Ulster skipper Rory Best still hopes to be available for Ireland’s 2008 Six Nations campaign after positive news following a scan on Monday.

The scan has confirmed that the Irish hooker has no structural damage to the bone of his injured right ankle.

The injury is restricted to ligament damage which could take three to four weeks to heal.

Best is likely to miss three games including the final two Heineken Cup games against Bourgaon and Gloucester.

Matt Williams is poised to be confirmed as the new Ulster Director of Rugby later this week.

The former Scotland and Leinster coach was offered the job at the weekend following his flying visit to Belfast for talks last week.

It is thought discussion centred around the Australian’s personal terms, his backroom and family situation.

It is expected that current caretaker coach Steve Williams will continue as assistant as part of the deal.

The Welshman has 18 months remaining of a two-year contract after he came in following the moving on of Mark McCall’s assistant Allen Clarke.

However, if Sydney-based Williams does accept the deal it could be the end of January before he arrives in the province.

With his three children preparing to return to school, and the need to oversee other business commitments, Williams may have to delay his return to Irish rugby.

Williams tavelled over to Belfast last Thursday with his agent John Baker and held discussions with Ulster Branch officials, CEO Michael Reid, Cecil Watson, along with IRFU Director of Rugby Eddie Wigglesworth and committee member Neil Jackson.

Branch officials discussed the finer details of the meeting with the IRFU before a contract was cut and delivered to Williams in Sydney.

Williams’ impending appointment comes after a leisurely two-year stint back in Sydney where he was in charge of coaching duties at West Harbour RFC.

The Australian has had a chequered career in coaching. He had some success with NSW Waratahs before moving north of the equator to Dublin.

With former Ireland international Willie Anderson as his deputy, Williams had quite a successful stint with Leinster.
His at times uncompromising approach helped to shock an under-achieving team into becoming genuine Heineken Cup candidates.

During his time in Dublin he guided Leinster to Celtic League honours and was assigned Ireland A coach in 2002.

But after Leinster fluffed their lines in the 2004 semi-final against Perpignan, Williams’ tenure came under threat.

However, his success at Leinster led him, and a short time later Anderson, to be head-hunted and leapfrogged into the international sphere when Scotland’s big hitters Ian McGeechan and Jim Telfer were impressed with his forthright ideas.

As the first foreign coach at Murrayfield, Williams was at times controversial in his approach, and ditching well-established coaches and players in the SRU system did not go down too well in some quarters.

In the end, following a two-year stint in which Scotland only won three out of 17 games, Williams was sacked along with his backroom staff in April 2005.

A gifted raconteur Williams is an articulate speaker and on his return to Australia has been involved in more motivational lectures than coaching drills.

Obviously Ulster Rugby and the IRFU believe that he is the man to motivate a squad of players who looked to be mentally unable to get out of their present dip in form.

Magners League leaders Leinster handed out a Boxing Day hammering to bottom-placed Ulster at the RDS.

Ulster’s latest awful display was capped by having Rory Best stretchered off with an apparent knee injury.

Three Felipe Contepomi penalties left the dominant home side 9-0 ahead at half-time and the Argentine added another penalty in the 50th minute.

Neil Best’s sin-binning was punished by Cian Healy’s try and Jamie Heaslip’s late try increased Ulster’s misery.

Leinster started minus Brian O’Driscoll, who was not risked because of an ongoing ankle problem, so Contepomi switched to centre with Jonathan Sexton starting at fly-half.

The home side dominated from the start and the Ulster line was threatened on a number of occasions before Contepomi kicked Leinster ahead with a ninth-minute penalty.

Leinster lost prop Ollie le Roux because of an apparent rib injury in the 15th minute but his replacement Healy went on to have a fine match.

Two more Contepomi penalties extended Leinster’s lead to 9-0 at the interval with the third score coming while Isaac Boss was in the sin-bin after an illegal challenge on Gordon D’Arcy.

Paddy Wallace was just short with a long-range penalty after half-time but Ulster then suffered another blow when Neil Best conceded a penalty in front of the posts and was sin-binned into the bargain.

Contepomi duly added the three points and Ulster’s woes were compounded when captain Best had to be stretchered off after appearing to land awkwardly.

Healy barged over for Leinster’s first try on 57 minutes with Contepomi adding the conversion.

Ulster caretaker coach Steve Williams then introduced David Humphreys but it was far too late to change the course of this game.

Another Contepomi penalty was followed by Heaslip’s try as Leinster stayed on top of the table.

Matt Williams is expected to be appointed as the new Ulster coach later this week and on the evidence of this match, he has quite a job on his hands.
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Leinster: G Dempsey, L Fitzgerald, G D’Arcy, F Contepomi, R Kearney, J Sexton, G Easterby; O le Roux, B Jackman, S Wright, L Cullen (capt), M O’Kelly, S Jennings, K Gleeson, J Heaslip.
Replacements: G Brown for Kearney (74), C Warner for Sexton (73), C Keane for Easterby (69), C Healy for le Roux (17), B Blaney for Jackman (78), C Jowitt for O’Kelly (73), S Keogh for Jennings (41).
Ulster: B Cunningham, T Bowe, A Trimble, P Steinmetz, S Danielli, P Wallace, I Boss; J Fitzpatrick, R Best (capt), D Fitzpatrick, J Harrison, R Caldwell, N Best, K Dawson, M McCullough.
Replacements: D Humphreys for Steinmetz (58), P Marshall for Boss (76), N Brady for R Best (55), B Young for D Fitzpatrick (51), C del Fava for Harrison (58), G Webb for Caldwell (71), D Pollock for Dawson (62).

Ulster have signed experienced New Zealander Grant Webb as cover for injured back-row players Stephen Ferris and Roger Wilson.
 
The 28-year-old former Otago and Hawks Bay number eight is scheduled to arrive in Belfast on Tuesday.

That means he will be available for the Magners League game away to Leinster on Boxing Day.

Webb also played in Japan and was a member of the New Zealand Sevens squad in 2003.
“Grant comes highly recommended and we had spoken to Adrian Kennedy about him.,” said Ulster chief executive Michael Reid.

“We may not register him straight away for the Heineken Cup, but he will be available to play immediately in the Magners League.”

Gloucester got their Heineken Cup campaign off to a perfect start with an impressive bonus-point victory over Ulster at Ravenhill.

The visitors scored five first-half tries through Lesley Vainikolo, Mike Tindall, Ryan Lamb, James Simpson-Daniel and Iain Balshaw.

Ulster fought back with Matt McCullough and Paddy Wallace tries to leave Gloucester 29-14 ahead at the break.

Lamb’s penalty was the only score in a quiet second half.

It was an amazing first half with Gloucester securing their bonus point after just 22 minutes, the second quickest in the competition’s history.

The Guinness Premiership leaders were taking on the Magners League basement side and the gulf in class was evident from the start.

The returning Vainikolo touched down in the corner from Lamb’s pin-point kick to set Gloucester on their way after seven minutes.

A superb move up the right produced the second try three minutes later, with Tindall collecting from Balshaw’s lay-off before sprinting clear to the line.

Vainikolo muscled his way forward in the 17th minute, creating the space which allowed Lamb to jink through to add another five points.

Lamb created the next try five minutes later, intercepting a Wallace pass and surging forward before his pass sent Simpson-Daniel rushing through to score.
Ulster’s Roger Wilson is tackled by Nick Wood at Ravenhill
The fifth Gloucester try after 28 minutes came from a turnover with Balshaw storming away from the chasing Isaac Boss to go over.

Gloucester were simply superb although Lamb missed with three of his conversion attempts.

Ulster hit back two minutes later when McCullough went over for a converted try after a break from Andrew Trimble.

A second Ulster try followed in injury-time with Wallace touching down after a clever dummy and the fly-half converted with the last kick of the half.

Ulster pressed after the break but, unlike the visitors in the first half, failed to convert it into points.

The game became scrappy in the driving rain and most phases ended in errors.

The only points of the half were registered on 68 minutes when Lamb slotted over a penalty.

Former Ireland international David Humphreys came on as a replacement for Rob Dewey but he was unable to inspire an Ulster comeback and Gloucester ran out comfortable winners.