URC quarter-final: Leinster v Ulster (KO 5pm, live on TG4 and Premier Sports)
The Aviva Stadium is the setting on Saturday as Leinster and Ulster lock horns for the third time in this season’s United Rugby Championship.
After getting the better of Leinster in a New Year’s Day clash at the RDS on a final score of 22-21, Ulster also recorded a slender win at the expense of their interprovincial rivals at Kingspan Stadium in Belfast on May 18th. While there is a different dynamic to the latest meeting between the two teams, the fact that the northern province did the double over Leinster in the regular season of the URC does add intrigue to this quarter-final showdown at Irish Rugby HQ.
While only two of the team – namely Jimmy O’Brien and James Ryan – that began last month’s game in Ravenhill are included in the first 15, there are six survivors from the Leinster side that started their January 1st reversal at the hands of Ulster. Yet given how much has changed in Ulster since the latter encounter, their second duel of the 2023/24 season perhaps offers more of an indication of what to expect in the Aviva tomorrow.
Whereas Dan McFarland was still at the helm back in January, he subsequently vacated his post as Ulster head coach less than two months later. He was ultimately replaced by Richie Murphy following the conclusion of Ireland’s U20s Six Nations campaign (initially on an interim basis before he was eventually made McFarland’s permanent successor) and the former Leinster skills and kicking coach was in charge when his current employers overcame his old side in mid-May.
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Having started the New Year’s Day fixture at inside centre, Robbie Henshaw will finds himself in the number 13 jersey at the Aviva. Speaking earlier this week, the Westmeath man acknowledged Ulster will be a much different proposition a little over five months later.
“I think you can see they have gotten better and they have improved their performances over the last two weeks,” Henshaw said.
“I think they will be a challenge for us this week in the Aviva. We’ll be keen to go out strong and play our best rugby against them, because they have had two wins against us this season.”
Having rested a host of their first-choice players for a convincing bonus-point triumph over Connacht at the RDS last Friday, Leinster will return to the Aviva with 12 of the team that started the agonising Champions Cup final defeat to Toulouse in London last month.
The presence of Hugo Keenan in the Ireland Sevens squad sees Jimmy O’Brien getting the nod at full-back, while James Ryan and Josh van der Flier – who came off the bench in the Toulouse game – are included at second row and openside flanker respectively.
Provided The Bulls can get past the challenge of Benetton in their last-eight encounter, the prize on offer for either Leinster or Ulster tomorrow is a URC semi-final trip to Loftus Versfeld Stadium in Pretoria next weekend.
Despite their successes over Leinster earlier this season, Ulster will nevertheless come into tomorrow’s game as underdogs. While their opponents are seeking to avoid a third consecutive campaign without a major trophy to show for their efforts, the last piece of silverware that the northern province picked up was a Celtic League title back in 2006.
Both Stuart McCloskey and Tom O’Toole did see action during Ireland’s march towards a Six Nations Championship in the spring, however, and with the likes of Jacob Stockdale, John Cooney, Rob Herring and Nick Timoney also included in the starting line-up, there is plenty of experience and know-how within their ranks for tomorrow’s game.
Leinster: Jimmy O’Brien; Jordan Larmour, Robbie Henshaw, Jamie Osborne, James Lowe; Ross Byrne, Jamison Gibson-Park; Andrew Porter, Dan Sheehan, Tadhg Furlong; Joe McCarthy, James Ryan (capt); Ryan Baird, Josh van der Flier, Caelan Doris.
Replacements: Rónan Kelleher, Cian Healy, Michael Ala’alatoa, Ross Molony, Max Deegan, Luke McGrath, Sam Prendergast, Ciarán Frawley.
Ulster: Stewart Moore; Mike Lowry, Will Addison, Stuart McCloskey, Jacob Stockdale; Billy Burns, John Cooney; Eric O’Sullivan, Rob Herring (capt), Tom O’Toole; Harry Sheridan, Cormac Izuchukwu, Matty Rea, David McCann, Nick Timoney.
Replacements: Tom Stewart, Andy Warwick, Scott Wilson, Greg Jones, Dave Ewers, Nathan Doak, Ethan McIlroy, Jude Postlethwaite.
Referee: Andrew Brace (IRFU).
