Barker and Faloon start again for Ulster. Picture rugbypicture.co.uk
Just as soon as I get the write up published Ulster go and call the whole thing off!
Ulster’s match against the Dragons has been called off.
The Round 10 fixture was due to be played at Ravenhill tomorrow night but with no sign of the freezing weather conditions easing up, and the Dragons due to travel this evening, Ulster Rugby have been forced to call off the game after a pitch inspection this lunchtime.
The game will now be re-scheduled by the Magners League and supporters holding tickets for the match are advised that they will be valid for the re-scheduled fixture.
Anyway I’ll leave the rest so you can have a bit of a read tomorrow night instead of watching the game. It does sort of scupper Ulster’s plans for next week though – on such small things do Heineken campaigns crumble!
Ulster have named their side to take on the Dragons at Ravenhill this Friday night, 3rd December, KO 7.05pm.
There are three changes to the starting line-up which defeated Treviso 9-19 last weekend.
Andrew Trimble and Tom Court return with Craig Gilroy and Bryan Young making way respectively. Young moves to the bench while Gilroy, who will not be eligible to play in next weekend’s Heineken Cup game against Bath because he is not ERC registered, is not included in the squad.
Paddy Wallace has also been ruled out with a sore back and is replaced by Ian Whitten.
Ulster: (15-9): Adam D’Arcy; Andrew Trimble, Darren Cave, Ian Whitten, Simon Danielli; Ian Humphreys, Paul Marshall (1-8) Tom Court, Nigel Brady, BJ Botha, Tim Barker, Dan Tuohy, Pedrie Wannenburg, Willie Faloon, Chris Henry (Captain).(16-23): Andi Kyriacou, Paddy McAllister, Bryan Young, Neil McComb, Stephen Ferris, Ruan Pienaar, Niall O’Connor, Nevin Spence.
Ulster need to be aware of the timing of this game as it is a difficult enough fixture at the best of times but now has the added banana skin of being a trial for the upcoming Heineken Cup matches.
Surprised not to see Jamie Smith involved as he looked very sharp for the Ravens against Leinster the other week and he probably would have been in the squad but for Paddy withdrawing and Cave taking a knock last week leaving Spence the best option for cover. I am pleased to see Niall O’Connor back in the mix and I suspect he and Pienaar will be given substantial game time in preparation for next two weeks.
As I said in the squad announcement I also expect Ferris to swap out with Wannenburg though it wouldn’t surprise me if he swaps with Faloon and they have yet another look at three ball carriers in the back row. This would put Ferris at 6, Henry at 7 and Wannenburg at 8 and have been pretty determined to have these three on the pitch at the same time. A mistaken determination in my opinion!
On paper this is Ulster’s to throw away but if they play like a team of individuals with their minds on next week the hard working Dragons side are just the team to take advantage.
Reading between the lines I think captain Chris Henry is aware of this:
We’ve had two very good wins away from home, at two difficult places to go away to and win, so our confidence has received a massive boost lately. We need to make sure we don’t get ahead of ourselves though – the Dragons’ are a strong side and have always proved a difficult fixture for us, so we won’t be underestimating them. We need to be on our game but if we continue to play the way we did against Cardiff and Treviso, it’s definitely a game we can win.
A lot of guys have had a chance to step up to the mark with the Autumn Internationals taking place, and they’ve all played extremely well and provided extra competition for places within the squad. Now, with our Internationals returning and some of the guys coming back from injury, it’s a good place to be at the minute. We’re totally focused on taking our opportunities on Friday and the points which are on offer.
I don’t see Ulster running away with this but I do see a win by around 10 points with no bonus point.
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