Home advantage has proven all important in this fixture, so will Leinster end the calendar year with another win at the RDS or can Ulster, with Ruan Pienaar moving to out-half, upset the odds?
GUINNESS PRO12: Saturday, December 31
LEINSTER (3rd) v ULSTER (4th), the RDS, 3pm (live Sky Sports 2 HD/RTÉ Radio 1/highlights TG4)
Team News: Leinster head coach Leo Cullen has announced his team for Saturday’s sold-out New Year’s Eve encounter with Ulster at the RDS.
The GUINNESS PRO12 round 12 tie sees third placed Leinster host Ulster who are only five points behind the hosts in fourth position.
Head coach Cullen has made a total of 12 changes to the side that lined out against Munster in Limerick last Monday, with a new pack starting against the Ulstermen.
In the backs, three players are retained but only out-half Ross Byrne is again selected in the same position, Captain Isa Nacewa moves from the wing to full-back, while Rory O’Loughlin shifts from the centre to the left wing.
Adam Byrne, who missed the Thomond Park game through illness, comes in on the right wing, with fellow UCD clubman Garry Ringrose restored to the midfield. Noel Reid starts this week in the number 12 jersey having come off the bench against Munster. Luke McGrath partners Byrne at half-back.
In the pack, it is a completely new eight with an all-Ireland international front row of Jack McGrath, Sean Cronin and Michael Bent starting together. Devin Toner will win his 190th Leinster cap beside Hayden Triggs in the second row. Back rowers Sean O’Brien, Josh van der Flier and Jamie Heaslip complete the starting line-up.
The interprovincial clash at the RDS is a sell out with all 18,200 tickets now sold. Leinster Rugby have also announced that tickets for the Champions Cup game against Montpellier on Friday, January 13 are also selling fast. Further ticketing information is available at leinsterrugby.ie/tickets.
Meanwhile, Andrew Trimble will return to the Ulster team for their Dublin date with Leinster after recovering from a foot injury sustained while on international duty in November.
Paul Marshall, Darren Cave and Tommy Bowe, who were on the bench for the 23-7 interprovincial win over Connacht last Friday, are also selected in the back-line.
Marshall’s inclusion at scrum half will see Ruan Pienaar shift to out-half, while Cave will partner Stuart McCloskey in midfield. Bowe and Trimble link up with Charles Piutau in the back-three.
Forwards Rob Herring, Franco van der Merwe and Sean Reidy have also been handed starting berths, meaning Les Kiss has made seven personnel changes for the trip south.
Herring will captain the side from hooker and he will be joined in the front row by Andrew Warwick and Rodney Ah You, both of whom have been retained from the Connacht game.
Kieran Treadwell and van der Merwe are paired together in the second row, with Reidy joining Clive Ross and Roger Wilson in the back row.
With Wiehahn Herbst picking up a calf injury in training this week, tighthead prop Jonny Simpson is in line to make his first senior appearance if he is introduced off the bench. John Andrew and Callum Black are the other front row replacements. Peter Browne and Chris Henry will provide additional cover for the pack.
Brett Herron, Jacob Stockdale and Louis Ludik, who will make his 50th Ulster appearance if called upon, complete the province’s matchday 23.
LEINSTER: Isa Nacewa (capt); Adam Byrne, Garry Ringrose, Noel Reid, Rory O’Loughlin; Ross Byrne, Luke McGrath; Jack McGrath, Sean Cronin, Michael Bent, Devin Toner, Hayden Triggs, Sean O’Brien, Josh van der Flier, Jamie Heaslip.
Replacements: Richardt Strauss, Andrew Porter, Jeremy Loughman, Mick Kearney, Jack Conan, Jamison Gibson Park, Tom Daly, Zane Kirchner.
ULSTER: Charles Piutau; Andrew Trimble, Darren Cave, Stuart McCloskey, Tommy Bowe; Ruan Pienaar, Paul Marshall; Andrew Warwick, Rob Herring (capt), Rodney Ah You, Kieran Treadwell, Franco van der Merwe, Clive Ross, Sean Reidy, Roger Wilson.
Replacements: John Andrew, Callum Black, Jonny Simpson, Peter Browne, Chris Henry, Brett Herron, Louis Ludik, Jacob Stockdale.
Referee: John Lacey (Ireland)
Assistant Referees: Frank Murphy, Joy Neville (both Ireland)
Television Match Official: Peter Fitzgibbon (Ireland)
Match Odds (Paddy Power): Leinster to win: 1/6; Draw: 25/1; Ulster to win: 4/1
Pre-Match Quotes: Jack Conan (Leinster) – “Ulster might not have as many internationals as we have, but they still have a good pedigree. We know the dangers they’ll bring and they like to play an expansive wide game, they’ve got the skills to do it and the players to do it.
“It will be a big task for us this weekend, but we always back ourselves at home, and we know the boys who get the opportunity to run out this weekend will right a few wrongs.
“I missed a few games at the start of the season, it was disappointing to get another ankle injury, but I have put it behind me now and I would like to think I am better for it.
“More than anything, it can be mentally tough to deal with at times. But I think I am mentally stronger and physically that bit more developed now. You also get to see so much more standing at the sideline, as much as it is miserable, you do get to discover the nuances of the game, look at videos and see the areas that you can improve, and that is something I tried to work hard on.”
Les Kiss (Ulster) – “Leinster are going to be loaded and, when you look through it, it is hard to find the space where you can pry them open or make them work harder. They have got some really supreme athletes, guys with massive experience in Europe and internationally and it all comes into a melting point that makes it look difficult (for us) that is for sure. They are a tough, tough proposition.
“We are going to try and win for sure, that is what we want to get out of it. Hopefully we have the mindset to go down there to deliver. We just have to make sure we are acutely aware of what we have in front of us.
“A win (against Connacht last week) was the priority and we delivered that. There are certainly things we need to do better. In those conditions, and the way that Connacht can play the game, it was a pretty good result.
“To win that game, with our game in hand, it was important for us. We now have to front up to get ready for a Leinster side that are going to be super strong. We just need to shift a few things against Leinster.”
Top Scorers – 2016/17 GUINNESS PRO12: Leinster – Points: Isa Nacewa 71; Tries: Adam Byrne 5; Ulster – Points: Paddy Jackson 57; Tries: Robert Lyttle 3
2016/17 TEAM FORM: Leinster – Played 11, Won 8, Lost 3, 37 Points; W 20-8 v Benetton Treviso (home), L 33-25 v Glasgow Warriors (away), W 33-20 v Edinburgh (away), W 31-19 v Ospreys (home), W 16-13 v Cardiff Blues (away), W 25-14 v Munster (home), W 24-13 v Connacht (home), W 33-10 v Zebre (away), L 38-29 v Scarlets (away), W 28-15 v Newport Gwent Dragons (home), L 29-17 v Munster (away); Ulster – Played 10, Won 7, Lost 3, 32 Points; W 29-8 v Newport Gwent Dragons (home), W 22-11 v Benetton Treviso (away), W 19-8 v Scarlets (home), W 22-17 v Glasgow Warriors (away), W 9-7 v Ospreys (home), L 30-25 v Connacht (away), L 15-14 v Munster (home), L 28-17 v Edinburgh (away), W 35-22 v Cardiff Blues (away), W 23-7 v Connacht (home)
RECENT LEAGUE MEETINGS:
Saturday, May 17, 2014 – Semi-final – Leinster 13 Ulster 9, the RDS
Saturday, January 3, 2015 – Leinster 24 Ulster 11, the RDS
Friday, April 24, 2015 – Ulster 26 Leinster 10, Kingspan Stadium
Friday, November 27, 2015 – Leinster 8 Ulster 3, the RDS
Saturday, April 30, 2016 – Ulster 30 Leinster 6, Kingspan Stadium
Friday, May 20, 2016 – Semi-final – Leinster 30 Ulster 18, the RDS
MATCH FACTS:
– Leinster have lost two of their last three fixtures in the GUINNESS PRO12 but both losses were played away from home, in Llanelli and in Limerick
– The Leinstermen have not been defeated in Dublin since Toulon visited the Aviva Stadium in December 2015, while their most recent defeat at home in the PRO12 was to the Newport Gwent Dragons in 2015
– Ulster have won their last two matches in the PRO12, in Cardiff and at home to Connacht
– Their two other victories on the road this season were at Benetton Treviso in round 2 and at Glasgow in round 4
– The last six fixtures between the two provinces have all been won by the home side on the day, while Ulster’s only previous victory at the RDS was 22-18 in March 2013
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