Ulster Rugby Men’s I XV 27 v Zebre 25: VVVVVIIIIIICCCCTTTOORRRRYYYY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

This afternoon in Parma Ulster rode their luck to grab the narrowest of wins over Zebre in a top-versus-bottom clash which saw them outscored by the Italians by four tries to two, yet emerge victorious thanks to superior goal-kicking from Niall O’Connor!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

The recently-formed Italian franchise – without a win in their RaboDirect Pro 12 history – will rue 12 points missed by the boots of their half-back pairing of Tito Tibaldi and Daniel Halangahu, while Ulster proved considerably less wasteful, O’Connor contributing 17 points to top up the 10 supplied by a Paddy Wallace score and a late penalty try. Ulster remain six points clear at the top of the table after this fixture, rescheduled from September as a mark of respect for the late Nevin Spence