Ulster Rugby v Ospreys

ROD NAWN

With World Cup fever set aside for the evening, Ulster fans can help inspire a winning start to a new Guinness PRO14 campaign which can set the raucous tone in the chase for honours. EXPECTANTULSTER RELISHOPENING

The lengthy preparation has meant the eye- catching recruits have had time to ‘bed in’, and those such as Matt Faddes, Sam Carter, Bill Johnston and props Jack McGrath and Gareth Milasinovich promise to be refreshing, gifted influences alongside the established Kingspan Stadium favourites. There’s competition in every position, something every coach desires, and what augurs well for the future of the club and the international side is that of the 44 players in the senior squad to date, 41 are Irish-qualified. And one of that number will be straining to announce that he’s back to full fitness and ready to bring his prolific try-scoring habit back to competitive rugby. Craig Gilroy’s eleven-month absence through injury has been frustrating for him, coaches and supporters alike, but in the back-to-back warm-up games with Glasgow Warriors this month he showed that his instinct for the opposition line, and his jinking, almost mischievous running, are unimpaired. His competitive streak is a ‘given’ and Gilroy quite properly aims to make his Ulster performances draw the international spotlight on him again. It has to be a signal of the scoring potential at Kingspan Stadium that Rob Lyttle and Robert Baloucoune are amongst credible

This Friday evening, Ulster’s faithful will pack Kingspan Stadium’s stands and terraces with some confidence for the long season ahead, though the visiting Ospreys will be determined to set down a ‘marker’ of their own. Both squads have had protracted pre- seasons due to the autumn World Cup schedule, and players available for the league are physically in prime condition. Both Head Coaches are intelligent realists, and Ulster’s Dan McFarland and the Ospreys’ Allen Clarke have spent the summer well, mixing strenuous fitness sessions with productive time on the pitch and both acutely aware of the need for players to get periods of rest. For Clarke, this is the season when his imprint on the Welsh side is most obvious, and in the latter stages of last year’s PRO14 there were clear signs that the man who was such an integral part of the coaching set-up in Ulster for so long was seeing his team more than just hint at a return to the club’s glory days. McFarland has admitted that his first full pre-season in charge of Ulster has proved really positive, and he’s convinced the squad is in much better physical and mental shape for the long drive towards what he and all supporters hope will be challenges in the league and in Europe which can be convincing and tangibly rewarding.

candidates vying for inclusion. Jacob Stockdale, take note!

Like Iain Henderson, Ulster’s captain this season, Stockdale is currently focusing on

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