44 / 66
40
What wasn’t typical however was that in that match
the inside-centre also assumed the kicking duties.
He missed his first shot at goal in front of the posts,
but having scored that wonder-try in the corner,
he got up, dusted himself down and slotted the
conversion from the touchline.
Such confidence is a key characteristic of
McCloskey who is widely tipped as a future Ireland
international and who is certain to be a major player
for Ulster in this and the coming seasons:
“I wasn’t doing much
until a few weeks before
the Ospreys game and
I was trying to get the
hang of it again,” he
jokes. “It’s easy enough
hitting kicks out on the
training field with no-one
looking, but when there
are 14,000 people in the
ground and TV cameras
trained on you, it gets a
bit harder!”
He says that adrenalin
got the kick from the
corner over the posts:
“I was on a high from
scoring the try. I didn’t
really think about it too
much. I think that’s half
the battle! Just don’t
over-think it. In a couple
of weeks I’ll never have to kick for Ulster again!”
Kicking penalty goals is just an extra bonus from
a player that has played 21 times for this province.
Despite being a nailed on starter at the moment, he
knows that competition for places remains as fierce
as ever:
“I have to prove myself every time I go out there,”
says Stuart. “I definitely feel more established
in the side, especially at this time when all the
internationals are away. I have to step up and be a
more senior player than when maybe they are here.
No-one is guaranteed a starting spot, we are all
fighting for places and it’s really competitive.
“There are aspects of my game that I need to
work on. Things went really well against Osprey
but Scarlets wasn’t what we were looking for and
everyone was a bit disappointed with how it went.
Hopefully we will get back on track against Treviso
and get the win.”
McCloskey, like all the players, is wary of the threat
posed by Treviso.
“They look to throw it a bit
wider than you think and
they do like playing rugby.
Perhaps their only weakness
is that they only throw it wide
when they are 14 odd points
down. I think if they could
play a bit more like that then
they would perhaps cause
a few more problems right
from the start.
“We expect to win every
match at home. We are
going out there with
confidence. If we were to
get four tries, that would be
fantastic. If we were to just
get the win, we would be
happy at this stage”.
Having excelled in a white
shirt, McCloskey is now
targeting a green jersey:
“I would love to be going on the international tour
to South Africa at the end of the season or to
have played an international game. However, my
goals are just to get in the Ulster team and to play
week-by-week. Wherever it goes from there, I’ll be
happy”.
If he maintains the form that he has showed at the
start of this season it wont be long before we will
see him representing Ireland. Whether he is kicking
the goals for the international side however, is
another matter…
STUART McCLOSKEY
CENTRE OF ATTENTION
A powerful handoff, a barnstorming run and four defenders left on
the ground. Stuart McCloskey’s try against Ospreys was typical of the
23 year-old for whom strength and pace have become hallmarks.
STUART McCLOSKEY