They have been back to Dublin three times since then for one PRO12 final and two semi-finals, all against Leinster, all at the RDS. And they have lost the lot, as well as a European final at Twickenham against the same old provincial rival.
Friday night's first semi-final, therefore, will be the fifth major Leinster-Ulster cup tie in five years. The last one, two years ago, finished with the then holders besieged on their own line clinging desperately to the victory provided by Ian Madigan's late try, the only one of a frantic match.
Despite ground capacity having been raised for the occasion to 19,100, they sold the last ticket on Monday morning. Should Ulster fail again, then it will hardly be for a lack of support.
Some 5,000 are expected to travel from various parts of the north, each and every one with reason to believe they are about to witness a piece of history - the first away win at the 17th attempt since the advent of the play-offs seven seasons ago.
Twenty four hours later in Galway the Glasgow Warriors will attempt to do the same at the expense of Connacht, exactly a fortnight after losing there on the last day of the regular season. Another sell-out crowd of almost 8,000 will pack the Sportsground to the rafters.
The Guinness PRO12 Final at BT Murrayfield on Saturday week offers the prospect of an all-Irish affair (Leinster-Connacht, Connacht-Ulster), a repeat of the 2014 final (Leinster- Glasgow Warriors) or a brand new pairing (Glasgow Warriors-Ulster).
Ulster may have finished fourth but they can justifiably claim to be the form team, having taken 18 points from a maximum 20 over their last four matches. As grandstand finishes to the regular season go, theirs has been the best of the play-off quartet.
The Warriors have taken 16 points from their last four matches, Leinster 14, Connacht ten. Intriguingly, the victims of Ulster's winning streak include Leinster, outplayed in Belfast at the end of last month to such an extent that they suffered their worst beating of the season, to the tune of 30-6.
Whether that caused any lasting damage remains to be seen. Leinster, therefore, face the most serious threat to their invincibility in PRO12 semi-finals, as reflected in five straight wins at the RDS over the Warriors (twice), Ulster (twice) and Munster (once).
The challenge for Ulster is to rid themselves of the stigma of having lost too many big games in knock-out competition, the majority of them at the hands and feet of Friday's opponents.
Les Kiss does not need anyone to advise him that Leinster at the RDS take some beating and that they are liable to be an infinitely more dangerous proposition than in Belfast barely a fortnight ago. Kiss, in his first season as Ulster's director of rugby, believed that what happened that night will make Leinster 'an angry bear.'
His reference to the former PRO12 champions as 'a tough beast' in Dublin is supported by cold, hard facts. Leinster have been beaten at the RDS just once in the last eighteen months, by the Newport Gwent Dragons way back in February of last year.
Connacht will rely on a similarly formidable record at the Sportsground in their semi-final on Saturday when the Warriors make a second successive attempt to capture the Galway bastion.
Having lost the first and home advantage to boot, head coach Gregor Townsend makes no bones about what will be required if the Warriors are to take their title defence all the way into another Guinness PRO12 Final - 'a ten-to-twenty per cent improvement in all aspects.''
Only Ulster have won in Galway this season, on Boxing Day when Nick Williams' converted try made the difference. Connacht, in the play-offs for the first time, will demand they achieve the greater feat of ensuring their inspiring season goes the distance and finishes at BT Murrayfield on Saturday week.
How far they have come can be gauged from the fact that when Ulster lost the first of their Cup ties to Leinster five years ago, Connacht were to be found in their natural habitat, marooned in the bottom four. John Muldoon, a permanent fixture back then, will be there as usual on Saturday, determined to ensure his 274th match for Connacht leads to the 275th seven days later.
Should the seventh set of semi-finals go the way of the previous six, his native province will collide with Leinster in Edinburgh. Nobody ought to be at all surprised if Ulster and the Warriors beat them to it because when it comes to the closest of close-run things, Guinness PRO12 semi-finals are in a class of their own.
Leinster v Ulster: How they lined up for the last four major knock-out occasions:
May 13, 2011: PRO12 semi-final at the RDS:
Leinster 18 pts (Tries: F McFadden, L Fitzgerald. Conversion: McFadden. Penalties: J Sexton 2). Ulster 3 (Penalty: R Pienaar)
Leinster: I Nacewa; F McFadden, B O'Driscoll, G D'Arcy, L Fitzgerald; J Sexton, I Boss; C Healy, R Strauss, M Ross; L Cullen, N Hines; S O'Brien, S Jennings, J Heaslip. Substitutes: J Harris-Wright, H van der Merwe, S Wright, D Toner, K McLaughlin, E Reddan, I Madigan, D Kearney
Ulster: A D'Arcy; C Gilroy, D Cave, N Spence, S Danielli; I Humphreys, R Pienaar; T Court, R Best, D Fitzpatrick; J Muller, T Barker; P Wannenburg, C Henry, R Diack. Substitutes: A Kyriacou, P McAllister, J Cronin, N McComb, TJ Anderson, P Marshall, I Whitten, C Gaston
May 19, 2012: European Cup final at Twickenham:
Leinster 42 pts (Tries: S O'Brien, C Healy, penalty try, H van der Merwe, S Cronin. Conversions: J Sexton 3, F McFadden. Penalties: J Sexton 3).
Ulster 14 (Try: D Tuohy. Penalties: R Pienaar 3)
Leinster: R Kearney;F McFadden, B O'Driscoll, G D'Arcy, I Nacewa; J Sexton, E Reddan; C Healy, R Strauss, M Ross; L Cullen, capt., B Thorn; K McLaughlin, S O'Brien, J Heaslip. Substitutes: S Cronin, N White, H van der Merwe, D Toner, S Jennings, D Kearney, I Madigan, J Cooney.
Ulster: S Terblanche; A Trimble, D Cave, P Wallace, C Gilroy; P Jackson, R Pienaar; T Court, R Best, J Afoa; J Muller, capt., D Tuohy; S Ferris, C Henry, P Wannenburg. Substitutes: N Brady, P McAllister, D Fitzpatrick, L Stevenson, W Faloon, A D'Arcy, I Humphreys, P Marshall.
May 25, 2013: PRO12 final at the RDS:
Leinster 24 pts (Tries: S Jennings, J Heaslip. Conversion: J Sexton. Penalties: J Sexton 4).
Ulster 18 (Penalties: R Pienaar 6).
Leinster: I Nacewa; F McFadden, B O'Driscoll, I Madigan, A Conway; J Sexton, I Boss; C Healy, R Strauss, M Ross; L Cullen, capt., D Toner; K McLaughlin, S Jennings, J Heaslip. Substitutes: S Cronin, Q Roux, J Hagan, J McGrath.
Ulster: J Payne; A Trimble, D Cave, S Olding, T Bowe; P Jackson, R Pienaar; T Court, R Best, J Afoa; J Muller, capt., D Tuohy; R Diack, C Henry, N Williams. Substitutes: I Henderson, M Allen, C Black.
May 17, 2014: Guinness Pro 12 semi-final at the RDS:
Leinster 13 pts (Try: I Madigan. Conversion: J Gopperth. Penalties: J Gopperth 2)
Ulster 9 (Penalties: P Jackson 3).
Leinster: R Kearney; F McFadden, B O'Driscoll, G D'Arcy, D Kearney; J Gopperth, E Reddan; C Healy, S Cronin, M Moore; D Toner, Q Roux; R Ruddock, S Jennings, J Heaslip. Substitutes: A Dundon, J McGrath, M Ross, L Cullen, S O'Brien, L McGrath, I Madigan, Z Kirchner.
Ulster: C Gilroy; T Bowe, J Payne, D Cave, A Trimble; P Jackson, R Pienaar; C Black, R Best, R Lutton; J Muller, I Henderson; RDiack, C Henry, R Wilson. Substitutes: A Warwick, D Tuohy, S Doyle, J McKinney, L Marshall.
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