Interprovincial clashes resemble an onion – there are several layers to the narrative and someone invariably ends up crying. The latest instalment of the truism takes place in Belfast as Ulster host Leinster. There’s plenty on the line, as befits two sides separated by just a single point and one place in the URC table. Ulster enjoy that slender advantage.
Ulster’s Consistent Selection
Head coach Richie Murphy has made one change from the Ulster side that beat La Rochelle in the Challenge Cup last weekend, with Sean Reffell starting in place of the injured Nick Timoney. Otherwise, it’s as you were.
Leinster’s Lineup Shuffle
Murphy’s Leinster counterpart has taken a different tack. Leo Cullen names just three survivors – Hugo Keenan, Garry Ringrose and James Ryan – from the run-on team that beat Sale Sharks in the Champions Cup.
Prendergast’s Opportunity
Provincial squabbles are far from linear. The result matters in tangible form – match points – but from an individual perspective there are always wider ramifications. And it’s not just about a pecking order from a national perspective.
Sam Prendergast resumes at outhalf having missed out on involvement in a couple of European matches. He does so against a backdrop of conceding the Ireland 10 jersey to Jack Crowley and the Leinster equivalent to Harry Byrne. In terms of form, those players are in better fettle. Sport can be brutally unsentimental, rooted in the now.
Prendergast will relaunch his bid to take back those jerseys on Friday night. Players talk about opportunity. This is a king-sized one, but he can’t do it alone. His input and impact are partially governed by the work of others to get him decent ball. Only then is it possible to accurately calibrate his influence.
Individual Battles to Watch
He’s not alone in having plenty of skin in the game. There are other, more direct duels; successor versus predecessor, so to speak. One such is Stuart McCloskey – arguably Ireland’s Player of the Six Nations – and Robbie Henshaw.
James Hume, fit again and firing after a couple of seasons with niggling injury, will enjoy a crack off Garry Ringrose. Tom Stewart will be eyeing up a tussle with Rónan Kelleher, the two hookers being Ireland squadmates. Ireland head coach Andy Farrell will appreciate the forum to clarify or reorder selection ahead of the Nations Cup in the summer.
Joshua Kenny, with nine tries to his name, has made a brilliant fist of his first season in professional rugby after a brief hiatus with Sevens. Zac Ward, a key player for Ireland in the abridged version of the game, has also acquitted himself superbly. Teammates in the Ireland Development XV that took on England A in Limerick, they’ll be patrolling the same patch.
Alex Soroka has been regularly a standout in matches for Leinster this season, ditto Dave McCann for Ulster while Cormac Izuchukwu adds massive value in a variety of guises, whether in the backrow or secondrow. Leinster captain James Ryan has been consistently excellent. Tom O’Toole is operating in a dual capacity, positionally. Thomas Clarkson would no doubt encourage him to pursue.