Making Kingspan Stadium a fortress is the minimum requirement for Ulster in pursuit of play-off rugby, as Conference B’s second-placed side resume their GUINNESS PRO14 campaign against Benetton Rugby.
GUINNESS PRO14: Friday, November 24
ULSTER (2nd, Con B) v BENETTON RUGBY (5th, Con B), Kingspan Stadium, 7.05pm (live BBC 2 Northern Ireland)
Team News: Paul Marshall could become just the fifth Ulster player to reach the 200-cap milestone, as he is named among the replacements for tonight’s GUINNESS PRO14 match against Benetton Rugby in Belfast.
Christian Lealiifano will captain the side from midfield where he forms a new centre partnership with Louis Ludik. John Cooney and Peter Nelson are paired together at half-back, while Craig Gilroy, Tommy Bowe and Charles Piutau form an exciting back-three.
Tighthead prop Ross Kane will make his first senior start of the season, with Callum Black and John Andrew joining him in the front row. Kieran Treadwell, who featured in Ireland’s win over Fiji last Saturday, returns to the second row alongside Alan O’Connor.
Aaron Hall and Nick Timoney, two members of the Abbey Insurance Ulster Rugby Academy, are named at openside flanker and number 8 respectively – it will be a senior debut for Ballynahinch clubman Hall. Clive Ross completes the back row.
Fellow Academy forwards Matthew Dalton and Greg Jones are also set for their senior bows, along with South African prop Schalk van der Merwe, as all three are named among the replacements. Rob Herring and Andrew Warwick provide the additional front row back-up. Paul Marshall, Darren Cave and Andrew Trimble will offer plenty of back-line experience from the bench.
A limited number of tickets are still available for tonight’s round 9 game between Ulster and Benetton Rugby. Secure yours now at www.ulsterrugby.com/buytickets.
Meanwhile, Benetton Rugby head coach Kieran Crowley has made five personnel changes to the side that lost 20-8 away to the Scarlets in the previous round of the PRO14.
With international commitments and injuries, the Treviso-based club are down 19 players this week, and the selected back-line sees Luca Sperandio, Alberto Sgarbi and Tommaso Allan come back in at full-back, inside centre and out-half respectively.
Tommaso Benvenuti reverts to the right wing with former Argentina Under-20 international Juan Ignacio Brex switching to the number 13 jersey to accommodate the inclusion of Sgarbi, who takes over the captaincy from Robert Barbieri.
Fiamme Oro prop Giuseppe di Stefano starts at tighthead prop in what will be his PRO14 debut, while the final change sees South African lock Irne Herbst come in for his first start. A strong back row combination includes Barbieri at number 8, in between Kiwi flankers Whetu Douglas and Nasi Manu.
The Italians’ bench is boosted by the availability of Marco Barbini, Marty Banks and Luca Morisi following their respective injuries, while Federico Ruzza will get some game-time after being released by the national management, and former New Zealand Under-20 hooker Hame Faiva is also standing by for his first appearance with his new club.
ULSTER: Charles Piutau; Tommy Bowe, Louis Ludik, Christian Lealiifano (capt), Craig Gilroy; Peter Nelson, John Cooney; Callum Black, John Andrew, Ross Kane, Kieran Treadwell, Alan O’Connor, Clive Ross, Aaron Hall, Nick Timoney.
Replacements: Rob Herring, Schalk van der Merwe, Andrew Warwick, Matthew Dalton, Greg Jones, Paul Marshall, Darren Cave, Andrew Trimble.
BENETTON RUGBY: Luca Sperandio; Tommaso Benvenuti, Juan Ignacio Brex, Alberto Sgarbi (capt), Andrea Bronzini; Tommaso Allan, Giorgio Bronzini; Cherif Traore, Tomas Baravalle, Giuseppe di Stefano, Alessandro Zanni, Irne Herbst, Whetu Douglas, Nasi Manu, Robert Barbieri.
Replacements: Hame Faiva, Nicola Quaglio, Alberto de Marchi, Federico Ruzza, Marco Barbini, Luca Crosato, Marty Banks, Luca Morisi.
Referee: Mike Adamson (Scotland)
Assistant Referees: Leo Colgan, Shane Kierans (both Ireland)
Television Match Official: Peter Fitzgibbon (Ireland)
Match Odds (Paddy Power): Ulster to win: 1/20; Draw: 45/1; Benetton Rugby to win: 11/1
Pre-Match Quotes: Clive Ross (Ulster) – “I was happy just to make a bit of an impact when I got on (against the Southern Kings last time out). It would have been a long trip home after a good week being away as a squad, it would have been a shame if we hadn’t got the result at the end of the week.
“There were definitely aspects we were disappointed in. I suppose, at the end of the day, if you get the five points it’s a good result, but I think there’s definitely a lot of work-ons for us. It came at the end of a pretty big block of games for us and I think we’re reasonably happy with where we sit after that.
“Second in the Conference, a few bad results along the way, but definitely a lot of room for improvement. Historically (Treviso at home) is a fixture we have won in the past. (But) Italian rugby, in general, is on the up with Conor O’Shea over there.
“There’s no ‘gimmes’ in the league, you saw in our last game against the Kings, right up to the last minute the game’s in the balance. We’ll need 80 minutes this Friday. We know they have quality players who aren’t Italians, the likes of Nasi Manu, they’ve got decent players there.”
Top Scorers – 2017/18 GUINNESS PRO14: Ulster – Points: John Cooney 57; Tries: Jacob Stockdale, Andrew Trimble 4 each; Benetton Rugby – Points: Ian McKinley 45; Tries: Angelo Esposito 5
2017/18 TEAM FORM: Ulster – Played 8, Won 6, Lost 2, 28 Points; W 42-19 v Toyota Cheetahs (home), W 21-14 v Benetton Rugby (away), W 27-20 v Scarlets (home), W 52-25 v Dragons (home), L 27-23 v Zebre (away), W 16-8 v Connacht (home), L 25-10 v Leinster (home), W 43-36 v Southern Kings (away); Benetton Rugby – Played 8, Won 3, Lost 5, 14 Points; L 34-3 v Munster (away), L 21-14 v Ulster (home), W 20-17 v Edinburgh (away), W 16-6 v Ospreys (home), L 37-21 v Glasgow Warriors (away), W 31-3 v Southern Kings (home), L 24-13 v Edinburgh (home), L 20-8 v Scarlets (away)
RECENT LEAGUE MEETINGS:
Friday, February 13, 2015 – Ulster 43 Benetton Rugby 3, Kingspan Stadium
Friday, October 2, 2015 – Ulster 48 Benetton Rugby 7, Kingspan Stadium
Saturday, January 30, 2016 – Benetton Rugby 13 Ulster 21, Stadio di Monigo
Saturday, September 10, 2016 – Benetton Rugby 11 Ulster 22, Stadio di Monigo
Friday, March 3, 2017 – Ulster 19 Benetton Rugby 7, Kingspan Stadium
Saturday, September 9, 2017 – Benetton Rugby 14 Ulster 21, Stadio di Monigo
MATCH FACTS:
– Ulster’s last six matches in all competitions have been evenly split with three wins and three defeats
– The Ulstermen’s ten-match unbeaten run in Belfast was ended by Leinster in round 7 of the GUINNESS PRO14
– Ulster were defeated 27-23 at Zebre in round 5 but have never lost successive matches to Italian opponents
– Benetton Rugby have a won three-and-lost three record in the last six rounds of the PRO14, while their only victory away from home this season came at Edinburgh in round 3
– The Italians have lost their last eleven encounters with Irish provinces since beating Connacht in Treviso in April 2016
– Ulster’s only defeat to Benetton in 21 previous fixtures in all competitions was 23-12 in Belfast in October 2011
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