Munster will aim to put their collapse in Cardiff behind them when they entertain provincial rivals Ulster, the only unbeaten team left in the GUINNESS PRO14 this season, in a mouth-watering finale to round 5 at Thomond Park.
GUINNESS PRO14: Saturday, September 29
MUNSTER (5th, Con A) v ULSTER (2nd, Con B), Thomond Park, 7.35pm (live eir Sport 1/Premier Sports/deferred TG4)
Team News: There are eight changes to the Munster team beaten in Cardiff last Friday night, with New Zealand-capped scrum half Alby Mathewson making his debut for the province and returning Ireland internationals Keith Earls and Niall Scannell set for their seasonal bows.
Having obtained a work permit in the standard timelines, Mathewson wins his first provincial cap alongside Joey Carbery at half-back. Mike Haley, Dan Goggin, Dave Kilcoyne, Billy Holland and Tommy O’Donnell also come into the starting XV.
Haley starts at full-back with Andrew Conway and Earls on the flanks, while Rory Scannell partners Goggin in midfield. Kilcoyne, Niall Scannell and Stephen Archer make up the front row with Holland returning from injury to link up with recent debutant Tadhg Beirne in the second row.
Captain Peter O’Mahony, O’Donnell and CJ Stander fill the back row berths and complete the starting line-up. Meanwhile, on the bench, hooker Kevin O’Byrne and prop Ciaran Parker are both in line for their first GUINNESS PRO14 action of the season. O’Byrne is returning from a calf injury.
Buy Munster v Ulster tickets online here, from the Munster Rugby Ticket Offices in Irish Independent Park and Thomond Park, or by calling 061 421103. Click here for further information.
Meanwhile, prop Andrew Warwick will become the latest player to reach the 100-cap milestone for Ulster in tonight’s derby match against Munster in Limerick. The 27-year-old loosehead features in the starting front row alongside fellow Ballymena clubman Adam McBurney, who comes in for his first start of the season, and Ross Kane.
Alan O’Connor will captain the Ulstermen from the second row, with Ireland international Iain Henderson returning to partner him in the engine room. Dan McFarland’s men are back on Irish soil after picking up seven points from their tour games against the Isuzu Southern Kings and the Toyota Cheetahs.
Matthew Rea and Nick Timoney are named at blindside and openside respectively in the back row, with former Munster forward Jean Deysel packing down at number 8. John Cooney returns from the scalp laceration he sustained against Kings a fortnight ago to join Billy Burns at half-back.
Ireland Under-20 international Angus Curtis will also earn his first start for the province, getting he nod to partner Darren Cave in midfield. Wingers Angus Kernohan and Craig Gilroy join Peter Nelson in the back-three as the flame-haired full-back runs out for the 50th time in an Ulster senior jersey.
John Andrew, Eric O’Sullivan and Tom O’Toole will provide the front row cover, with Kieran Treadwell and Clive Ross named as the additional forward options. David Shanahan, who crossed twice against the Cheetahs, will cover scrum half, while the Abbey Insurance Ulster Rugby Academy and Banbridge duo of Michael Lowry and James Hume are set to earn their first Ulster senior caps as replacements.
MUNSTER: Mike Haley; Andrew Conway, Dan Goggin, Rory Scannell, Keith Earls; Joey Carbery, Alby Mathewson; Dave Kilcoyne, Niall Scannell, Stephen Archer, Tadhg Beirne, Billy Holland, Peter O’Mahony (capt), Tommy O’Donnell, CJ Stander.
Replacements: Kevin O’Byrne, James Cronin, Ciaran Parker, Jean Kleyn, Arno Botha, Duncan Williams, Ian Keatley, Sam Arnold.
ULSTER: Peter Nelson; Craig Gilroy, Darren Cave, Angus Curtis, Angus Kernohan; Billy Burns, John Cooney; Andrew Warwick, Adam McBurney, Ross Kane, Alan O’Connor (capt), Iain Henderson, Matthew Rea, Nick Timoney, Jean Deysel.
Replacements: John Andrew, Eric O’Sullivan, Tom O’Toole, Kieran Treadwell, Clive Ross, David Shanahan, Michael Lowry, James Hume.
Referee: Dan Jones (Wales)
Assistant Referees: Ian Davies (Wales), Nigel Correll (Ireland)
Television Match Official: Brian MacNeice (Ireland)
Match Odds (Paddy Power): Munster to win: 1/10; Draw: 25/1; Ulster to win: 11/2
Pre-Match Quotes: Rory Scannell (Munster) – “It’s obviously an exciting block (of games) we’re going into. They’re the games you want to be playing in. I’m sure there will be a big lift in intensity and having the international lads feeding back in over the last few weeks has also been exciting.
“It’s looking like we have a pretty strong squad going into these games. It’s quite a tough block, but we’re not looking past Ulster on Saturday night. They’re the only unbeaten team in the league this season, with a draw last weekend and three wins before that. We’re solely concentrating on getting a good performance and hopefully getting a win.
“They had a few good signings and you could almost call Marcell Coetzee a new signing, he’s been playing really well since coming back from injury, and Billy Burns, John Cooney and Will Addison are also flying since the start of the season, so they have threats all over the park.
“Moving from Connacht to Ulster has been a great move for Cooney. He has really kicked on. To be getting regular starts at nine has obviously been massive for him. He has great place-kick ability and we’ll have to be wary of that as well. Hopefully, our discipline will be better than last week (against Cardiff).”
Andrew Warwick (Ulster) – “I think my first game down there (at Thomond Park), we took a bit of a second string team and managed to pull off a result. I’ve also drawn down there. We’ve had some good results there, but it’s always a tough place to go.
“As a pack we really have to front up, especially in mauls. You saw against the Ospreys, Munster got two or three maul tries. We need to get that right this week. It was tough (that win in May 2014). I played tighthead against (Dave) Kilcoyne and he is a really good player, but we did really well that day. Michael Heaney got over for a really good try and it was great to win down there. Hopefully we get that feeling again.
“I remember my first cap well (against Cardiff in March 2014). I came on for Tom Court and I remember the ball went off the top of a lineout to Jared Payne and he broke through. I somehow found myself in the support line and got absolutely nailed by big Filo Paulo. It was a good introduction to professional rugby.
“Probably some of the big European wins (are the standout memories from the 99 caps so far) – Clermont, Toulouse back-to-back, and maybe getting my one and only try against Treviso in 2015 which was good fun. I enjoyed that.”
Top Scorers – 2018/19 GUINNESS PRO14: Munster – Points: Joey Carbery 20; Tries: Rhys Marshall 3; Ulster – Points: John Cooney 44; Tries: David Shanahan 2
2018/19 TEAM FORM: Munster – Played 4, Won 2, Lost 2, 10 Points; W 38-0 v Toyota Cheetahs (home), L 25-10 v Glasgow Warriors (away), W 49-13 v Ospreys (home), L 37-13 v Cardiff Blues (away); Ulster – Played 4, Won 3, Drew 1, 15 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)
RECENT LEAGUE MEETINGS:
Friday, October 30, 2015 – Munster 32 Ulster 28, Thomond Park
Saturday, January 2, 2016 – Ulster 7 Munster 9, Kingspan Stadium
Friday, October 28, 2016 – Ulster 14 Munster 15, Kingspan Stadium
Saturday, April 15, 2017 – Munster 22 Ulster 20, Thomond Park
Monday, January 1, 2018 – Ulster 24 Munster 17, Kingspan Stadium
Saturday, April 28, 2018 – Munster 24 Ulster 24, Thomond Park
MATCH FACTS:
– Munster’s last six matches in the GUINNESS PRO14 have all gone the way of the home side
– The Munstermen’s only home defeat in any competition since February 2017 was to Leinster at Thomond Park at Christmas 2017
– Munster faced fellow Irish provinces on seven occasions last season and won only one: 39-13 against Connacht in Limerick in January
– Ulster are unbeaten in their last nine PRO14 encounters since Cardiff Blues beat them in the Welsh capital in March, a sequence which now includes two drawn matches
– The Ulstermen have won their last five fixtures in Belfast since Edinburgh beat them there 17-16 with an injury-time drop goal from Duncan Weir in February 2018
– Ulster’s only two victories over fellow Irish provinces last season were both at Kingspan Stadium, against Connacht and Munster, while they have not been victorious away from home against an Irish province since a visit to Connacht in December 2015
– Munster failed to achieve a victory over Ulster in either of their two fixtures last season, something that had not happened since 2013/14
– Ulster’s most recent victory at Thomond Park was in May 2014
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