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“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
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.”
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:
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RUAN PIENAAR