Ulster Rugby v Scarlets

That splendid, nailbiting Heineken Champions Cup win at Parc y Scarlets a week ago immediately lit the fuse of expectation amongst Ulster fans – and understandably so. R O D N A W N

PROMISE AND POTENTIAL TAKING FLIGHT!

So too Louis Ludik, the epitome of the modern professional, whose value and skillset are often realised fully when he’s been unavailable. Marcell Coetzee scored the bonus-point try, but in tandem with Jordi Murphy, it was the Springbok’s ball-carrying, his tackle count and intelligence at the breakdown which made all Ulster supporters realise what they’d missed in his two-year absence. If Coetzee’s many painful months of knee surgery and rehab are to be rewarded with playing standards like those on show in West Wales, then McFarland could reap huge individual and competition which is so dear to Ulster hearts, and 20 years on from that historic first Irish triumph in Europe, expectations do rise, sometimes to unnatural levels. Racing 92 and Leicester still have much to say about the final outcome in this group when January arrives very quickly! If in 2018/19 this team achieves even a measure of success in the Champions Cup or in the Guinness PRO14 then Eric O’Sullivan will surely know he has set himself a standard after last week’s thunderous hour at prop which he must maintain and indeed improve if he’s to realise the potential Operations Director collective benefits this season. With such an important win in a

But in tonight’s return Pool 4 game at Kingspan Stadium, though supporters may nurse real hope of another memorable European night, there’ll be a very hard- edged mood in the home dressing room, and the opposition will have many reasons to prove the 25-24 defeat in Llanelli demands a response. Tonight will be the fourth time since September that these sides have met, honours shared in the PRO14, but Ulster hadn’t won away for six years until last weekend. Yet Scarlets effectively saw the chance of qualification crushed by what was surely the most complete Ulster performance since Dan McFarland took the Head Coach reins in August. His Backs Coach Dwayne Peel, an unbowed and distinguished son of Llanelli, saw his work rewarded in spades as Jacob Stockdale, Henry Speight and the meteor that is Will Addison sped over for wonderful tries. Jared Payne, who is making the impact he did on the pitch in his new role as Defence Coach, must have allowed himself a smile as the Scarlets’ athletic and innovative assaults from deep and from an experienced, ‘been there before’ pack. Speight, whose short stay will end far too soon, was stalwart in defence and attack, a controlled physical presence and an imaginative, creative and steadying influence at the back.

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