Late kicks and sad farewells - Ulster and semi-final drama

Ulster will face Exeter Chiefs on Saturday as they look to book a trip to Bilbao in the European Challenge Cup final. The Irish province's trophy drought stretches back to their 2006 triumph in the old Celtic League. Ulster were last in a semi-final four years ago in the United Rugby Championship, and their most recent in Europe was back in 2021.

Richie Murphy's side will be firmly focused on taking down Exeter, but how have Ulster fared in their last five semi-final ties? With late drama and demolition jobs, it has been a mixed bag. 2021-22 URC - Last-gasp heartbreak Going to South Africa is not an easy challenge for any side, but Ulster were mere seconds away from beating the Stormers in their own backyard.

Ulster led 15-10 at half-time as Robert Baloucoune and Stewart Moore cancelled out early tries from JJ Kotze and Evan Roos in Cape Town. Scores were hard to come by in the second half, and Dan McFarland's team had a man advantage for the final 10 minutes when Arde Smith was sent off for making contact with the face of Iain Henderson. But there was a late twist.

Warrick Gelant's try drew the Stormers level with the clock in the red, and Manie Libbok, who missed his two earlier conversions, nailed the difficult kick from out wide to seal a 17-15 win and crush Ulster's dreams. It felt like a real missed opportunity. 2020-21 Challenge Cup - The Covid one Leicster Tigers had too much for Ulster in the Challenge Cup semi-final [Getty Images] Of course, you need little reminder about how different sport was throughout the Covid-19 pandemic, as fans had to stay away and, when matches resumed, they were played in empty stadiums.