Corniel van Zyl expressed his pride at Cardiff Rugby’s fighting spirit as they took Ulster all the way to the wire in Belfast.
The Blue & Blacks have not won at Ravenhill, now named the Affidea Stadium, since 2010 and the wait goes on but there was plenty of grit and determination in his side’s performance.
Ulster dominated the first-half and led 14-0 at the interval thanks to tries from Scotty Wilson and Angus Bell.
But Cardiff battled back in the second-half with Johan Mulder and Steffan Emanuel crossing either side of Ulster’s third. They had a further opportunity to draw level but ultimately clung on for what could be a valuable bonus-point.
The result sees Ulster leapfrog Cardiff into fourth in the BKT United Rugby Championship table, with the two sides level on points with third-placed DHL Stormers.
Van Zyl said: “In the circle there, you feel the disappointment of the boys but ultimately in the first-half we had a lot of pressure. We didn’t get all the things right we planned to do and they just had the ball for too long in good field positions.
“So it was tough to turn it around but credit to the boys, they stuck in there. The fight was amazing.
“The boys just wanted to fight for the jersey. Ultimately though just a few small things puts us on the wrong side of the scoreboard.
“In the bigger picture of it, it’s (losing bonus-point) definitely going to make a difference.
“It’s a tough place to come. They’re playing very well but like I said, I thought the boys gave it a good shot.
“After this 10-game block, it will be a welcome rest for the boys. So that will be good and then obviously excited to go to the Arms Park again for the Leinster clash.”