Ulster Rugby vs Connacht

RUAN PIENAAR

The 29 year-old Springbok international has played just three games for Ulster so far this season after suffering a knee injury playing for South Africa against New Zealand in September. But despite missing Ulster’s first two European games Ruan felt the team still had a chance of qualifying:

and have also made some great signings, so we will have to be at our best if we want to get a result. The inter-pros are always tough but exciting at the same time. They always add something special and the guys are a bit more fired up so we are looking forward to playing Connacht.” Despite the disappointment of Europe there are still plenty of positives that Ulster believe they can take from their game… “Our defence has really stood up this season and that strength is credit to the coaches who have worked really hard but I think we are still trying to get things together in attack. We have scored some good tries and we are playing a positive brand of rugby but we still need to work on a few things. Hopefully, after the winter we will get some good conditions which allow us to play a more expansive type of game. “We have often spoken as a squad about our goal for PRO12 silverware. We have learnt enough lessons and we have been in enough play off situations where we haven’t done the job to know what it takes this year. We have got to step up now and when we get into a play-off situation we have got to be able to be able to win those games and hopefully bring home some silverware. This group is talented enough and good enough to compete for the PRO12 and to get a home playoff here at Kingspan Stadium would be incredible. It is a great place to play, the atmosphere is always electric and as players we really do appreciate the support that we get every week here at home – and especially on this traditional family day of Boxing Day, thank you!” Ruan and his family have spent Christmas in Belfast for five years now and despite missing the sun, it’s a special time of year. “Christmas is a lot different over here, it is much colder and it is probably the toughest time of the year for us South Africans. We are away from our families and they are all on the beach and on holidays and here it is freezing and we are training and playing non-stop. But Belfast is great at Christmas, there is always a festive atmosphere and it is exciting to see the kids’ faces at this time of year. We had a little boy a few months ago so the house is a little bit busier but it is brilliant, we are blessed to have two healthy, happy kids in the house.”

“We put in a good performance against Scarlets at home and to get a 24-9 win under our belts made it feel like we still had an outside chance of making it. Unfortunately the away leg did not go the way we had hoped and even a bit of a comeback in the second half could not give us the momentum we needed in what was a crucial game. “The biggest positive to come from that situation is that we can now concentrate our efforts on the PRO12 – we are still in a good position in the league and hopefully we can continue to show good form and get a few wins to set us up for the back-end of the season. For us Europe is special and not making it through to the play offs is really disappointing but it creates the opportunity to put everything we have into the PRO12.” Haven been drawn in Pool 3 of the Champion Cup against some of Europe’s greats it was never going to be an easy campaign for Ulster… “We can’t make excuses,” says Ruan. “But certainly injuries had a big influence, there have been a lot of key players who have been out, but we still have a good squad and we have got to perform when those players aren’t available. Going into the European season we knew that we were in a difficult pool and that showed. Toulon were really tough and we struggled to compete with them on the day, however I felt we had a chance in all the other games.” With newly appointed head coach, Neil Doak at the helm, how have you found the new mangement structure in place? “The movements this summer were a bit of a shock to us all, but I think the boys have adapted well. The players really enjoyed working with Les Kiss, and Doaky has been running our attack now for a couple of years. So I have worked with him since I arrived here at Ulster and I really enjoy his philosophy, the way he is trying to play, and I think he will do a great job of leading the team until Les comes in after the World Cup. I don’t think we have played to our potential so far this year, we are slowly improving but we are coming closer to the crucial part of the season and I am excited. I think we will get some guys back from injury soon, and we just need to put in good performances and put ourselves in a good position to be in the league play offs.” Tonight Ulster face Connacht who are well positioned in the Guinness PRO12 league and are coming off back to back victories in the Challenge Cup… “Connacht are a tough side and are playing well this season; they have knocked over a couple of big sides

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ULSTER RUGBY