Aironi in the Pro12 and Heineken Cup.

Updated 5 May 2012. Source: RaboDirect PRO12

2 September 2011
19:05

Ulster	28 – 14	Glasgow Warriors
Try: Cave Henry Marshall Con: Humphreys (2) Pen: Humphreys (3)	Report	Try: Nathan Pen: Weir (3)

Ravenhill, Belfast
Attendance: 6,296
Referee: Leighton Hodges

10 September 2011
15:00

(1 BP) Aironi	19 – 25	Ulster
Try: Williams Con: Pen: (4)	Report	Try: Gilroy Tuohy Whitten Con: Humphreys (2) Pen: Humphreys (2)

Stadio Luigi Zaffanella, Viadana
Attendance: 3,000
Referee: Neil Hennessy

16 September 2011
19:05

Ulster	20 – 3	Cardiff Blues
Try: Cave (2) Con: Humphreys (2) Pen: Humphreys Jackson	Report	Pen: Sweeney

Ravenhill, Belfast
Attendance: 6,555
Referee: James Jones

25 September 2011
16:30

Ospreys	32 – 14	Ulster
Try: Penalty try Fussell Con: Biggar Morgan Pen: Biggar (6)	Report	Try: Jackson Penalty try Con: Jackson

Liberty Stadium, Swansea
Attendance: 5,590
Referee: Dudley Phillips

30 September 2011
19:05

Newport Gwent Dragons	22 – 9	Ulster
Try: Riley Con: Tovey Pen: Tovey (4)	Report	Pen: Jackson (3)

Rodney Parade, Newport
Attendance: 4,554
Referee: Neil Paterson

7 October 2011
19:05

Ulster	12 – 23	Benetton Treviso
Try: Wannenburg (2) Con: Humphreys	Report	Try: Penalty try Burton Pen: Burton (3)

Ravenhill, Belfast
Attendance: 7,372
Referee: Stefano Penne

29 October 2011
15:00

Scarlets	24 – 17	Ulster (1 BP)
Try: Trimble Pen: Humphreys (4)	Report	Try: Williams Warren Con: Thomas Pen: Thomas (3)

Parc y Scarlets, Llanelli
Attendance: 7,075
Referee: Alan Falzone

5 November 2011
17:35

Ulster	22 – 3	Connacht
Try: Gilroy Court Humphreys Con: Humphreys (2) Pen: Humphreys	Report	Pen: Nikora

Ravenhill, Belfast
Attendance: 6,887
Referee: John Lacey

25 November 2011
19:35

Glasgow Warriors	17 – 9	Ulster
Try: Nathan Pen: Weir (3) Drop: Weir	Report	Pen: Humphreys (3)

Firhill Stadium, Glasgow
Attendance: 3,940
Referee: Stefano Penne

2 December 2011
19:05

Ulster	24 – 17	Scarlets (1 BP)
Try: Ferris (2) Con: Humphreys Pen: Humphreys (4)	Report	Try: Lamont Murphy Con: Jones

Ravenhill, Belfast
Attendance: 8,117
Referee: Alain Rolland

26 December 2011
17:30

(1 BP) Leinster	42 – 13	Ulster
Try: Carr Cronin Auva'a Penalty try Madigan Hagan Con: McFadden (6)	Report	Try: Cochrane Con: Pen: (2)

RDS Arena, Dublin
Attendance: 18,500
Referee: Peter Fitzgibbon

30 December 2011
19:05

(1 BP) Ulster	33 – 17	Munster
Try: Terblanche Afoa Humphreys Pienaar Con: Humphreys (2) Pen: Humphreys (2) Pienaar	Report	Try: O'Dea Murphy Con: Keatley (2) Pen: Keatley

Ravenhill, Belfast
Attendance: 11,379
Referee: Alain Rolland

6 January 2012
19:30

Edinburgh	20 – 42	Ulster (1 BP)
Try: De Luca Walker Con: Laidlaw (2) Pen: Laidlaw (2)	Report	Try: Best Tuohy Trimble Cave Con: Pienaar (2) Pen: Humphreys (2) Pienaar (4)

Murrayfield Stadium, Edinburgh
Attendance: 3,792
Referee: George Clancy

10 February 2012
19:05

(1 BP) Ulster	30 – 12	Newport Gwent Dragons
Try: Diack Pienaar Gilroy Terblanche Con: Pienaar (2) Pen: Pienaar (2)	Report	Pen: Tovey (4)

Ravenhill, Belfast
Attendance: 7,435
Referee: Carlo Damasco

17 February 2012
19:05

Cardiff Blues	21 – 14	Ulster (1 BP)
Try: Parks James Con: Parks Pen: Parks (3)	Report	Try: Diack Pen: Pienaar (3)

Cardiff Arms Park, Cardiff
Attendance: 9,154
Referee: George Clancy

24 February 2012
19:05

Ulster	15 – 14	Ospreys (1 BP)
Try: Penalty try Wallace Con: Pienaar Pen: Pienaar	Report	Try: Bearman Walker Con: Biggar

Ravenhill, Belfast
Attendance: 8,131
Referee: Neil Hennessy

2 March 2012
19:05

(1 BP) Ulster	38 – 16	Edinburgh
Try: Marshall Terblanche D'Arcy Penalty try Cochrane Humphreys Con: Pienaar (4)	Report	Try: S. Visser T. Visser Pen: Godman (2)

Ravenhill, Belfast
Attendance: 8,044
Referee: Nigel Owens

24 March 2012
16:15

(1 BP) Benetton Treviso	23 – 27	Ulster
Try: Ceccato Di Bernardo Con: Burton (2) Pen: Burton Drop: Burton	Report	Try: Henry Wallace D'Arcy Con: Pienaar (3) Pen: Pienaar

Stadio Comunale di Monigo, Treviso
Attendance: 4,200
Referee: Leighton Hodges

30 March 2012
19:05

(1 BP) Ulster	45 – 7	Aironi
Try: Wallace Penalty try Best Cave Court Wannenburg Con: Pienaar (4) Humphreys (2) Pen: Pienaar	Report	Try: Con:

Ravenhill, Belfast
Attendance: 10,125
Referee: Neil Paterson

14 April 2012
17:15

Connacht	26 – 21	Ulster (1 BP)
Try: Nikora Duffy Tiernan O'Halloran Con: Nikora Pen: Nikora (3)	Report	Try: Marshall Jackson Con: Jackson Pen: Jackson (3)

Galway Sportsgrounds, Galway
Attendance: 5,017
Referee: Dudley Phillips

20 April 2012
19:05

Ulster	8 – 16	Leinster
Try: Laughlin Con: Sexton Pen: Sexton Drop: Sexton	Report	Try: Muller Pen: Pienaar

Ravenhill, Belfast
Attendance: 10,500
Referee: John Lacey

5 May 2012
19:30

(1 BP) Munster	36 – 8	Ulster
Try: Zebo O'Mahony Sherry Archer O'Donnell Con: Deasy (2) Cusack Pen: Deasy	Report	Try: Henderson Pen: Jackson

Thomond Park, Limerick
Attendance: 19,362
Referee: Alain Rolland

End-of-season awards[]

2011–2012 Dream Team^[12]

Pos		Player	Team
SH	9	Ruan Pienaar	Ulster
LL	4	Dan Tuohy	Ulster
TP	3	BJ Botha	Ulster

Ulster Ravens[]

British and Irish Cup[]

Pool C[]

Team	P	W	D	L	PF	PA	PD	TF	TB	LB	Pts
Bedford Blues	5	5	0	0	164	66	98	18	3	0	23
Moseley	5	4	0	1	117	113	4	16	2	0	18
Neath	5	3	0	2	78	76	2	9	0	2	14
London Welsh	5	2	0	3	93	99	-6	14	1	2	11
Ulster Ravens	5	1	0	4	109	128	-19	13	1	2	7
Swansea	5	0	0	5	61	140	-79	7	0	2	2
Points breakdown: 4 points for a win 2 points for a draw 1 bonus point for a loss by seven points or less 1 bonus point for scoring four or more tries in a match

16 October 2010
14:30

Swansea	12 – 32	Ulster Ravens
	Stats

St Helens
Attendance: 1,200

11 December 2010
15:00

Bedford Blues	36 – 22	Ulster Ravens
	Stats

Goldington Road
Attendance: 2,105

14 January 2011
19:00

Ulster Ravens	20 – 25	Neath
	Stats

Instonians RFC
Attendance: 400

22 January 2011
14:00

London Welsh	29 – 11	Ulster Ravens
	Stats

Old Deer Park
Attendance: 785

23 February 2011
14:00

Ulster Ravens	24 – 26	Moseley
	Stats

Ravenhill

Ulster Rugby Awards[]

The Ulster Rugby Awards ceremony was held at the Culloden Hotel on 10 May 2012.^[13] Winners were:^[14]

Bank of Ireland Ulster Player of the Year: Chris Henry
Heineken Ulster Rugby Personality of the Year: Stephen Ferris
BT Sports Young Player of the Year: Craig Gilroy
Ulster Rugby Supporters Club Player of the Year: Pedrie Wannenburg
Abbey Insurance Academy Player of the Year: Chris Farrell
Belfast Telegraph Most Improved Player of the Year: Paul Marshall

References[]

^ "Top dog: Kearney named Players' Player of the Year", The 42, 10 May 2012
^ "It's Grim Up North - Ulster's Malaise", Digging Like a Demented Mole, 4 March 2018
^ "Ulster snap up Stevenson". Sky Sports. 18 February 2011.
^ "Ulster announce two new signings". The Irish Times. 7 March 2011.
^ "Ulster Sign All-Black Prop John Afoa". Ulster Rugby. 16 March 2011.
^ "Payne signs with Ulster". The Blues. 1 April 2011.
^ "Connacht sign Ulster duo as Naoupu returns". RTÉ Sport. 7 January 2011.
^ "Connacht sign Anderson from Ulster", The Irish Times, 7 March 2011
^ Appearances and scoring stats from ItsRugby.co.uk
^ "Ulster Rugby Academy", Ulster Rugby, archived 14 January 2012
^ Competition Rule 3.5 "Summary of Key Rules". Pro12. Retrieved 13 November 2013.
^ "2012 RaboDirect PRO12 Dream Team 2011/12". The Rugby Blog. 3 May 2012. Retrieved 13 January 2021.
^ Niall Crozier, "Ulster's big winners to be unveiled at glitzy awards night", Belfast Telegraph, 10 May 2012
^ "Ferris lost for words as he scoops top Ulster award", News Letter, 12 May 2012

[1] "Top dog: Kearney named Players' Player of the Year", The 42, 10 May 2012

[2] "It's Grim Up North - Ulster's Malaise", Digging Like a Demented Mole, 4 March 2018

[3] "Ulster snap up Stevenson". Sky Sports. 18 February 2011.

[4] "Ulster announce two new signings". The Irish Times. 7 March 2011.

[5] "Ulster Sign All-Black Prop John Afoa". Ulster Rugby. 16 March 2011.

[6] "Payne signs with Ulster". The Blues. 1 April 2011.

[7] "Connacht sign Ulster duo as Naoupu returns". RTÉ Sport. 7 January 2011.

[sign-8] "Connacht sign Anderson from Ulster", The Irish Times, 7 March 2011

[9] Appearances and scoring stats from ItsRugby.co.uk

[10] "Ulster Rugby Academy", Ulster Rugby, archived 14 January 2012

[11] Competition Rule 3.5 "Summary of Key Rules". Pro12. Retrieved 13 November 2013.

[12] "2012 RaboDirect PRO12 Dream Team 2011/12". The Rugby Blog. 3 May 2012. Retrieved 13 January 2021.

[13] Niall Crozier, "Ulster's big winners to be unveiled at glitzy awards night", Belfast Telegraph, 10 May 2012

[14] "Ferris lost for words as he scoops top Ulster award", News Letter, 12 May 2012

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