Mike Lowry – 6
Starting XV
Started strongly with some encouraging bursts from deep on his return to full-back, but faded into the background the more the game went on
Werner Kok – 7
Definitely his best game for Ulster thus far and capped it off with a maiden try for the province, was much more involved than against Toulouse
Jude Postlethwaite – 7
One fantastic burst from a ruck set the scene for the rest of the game and was solid throughout, although he couldn’t do much to prevent Bordeaux’s second half rout
Stuart McCloskey – 8
Ulster’s stand-out performer, Bordeaux struggled to live with his physicality for most of the game and was still effective midway through the second half
Zac Ward – 7
Grew into the game after a nervy start and had some fantastic touches, particularly late in the first half, to show that he maybe has what it takes at this level
Aidan Morgan – 7
This was the first game where you saw him being able to add some magic to the back line but as Ulster faded in the second half, so did he
Nathan Doak – 6
Kept the pace high for the first half and had a decent day off the tee even if he missed once, although seemed to never fully recover from a first half knock
Eric O’Sullivan – 6
Was always on the back foot at scrum time against Carlu Sadie and, although he had one or two promising forays with ball in hand, wasn’t busy enough to overlook set piece flaws
Rob Herring – 5
Wasn’t as busy in the loose as he would have liked, although was solid at the line-out throughout, which allowed Ulster to set up the platform needed
Tom O’Toole – 6
Was never able to do much at scrum time when things were going against Ulster on the other side but had a few good moments with ball in hand
Iain Henderson – 7
Never shirks the challenge of leading from the front for Ulster and, while he had a few questionable moments, the fact that he was so prominent shows his importance
Kieran Treadwell – 6
Made one superb, albeit futile, tackle in the build-up to Penaud’s try but, for the most part, was quiet enough throughout the game compared to others
Cormac Izuchukwu – 7
Scored the opening try with some great strength and had one stand-out moment with a near 50:22 kick, was surprising to see him withdrawn early in the second half
Nick Timoney – 7
Scored a fine try with some heads-up rugby and was generally a threat to Bordeaux throughout, especially on the floor, but missed the tackle that let Petti over
David McCann – 5
Was yellow carded for his role in Bordeaux’s penalty try and wasn’t the ball carrying threat that Ulster needed him to be against an abrasive Bordeaux pack
Replacements
John Andrew (for Herring, 69 mins) – 5
Mainly used in a defensive role
Andrew Warwick (for O’Sullivan, 47 mins) – 6
Shored up the scrum to even win a penalty
Scott Wilson (for O’Toole, 69 mins) – 5
Wasn’t on for very long but was busy
Harry Sheridan (for Henderson, 63 mins) – 5
Added some impetus in the latter stages
Marcus Rea (for Izuchukwu, 56 mins) – 5
Was mostly seen for his tackling
David Shanahan (for Doak, 56 mins) – 5
Tried to add energy but never had much ball
James Humphreys (for Morgan, 63 mins) – 5
Never had any ball to show attacking verve
Rory Telfer (for Lowry, 77 mins) – 5
Good to get his debut but not on long enough to do anything