The 2012–13 season was

Ulster Ulster (; or ; or ''Ulster'') is one of the four traditional or historic provinces of Ireland, Irish provinces. It is made up of nine Counties of Ireland, counties: six of these constitute Northern Ireland (a part of the United Kingdom); t ...

's 19th season since the advent of professionalism in rugby union, and their first under head coach

Mark Anscombe Mark Anscombe (born 1957) is a New Zealand rugby union coach, having played rugby spanning across 15 years. Anscombe (father of Welsh international Gareth Anscombe) has been a rugby union coach since 1994, coaching various ages and styles in bot ...

, replacing Brian McLaughlin who failed to get his contract re-signed. They competed in the

Pro12 The United Rugby Championship (URC) is an annual rugby union competition involving professional teams from Ireland, Italy, Scotland, South Africa, and Wales. For sponsorship reasons the league is known as the Vodacom United Rugby Championship in ...

and the

European Rugby Champions Cup The European Rugby Champions Cup (known as the Investec Champions Cup for sponsorship reasons) is an annual rugby union tournament organised by European Professional Club Rugby (EPCR). It is the top-tier competition for clubs who compete in a pr ...

. Major signings included number eight Nick Williams from the now defunct

Aironi Aironi Rugby (, "herons") was an Italian professional rugby union team competing in the Pro12 and the Heineken Cup, representing the Italian regions of Lombardy and Emilia-Romagna. It lost its status as a regional side at the end of the 2011–12 ...

, wing

Tommy Bowe Thomas John Bowe (born 22 February 1984) is an Irish television presenter and former rugby union player from County Monaghan, Ireland. He played on the wing for Ulster, Ospreys, Ireland and the British & Irish Lions. After his playing career ...

returning from his four-year stay at the

Ospreys The osprey (; ''Pandion haliaetus''), historically known as sea hawk, river hawk, and fish hawk, is a diurnal, fish-eating bird of prey with a cosmopolitan range. It is a large raptor, reaching more than in length and a wingspan of . It is ...

, and flanker Roger Wilson returning after four years with

Northampton Saints Northampton Saints (officially Northampton Rugby Football Club) is a professional rugby union club from Northampton, England. The club plays in Premiership Rugby, England's top division of rugby union. It was formed in 1880 as "Northampton St. ...

. Hooker Rob Herring joined from

Western Province Western Province or West Province may refer to: *Western Province, Cameroon *Western Province, Rwanda *Western Province (Kenya) *Western Province (Papua New Guinea) *Western Province (Solomon Islands) *Western Province, Sri Lanka *Western Provinc ...

. Centre

Nevin Spence Nevin Spence (26 April 199015 September 2012) was an Irish rugby union player for Ulster in the Pro12. He played as a Centre, but could also play Wing. He was educated firstly at Dromore High School, where he was introduced to rugby, and then at ...

died, along with his brother Graham and father Noel, in an accident at the family farm in

Hillsborough, County Down Royal Hillsborough (Irish: ''Cromghlinn'', meaning 'Crooked Glen'Patrick McKay, ''A Dictionary of Ulster Place-Names'', p. 81. The Institute of Irish Studies, The Queen's University of Belfast, Belfast, 1999.), more commonly known simply as ...

on 15 September 2012. where they were overcome by fumes in a slurry tank. Spence's sister was treated in hospital and survived the accident. As a mark of respect for Spence, a minute's silence was observed at many rugby games in Britain and Ireland the following week. A memorial service was held at

Ravenhill Stadium Ravenhill Stadium (known as the Kingspan Stadium for sponsorship reasons until June 2025) is a rugby stadium located in Belfast, Northern Ireland. It is the home of Ulster Rugby. With the opening of a new stand for the 2014 Heineken Cup quarter ...

, the home ground of Ulster Rugby, on Sunday 23 September 2012. Ulster started the season with 13 consecutive wins in all competitions, the longest unbeaten run in their history. They finished top of the table of the Pro12 with 17 wins, and after beating Welsh side

Scarlets The Scarlets () are one of the four professional Welsh rugby union teams and are based in Llanelli, Wales. Their home ground is the Parc y Scarlets stadium. They play in the United Rugby Championship and in European Professional Club Rugby c ...

in the semi-finals 28–17, it was an-all Ireland final between Ulster and

Leinster Leinster ( ; or ) is one of the four provinces of Ireland, in the southeast of Ireland. The modern province comprises the ancient Kingdoms of Meath, Leinster and Osraige, which existed during Gaelic Ireland. Following the 12th-century ...

. Leinster were the eventual champions, defeating Anscombe's side 24–18. Scrum-half

Ruan Pienaar Ruan Pienaar (born 10 March 1984) is a retired South African professional rugby union player who played either as a scrum-half or as a fly-half for the in the Currie Cup. Pienaar is the son of former Springbok fullback Gysie Pienaar. Ru ...

was the league's second-top scorer with 172 points. Ulster won the Fair Play Award, and Nick Williams was Players' Player of the Year. Williams and centre Luke Marshall made the Pro12 Dream Team.

Andrew Trimble Andrew Trimble (born 20 October 1984) is a former Irish rugby union player who played for Ulster and represented Ireland at international level. Club career He attended Coleraine Academical Institution, where he competed in the Ulster Schoo ...

's try against

Connacht Connacht or Connaught ( ; or ), is the smallest of the four provinces of Ireland, situated in the west of Ireland. Until the ninth century it consisted of several independent major Gaelic kingdoms (Uí Fiachrach, Uí Briúin, Uí Maine, C ...

was Try of the Season. They topped their pool in the Champions Cup with five wins out of six, qualifying for the quarter-finals, where they lost 27–16 to

Saracens file:Erhard Reuwich Sarazenen 1486.png, upright 1.5, Late 15th-century History of Germany, German woodcut depicting Saracens ''Saracen'' ( ) was a term used both in Greek language, Greek and Latin writings between the 5th and 15th centuries to ...

. Ruan Pienaar was Ulster's top scorer with 205 points. Andrew Trimble was top try scorer with twelve, and was named Ulster's Player of the Year. Nick Williams was IRUPA Players' Player of the Year, and Craig Gilroy won the IRUPA Try of the Year award.

Staff

Senior team

Academy

Squad

Senior squad

Players in (Season 2012/2013)

from

* Sean Doyle from Southern Districts * Rob Herring from

* Niall O'Connor from

Connacht Rugby Connacht Rugby is one of the four professional provincial men's rugby union, rugby teams from the island of Ireland. Connacht competes in the United Rugby Championship and the European Rugby Champions Cup. The team represents the IRFU Connacht B ...

* Neil Walsh (unattached, trial) * Nick Williams from

* Roger Wilson from

Northampton Northampton ( ) is a town and civil parish in Northamptonshire, England. It is the county town of Northamptonshire and the administrative centre of the Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority of West Northamptonshire. The town is sit ...

Promoted from academy

* Michael Allen * Ali Birch * Chris Cochrane * Michael Heaney *

Iain Henderson William Iain Henderson (born 21 February 1992) is a professional rugby union player who plays as a lock for United Rugby Championship club Ulster and the Ireland national team, and has been selected for two tours with the British & Irish Lions ...

Players out (Season 2012/2013)

* Tim Barker to Rainey Old Boys *

Jerry Cronin Jeremiah Cronin (14 September 1925 – 19 October 1990) was an Irish Fianna Fáil politician who served as Minister for Defence from 1970 to 1973 and Parliamentary Secretary for Agriculture and Fisheries from 1969 to 1970. He served as a Teac ...

Doncaster Knights Doncaster Knights Rugby Football Club ''(formerly, Doncaster RFC)'' are a professional rugby union club representing the city of Doncaster, England. The club play in the 2nd division of English rugby, the RFU Championship. Being the most prom ...

* Simon Danielli ''retired'' * Willie Faloon to

* Conor Gaston to

London Irish London Irish RFC is a professional rugby union club that most recently competed in the Premiership Rugby, Premiership, the top division of rugby union in England. The club also participated in the European Rugby Champions Cup, European Champion ...

Ian Humphreys Ian Humphreys (born 24 April 1982 in Belfast, Northern Ireland) is a retired Irish rugby union footballer, who played at fly-half for the Pro12 team Ulster Rugby and English sides Leicester Tigers and London Irish. He joined Ulster in 2008 from ...

Andi Kyriacou Andi Kyriacou (born 4 January 1983) is an English-born, Irish-qualified former rugby union player and current coach. Kyriacou played as a hooker for Sale Sharks, Leeds Carnegie, Saracens, Munster, Ulster, and Cardiff Blues before moving into c ...

Cardiff Blues Cardiff Rugby () are one of the four professional Welsh rugby union teams. Based in Cardiff, the team play at Cardiff Arms Park. Originally formed in 1876, from 2003 to 2021 the first team was known as the Cardiff Blues before rebranding back ...

James McKinney James McKinney (April 14, 1852 – September 29, 1934) was a U.S. Representative from Illinois. Biography Born in Oquawka, Illinois, McKinney attended the public schools of Lewis County High School and was given the nickname of "Downey" from ...

Rotherham Titans Rotherham Rugby Union Football Club, or Rotherham Titans is a rugby union club from Rotherham, South Yorkshire, currently playing in the third tier of the English rugby union league system, following their promotion from the National League ...

* Ian Porter ''one-year sabbatical'' *

''deceased'' *

Stefan Terblanche Carl Stefan Terblanche (born 2 July 1975, in Mossel Bay) is a South African former rugby union player. He played wing, centre and fullback. Career Terblanche played in 37 tests for South Africa, scoring 19 tries, including a South African te ...

''retired'' *

Pedrie Wannenburg Pedrie Johannes Wannenburg (2 January 1981 – 22 April 2022) was a South African rugby union player. He last coached for Austin Elite Rugby in North American Major League Rugby. He played for Austin in 2018, Denver Stampede in the now defunct ...

Castres Castres (; ''Castras'' in the Languedocian dialect, Languedocian dialect of Occitan language, Occitan) is the sole Subprefectures in France, subprefecture of the Tarn (department), Tarn Departments of France, department in the Occitania (adminis ...

* Ian Whitten to

Exeter Chiefs Exeter Chiefs (officially Exeter Rugby Club) is an England, English professional rugby union club based in Exeter, Devon. They play in Premiership Rugby, England's top division of rugby. The club was founded in 1871 and since 2006 has played i ...

Academy squad

Players in

* Alan O'Connor * Rory Scholes * Jake Caulfield

Players out

* Ryan Jablonski * John Burns * David O'Mahony * David McGuigan * Blane McIlroy

Season record

Heineken Cup

Pool 4

Quarter–final

Pro12

Semi-final

Final

The final was contested on Saturday, 25 May 2013, between the winners of the two semi-finals.

End-of-season awards

2012–2013 Dream Team

Home attendance

Friendlies

Ulster Ravens

British and Irish Cup

Pool 1

* Match postponed from 19 January 2013 as Ulster were unable to fly due to the bad weather. Despite this match being a

dead rubber Dead rubber is a term used in sporting parlance to describe a match in a series where the series result has already been decided by earlier matches. The dead rubber match therefore has no effect on the winner and loser of the series, other than the ...

(the outcome of this game will have no bearing on qualification for the knockout stages nor on the ranking of the qualifiers), the match was rearranged as Bridgend would lose revenue otherwise.

Ulster Women

2012-13 Women's Interprovincial Series

Ulster Rugby Awards

The Ulster Rugby Awards ceremony was held on 10 May 2013. Winners were:Richard Mullugan, "Nevin Spence honoured at Ulster Rugby awards", ''News Letter'', 11 May 2013 *Bank of Ireland Ulster Player of the Year:

*Heineken Ulster Rugby Personality of the Year:

*BT Sports Young Player of the Year:

*Ulster Rugby Supporters Club Player of the Year:

*Abbey Insurance Academy Player of the Year:

Stuart Olding Stuart Olding (born 11 March 1993) is a rugby union rugby player from Northern Ireland. He plays at centre and fullback. Olding played for Ulster from 2011 until 2018. In 2017 Olding was charged with rape, and in 2018 he was tried and acquitted. ...

*Belfast Telegraph Most Improved Player of the Year: Robbie Diack *Danske Bank Ulster Schools Player of the Year: Jack Owens, Campbell College

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ulster 2012-13 2012–13 in Irish rugby union 2012–13 Pro12 by team 2012–13 Heineken Cup by team