Anna McGann tries help Connacht to victory over Ulster

Ireland internationals Anna McGann and Méabh Deely made the difference for Connacht in a tight 15-10 victory over Ulster at Affidea Stadium.

This Vodafone Women's Interprovincial Championship opener could have gone either way, but Méabh Deely's 70th-minute penalty was the decisive blow for the visitors.

McGann marked her Connacht debut with a well-taken fourth-minute try, which was cancelled out by Ulster's stand-in captain Claire Boles.

The Enniskillen native drove in low to score during Kara Mulcahy's sin-binning, the sides being locked level at five-all at the end of a first half with a high amount of handling errors.

Sophie Barrett barrelled over in the 53rd minute, raising hopes of Ulster's first Interpro win since September 2023, yet Connacht produced the stronger finish.

McGann showed her finishing skills to make it a brace of tries, and Deely, in player-of-the-match form at out-half, split the posts with the conversion and her closing penalty.

This was Connacht's fourth successive win in this fixture, and gave their new head coach Craig Hansberry a positive platform to build on with new nine caps in his matchday squad.

Dogged by lineout problems at key stages of the game, Ulster will dust themselves off for a tough second round trip to Munster. Connacht are Dublin bound to face Leinster.