RUGBY:Ruan Pienaar and Johan Muller have helped ensure that Ulster are still competing for honours on two fronts this season says JOHNNNY WATTERSON

FACING TRADITIONAL fare, which this week is a tight match against Glasgow in Firhill, Ulster can take comfort that Ruan Pienaar has become a central part of their, so far, fruitful season.

Alongside Johan Muller, the Springbok input has been one of the Belfast success stories as Ulster now sit in fourth place in the Magners League table and remain in the hunt for a play-off position.

It is not a role the province has been used to in recent years and while scrapping it out with Connacht for Ireland’s automatic Heineken Cup place has been something of an old perennial, there is hushed and guarded talk of a new dawn in the north.

The final kick of the game against Dragons last week arrived via a drop goal from Pienaar, which gave Ulster a most welcome, if slender, victory. Back in October when they met Glasgow in Ravenhill, Pienaar contributed all of Ulster’s points in the 19-17 win, the last score a penalty in the 72nd minute. He has a habit of popping up at the right time.

Combined with the new faces coming through, including 20-year-old winger Conor Gaston, who is in this week’s 36-man squad, the mix of capped players and those with L-Plates has kept Ulster both hungry and alive.

“They make a massive difference,” says Ulster backrow, Chris Henry, of the new African influence. “They are wise heads and in the team we are able to learn off each other. That’s good because there are young players coming through too.

“We have had to fight for every point and it hasn’t always been pretty. But Johan has been terrific. When he speaks you always listen. He steadies the ship. He knows how to defend and attack. He’s an all-round player. If you saw him last week he was all over the pitch tackling and offloading the ball, just a real quality player to have.”

Second row Muller has already featured in 14 Magners League matches, playing the full 80 minutes on 12 occasions , while scrum-half cum outhalf Pienaar has made 10 appearances despite being unavailable for the first four games of the season.

“Ruan has been there and done it,” adds Henry. “He can deliver when he needs to for the team. He also has the best pass I have ever seen. He’s a big guy with these long arms and he gets to the rucks quick. He has many different aspects to his game and for the likes of Paddy Jackson, when he’s in at 10, Ruan can help with the positioning, control and the calls and generally lend his experience, which is invaluable for Paddy.”

With five games left Ulster have the same number of points as Leinster’s 51 but sit one place behind on the table largely because of Leinster’s better defensive record.

Ulster have actually scored more points with 365 points on the board so far to Leinster’s 354 points. Second-placed Ospreys have 54 points and Munster are clear leaders on 63 points.

Keeping forward momentum is what Ulster need to continue and after four recent wins from four, the play-offs are more than just a hopeful goal. For that reason coach Brian McLaughlin has brought the Irish players straight back into the mix. Rory Best, Andrew Trimble, Paddy Wallace and Tom Court reappear, as does winger Simon Danielli, who featured in Scotland’s win over Italy on Saturday.

“At the beginning of the year a top four place was our goal,” says Henry. “That’s where we are. We have huge games coming up (including a Heineken Cup quarter-final away to Northampton). In the last few years the season has been over for us at this stage. The bottom third of the table is not a nice place to be. We are not the finished product but there is a lot of excitement in the squad and we have been able to win ugly when we have to in the way Munster have been able to do it over the years. Last week was ugly and it has not always been plain sailing but we are satisfied where we find ourselves and aim to continue and keep focused week to week.”

How promising has the season been then? Easily equal to the year they won the Heineken Cup in 1999.

Yes, that good, so far.