| Teamname: | 2000–01 Ulster Rugby season |
| Ground: | Ravenhill Stadium |
| Capacity: | 12,500 |
| Coach: | Harry Williams |
| Captain: | David Humphreys |
| Appearances: | Justin Fitzpatrick, Gary Longwell, Andy Ward, Tony McWhirter, Brad Free, David Humphreys, Ryan Constable, James Topping (12 each) |
| Top Scorer: | David Humphreys (148) |
| Most Tries: | James Topping (6) |
| League: | Heineken Cup (4th in pool) IRFU Interprovincial Championship (2nd) |
| Prevseason: | 1999–2000 |
| Nextseason: | 2001–02 |
The 2000–01 season was Ulster Rugby's sixth since the advent of professionalism, and their third under coach Harry Williams. They competed in the Heineken Cup and the IRFU Interprovincial Championship. Williams announced in August 2000 that he would leave at the end of the season.[1]
The IRFU rejected a proposal for a Celtic League involving three of the Irish provinces, two Scottish super-districts and seven Welsh clubs, each playing 22 matches. The IRFU argued that the structure proposed would add too many games and leave provincial players unable to play for their clubs, and made a counter-proposal of an eleven-game season, which the Welsh and Scottish unions rejected.[2] Discussions continued,[3] and a format was finally agreed for the following season.[4]
They were bottom of their pool in the Heineken Cup, failing to qualify for the knockout stage. They finished second in the Interprovincial Championship, qualifying for next season's Heineken Cup. The average crowd at Interprovincial matches was 7,000, comparing favourably to 3,000 in the English first division.[5] Tyrone Howe was Ulster's Player of the Year, and was selected for the 2001 British & Irish Lions tour to Australia.
Ryan Constable from Saracens[8] Brad Free from Bective Rangers[9] [10]
Shane Stewart from Ballymena
Stade Francais[13]
Joeli Veitayaki (released)| Ulster Rugby squad | ||
|---|---|---|
Props
Hookers
Locks | Back row
Scrum-halves
Fly-halves | Centres
Wings
Fullbacks
|
| (c) denotes the team captain, Bold denotes internationally capped players. * denotes players qualified to play for Ireland on residency or dual nationality. |
See main article: 2000–01 Heineken Cup.
| Team | P | W | D | L | Tries for | Tries against | Try diff | Points for | Points against | Points diff | Pts | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cardiff | 6 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 18 | 13 | 5 | 182 | 146 | 36 | 8 | |
| 6 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 14 | 13 | 1 | 174 | 140 | 34 | 8 | ||
| Toulouse | 6 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 19 | 15 | 4 | 171 | 182 | -11 | 5 | |
 Ulster | 6 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 11 | 21 | -10 | 146 | 205 | -59 | 3 |
See main article: IRFU Interprovincial Championship.
| Team | P | W | D | L | F | A | BP | Pts | Status | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 151 | 99 | 1 | 23 | Champions; qualified for 2001–02 Heineken Cup | ||
| 6 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 144 | 119 | 3 | 15 | Qualified for 2001–02 Heineken Cup | ||
| 6 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 109 | 111 | 2 | 12 | Qualified for 2001–02 Heineken Cup | ||
| 6 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 100 | 175 | 1 | 5 | Qualified for 2001–02 European Challenge Cup | ||
| Domestic League | European Cup | Total | |||||||||
| League | Fixtures | Average Attendance | Highest | Lowest | League | Fixtures | Average Attendance | Highest | Lowest | Total Attendance | Average Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| – | – | – | – | – | 2000–01 Heineken Cup | 3 | 12,500 | 13,500 | 12,000 | 37,500 | 12,500 |
The Ulster Rugby Awards ceremony was held on 24 May 2001. Winners were:[14]