The BKT URC returned last weekend with drama across the opening weekend.
Title holders Leinster went down to a 35-0 defeat at the hands of the DHL Stormers in Cape Town, provoking a straight-talking reaction from head coach Leo Cullen.
“We are hugely disappointed. We haven’t conceded a score like that in quite a while,” said Cullen. “The guys were hurting inside the dressing room afterwards.
“We just weren’t at the races. We were really, really poor". Cullen added "We were very much second best in pretty much every department”.
“Credit to the Stormers, I thought they were pretty outstanding” added Cullen. “They were far better than us and much sharper in all the contact points. They put us under a huge amount of pressure, and we just didn’t manage it particularly well”.
“We have come off a very successful season last year, and we have had a proper punch in the nose. It’s how we respond now and get back on the horse”.
“We have to turn the page quickly into Bulls in Pretoria, which will be another serious challenge. We have to put in a much better performance there”.
“It’s round one of 18, there’s a long way to go in this competition. I think we will get better as we progress through the weeks.”
In Friday night’s other game, the 2024 champions, Glasgow Warriors, made a strong start to their campaign, beating Hollywoodbets Sharks 35-19 at Scotstoun.
Ulster recovered from conceding a try to Dragons No. 8, Aaron Wainwright after just 10 seconds as they ran in six tries to win 42-21 in Belfast.
Ulster come back for victory
“It wasn’t perfect, but it’s a good start” said Coach Richie Murphy. ”We have got five points at home and we move on". Murphy went on "We put some good rugby together, and we are happy with the win”.
“We go to Edinburgh next weekend, and we know we are going to have to be better over there.”
There were two further Irish wins on Saturday, with Munster securing a 34-21 bonus point victory away to the Scarlets.
Connacht also claimed the maximum as they marked the start of the Stuart Lancaster era by beating Benetton 26-15 in Galway.
The most dramatic finish of the weekend came out in Italy, where Zebre Parma beat Edinburgh 31-28. A 79th-minute penalty from replacement fly-half Martin Roger Farias.
Zebre’s victory was all the more notable given they were down to 14 men for 30 minutes. A red card for skipper Giovanni Licata, followed by a yellow for Argentine prop Juan Pittinari.
Cardiff ride the rollercoaster to victory
Cardiff coach Corniel van Zyl paid tribute to the fight shown by his team following a rollercoaster ride against the Lions at the Arms Park. The hosts, rallied in the rain to claim a 33-20 bonus point victory.
The other three Welsh teams were beaten. Ospreys scored six tries against the Vodacom Bulls at Pretoria’s Loftus Versfeld. Bulls winning out 53-40.
What’s coming next?
It’s Round 2 of the URC next weekend, with three games on Friday, four on Saturday and one on Sunday.
There’s just the one match featuring two winners from the opening round, as Munster host Cardiff at Limerick’s Thomond Park.
Leinster will be looking to bounce back from their heavy defeat in Cape Town. However, things don’t get any easier for them as they face another major challenge as they face Vodacom Bulls.
Elsewhere, it’s DHL Stormers v Ospreys, Dragons v Hollywoodbets Sharks, Edinburgh v Ulster, Connacht v Scarlets, Benetton v Glasgow Warriors and Zebre Parma v Lions.
