In Belfast, Ulster will have their sights set on building on their 42-21 win against the Dragons in their opening match before the postponement of their encounter against Edinburgh last week, when they line up against the in-form Vodacom Bulls on Saturday at 20:45 (SA Time).
Boosting the visitors’ motivation, however, their only defeat in their last 11 matches in the Vodacom URC was in last year’s final against Leinster, a track record they will look to build on going into this match.
Ulster will have to be in top form on defence, as the Vodacom Bulls boast the best attack in the competition by far, with 92 points scored in their first two matches. On the flip side, they have conceded 71 points, which is a statistic the hosts will look to take advantage of.
There are first Ulster starts for summer signings, Juarno Augustus and Sam Crean, while there is also a return to action for Robert Baloucoune, who makes his first appearance of the new campaign.
Ireland internationals, lock, Iain Henderson, captains the side, joined by Cormac Izuchukwu in the second row. Hooker Rob Herring and tighthead prop Tom O’Toole start in the front row alongside former Saracens forward, Crean, at loosehead. David McCann gets the nod at blindside flanker, with Nick Timoney at openside flanker. Juarno Augustus starts at number eight, completing the back row.
Nathan Doak and Jack Murphy resume their half-back partnership at scrum-half and fly-half. After producing a Player of the Match performance against the Dragons in Round 1, Zac Ward starts on the left wing. Baloucoune makes his first start of the season on the right wing. Stuart McCloskey and James Hume start in the midfield partnership at inside and outside centre. Jacob Stockdale starts at full-back after recovering from a foot injury against the Dragons.
Prop, Eric O’Sullivan, is named among the replacements after returning from injury. Tom Stewart, Scott Wilson, Harry Sheridan, and Sean Reffell are the forwards cover, with Conor McKee, Jake Flannery, and Jude Postlethwaite the backline replacements.
The Vodacom Bulls have made sweeping changes. Among the most significant is a start for Handre Pollard, now back in blue after several seasons in the UK. In his previous stint in Pretoria, he played over 70 matches for the Vodacom Bulls, attaining hero status in the capital.
In all, there are 11 changes, seven in the starting 15 and four on the bench, from last week’s squad that beat champions Leinster in Pretoria. Several are forced by injuries, chiefly to Marcell Coetzee and JF van Heerden.
The seven changes to the line-up are Wilco Louw (for Mornay Smith), Cobus Wiese (for JF van Heerden), Marco Staden (for Marcell Coetzee), Jeandre Rudolph (for JJ Theron), Zak Burger (for Embrose Papier), Handre Pollard (for Keagan Johannes), and Canan Moodie (for David Kriel).
Similarly, the bench has been shaken up: Jan-Hendrik Wessels (for Alulutho Tshakweni), Reinhardt Ludwig (for Sintu Manjezi), Paul de Wet (for Zak Burger, moved to start) and David Kriel (for Stedman Gans).
In all, there are eight Springboks in the starting line-up.
Teams:
Ulster: 15 Jacob Stockdale,14 Rob Baloucoune, 13 James Hume, 12 Stuart McCloskey, 11 Zac Ward, 10 Jack Murphy, 9 Nathan Doak, 8 Juarno Augustus, 7 Nick Timoney, 6 David McCann, 5 Cormac Izuchukwu, 4 Iain Henderson (c), 3 Tom O’Toole, 2 Rob Herring, 1 Sam Crean. Replacements: 16 Tom Stewart, 17 Eric O’Sullivan, 18 Scott Wilson, 19 Harry Sheridan, 20 Sean Reffell, 21 Conor McKee, 22 Jake Flannery, 23 Jude Postlethwaite.
Vodacom Bulls: 15 Devon Williams, 14 Sebastian de Klerk, 13 Canan Moodie, 12 Harold Vorster, 11 Stravino Jacobs, 10 Handre Pollard, 9 Zak Burger, 8 Jeandre Rudolph, 7 Mpilo Gumede, 6 Marco van Staden, 5 Nicolaas Janse v Rensburg, 4 Cobus Wiese, 3 Wilco Louw, 2 Johann Grobbelaar (c), 1 Gerhard Steenekamp. Replacements: 16 Juann Else, 17 Jan-Hendrik Wessels, 18 Mornay Smith, 19 Reinhardt Ludwig, 20 Nama Xaba, 21 Paul de Wet, 22 David Kriel, 23 Willie le Roux.
