Ulster Rugby - Annual Report 2017-18

was excellent, but it was his off-field influence, having recovered from leukaemia within the last year, allied to his exemplary character, that will have a very lasting impact on all those that had the pleasure of his company; a true gentleman of the Sport. A strong finish to the end of the season with three good wins on the bounce against Edinburgh away, Ospreys and Glasgow at home showed clear improvements in the areas of defence and energy in particular. A final round draw, away to Munster at Thomond Park, was not enough to secure a Pro14 quarter final and saw the team finish the season fourth in their conference. That set up a play-off at home against the Ospreys, where it was very satisfying to finish off the season with a good win and Champions Cup qualification secured for next year. In the midst of the run-in, it was also confirmed that Jono Gibbes, Head Coach, was leaving a year early to head back home to Waikato for family reasons. Jono will be sorely missed as he brought directness and strong leadership to the group. A larger than life character, we wish him, Marina and the kids all the very best back in New Zealand. It would not be surprising to see him named as the All Blacks forwards coach in the not too distant future. Jono will be replaced by the highly experienced Dan McFarland, who had successful stints with Connacht and Glasgow before moving to forwards Coach of the Scotland National team. We all look forward to his arrival in the new season. Recognition must be given to our three heroes, who represented Ireland with such aplomb in capturing the Six Nations Grand Slam. Rory Best, at thirty five, continues to defy the ageing process, playing some of the best rugby of his career while captaining the side. There was huge pride, not just for Rory and his family, but also for Ulster Rugby for this historic achievement. Iain Henderson also made a massive impact during the campaign, displaying the raw strength and doggedness he possesses at the highest level. Finally, Jacob Stockdale, who finished up as Six Nations Player of the Year due to his quite remarkable try-scoring feat of seven in five games, was possibly the find of the tournament. With all three out of contract at the end of this season, it was a great boost to Ulster Rugby that they all re-signed for the immediate future, providing solidity at the top end of the squad. The Ulster ‘A’ team had its most successful campaign ever, with five wins from six in the group stages. A narrow away loss to a huge Bedford team in the quarters signalled a disappointing end to such a promising season, but highlighted how much further forward we have come with stronger alignment to the Senior team and increased integration of Academy players into the ‘A’ team, eleven in all (the most ever). Credit must go in particular to Kieran Campbell and Willie Anderson for coaching the team and creating such a strong togetherness within the group. With this being the final year of the B&I Cup, we look forward to a new structure next season and continued opportunities for the development of our fringe and best young players. Our Academy, the lifeblood of our Senior Squad, continues to improve. Much greater emphasis has been

Rugby Committee Competitions Working Party A review of competition arrangements for teams below Championship Three was undertaken by a Rugby Committee Working Party chaired by Jim Lyttle. While the review did not recommend any significant changes to competition arrangements some enhancements were identified. Ulster Juniors Despite getting off to a great start with an impressive away win in Munster, followed by another excellent victory in Ards against Connacht, the Juniors just failed to retain their Inter-Pro crown, losing narrowly to champions Leinster at UUC. Competitions Management Committee The C.M.C. met twenty two times, once more than last year. Once again they were at their busiest at the business end of the season, during March and April. As well as the appointment of another new member to the Committee, John Carleton played a critical role as the CMC Chairman. THE PROFESSIONAL GAME The 2017/18 Season has probably been the toughest in the modern era for the Professional Squad and Management team. While on paper four wins from six in a difficult Champions Cup pool and only seven losses from twenty one games in the Pro14 show a more than decent return, it belied both on-field and off-field struggles throughout the season. Similarly to last season, we got off to a strong start with four wins from four, the highlight an excellent home performance against the Scarlets. The following week saw an away loss to Zebre and the beginning of a stuttering campaign where some very good victories, such as back-to-back Champions Cup against Harlequins and home wins against La Rochelle and Wasps, were interspersed with below par performances through the Christmas period. However, the chance of a Champions Cup quarter-final loomed large with an away trip to Wasps in Round Six to reignite the season. Unfortunately, we never got out of the blocks and limped out of the Champions Cup at the pool stages for another year. Following a long break, during which Director of Rugby Les Kiss departed, the team came back with an excellent performance against the new South African arrivals to the competition, the Kings. Les will be fondly remembered by all who knew him well as first and foremost a really good individual who worked tirelessly to try to change the fortunes of the team. Timing is often everything and maybe this wasn’t the right time for Les. He will undoubtedly be more successful in future ventures as he has so much to offer. The season-long unavailability of Marcell Coetzee, Jared Payne, Paddy Jackson and Stuart Olding certainly was a bitter blow. Any squad that loses three or four of its very best and most influential players on the pitch is going to find the going tough and that proved to be the case. A special mention must be made of Christian Lealiifano, who made one of the most positive impacts ever by any overseas player for Ulster. His on-field calmness

IRFU ULSTER BRANCH ANNUAL REPORT 2017/18

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