Stade Toulousain 36 Ulster Rugby 8

Wing Cheslin Kolbe was the hero at Stade Ernest Wallon, scoring two superb first-half tries as Toulouse marched into the semi-finals courtesy of a 36-8 victory.

The electric half-back pairing of Antoine Dupont and Romain Ntamack, which will likely line up against Ulster again next month, were also in fine form.

Scrum-half Dupont was the provider for Kolbe’s first score, floating a delightful pass out to the South African who produced a trademark side-step to beat the covering defender and dot down with less than three minutes played.

And Kolbe’s scintillating footwork would earn him a second try just before half time, jinking inside and accelerating over the whitewash to finish off a flowing Toulouse move.

Earlier in the half, Toulouse full-back Thomas Ramos kicked a penalty for the first of his 16 points on the day before Ulster managed to get on the board through scrum-half John Cooney, who was also on target from the tee.

But it would be one-way traffic for most of the second period, with centre Sofiane Guitoune setting up Dupont for Toulouse’s third try shortly after the restart.

Guitoune’s midfield partner Pita Ahki then grabbed the hosts’ fourth with an hour played, nudging a grubber kick down the touchline before diving over.

Ramos capped his impressive performance five minutes later, surging over the line after more good work from Guitoune.

Ulster would notch a consolation try late on as full-back Michael Lowry, who may play a more prominent role in the game next month after an eye-catching start to this campaign, hung a kick up for Cooney to gather and slide over in the corner.

Toulouse would go on to play Exeter Chiefs in the semi-finals, going down 28-18 at Sandy Park to the side who would eventually lift the trophy.

With defending champions Stade Toulousain set to take on Ulster Rugby in this season’s Heineken Champions Cup Round of 16 next month, we’ve revisited the French side’s dominant victory in the quarter-finals of the 2019/20 competition...