Ulster Rugby vs Leinster

Your first start was against Leinster and now this weekend you face them celebrating your 50th. What memories do you have from back then? RL: It seems like a lifetime ago but I remember being pretty nervous. I got the call from Mark (Anscombe) that John Afoa had to go back to New Zealand for the birth of his daughter, so I got thrown in at the deep end against Cian Healy, who was at the top of his game back then. He was gunning for a Lions spot and Ulster at the time were going OK, but we needed the win to keep us in contention, much like where we are now. The whole game was a blur, it was so quick and so physical but I was happy with how I got on and we were delighted to get the win. Let’s hope history can repeat itself this time around! What has been your favourite appearance to date? RL: My first game against Leinster was a massive highlight and also the win against Toulouse just before Christmas here at home. I was only on for 20 minutes but the atmosphere and the crowd were outstanding. The team put in a great performance and we milled them 38-0, it was a great feeling and a great night all round. What has been your biggest challenge along the way? RL: I would say the toe injury that I picked up at the end of the season before last. I was out for three or four months and following on from that I struggled to get back into the squad and it was a pretty dark period for me. I couldn’t get any rugby time and it seemed like there was no light at the end of the tunnel. But, there were a couple of injuries within the squad and I was given the chance to get back into the mix again. Just a few years ago you picked up ‘Club Player of the Year’ and now you are a regular on the professional team, what has that journey been like? RL: It has been really unexpected to be honest. Coming back from New Zealand, I had pretty much given up on the notion of playing professional rugby, I was just keen to play for fun with a club. But then I got a call up from Gary Longwell to come along for trials, I thought it was a shot to nothing so to go from there to where I am now has been unexpected but a real privilege and I am delighted to be in this position, achieving 50 caps for my Province. How have things changed since you started? RL: Club wise things have changed dramatically, Mark has moved on and Les has recently come in which has changed the dynamic of the whole RICKY LUTTON: CELEBRATING 50 CAPS

club. We have a lot more meetings and analysis has really taken off. We have moved from Newforge to Kingspan Stadium, which has driven the professionalism of the whole squad upwards – along with the quality of the gym, facilities, the level of analysis. Everything is on a completely different scale to even two or three years ago. Personally, I think I have become a lot mentally tougher. Looking back on it, I probably thought that I was, but when I look deeper, I was a bit fragile and I have worked hard to overcome that – to improve my confidence and mental toughness. Physically I have developed more stamina, being able to play three, four, five games on the bounce. Rather than playing one game for 20 minutes and being wrecked for a week! That has come with increased discipline off the pitch as well as diet, rest and making sacrifices. It’s a great personal achievement, which I am sure you are looking forward to? RL: I can’t wait. Aside from the individual achievement, it’s a massive game for the team and hopefully I can contribute to that and history can repeat itself and we can get another great win over Leinster, which can set us up for the end of the season. The squad is feeling confident. The international guys returning certainly gave us a boost and things are picking up and we re improving every week, so if we can keep the upward trend going, we have a good shot at the play offs. It’s great that the game is a sell out, it’s always a brilliant atmosphere when Kingspan is full and the crowd are noisy. For us players it is a great feeling running out when the stadium is rocking and for opposition is has to be disturbing knowing you are up against the 16th man.

RICKY LUTTON

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