We fully expect Ulster to be celebrating at the end of this one as well!. Picture by rugbypicture.co.uk
Ulster have made just one change to their starting line up for their 100th game in the Heineken Cup, with Ian Whitten coming in to replace injured centre Darren Cave for the vital Pool 4 match against Clermont Auvergne.
Brian McLaughlin has had consistency in selection over recent weeks but the loss of Cave is a big blow for Ulster ahead of a massive encounter at Stade Marcel Michelin. Whitten though, has had plenty of gametime and is a more than able replacement in midfield. The Ulster coach can also call on Nevin Spence who has returned from injury and available from the bench.
Johann Muller will once again lead an all-international pack, in which loose forwards Stephen Ferris, Chris Henry and Pedrie Wannenburg have been in excellent form.
Ulster’s match winners against Leicester, Ruan Pienaar and Andrew Trimble, will be instrumental to Ulster’s hope of victory this time out. Stefan Terblanche gets the nod over Adam D’Arcy at fullback.
Apart from the inclusion of Spence, the only other change among the replacements is Andi Kyriacou coming in for Nigel Brady. The hooker will earn his 50th cap for the Province if he gets any time on the pitch.
Ulster face a difficult task in their 100th European tie. They have never won in France in 14 attempts, while their hosts on Saturday are unbeaten at home in 38 matches. But Ulster will be buoyed by the performance against Leicester last week and are determined to create history by making the knockout stages in two consecutive years for the first time in their history.
Attack coach Neil Doak said: “This weekend is all about clearing the next hurdle in our progression. It was great to reach the quarter-finals last year and be highly competitive against Northampton Saints, but the game in Clermont is much bigger than last year’s quarter-final.
“We’ve got to go and get the monkey off our back by winning in France for the first time and we want to put ourselves in with a chance of a home draw in the last eight. Munster and Leinster are already there and it would be great for Irish rugby if we had three provinces in the quarter-finals for the first time. We have been building nicely towards this game and the players all know how important it is.”
Ulster (15-9): Stefan Terblanche, Andrew Trimble, Ian Whitten, Paddy Wallace, Craig Gilroy, Ian Humphreys, Ruan Pienaar. (1-8): Tom Court, Rory Best, John Afoa, Johann Muller (capt), Dan Tuohy, Stephen Ferris, Chris Henry, Pedrie Wannenburg. (16-23): Andi Kyriacou, Callum Black, Adam Macklin, Lewis Stevenson, Willie Faloon, Paul Marshall, Nevin Spence, Adam D’Arcy
Clermont (15-9): Lee Byrne, Sitiventi Sivivatu, Aurelien Rougerie, Wesley Fofana, Julien Malzeiu, David Skrela Morgan Parra. (1-8): Lionel Faure, Ben Kayser, Clement Ric, Julien Pierre, Natahn Hines, Gerhard Vosloo, Julien Bards, Julien Bonnaire. (16-23): Tii Paulo, Vincent Dbaty, Daniel Kotze, Jamie Cudmore, Alexandre Lepandry, Kevin Senio, Brock James, Regan King.
If Ulster produce the same performance as they did last week then they have every chance of getting a win. They have them in the front row and both Skrella and James have proved rather flakey of late, especially if they have an eye out for Ferris and Henry running at them.
Not much else needs to be said, it’s in our own hands and we fully expect Ulster to do the business and qualify in top spot with a more than comfortable win.
Over on Paddy Power you can currently get 4/1 for an Ulster win and if you click on this link and sign up with Paddy Power through the Front Row Union, or on any of the Paddy Power ads on the site you can get a free £50 bet on this week’s rugby.
Our friends at the Errigle will be covering the game upstairs in the Arbele Lounge with three big screens and the match in HD. The Errigle have covered every televised Ulster and Ireland game this season so show them your support and get along for this one it’s going to be a cracker. Details here.
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