Ulster Rugby vs Zebre

RYAN RETURNS TO IRISH RUGBY

Dave Ryan hails from Bishopstown, Cork but spent last season playing with tonight’s opposition, Zebre. Having joined Ulster on July 1st, Dave got stuck in well to pre-season training but an ankle injury in Monaghan put his ambition to start for Ulster on hold for another few weeks…

DAVE RYAN

“I am settling in really well, I have been here three months now and it was a brilliant pre- season until the injury,” says Dave. “The boys have been really good and the coaches are great so I am really enjoying my time here in Ulster. The facilities are even more impressive than I imagined, the gym is top class, the stadium is great, everything is brand new but having played for Munster in the past, the style in terms of training and schedules is much the same, I think that is pretty consistent throughout the Irish teams.” Just six weeks in Dave suffered a tear to his ankle during Ulster Rugby’s annual open training camp in Monaghan: “I was in the ruck and one of the lads just fell on my ankle and I got trapped which damaged a few ligaments. Slowly but surely it is recovering, I was in a walking boot for three weeks and then I was back walking but I am back running again this week. I have been so impressed with the medical staff here, they are top class and have not let me rush back into playing, they want everything to be perfect before I get back on the field whereas I would try to push myself back probably too quickly. They have been great at managing my expectations and making sure I am fully fit before I am back to avoid reinjuring it or putting myself at a disadvantage. “Of course it has been frustrating, you train hard during pre-season and prepare for playing games and then right when the games are about to start I got injured and then recovering feels like pre-season all over again, so it has been frustrating but I am starting to see light and the end of the tunnel.” Last weekend Ulster fought back from a 24-15 score line at half time to draw the game 32 all in Cardiff, Dave admits that all the hard work during pre-season is definitely starting to pay off… “I was very impressed with Ulster’s performance last weekend the team showed a lot of heart, determination and skill level and I think just a few mistakes from us gave Cardiff some soft scores. The boys came back well and I think if there had of been an extra few minutes the boys would have won it. I think the training over the summer definitely put us at an advantage

in terms of fitness and that showed in the later stages.” Dave spent two seasons playing prop for Zebre, making 23 appearances in the PRO12. This season he switched allegiance to Ulster and has provided an inside track to the Italian side… “One thing that Zebre bring is physicality and Italians always bring passion and heart and the mentality of never giving up. They are definitely improving as a squad but I think our boys will be well able for it. It will be important for us to wear them down and just keep the tempo high for the entire game. I have experience playing with a lot of the props over there so I have been able to highlight some danger men and give the guys a few inside tips. The coaches have asked my opinion on a few things, so it’s good to be involved in the preparation, I am doing whatever I can to help the team while I’m not playing. “After last weekend I think Zebre will be frustrated, they were a bit unlucky, Cardiff gave away a lot of penalties, they had a man in the bin and Zebre could have capitalised a bit more. I think they will have learnt from that game, I think the one thing they need to improve on is to be more clinical but last year the score against Ulster was quite close so they won’t be scared or nervous to come here. They have a lot of respect for Ulster, I know they always thought Ulster was the most physical game of the season so they will come here cautiously but also optimistic.” Dave has a few more weeks on the side-line before his ankle has fully recovered, it hasn’t been the perfect start to the Munster man’s season with Ulster but here’s hoping it’s all in salita from here. “It’s a bit annoying that I won’t get to play against Zebre, it’s always great to play against your mates. It can be strange to be on the opposite side of the field but its fun as well. I am really just frustrated in general that I am not playing but it would have been good to get a run out against my old team. The focus now is just to get back on the field and get training again in the next few weeks and to overcome my new challenge of earning a place on the team.”

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ULSTER RUGBY

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