Ulster assistant coach Joe Barakat says there are ‘big improvements needed’ as the GUINNESS PRO12 leaders measure up against one of their play-off rivals, the Scarlets, at Kingspan Stadium on Sunday.
GUINNESS PRO12: Sunday, February 21
ULSTER (3rd) v SCARLETS (4th), Kingspan Stadium, 2.30pm (live BBC 2 Northern Ireland/S4C)
Team News: Roger Wilson will line out for Ulster for the 200th time after being named in Les Kiss’ starting team for the GUINNESS PRO12 game against the Scarlets at Kingspan Stadium.
Wilson, who made his Ulster debut in September 2003 against the Neath Swansea Ospreys, has played well over 300 professional club games after also enjoying a four-year stint with Northampton Saints, with whom he won the European Challenge Cup in 2009.
Rob Herring has a slight hamstring injury so John Andrew will make his first senior start for Ulster at hooker. Herring’s absence also means that out-half Paddy Jackson will captain the province for the first time.
Andrew is joined in the front row by props Andrew Warwick and Ricky Lutton, while Alan O’Connor and Franco van der Merwe will continue in the second row.
Wilson will be joined in the back row by Robbie Diack and Chris Henry, who will start for the first time since December after fully recovering from injury. Nick Williams is unavailable for selection due to a shoulder injury.
Paul Marshall will partner Jackson at half-back, with Luke Marshall returning from international duty to take a place at inside centre alongside Darren Cave, as Kiss continues to manage his midfield playing resources.
The back-three of Craig Gilroy, Jacob Stockdale and Stuart Olding, who signed a contract extension earlier this week, remains unchanged from the win over Glasgow last week.
Hooker Johnny Murphy could make his competitive debut for the province after being named on the bench. Kyle McCall, Bronson Ross, Peter Browne and Clive Ross are the other forward replacements in Kiss’ squad, while Ruan Pienaar, Ian Humphreys and Sam Arnold are also included in the matchday 23.
Tickets for the Ulster v Scarlets game are still available through www.ulsterrugby.com/buytickets.
Meanwhile, the Scarlets have made two changes to the side that secured a 22-21 victory over Edinburgh last Friday night as the region prepare to take on play-off rivals Ulster.
Head coach Wayne Pivac has named a new half-back pairing in Aled Thomas and Aled Davies, who has been released from Wales camp for this all-important round 15 showdown.
Thomas returns to the starting line-up after making an appearance off the bench last week, kicking the winning penalty in the final moments of the game. Fellow out-half Steve Shingler suffered a medial ligament knee injury in the clash with the Scots and is expected to be out of action for up to 10 weeks.
Maselino Paulino is listed among the replacements as he makes a return from his suspension, with young out-half Dan Jones released from the Wales Under-20s for the weekend’s action.
ULSTER: Stuart Olding; Craig Gilroy, Darren Cave, Luke Marshall, Jacob Stockdale; Paddy Jackson (capt), Paul Marshall; Andrew Warwick, John Andrew, Ricky Lutton, Alan O’Connor, Franco van der Merwe, Robbie Diack, Chris Henry, Roger Wilson.
Replacements: Johnny Murphy, Kyle McCall, Bronson Ross, Peter Browne, Clive Ross, Ruan Pienaar, Ian Humphreys, Sam Arnold.
SCARLETS: Michael Collins; Gareth Owen, Regan King, Hadleigh Parkes (capt), DTH van der Merwe; Aled Thomas, Aled Davies; Phil John, Kirby Myhill, Peter Edwards, George Earle, David Bulbring, Aaron Shingler, Will Boyde, Morgan Allen.
Replacements: Ryan Elias, Dylan Evans, Rhodri Jones, Maselino Paulino, Rory Pitman, Rhodri Williams, Dan Jones, Steffan Evans.
Referee: Ian Davies (Wales)
Assistant Referees: Nigel Correll, John Carvill (both Ireland)
Television Match Official: Alan Rogan (Ireland)
Match Odds (Paddy Power): Ulster to win: 3/10; Draw: 17/1; Scarlets to win: 13/5
Pre-Match Quotes: Joe Barakat (Ulster) – “(Sunday’s match) is huge in terms of where we want to be going. We are at home again and we have to make that count. The Scarlets are a very good side and have shown that over the course of the season, so we will have to improve greatly on the displays we’ve produced in the last couple of matches.
“We have not had the patience required and we’re annoyed that we’re leaving bonus points out there. It is something we that we will need to rectify this week going into the Scarlets game.
“We’re winning ugly but if we don’t fix it, things could start to slip outside of our control in terms of the league table. We’ve got some important games to play and big improvements are needed.”
Wayne Pivac (Scarlets) – “(The win over Edinburgh) was a critical game for us. We have to make sure we do well in home games. It was a very, very important game for us.
“The boys have shown all year long that they’re fighting for every point and every win. It’s one of those seasons where we’ve had a few tight ones. It’s nice to come out on the right side of a few of them. It’s an improvement on last season but we still have a long way to go.
“At the moment Ulster are sitting at the top. We’ll take some confidence from the Dragons’ performance out there and the fact that they were very unlucky to get the result. On the day, if you can string a good performance together you’re in with a good shout. Hopefully we’ll do that on Sunday afternoon.
“It’s important to get a good start; we don’t want to be chasing the game. They’re a really good crowd and get behind the side. We will be looking to chip away at the scoreboard and stay in the game. Hopefully we’ll get some reasonable weather and try to score some tries.”
Top Scorers – 2015/16 GUINNESS PRO12: Ulster – Points: Paddy Jackson 46; Tries: Craig Gilroy, Sean Reidy 4 each; Scarlets – Points: Aled Thomas 74; Tries: DTH van der Merwe 6
RECENT LEAGUE MEETINGS:
Friday, May 10, 2013 – Semi-final – Ulster 28 Scarlets 17, Ravenhill
Saturday, November 2, 2013 – Scarlets 17 Ulster 9, Parc y Scarlets
Friday, March 14, 2014 – Ulster 26 Scarlets 13, Ravenhill
Saturday, September 6, 2014 – Scarlets 32 Ulster 32, Parc y Scarlets
Friday, February 27, 2015 – Ulster 25 Scarlets 20, Kingspan Stadium
Saturday, September 12, 2015 – Scarlets 12 Ulster 22, Parc y Scarlets
MATCH FACTS:
– Ulster head the GUINNESS PRO12 table on points difference from Connacht and are also the best team in the league on current form having gained 22 league points from their last six matches
– The Ulstermen have not lost at home to a team from outside the island since Glasgow Warriors visited the Kingspan Stadium in September 2013
– The Scarlets’ last four PRO12 fixtures have all gone with home field advantage, while the Welshmen have not won on the road in the PRO12 since they visited Treviso in early December
– The Scarlets won 22-12 when the two sides met in Llanelli in September and have not achieved a season’s double over the Ulstermen since 2008/09
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