Ulster Rugby v Southern Kings

JOHNNY McPHILLIPS ON MAKING HIS FIRST START FOR ULSTER

Born and raised in Newcastle Upon Tyne, McPhillips played for England at U18 level and could just so easily have remained on English soil had it not been for the influence of his Irish-born parents and the lure of the green jersey.

“My mum's from Waterford, my dad was actually born in Tanzania but grew up here in east Belfast so there were always Irish jerseys floating around the house when I was younger. I lived all my youth in England, I was born and raised in England and educated there but I have massive family ties here. Lots of aunties and uncles on my mum's side are all in Waterford and Cork and on my Dad's side the aunties and uncles are in Dublin so we were back and forth a lot and spent a lot of Christmases in Ireland.” McPhillips joined the Ulster Academy in 2015 and excelled in his first year, during which he featured heavily for Queen’s University and the Ulster ‘A’ team. He was rewarded with a call up to the Ireland U20 squad for their Six Nations campaign and started all five matches in the 10 jersey. With such experience behind him, McPhillips is undaunted by the opportunity to pull on the starting 10 jersey tonight. “To be honest there's always pressure when you're selected. The role won't change too much, I suppose there's an element of trying to control the game from the off rather than making an impact, so a slight change in mindset but come match night it will be the same, try to do my best obviously. There's always going to be nerves but that can be a good thing if you harness them right. It shows that you're respecting what you're going out there to do. It's all about trying to take the opportunity and trying to play well.”

That will change depending on the scenario, whether the game is tight or out of reach. For me, it’s just about trying to add impact and value and energy.” McPhillips was a talented football player. He spent five seasons in the Newcastle United Football Academy and might have been following an entirely different career path were it not for a scholarship to boarding school at Sedbergh which then turned his focus to rugby. ”I probably wasn't good enough. I enjoyed that [football] when I was younger and then as I was getting older I was enjoying my rugby and a lot more and got an opportunity to play at school and that sort of took over. The football had maybe reached its limits! It was getting a bit too competitive and I probably didn't have the necessary skills and requirements for the modern day, given how competitive it is. But I enjoyed it.” McPhillips has the temperament and talent to go far with Ulster and is determined be the first choice out-half going forward. “If you ask any of the 10s it's everyone's goal to be the starter week in, week out. In terms of the mindset for the next games we focus on each game at a time. To get the best outcomes you focus on the game ahead, prepare right and hopefully deliver a good performance, build confidence and take it like that. Hopefully, as a result of all of that, you can put in good performances that give you the best possible chance to hold on to the starting shirt week after week. And that that puts you in a good position for next year regardless of who is here.” Australia back Christian Lealiifano joined Ulster on a short-term contract in August. He made his final appearance in the number 10 jersey at the Champions Cup pool match against Wasps on 21 January, but as McPhillips shares, Lealiifano’s time at Ulster has made a lasting impact on the squad as a whole.

INTERVIEW: JOHNNY McPHILLIPS The young out-half made his senior debut for Ulster against Connacht in December 2017 coming on at half time to provide the team with a much needed lift. Whether starting on coming on from the bench McPhillips insists that his focus on adding benefit is the same.

“On a personal level I take confidence from what I did and know I can come on in that environment and add value and a good input. Just add value, add input, bring what I think I can to the team.

24

www. ULSTERRUGBY .com