Despite the disappointment of their recent European exit, Ulster still look on course for the GUINNESS PRO14 play-offs with Jono Gibbes taking over a side that sits third in Conference A, 11 points clear of fifth-placed Benetton Rugby.
GUINNESS PRO14: Friday, February 9
ULSTER (3rd, Con B) v SOUTHERN KINGS (7th, Con B), Kingspan Stadium, 7.35pm (live BBC 2 Northern Ireland/SuperSport 1)
Team News: Tonight’s GUINNESS PRO14 tie is the first ever meeting between Ulster and the Southern Kings in Belfast, following the South Africans’ move into the Championship last summer. Tickets are still available through ulsterrugby.com/buytickets.
Alan O’Connor, a graduate of the Abbey Insurance Ulster Academy, will captain the side for the first time, in what is head coach Jono Gibbes’ first game in charge since the recent departure of Les Kiss as the province’s director of rugby.
Young out-half Johnny McPhillips, who has made four appearances as a replacement, will make his first senior start. Also in the back-line, Luke Marshall and Craig Gilroy return from injury lay-offs to line out at outside centre and on the right wing respectively.
McPhillips will have experience either side of him in the form of scrum half John Cooney and inside centre Stuart McCloskey, while Robert Lyttle and Charles Piutau will join the returning Gilroy in a potent back-three combination.
Gibbes has opted for Andrew Warwick, John Andrew and Wiehahn Herbst in the front row, with Kieran Treadwell partnering skipper O’Connor in the engine room. The loose forwards are Matthew Rea, Sean Reidy and number 8 Nick Timoney, a recent try scorer in the Champions Cup against La Rochelle.
Hooker Rob Herring has been released from the Ireland camp and will provide cover on the bench, while Matthew Dalton and Jonny Stewart, who both started for the Ireland Under-20s against France in Bordeaux last Friday, are also included among the replacements.
Kyle McCall, Rodney Ah You and Chris Henry are the other forwards included in Ulster’s matchday squad, with Darren Cave and Louis Ludik joining 19-year-old scrum half Stewart as the back-line options.
Meanwhile, speedsters Masixole Banda and Anthonie Volmink will join former Junior Springbok flyer Yaw Penxe in an exciting back-three combination for the Southern Kings in Belfast tonight.
Southern Kings interim coach Barend Pieterse called up the duo after they recovered from niggles and moves Penxe from the left wing to the right. Pieterse is standing in for head coach Deon Davids who could not make the trip duo to health reasons.
He also swapped outside centre Harlon Klaasen for Burton Klaasen in the other back-line change, while keeping faith with the same pack that stood up well during the 45-24 defeat to the Toyota Cheetahs in Bloemfontein two weeks ago.
Harlon Klaasen reverts to the bench where the likes of Jurie van Vuuren and Godlen Masimla will also see some action after being included in place of Lindokuhle Welemu and Rudi van Rooyen.
ULSTER: Charles Piutau; Craig Gilroy, Luke Marshall, Stuart McCloskey, Robert Lyttle; Johnny McPhillips, John Cooney; Andrew Warwick, John Andrew, Wiehahn Herbst, Alan O’Connor (capt), Kieran Treadwell, Matthew Rea, Sean Reidy, Nick Timoney.
Replacements: Rob Herring, Kyle McCall, Rodney Ah You, Matthew Dalton, Chris Henry, Jonny Stewart, Darren Cave, Louis Ludik.
SOUTHERN KINGS: Masixole Banda; Yaw Penxe, Berton Klaasen, Luzuko Vulindlu, Anthonie Volmink; Martin du Toit, Rowan Gouws; Schalk Ferreira, Michael Willemse (capt), Pieter Scholtz, Stephan Greeff, Bobby de Wee, Andisa Ntsila, Martinus Burger, Ruaan Lerm.
Replacements: Stephan Coetzee, Johan Smith, Dayan van der Westhuizen, Jurie van Vuuren, Eital Bredenkamp, Godlen Masimla, Barend Janse van Rensburg, Harlon Klaasen.
Referee: Joy Neville (Ireland)
Assistant Referees: Kieran Barry, Shane Kierans (both Ireland)
Television Match Official: Olly Hodges (Ireland)
Match Odds (Paddy Power): Ulster to win: 1/50; Draw: 70/1; Southern Kings to win: 19/1
Pre-Match Quotes: Luke Marshall (Ulster) – “It’s been frustrating, obviously getting injured just before November and missing a few big games. But that’s the nature of the game, I’m just happy now to be back in the mix and getting some game time.
“Over the last few seasons I’ve been very fortunate injury-wise so it’s just how it is, you have to deal with it. I was doing rehab with Marcell Coetzee, so comparing myself to him, he’s had a horrid time with injuries, so it could always be worse. You feel a bit guilty actually!
“(The recent Ulster ‘A’ game) was enjoyable. Pretty tough conditions, a pretty tough pitch in Llandovery. It was nice for me, it was funny being one of the older players in the team because I’m still only 26, but there are some great young players coming through and that’s encouraging to see.
“Jono (Gibbes) is fully in charge now and everyone knows in here and outside of the organisation what a good coach he is, just look at his record with Leinster – two or three European Cups, and he won the Top 14 with Clermont last year.
“He’s a very good coach and fills the squad with a lot of confidence. He’s a natural leader and he’s going to be really good for us going forward. It’s a shame to lose Les (Kiss) from a coaching point of view and from a personal point of view, but that’s the way it is. We still have a good coaching set-up in place.
“The Southern King gone through a rough patch, but they have a lot of pace in their back-line so they’ll be dangerous. It’ll be a good game on Friday night. Over there (in November), the game got a bit loose at times and we weren’t accurate with the ball and got turned over a few times, and that’s what they love because they have so much gas out in the wide channels and they really punished us.
“We haven’t played to our potential the last few months. We’ve been inconsistent, some good performances and some poor performances. We’re training hard but things aren’t clicking in the games. Some people say about needing a statement, I don’t think that’s the case, I think it’s just getting a good victory to bounce back from that last defeat to Wasps.”
Barend Pieterse (Southern Kings) – “We came close a couple of times and we were poor a couple of times. Overall though, I feel we have continued to grow as a squad and as a team and have shown that we do not have to step aside for anyone in this competition. That first win will come, the important thing for us will be to play for it with determination and not frantic panic.”
“Both (Anthonie) Volmink and (Masixole) Banda are excellent players and do add that extra we are looking for. We are solid in most areas, but need to find that combination of consistency and counter-attack. Ulster will again be a tough task, especially at home, but we remain positive that we can beat any team any day.”
Top Scorers – 2017/18 GUINNESS PRO14: Ulster – Points: John Cooney 77; Tries: Andrew Trimble, Craig Gilroy, Jacob Stockdale 5 each; Southern Kings – Points: Jaw Penxe 25; Tries: Jaw Penxe 5
2017/18 TEAM FORM: Ulster – Played 13, Won 8, Drawn 1, Lost 4, 40 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), W 23-22 v Benetton Rugby (home), D 32-32 v Dragons (away), L 44-16 v Connacht (away), W 24-17 v Munster (home), L 38-7 v Leinster (away); Southern Kings – Played 13, Won 0, Lost 13, 4 Points; L 57-10 v Scarlets (away), L 32-10 v Connacht (away), L 31-10 v Leinster (home), L 43-17 v Zebre (home), L 29-13 v Dragons (away), L 31-3 v Benetton Rugby (away), L 43-13 v Glasgow Warriors (away), L 43-36 v Ulster (home), L 34-30 v Scarlets (home), L 48-21 v Edinburgh (home), L 37-7 v Edinburgh (away), L 45-21 v Toyota Cheetahs (home), L 45-24 v Toyota Cheetahs (away)
RECENT LEAGUE MEETINGS:
Saturday, November 4, 2017 – Southern Kings 36 Ulster 43, Isaac Wolfson Stadium
MATCH FACTS:
– Ulster’s last six matches in all competitions have all been won by the home side on the day, while their only win in the last four rounds of the GUINNESS PRO14 was at home to Munster on New Year’s Day
– Ulster’s only defeat in Belfast in the PRO14 since October 2016 was to Leinster in round 7 this season
– The Southern Kings are still without a victory in the PRO14 this season, their four league points coming in successive encounters at home in November, two of those in their defeat by Ulster
– The Kings lost 32-10 against Connacht in Galway in round 2 on their only previous visit to an Irish province
– The two sides have met just once before with Ulster winning 43-36 in a 12-try thriller at the Wolfson Stadium in Port Elizabeth on November 4
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