Ivan Van Rooyen hails Lions' resilience and effort after big win over in-form Ulster

The Lions crossed the try line seven times, securing consecutive URC victories after opening their campaign with three defeats, and now sit eighth on the standings.

It was also the first defeat of the season for Ulster, who were coming off wins over both the Bulls and Sharks, making the win a particularly rewarding for van Rooyen, who singled out the team's defensive effort late in the first half as a pivotal moment.

"The guys really played hard today. A lot of effort," Van Rooyen said.

"For us to get five [log] points, obviously we're happy with that. But I'm more proud of the work and how we did it. We had unbelievable sets on defence and attack.

"If you take the hard work in that last defensive set before half time, it was inches in the corner. We prevented that try, which showed how hard and desperately we were working."

Despite the impressive performance, van Rooyen stressed that there is still plenty of room for improvement.

"We understand we need to get better and more clinical, but we also understand what pictures we are creating," he added.

"Everyone's emotional after a win like that, but there's still [only] 10 or 11 points on the log.

"The feeling in the camp is very different from what people think. We know we're moving in the right direction."

READ MORE: Super Stormers stay unbeaten with hard-fought win over Benetton in Treviso