With the newly-arrived Dan McFarland in the coaches’ box and three debutants in the back-line, there is a huge sense of anticipation and excitement surrounding Ulster’s GUINNESS PRO14 opener against the Scarlets.
GUINNESS PRO14: Saturday, September 1
ULSTER v SCARLETS, Kingspan Stadium, 5.15pm (live Premier Sports/eir Sport 2/S4C/BBC Radio Ulster)
Team News: The team has been announced for Ulster’s opening GUINNESS PRO14 match against the Scarlets at Kingspan Stadium on Saturday, as Dan McFarland’s coaching reign in Belfast gets underway.
New signings Will Addison, Billy Burns and Henry Speight will all make their PRO14 debuts after being named in the starting back-line. Ireland internationals John Cooney and Iain Henderson will also start after missing the two pre-season fixtures against Gloucester and Wasps.
Cooney and Burns are paired together at half-back for the first time, while Darren Cave and Stuart McCloskey will provide a familiar look to the midfield. Addison and Speight, the 19-times capped Australia international, are joined in the back-three by Craig Gilroy, who scored 10 tries in as many PRO14 matches last season.
Abbey Insurance Academy graduate Tom O’Toole, who signed his first senior contract earlier this week, will start at tighthead prop, earning his sixth cap. The 19-year-old will be joined in the front row by Ballymena clubmen Andrew Warwick and John Andrew.
Alan O’Connor will captain the Ulstermen from the second row alongside Henderson. South African powerhouse Marcell Coetzee, who made a welcome return to action last weekend in the game against Wasps, combines in the back row with Sean Reidy and Nick Timoney.
Academy player Eric O’Sullivan could make his competitive debut for the province as a replacement. The loosehead prop, who has caught the eye for Dublin University, Banbridge and the Ireland Club XV in recent seasons, is joined on the bench by fellow forwards Adam McBurney, Ross Kane, Kieran Treadwell and Chris Henry.
Dave Shanahan, Angus Curtis and Angus Kernohan, the 19-year-old sub-Academy winger who showed impressive form in pre-season and is also in line for a PRO14 debut, are the back-line options. Martin Moore (calf) and Kyle McCall (elbow) picked up injuries in training and are unavailable for selection this week.
To purchase tickets for Ulster v Scarlets, simply click here or contact the Ulster Rugby ticket office for more information – tel: (028) 9049 3222 (option 2). Admission to the game is included in Ulster’s 2018/19 Season Ticket packages.
Meanwhile, club captain Ken Owens makes a return to the starting line-up to lead the Scarlets in Belfast. The visitors are hampered by a heavy early season injury list, which includes Leigh Halfpenny (groin), Jake Ball (bicep tendon), Johnny McNicholl (facial fracture), Hadleigh Parkes (finger), Aaron Shingler (knee) and Samson Lee (cheekbone).
Springbok number 8 Uzair Cassiem’s competitive debut for the Welsh region is also delayed due to a calf injury which is expected to sideline him for four weeks, but welcome news sees fit-again Wales and Lions star Jonathan Davies set for his first competitive game since last November, lining out with new centre partner Kieron Fonotia.
There are also debuts this weekend for new signings Sam Hidalgo-Clyne, the Scotland scrum half, and full-back Clayton Blommetjies and flanker Blade Thomson who have moved north from the Cheetahs and Hurricanes respectively.
ULSTER: Will Addison; Craig Gilroy, Darren Cave, Stuart McCloskey, Henry Speight; Billy Burns, John Cooney; Andrew Warwick, John Andrew, Tom O’Toole, Alan O’Connor (capt), Iain Henderson, Marcell Coetzee, Sean Reidy, Nick Timoney;
Replacements: Adam McBurney, Eric O’Sullivan, Ross Kane, Kieran Treadwell, Chris Henry, Dave Shanahan, Angus Curtis, Angus Kernohan.
SCARLETS: Clayton Blommetjies; Tom Prydie, Jonathan Davies, Kieron Fonotia, Steff Evans; Rhys Patchell, Sam Hidalgo-Clyne; Rob Evans, Ken Owens (capt), Werner Kruger, David Bulbring, Steve Cummins, Blade Thomson, James Davies, Josh Macleod.
Replacements: Ryan Elias, Phil Price, Simon Gardiner, Ed Kennedy, Dan Davis, Gareth Davies, Dan Jones, Ioan Nicholas.
Referee: Marius Mitrea (Italy)
Assistant Referees: Andrea Piardi (Italy), John Carvill (Ireland)
Television Match Official: Leo Colgan (Ireland)
Match Odds (Paddy Power): Ulster to win: 8/11; Draw: 14/1; Scarlets to win: 11/10
Pre-Match Quotes: Dan McFarland (Ulster) – “It’s a great game to start with. The runners-up last year, the Champions Cup semi-finalists, 19 internationals, a great brand of rugby, a future Welsh coach in Wayne Pivac. It’ll be a great test, a barometer of where we are. It’s the first chance for me as a new head coach to really find out about the guys.
“Looking in from the outside, I see a successful legacy here at Ulster. So what is the first thing I do? I look for clues…what is it that brought the success in the first place, where are they? Draw those out and keep them. I remember when I came up here to play (with Connacht), it was Ulster’s competitive spirit…that fight for every inch mentality that you came upon on the pitch.
“Nothing was given for free. When I look at the players now that’s the first thing I’m looking for. Before the detail and everything else we have to lay down that marker and show that kind of spirit and giving them the mechanisms to do that. It’s not just question of asking for it. It’s providing them with the opportunities to do it, to be competitive.”
Wayne Pivac (Scarlets) – “It’s going to be a good challenge in Belfast, Ulster are probably in a similar boat to us. It will probably be a level playing field. I don’t think anyone expects to play grand final rugby in the first round of the Championship.
“We certainly don’t expect to be hitting our straps in the opening rounds. For us it’s about getting the timing right and with the injuries we’ve got – 14 in all – and return dates on those injuries, we’re expecting to get stronger as we go along.”
Top Scorers – 2017/18 GUINNESS PRO14: Ulster – Points: John Cooney 175; Tries: Craig Gilroy 10; Scarlets – Points: Leigh Halfpenny 101; Tries: Johnny McNicholl 9
RECENT LEAGUE MEETINGS:
Saturday, September 12, 2015 – Scarlets 12 Ulster 22, Parc y Scarlets
Sunday, February 21, 2016 – Ulster 20 Scarlets 21, Kingspan Stadium
Friday, September 16, 2016 – Ulster 19 Scarlets 8, Kingspan Stadium
Friday, January 6, 2017 – Scarlets 16 Ulster 13, Parc y Scarlets
Friday, September 15, 2017 – Ulster 27 Scarlets 20, Kingspan Stadium
Saturday, February 24, 2018 – Scarlets 34 Ulster 10, Parc y Scarlets
MATCH FACTS:
– Ulster have begun their GUINNESS PRO14 season with a defeat only once since 2009: 15-8 at the Dragons in 2013, although for seven of the last nine years they have been at home in round 1
– The Ulstermen were unbeaten in their last five matches last season, while their only two defeats at Kingspan Stadium in 2017/18 were to Leinster in round 7 and Edinburgh in round 15
– The Scarlets were last season’s GUINNESS PRO14 runners-up, their defeat to Leinster in the final ending a three-math winning run in the Championship
– The Scarlets won only two of their eight fixtures against Irish provinces in all competitions last season, both at home in the PRO14, to Connacht in round 5 and Ulster in round 16
– The Scarlets are the only Welsh region to emerge victorious at Kingspan Stadium since February 2013, doing so with a one-point victory in February 2016
– The last four fixtures between the two sides have all been won by the home side on the day, while the Scarlets’ only success in Belfast since 2008 came in 2016
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