Richie Murphy hailed his Ulster charges after they scored two late tries to upset Glasgow Warriors in their BKT URC opening-round clash.
A late Dave Shanahan touchdown earned the hosts a 20-19 victory over the defending champions, who had led for most of the contest in Belfast.
Ulster only led the game for about 10 minutes combined, after Aidan Morgan and Dave McCann scored, but were four points behind and in their own half with time running out before the dramatic late finish.
A series of pick and goes close to the line eventually led to the winning score from player of the match Shanahan, a second-half replacement.
"We never gave up, really rolled our sleeves up in the last 25 minutes and put Glasgow under pressure," said Murphy (below).
"We probably weren't accurate enough. Over the course of the whole game, we're probably a little bit disappointed with how we performed.
"But we were put under a lot of pressure and we've come up with some good answers at the end.
"The players coming on in the second half added, which is exactly what we wanted to do, and a special mention for Dave Shanahan who had a very good end to the game."
Shanahan, who made his Ulster debut in 2013, has had to bid his time behind regular 9s John Cooney and Nathan Doak.
"He's very much a team man. I'm only here a short time but I've always seen Shanners in and around the team," added Murphy.
"He's very professional, he works really hard. He sets standards all through the week. It's no surprise when someone like that steps up and fills that hole towards the back end of the game.
"We're delighted for him. It's a big moment. Delighted for the team as well because we played a really good team, we weren't anywhere near our best, and we've found a way to win."
Ulster next set off on a two-game tour of South Africa and, in addition to injuries to Rob Herring, Rob Baloucoune, Stuart McCloskey and Tom Stewart, must do without six players who go on the Emerging Ireland trip.
"It is what it is," Murphy said of the absence of Cormac Izuchukwu (below), Harry Sheridan, Scott Wilson, Jude Postlethwaite, Jack Murphy, and Zac Ward for rounds two to four.
"We are talking about strength in our squad so we need to build that. With some guys going to Emerging Ireland, they'll come back to us in a place where they are massively motivated to get a senior Ireland cap.
"They'll also be given feedback on things they need to work on.
"What we hope is that reinforces the information we have already given them and it gives us an opportunity to have a look at other players.
"It is a funny time of the season but there's a lot of positives as well."
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