There is plenty at stake for Leinster and Ulster as they meet in a mouth-watering Conference B battle at the RDS in 2019’s opening round of GUINNESS PRO14 action.
GUINNESS PRO14: Saturday, January 5
LEINSTER (1st, Con B) v ULSTER (2nd, Con B), the RDS, 5.15pm (live Premier Sports 2/eir Sport 1/RTÉ Radio 1/BBC Radio Ulster 1341 MW/deferred TG4)
Team News: Rob Kearney is back from ‘a bad dead leg’ to lead Leinster out in front of a capacity crowd as they kick off 2019 by hosting provincial rivals Ulster at the RDS this evening.
With 14 personnel changes from last Saturday’s 26-17 loss to Munster, Adam Byrne comes in on the right wing as does Barry Daly on the left. Daly has recovered from the knee injury that forced his premature withdrawal during the first round win in Cardiff.
Noel Reid, the only player who is retained from the Limerick game, is joined by Mullingar native Conor O’Brien in the centre, while Skerries youngster Ciaran Frawley and Jamison Gibson-Park form the province’s half-back pairing for their first match of 2019.
There is a welcome return for experienced loosehead Jack McGrath, who has recovered from a hip injury to take his place in the front row alongside fellow internationals Sean Cronin and Andrew Porter. Ross Molony and Mick Kearney are selected together in the second row.
19-year-old Academy flanker Scott Penny, who touched down against the Ospreys and the Dragons recently, is part of a freshened up back row along with Josh Murphy and Max Deegan. Another Academy talent, 21-year-old lock Oisin Dowling, is poised to make his Leinster debut off the bench.
Meanwhile, Ulster head coach Dan McFarland has selected a much-changed matchday squad for their New Year trip to Dublin, with their starting XV including four Abbey Insurance Academy players in the form of Matthew Dalton, Angus Kernohan, James Hume and Michael Lowry.
Robert Lyttle also makes a welcome return from a lengthy spell on the sidelines to start on the right wing. Lyttle, who scored two tries in his last outing for the province against the Southern Kings last February, combines with Kernohan and Lowry in a back-three that has an average age of just 20.
Hume and Darren Cave, who has 218 Ulster caps to his name, are paired together in midfield, with Johnny McPhillips and David Shanahan, the province’s leading PRO14 try scorer this season with five tries, manning the half-back berths.
Up front, Greg Jones will make his first start of the season after being included in the back row alongside Sean Reidy and Nick Timoney. Alan O’Connor has recovered from an ankle injury sustained against Cardiff Blues in early December and will partner seasonal debutant Dalton in the second row.
Wiehahn Herbst is another player who is off the injury list having not featured since September. Returning from a groin injury, he will pack down in the front row alongside 22-year-old hooker Adam McBurney and tighthead Kyle McCall.
There are two potential debutants on the bench with call-ups for versatile Banbridge forward Caleb Montgomery and Ballymena out-half Bruce Houston, who played for the Ireland Under-20s against the Munster Development side in Cork last Saturday.
Forwards John Andrew, Andrew Warwick, who is back from a knee injury, Tom O’Toole and Clive Ross, along with backs Jonny Stewart and Peter Nelson, make up the remainder of the matchday 23, as Ulster chase only their third away win of the current PRO14 campaign.
LEINSTER: Rob Kearney (capt); Adam Byrne, Conor O’Brien, Noel Reid, Barry Daly; Ciaran Frawley, Jamison Gibson-Park; Jack McGrath, Sean Cronin, Andrew Porter, Ross Molony, Mick Kearney, Josh Murphy, Scott Penny, Max Deegan.
Replacements: James Tracy, Ed Byrne, Michael Bent, Oisin Dowling, Caelan Doris, Hugh O’Sullivan, Ross Byrne, Jimmy O’Brien.
ULSTER: Michael Lowry; Robert Lyttle, Darren Cave, James Hume, Angus Kernohan; Johnny McPhillips, David Shanahan; Kyle McCall, Adam McBurney, Wiehahn Herbst, Matthew Dalton, Alan O’Connor (capt), Greg Jones, Sean Reidy, Nick Timoney.
Replacements: John Andrew, Andrew Warwick, Tom O’Toole, Caleb Montgomery, Clive Ross, Jonny Stewart, Bruce Houston, Peter Nelson.
Referee: Andrew Brace (Ireland)
Assistant Referees: George Clancy, Kieran Barry (both Ireland)
Television Match Official: Olly Hodges (Ireland)
Match Odds (Paddy Power): Leinster to win: 1/25; Draw: 50/1; Ulster to win: 13/1
Pre-Match Quotes: Rob Kearney (Leinster) – “There’s a lot of guys in that Ulster team now who have played a lot this season, some of them have played a bit of Champions Cup rugby at the start of the year and they’ll certainly be coming down looking to put in a good performance with Racing ahead for them next week.
“I think they’ve improved defensively a lot. Jared (Payne) obviously worked closely over the last few months with Andy Farrell so they’ll be quite similar in terms of how they defend, a bit like Munster did in Limerick last weekend.
“I got a few sessions under my belt last week and was back on the field Thursday. I think the key for me is just making sure my body is right and getting some good games and particularly training. Weeks of training leads you into playing a bit better and then you build momentum.”
Jared Payne (Ulster) – “There has been a pretty good buzz amongst the guys in training, in particular. The young players are keen and excited and that is having a really positive effect on the group as a whole. I think once you see that they are making progress, it gives everyone a lift and reaffirms that we are on the right path in terms of our development as a group.
“You’ve got to manage the team during this period, so there will be a few changes and a few good opportunities for younger players. They have done really well for us and I can’t wait to see some of them get another run-out. Saturday represents a great chance for them.
“People don’t expect much from the group, going down to play Leinster, so there’s no better opportunity to play without fear. That’s a pretty good place to be. The first thing is that we’ve got to front up physically. So the boys will front up and get stuck into them.
“But it’s important that we don’t cross the line in terms of not doing anything silly. We gave away a few silly penalties and lost the ball a bit too much against Connacht (in the last round), which we can’t afford to do again.
“At the end of the day, it all comes down to accuracy. The players will have this at the forefront of their minds – to be more accurate in key areas and, hopefully, not give the opposition many chances.”
Top Scorers – 2018/19 GUINNESS PRO14: Leinster – Points: Ross Byrne 53; Tries: Bryan Byrne 5; Ulster – Points: John Cooney 62; Tries: David Shanahan 5
2018/19 TEAM FORM: Leinster – Played 12, Won 10, Lost 2, 49 Points; W 33-32 v Cardiff Blues (away), L 23-21 v Scarlets (away), W 52-10 v Dragons (home), W 31-7 v Edinburgh (home), W 20-3 v Connacht (away), W 30-22 v Munster (home), W 31-3 v Benetton Rugby (away), W 38-31 v Isuzu Southern Kings (away), W 52-7 v Ospreys (home), W 59-10 v Dragons (away), W 33-29 v Connacht (home), L 26-17 v Munster (away); Ulster – Played 12, Won 7, Drawn 1, Lost 4, 33 Points; W 15-13 v Scarlets (home), W 30-29 v Edinburgh (home), W 28-7 v Isuzu Southern Kings (away), D 39-39 v Toyota Cheetahs (away), L 64-7 v Munster (away), L 22-15 v Connacht (home), W 36-18 v Dragons (home), W 15-10 v Benetton Rugby (away), L 29-12 v Scarlets (away), W 16-12 v Cardiff Blues (home), W 19-12 v Munster (home), L 21-12 v Connacht (away)
RECENT LEAGUE MEETINGS:
Saturday, April 30, 2016 – Ulster 30 Leinster 6, Kingspan Stadium
Friday, May 20, 2016 – Semi-final – Leinster 30 Ulster 18, the RDS
Saturday, January 31, 2016 – Leinster 22 Ulster 7, the RDS
Saturday, May 6, 2017 – Ulster 17 Leinster 13, Kingspan Stadium
Saturday, October 28, 2017 – Ulster 10 Leinster 25, Kingspan Stadium
Saturday, January 6, 2018 – Leinster 38 Ulster 7, the RDS
MATCH FACTS:
– Leinster’s nine-match winning run in the GUINNESS PRO14 ended with their 26-17 defeat at provincial rivals Munster last Saturday
– The Leinstermen’s only home defeat in any tournament since the 2017 PRO14 semi-final was to Benetton Rugby in the Championship last April
– The last Irish province to defeat Leinster at the RDS was Ulster in March 2013
– Ulster’s four-match winning run in all tournaments ended with their 21-12 loss to Connacht in Galway last weekend
– The Ulstermen have won just twice on the road in the PRO14 this season, at the Isuzu Southern Kings in round 3 and at Benetton Rugby in round 8
– The Ulstermen are without a win in their last eight away games against fellow Irish provinces since beating Connacht in Galway in December 2015
– Leinster’s only loss in their last five fixtures with Ulster was in Belfast in May 2017
– The only time that Ulster have beaten Leinster in Dublin in the Championship was at the RDS in March 2013
– The two provinces have met on 154 previous occasions with Leinster having the edge by 79 wins to 60, and there have been 15 games drawn since they first met in 1875
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