After their ugly Champions Cup exit Glasgow could hardly have looked more comfortable as they returned to the Pro14 and their home turf to register a commanding 30-7 win that enhanced both Scottish teams’ prospects.

Their bonus point win protected their own lead at the top of Conference A as they bid to earn a home semi-final, while the failure of Ulster to register so much as a losing bonus point means Edinburgh can close to within two or three points of them in the battle to finish second to Leinster in Conference B, if they can win at the Scarlets tonight.

Impressive set-piece play set the platform for the home side at Scotstoun as they repeatedly stole lineout ball and won several scrummage penalties, but they were superior to their visitors in every department.

While Ulster had the better of the early exchanges, Niko Matawalu thought he had claimed an opportunist try with an interception close to halfway that left him with a clear route to the line, but referee Stuart Berry was playing an advantage for offside.

At the other end Michael Lowry was released on the left, taking play deep into the Warriors 22 and play was then stretched to the right flank where Kyle Steyn carried Rob Lyttle into touch, only for Mr Berry to take play back across the field because of another Glasgow misdemeanour. That let Ulster put the ball into the corner and, after they set up the drive, Rob Herring broke off the back of the maul to plough over for a try that was converted by John Cooney.

Playing into the wind Ulster were threatening again when a Stuart Hogg allowed Adam Hastings to fire the ball deep into the opposition half and while prop Eric O’Sullivan did well to get back to the ball first he was penalised for holding onto the ball too long on the ground.

That gave Hogg the chance to knock the ball into the corner and his pack took their turn to drive for the line, Fraser Brown matching his opposite number’s effort in claiming the touchdown, with Hastings then levelling the scores.

They then moved ahead in more typical fashion, shifting the ball wide from a lineout on Ulster’s 22 and Kyle Steyn injecting pace and power in the midfield before he was hauled down 10 metres short and while Hogg looked to have been taken out illegally, he recovered to help ensure that the ball was recycled quickly, allowing Ali Price to fire it to Hastings forced his way through Cooney’s tackle and get to the line.

Hastings missed the conversion, but extended Glasgow’s advantage with a long-range penalty soon after and they then ended the half in style, stretching Ulster’s defence in keeping the ball alive through 17 speedy phases as the match moved into injury time, before stretching it sufficiently to create an overlap on the right where Hogg committed the last defender, then sent fellow British & Irish Lion Tommy Seymour into the corner to make it 20-7 at the break.

It took them less than four minutes of the second half to register the fourth try that guaranteed a bonus point, working their way into the Ulster 22 down the right before sending it across the field where Price made a half break and, with advantage being played for a high tackle on the scrum-half, Zander Fagerson then collecting his speculative pass to batter his way over from.

Ulster appeared to have responded quickly when they took their turn to build phases in the opposition 22 before Jacob Stockdale made a half break and fed Luke Marshall who crossed the line, only to lose the ball in Seymour’s desperate cover tackle.

A Hastings penalty then put Glasgow out of range and Ulster knew for sure it was not their night when Lyttle made a superb cross-field from deep inside his own half, covering some 70 metres before stretching for the line in the right line as he was tackled by Tommy Seymour only for the Glasgow winger to be rewarded for his determination a second time as television replays showed that his opposite number had grounded the ball millimetres short before losing control of the ball.