Ulster fly-half David Humphreys shattered the Heineken Cup points scoring
record at Ravenhill tonight to leave Wasps on the brink of an early
exit.
Humphreys scored 37 points, a late Tyrone Howe touchdown the only other
Ulsterman to inscribe his name on the scoresheet, four drop goals also setting
another competition best.
Wasps had led at the break, grabbing the opening score when prop Will Green
was driven over from a close range line-out.
But Kenny Logan's poor goalkicking had already undermined the visitors'
challenge and after the interval Humphreys simply took control.
He finished with six penalties, four drop goals and a conversion to his own
try after he had charged down Alex King's attempted kick over the top.
It was Ulster's second successive victory following their narrow success in
Treviso last week - their first ever against English opposition in the Heineken
Cup - but left Wasps desperately hoping for a series of unlikely results to go
in their favour to have any chance of reaching the knock-out stages.
Logan's night started badly when he struck a post with a simple penalty
opportunity in the opening minute.
The rebound dropped enticingly back to the Scotland winger but he could only
knock on, allowing the home side to clear their lines.
He made amends for his error by banging over his second chance in the 12th
minute but Humphreys quickly levelled when the Wasps defence drifted offside
under their own posts.
Logan added the conversion to Green's try and Wasps could have gone even
further in front but Rory Jenkins was denied when he was shoulder-charged off
the ball by Neil Doak as he chased his own kick over the Ulster line.
Logan wasted a chance to extend Wasps' lead when he drifted a penalty attempt
wide of the uprights, although he atoned for his error within a minute.
However, Humphreys replied with the last kick of the half to keep Ulster in
touch at the interval and then belted over a long-range penalty within 90
seconds of the restart to reduce the arrears to four points.
Humphreys was by now unstoppable and booted his team in front for the first
time after adding another two penalties and his first drop-goal to his earlier
efforts.
Wasps lost possession at their own scrum shortly afterwards and Josh Lewsey
was penalised for holding on as he tried to sweep up, leaving Humphreys with yet
another easy opportunity to land his fourth kick.
Another Logan mistake gave Ulster the field position from which Humphreys sent
another drop goal spinning through the posts and the Irish international was on
target again moments later.
Logan replied to keep Wasps in with an outside chance of victory but Humphreys
converted his own try to give Ulster an unassailable advantage.
Darren Molloy and Andy Ward were sin-binned as tempers began to fray but after
Humphreys struck his fourth drop goal, Tyrone Howe flew in at the corner.
Humphreys missed the touchline conversion but as the whistle blew the smile on
his face indicated it did not really matter.