Ulster-Rugby-Matchday-Programme-Glasgow

ULSTER 

Official Match Day Programme 

v GLASGOW 

Fri 24 Sep 2021, 7.35pm 

Kingspan Stadium

In this Issue 

Welcome back to Kingspan Stadium, the home of 

Ulster Rugby, where tonight the Ulster squad welcomes 

Glasgow Warriors for the first round of the highly anticipated 

United Rugby Championship. 

While the past 18 months have been extremely challenging for all, it is fantastic to 

welcome our Ulster Rugby fans back to Kingspan Stadium tonight to support the Ulstermen 

on their home turf. The roars of thousands have been missed over the past few 

months and it is fantastic to have such a crowd here in Kingspan Stadium 

again this evening. 

Tonight, Ulster will look to get the season started on a positive note with a win over 

formidable Scottish opponents, Glasgow Warriors. The Scottish giants have had 

some classic encounters with Ulster over the past few seasons 

and tonight’s game promises to be no different. 

On behalf of the entire Ulster Rugby and Kingspan community, we would like to 

extend the warmest of welcomes to our visitors. 

Finally, I would like to wish the Ulster Rugby squad and management team 

the very best of luck tonight and for the season ahead. 

To Ulster’s committed fans, take care and enjoy the game. 

5 

16 

22 

5 

President’s 

7 

Our 

10 

14 

Welcome 

Virtual 

Mascot 

Player Interview: 

Robert Baloucoune 

Referees’ Corner 

(New Laws) 

16 Squad 

Profiles 

20 Team 

Line-ups 

22 Women’s 

Inter-Pros Report 

29 Half-time 

U12s Teams 

30 

34 

38 

Last Time 

Out 

Player Interview: 

Michael Lowry 

New League, 

New Hopes 

30 

3

President’s 

Welcome 

Welcome to Round 1 of the new United 

Rugby Championship, and the first 

competitive game of the 21/22 season 

for the Ulster Senior Men’s team, with 

this evening being extra-special as 

we are joined by our supporters at 

Kingspan Stadium. 

I also extend a warm welcome to tonight’s 

opponents, Glasgow Warriors. They clinched 

an impressive win away to Worcester 

Warriors a fortnight ago, so I am sure Dan 

McFarland and the squad know how tough a 

challenge this opening Round will be. 

The URC brings an exciting new level of 

competition, combining the top South 

African clubs – Emirates Lions, DHL Stormers, 

Vodacom Bulls and Cell C Sharks - with the 

Guinness PRO14 to create a world-class 16- 

team league. We are very excited about the 

season ahead in this new Championship. 

Last week, we were delighted to announce 

the signing of South African World Cup 

winner, Duane Vermeulen, who will join Ulster 

following the Autumn Tests. I think it’s safe to 

say how excited we all are to have a player 

of Duane’s calibre and experience added to 

our back row and squad. We can’t wait to 

welcome him into the fold in November. 

Congratulations to the eleven Ulster players 

who took part in Sunday’s Irish Rugby camp 

in preparation for the upcoming Autumn 

Nations Series. Well done to Will Addison, 

Robert Baloucoune, Billy Burns, James 

Hume, Stuart McCloskey, Jacob Stockdale, 

Iain Henderson, Rob Herring, Eric O’Sullivan, 

Tom O’Toole and Nick Timoney. 

Kathryn Dane, Neve Jones and Brittany 

Hogan have been part of the Ireland team 

competing for a place in next year’s Rugby 

World Cup – after a narrow defeat to Spain 

and superb victory over Italy, it all comes 

down to the final Qualifier versus Scotland 

tomorrow (5pm UK / Irish time, Stadio 

Lanfranchi Stadium). Best of luck to our three 

players and the rest of the women in green! 

The Deloitte Ulster Senior Women’s team 

concluded their Vodafone Interprovincial 

campaign two weeks ago, with a hardearned 

draw against a tough Connacht side. 

Well done to all the coaches and players who 

were involved in the match-day teams and 

the wider training squad. 

It has been great to have Ulster feature 

strongly in the current Development Inter- 

Pro fixtures at the IRFU High Performance 

Centre. Our young talent have missed out on 

so much club and representative rugby over 

the last 18 months, so it’s fantastic they’re 

getting the chance to shine for their province. 

On the domestic front, it’s wonderful to see 

club and schools’ rugby make a return to 

competitive action over the last couple of 

weeks – it’s set to be a bumper season ahead! 

SUFTUM 

Gary Leslie 

President, IRFU Ulster Branch 

5

Virtual 

Mascot 

Name: Ethan Cushnahan 

Age: 11 TODAY! 

Favourite Player: Jacob Stockdale 

Today Ethan celebrates his 11th 

birthday with his family here at 


Ethan loves celebrating tries at 

Kingspan Stadium by cheering and 

waving his flag. Oh and he’s fond of 

a pre-match pizza too! 

When he’s not supporting Ulster, he is 

playing for the Lurgan Tigers. 

7

WEAR IT 

TOGETHER 

CEO 

Welcome 

Welcome to Round 1 of the new United 

Rugby Championship, and the first 

competitive game of the 21/22 season. 

I also extend a warm welcome to tonight’s 

opponents, Glasgow Warriors. They clinched 

an impressive win away to Worcester 

Warriors a fortnight ago, so I am sure Dan 

McFarland and the squad know how tough a 

challenge this opening Round will be. 

The URC brings an exciting new level of 

competition, combining the top South 

African clubs – Emirates Lions, DHL Stormers, 

Vodacom Bulls and Cell C Sharks - with the 

Guinness PRO14 to create a world-class 16- 

team league. We are very excited about the 

season ahead in this new Championship. 

Last week, we were delighted to announce 

the signing of South African World Cup 

winner, Duane Vermeulen, who will join Ulster 

following the Autumn Tests. I think it’s safe to 

say how excited we all are to have a player 

of Duane’s calibre and experience added to 

our back row and squad. We can’t wait to 

welcome him into the fold in November. 

Congratulations to the eleven Ulster players 

who took part in Sunday’s Irish Rugby camp 

in preparation for the upcoming Autumn 

Nations Series. Well done to Will Addison, 

Robert Baloucoune, SHOP ONLINE Billy Burns, James 

Hume, Stuart www.ulsterrugbyshop.com 

McCloskey, Jacob Stockdale, 

Iain Henderson, Rob Herring, Eric O’Sullivan, 

Click and collect available 

Tom O’Toole and Nick Timoney. 

SHOP OPENING HOURS 

9am-5pm Tuesday to Friday 

9am-4pm Saturday 

Kathryn Dane, Neve Jones and Brittany 

Hogan have been part of the Ireland team 

UlsterRugby.com 

competing for a place in next year’s Rugby 

World Cup – after a narrow defeat to Spain 

and superb victory over Italy, it all comes 

down to the final Qualifier versus Scotland 

tomorrow (5pm UK / Irish time, Stadio 

Lanfranchi Stadium). Best of luck to our 

three players and the rest of the women in 

green! 

The Deloitte Ulster Senior Women’s team 

concluded their Vodafone Interprovincial 

campaign two weeks ago, with a hardearned 

draw against a tough Connacht side. 

Well done to all the coaches and players who 

were involved in the match-day teams and 

the wider training squad. 

It has been great to have Ulster feature 

strongly in the current Development Inter- 

Pro fixtures at the IRFU High Performance 

Centre. Our young talent have missed out on 

so much club and representative rugby over 

the last 18 months, so it’s fantastic they’re 

getting the chance to shine for their province. 

NEW SEASON HOME KIT 

On the domestic front, it’s wonderful to see 

club and schools’ rugby make a return to 

competitive action over the last couple of 

weeks – it’s set to be a bumper season ahead 

Jonny Petrie 

PRE-ORDER 

CEO Ulster Rugby 

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Robert Baloucoune 

Ulster Rugby caught up with the 

winger ahead of Friday’s clash with 

Glasgow Warriors. 

First of all Rob, how have you found 

pre-season this year and have you 

experienced a change with Dan Soper 

moving to Assistant Coach? 

Pre-season has gone really well. Sopes 

has come in and changed the style of 

our attacking play. It’s been really good 

trying to learn phase plays and general 

structures. It’s been really enjoyable, and 

everyone has bought into the system. 

That showed especially in the last game 

away to Saracens where we put out a 

good performance. 

You were part of the Ireland squad over the 

summer and made your Senior XVs debut – 

how has that helped you coming back into 

the Ulster squad? 

It was really valuable; even learning from 

other players in the camp and being able 

to bring that back to Ulster what you’ve 

learned, even things like knowledge of 

the different players there. It was really 

enjoyable and a bit of a confidence-builder 

to be able to play an international game. I 

felt more confident coming back into preseason 

with Ulster and bringing what I’ve 

learned back into training. 

What do you make of the new United Rugby 

Championship this season? 

It will be a good test! It will be interesting 

to see results this weekend with Bulls 

playing Leinster. We’ll be playing against 

completely different opposition which will 

be great to have. Everyone is raring to 

go, especially playing against the likes of 

Marcell (Coetzee) and boys that we know. 

It will be great. 

First up is Glasgow Warriors – does it 

change the mindset at all knowing you only 

play them once this year in the URC? 

Definitely. Dan (McFarland) talked about it 

at the start of this week. It’s one shot for us 

and it’s in our control to make that deciding 

factor. It does change the mindset – it’s a 

must-win game and that’s how we’ll go out 

and play. 

What threats do you think Glasgow will 

bring on Friday? 

We know that they play with speed and like 

to attack on both sides of the ball, so we’ll 

have to be able to set early and work early 

as well. We also know with their attacking 

coach (Nigel Carolan), they’re likely to put 

in a few trick plays, so we’ll be ready to deal 

with that. 

This will be your first game in a while with a 

sizeable number of supporters – how much 

does it help you as a player to play in front 

of a home crowd? 

My last game at Kingspan Stadium with 

crowds was Cheetahs (February 2020) and 

that feels like a lifetime ago! Obviously, it’s 

completely different and everyone is loving 

the fact there will be close to a full house 

on Friday. Having your family and friends 

in the stands as well, knowing they’re there 

really gives you a boost on the pitch. The 

noise from the crowd, cheering you on 

changes the whole atmosphere and it’s 

unbelievable to play in. 

Wing 

19/08/1997 

193cm 

90kg 

29 

1 

Centre 

08/08/1999 

183cm 

91kg 

15 


11

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Dan Soper 

Assistant Coach 

Jared Payne 

Defence Coach 

Craig 

Gilroy 

Iain 

Henderson 

Rob 

Herring 

James 

Hume 

Dan McFarland 

Head Coach 

Roddy Grant 

Forwards Coach 

Craig Newby 

Skills Coach 

Wing 

11/03/1991 

183cm 

92kg 

194 

10 

Lock 

21/02/1992 

198cm 

117kg 

121 

63 

Hooker 

27/04/1990 

185cm 

107kg 

197 

22 

Centre 

07/09/1998 

188cm 

98kg 

41 

1 

Will 

Addison 

Utility Back 

20/08/1992 

185cm 

93kg 

22 

5 

Sam 

Carter 

Lock 

10/09/1989 

201cm 

116kg 

23 

AUS 16 

John 

Andrew 

Hooker 

26/05/1993 

180cm 

104kg 

87 

John 

Cooney 

Scrum Half 

01/05/1990 

178cm 

87kg 

84 

11 

Robert 

Baloucoune 

Wing 

19/08/1997 

193cm 

90kg 

29 

1 

Angus 

Curtis 

Fly Half / Centre 

26/03/1998 

178cm 

92kg 

14 

Billy 

Burns 

Fly Half 

13/06/1994 

185cm 

86kg 

50 

7 

Nathan 

Doak 

Hooker 

26/05/1993 

180cm 

104kg 

87 

Cormac 

Izuchukwu 

Lock 

28/01/2000 

201cm 

114kg 

6 

Michael 

Lowry 

Full Back 

20/08/1998 

170cm 

75kg 

46 

Greg 

Jones 

Back Row 

13/01/1996 

196cm 

105kg 

26 

Rob 

Lyttle 

Wing 

28/01/1997 

175cm 

85kg 

47 

Ross 

Kane 

Prop 

14/10/1996 

180cm 

118kg 

52 

Ian 

Madigan 

Fly Half 

21/03/1989 

180cm 

87kg 

24 

30 

Mick 

Kearney 

Lock 

29/03/1991 

198cm 

116 kg 

- 

Luke 

Marshall 

Centre 

03/03/1991 

180cm 

97kg 

144 

11 

Senior Squad 


15

Prop 

11/10/1989 

185cm 

118kg 

17 

56 

Jack 

McGrath 

Prop 

15/12/1992 

191cm 

132kg 

6 

Gareth 

Milasinovich 

Prop 

01/03/1991 

178cm 

121kg 

59 

10 

Marty 

Moore 

Centre 

08/08/1999 

183cm 

91kg 

15 

Stewart 

Moore 

Back Row 

22/04/1991 

188cm 

105kg 

48 

30 

Jordi 

Murphy 

Lock 

10/09/1992 

196cm 

114kg 

133 

Alan 

O’Connor 

Lock / Back Row 

19/05/1995 

193cm 

110kg 

15 

David 

O’Connor 

Prop 

30/11/1995 

183cm 

115kg 

66 

1 

Eric 

O’Sullivan 

Prop 

23/09/1998 

185cm 

120kg 

61 

1 

Tom 

O’Toole 

Full Back / Wing 

10/08/2000 

188cm 

85kg 

15 

Ethan 

McIlroy 

Back Row 

13/06/2000 

193cm 

107kg 

6 

David 

McCann 

Centre 

06/08/1992 

193cm 

11kg 

140 

6 

Stuart 

McCloskey 

Senior Squad 

Back Row 

01/08/1995 

188cm 

111kg 

81 

1 

Nick 

Timoney 

Lock 

06/11/1995 

198cm 

118kg 

109 

3 

Kieran 

Treadwell 

Prop 

12/03/1991 

178cm 

113kg 

137 

Andrew 

Warwick 

Back Row 

08/09/1997 

188cm 

105kg 

5 

Marcus 

Rea 

Back Row 

21/09/1993 

193cm 

112kg 

64 

Matthew 

Rea 

Hooker 

04/01/1996 

175cm 

108Kg 

5 

Bradley 

Roberts 

Wing/Full Back 

03/04/1996 

191cm 

103kg 

82 

35 

Jacob 

Stockdale 

Scrum Half 

20/06/1993 

175cm 

78kg 

71 

David 

Shanahan 

Hooker 

11/01/2001 

183cm 

100kg 

- 

Tom 

Stewart 

Wing 

24/08/200 

188cm 

94kg 

1 

Aaron 

Sexton 

Prop 

06/01/1999 

183cm 

118kg 

5 

Callum 

Reid 

Back Row 

10/05/1989 

183cm 

103kg 

144 

2 

Sean 

Reidy 

17 

UlsterRugby.com

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gilbertrugby.com 

THE SPIRIT OF 

UNITED RUGBY 

CHAMPIONSHIP. 

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19

1 Warwick 2 Roberts 3 Moore 

1 Thyer 2 Matthews 3 Berghan 

C 

4 O’Connor 

5 Carter 

4 Cummings 

5 Gray 

C 

6 Jones 

8 Timoney 7 Reidy 

6 Wilson 

8 Dempsey 7 Darge 

9 Cooney 

9 Horne 

11 Stockdale 

10 Burns 

11 McClean 

10 Weir 

12 McCloskey 

12 Johnson 

REPLACEMENTS 

REPLACEMENTS 

16 R Herring 

16 F Brown 

17 E O’Sullivan 

13 Hume 

17 J Bhatti 

13 Tuipulotu 

18 T O’Toole 

18 M McCallum 

19 M Kearney 

19 L Bean 

20 Mat Rea 

21 N Doak 

15 McIlroy 

14 Baloucoune 

20 R Harley 

21 J Dobie 

15 Forbes 

14 Steyn 

22 M Lowry 

23 W Addison 

Referee: Ben Whitehouse (WRU) 

Assistant Referees: Peter Martin, Andrew Cole 

TMO: Ian Davies 

22 R Thompson 

23 O Smith 


21

WOMEN”S INTER-PROS 

Vodafone Women’s 

Interprovincial Series 

12-12 

Deloitte Ulster Women’s Interprovincial 

campaign ended on an encouraging note 

with a draw after a superb battle with 

Connacht at Energia Park two weeks ago. 

The home team came firing out of the 

blocks, making a break through Ulster’s 

defences to send centre Shannon Touhey 

in for their first score. Nicole Fowley added 

the conversion. 

Ulster responded with a series of penalties; 

Kelly McCormill making a great poach to 

force the turnover, and poor Connacht 

discipline also allowed Ulster to gain territory. 

Ella Durkan – making her return from injury 

- made a searing run only to be brought 

down short. Ulster showed some lovely 

hands five metres out but were unable to 

finish in the corner. Connacht regained 

possession but Ulster did really well to put 

the squeeze on and keep Connacht well 

inside their own half. 

Even when the women in green had the ball, 

Ulster put in some really strong hits and 

were quick over the ball to force turnovers. 

Ulster had a prime opportunity on 23 

minutes when they won the scrum against 

the head 5 metres out, but Connacht 

were able to steal the ball and get out of 

immediate trouble. 

The visitors continued to press, and had 

another great chance when they were 

awarded a penalty just a few metres out. 

They opted for the scrum but Connacht 

turned the ball over again. 

Another Ulster opportunity went begging just 

on the stroke of half-time, but a knock-on in 

the red zone denied the visitors at the break. 

Ulster had a woman advantage for the first 

few minutes of the second half with Moya 

Griffin in the bin, and the women in white 

probed Connacht further, but they just 

couldn’t capitalise in that 10-minute period. 

There were lots of encouraging passages of 

play from Ulster; making some great carries 

and dominating in the scrums. They also 

showed lovely hands when needed, with 

Ilse van Staden making some deft touches. 

Connacht’s discipline faltered again and 

found themselves down to 13 with Ursula 

Sammon in the bin and Nicole Fowley sent 

off. Ulster temporarily went a woman down 

as well with Jemma Farrell shown yellow, 

but Ulster sensed their moment and at first 

tried to go out wide to the right, but quickly 

changed tack to move back inside for Helen 

McGhee to cross the whitewash for their 

first try; Ilse van Staden, Ashleigh Orchard 

and Taryn Schutzler all playing a part in the 

build-up. Beth Cregan took over the kicking 

duties in Farrell’s absence and landed the 

conversion to bring the scores level. 

The home side replied a few minutes later 

through Ursula Sammon crashing over 

in the right-hand side. Nicole Carroll’s 

conversion attempt fell short. 

Ulster didn’t relent however, and kept 

Connacht contained within their half. Ilse 

van Staden was again involved in Ulster’s 

second try, drawing the Connacht defenders 

to make the pass out to Beth Cregan. She 

then tipped on to Shannon Buller who ran in 

from outside Connacht’s 22 metre-line out 

to bundle over. The try went unconverted, 

so the scores were again level. 

Both teams fought hard to break the 

deadlock. Connacht had a series of 

attacking phases in Ulster’s half before the 

visitors regained possession deep inside 

their 22 and earned a penalty with the clock 

into the red. Farrell kicked for an Ulster lineout 

and they tried to find a way through 

with a period of sustained pressure, but a 

handling error led the referee to call time on 

what was a pulsating game of rugby. 

Full-time score: Connacht 12 - 12 Ulster 


23

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Image 

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THE OFFICIAL 

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RUGBY 

CLICK HERE TO LISTEN 

25

Ones to Watch 

Match-day Squad 

Kyle Steyn 

Lewis Bean 

Second-row 

DOB: 12/02/1992 

POB: Beverley, England 

Height: 6ft 6in 

Weight: 125kg 

Cole Forbes 

Wing/Full-back 

DOB: 10/08/1999 

POB: Pukekohe, New Zealand 


Weight: 91kg 

Having missed the majority of the 2020/21 campaign 

due to an injury sustained in pre-season training, Kyle 

Steyn roared back onto the scene in the 2021 Rainbow 

Cup, showing exactly why he’s so highly rated by the 

coaching team for both club and country. The winger/ 

centre beat more defenders (13) than any other 

Glasgow player as well as crossing for tries in three 

successive matches to close out the season, and will 

surely have his eye on adding to his solitary Scotland 

cap over the course of the 2021/22 season. 

Simon Berghan 

Prop 

DOB: 07/09/1990 

POB: Christchurch, New Zealand 


Weight: 118kg 

Jamie Bhatti 

Prop 

DOB: 08/09/1993 

POB: Stirling, Scotland 


Weight: 120kg 

Richie Gray 

Second-row 

DOB: 24/08/1989 

POB: Rutherglen, Scotland 


Weight: 126kg 

Rob Harley 

Back-row 

DOB: 26/05/1990 

POB: Crewe, England 


Weight: 110kg 

Ollie Smith 

Full-back 

DOB: 07/08/2000 

POB: Ayr, Scotland 


Weight: 85kg 

Kyle Steyn 

Centre/Wing 

DOB: 29/01/1994 

POB: Johannesburg, SA 

Height: 6ft 

Weight: 102kg 

Duncan Weir 

A fan favourite during his first spell at Scotstoun, 

Duncan Weir returned to his first professional club 

in the summer of 2021 five years after moving away 

from the Warriors. Deadly accurate with the boot, 

the fly-half was consistently amongst the English 

Premiership’s top points-scorers during his time 

at Worcester Warriors, and has already shown 

his international class during Glasgow’s two preseason 

fixtures. 

Rory Darge 

Openside flanker Darge made the switch along the M8 

to Scotstoun ahead of the 2021 Rainbow Cup, having 

initially made his professional debut with Edinburgh. 

The former Scotland U20 star subsequently turned in a 

series of displays that had pundits and supporters alike 

purring with approval, with his form earning him a first 

senior Scotland call-up in the summer of 2021 – whilst 

the tour was unfortunately cancelled due to COVID-19 

protocols, few would bet against Darge picking up a 

senior cap soon. 

Fraser Brown 

Hooker 

DOB: 20/06/1989 

POB: Edinburgh, Scotland 

Height: 6ft 

Weight: 113kg 

Scott Cummings 

Second-row 

DOB: 03/12/1996 

POB: Glasgow, Scotland 


Weight: 115kg 

Rory Darge 

Back-row 

DOB: 23/02/2000 



Weight: 98kg 

Jack Dempsey 

Back-row 

DOB: 12/04/1994 

POB: Sydney, Australia 


Weight: 111kg 

Jamie Dobie 

Scrum-half 

DOB: 07/06/2001 

POB: Inverness, Scotland 


Weight: 81kg 

George Horne 

Scrum-half 

DOB: 12/05/1995 

POB: Dundee, Scotland 


Weight: 79kg 

Sam Johnson 

Centre 

DOB: 19/06/1993 

POB: Dysart, Australia 


Weight: 95kg 

Johnny Matthews 

Hooker 

DOB: 05/07/1993 

POB: Liverpool, England 


Weight: 110kg 

Murray McCallum 

Prop 

DOB: 19/03/1996 

POB: Kirkcaldy, Scotland 


Weight: 118kg 

Rufus McLean 

Wing 

DOB: 02/03/2000 

POB: Boston, USA 


Weight: 75kg 

Ross Thompson 

Fly-half 

DOB: 10/04/1999 



Weight: 86kg 

Brad Thyer 

Prop 

DOB: 07/02/1993 

POB: Pontypridd, Wales 


Weight: 113kg 

Sione Tuipulotu 

Centre/Wing 

DOB: 12/02/1997 

POB: Frankston, Australia 


Weight: 103kg 

Duncan Weir 

Fly-half 

DOB: 10/05/1991 

POB: Rutherglen, Scotland 


Weight: 111kg 

Ryan Wilson (c) 

Back-row 

DOB: 18/05/1989 

POB: Aldershot, England 


Weight: 106kg 

27

Half-Time U12s 

Players 

Players 

1 Tom McAuley 

1 Jamie Monaghan 

2 Simon Gregg 

2 Dara Vaughan 

3 Jack Brown 

3 Ava Brennan 

4 James Johnston 

4 Olivia Coyle 

Ballymena RFC 

5 James Kerr 

6 Lewis Greer 

Ballyshannon RFC 

5 Roan Sweeney 

6 Manus Conlon 

Coaches 

7 Kyle Peden 

Coaches 

7 Jack Hughes 

1 Ryan McAuley 

8 Bobby Munnis 

1 David Hoey 

8 Alex Hoey 

2 Wallace Gregg 

9 Jack Woods 

2 Ken Vaughan 

9 Dara Clayton 

3 Garry Brown 

10 Harry Sloan 

3 Kitty Dolan 

10 Darragh Cleary 

Club Colours: 

Black / Red 

11 Adam McMaster 

12 Ben McMaster 

Club Colours: 

Blue / Navy 

11 Conor Grimes 

12 Darragh McCready 

Players 

Players 

1 Ewan McCaughan 

1 Andrew McKeown 

2 Max Irwin 

2 Conleith Bradley 

3 James Tooher 

3 Cormac McGuckin 

4 Harry Davis 

4 Daniel McIvor 

5 Sebastian Calaja 

5 Donal McGoldrick 

Donegal Town RFC 

6 James McGarrigle 

Rainey OB RFC 

6 Eoin Walsh 

Coaches 

1 Laurie McCaughan 

7 Sennan Melly 

8 Romy Byrne 

Coaches 

1 Leon Martin 

7 Harris Davison 

8 Harry Brizzell 

2 Fergal Melly 

9 Max O’Reilly 

2 Thomas McGoldrick 

9 Matthew Cunninham 

3 Matthew Wilson 

10 Séigh O’Sullivan 

3 Thomas McGoldrick Jnr 

10 Oisin O’Loughlin 

Club Colours: 

Red / White 

11 Padraig O’Donnell 

12 Matthew Wilson 

Club Colours: 

Red / Black 

11 Shea Loughran 

12 Thomas Douthart 

LIVE STATS 

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29

Last Time Out 

Ulster produced a fantastic performance in 

both attack and defence to topple threetime 

European champions Saracens at the 

Honourable Artillery Company grounds 

in London in their second, and last, preseason 

friendly. 

Dan McFarland’s men scored five tries and 

limited their hosts to a solitary penalty. 

3 - 33 

Nick Timoney - a try scorer on his Ireland 

debut in the summer - marked his return to 

Ulster colours with the game’s opening score 

on 11 minutes. 

Ulster gained territory with a well-judged 

50/22 kick by Billy Burns which under the 

new rules means Ulster got the line out in 

Saracens 22. 

with a simple penalty from Alex Lozowski. 

Saracens were reduced to 14 men again two 

minutes later as centre Nick Tomkins was sin 

binned for a tip tackle on Brad Roberts. 

Ulster missed an opportunity to increase 

their lead before the interval. Hume caught 

Burns kick and cut inside, but Moore knocked 

on the try scoring pass and Dan McFarland’s 

side went into the break with a 14-3 lead. 

Ulster increased their lead nine minutes after 

the restart. The pack made the yards with 

some big carries before Cooney fed Angus 

Curtis and the centre was able to evade 

tackles from Earle and Sean Maitland to get 

over the try line. Cooney converted. 

Gilroy went over for his second try on 

55 minutes. 

Kearney, Callum Reid and Greg Jones were 

all stopped short of the line following good 

carries. Ethan McIlroy was able to spin out of a 

tackle and release Gilroy who squeezed over 

in the corner with Angus Curtis converting. 

Following a sustained period of pressure in 

the Saracens 22, Ulster forced a penalty and 

went to the corner and, from the lineout, the 

forwards set up a driving maul that powered 

over with Marcus Rea touching down. But 

Curtis failed to convert. 

Even with John Andrew being sin binned on 

75 minutes, Ulster’s 14 men were able to repel 

Saracens attacks and keep their try line intact. 

Full-time score: Saracens 03 - 33 Ulster 

Ulster survived early pressure from the home 

side with Ireland winger Robert Baloucoune 

saving a try as he prevented Saracens flanker 

Ben Earle grounding the ball over the line 

following a powerful driving maul after five 

minutes. 

The home side stopped the maul but from 

the resulting scrum conceded a penalty. 

John Cooney tried to take it quickly but 

was stopped illegally by Saracens lock Nick 

Isiekwe, which earned the lock a yellow card. 

Ulster went to the corner from the penalty, 

the pack drove close to the line, before 

Timoney came on the crash ball to surge over 

from close range and Cooney converted. 

Ulster made their numerical advantage 

count again on 17 minutes. Strong carries 

from Stewart Moore and Mick Kearney got 

Ulster over the gain line. Cooney and Burns 

combined to release Michael Lowry, the 

full back flung it wide, and Craig Gilroy had 

enough strength to touch down with Cooney 

adding the conversion. 

Saracens opened their account on 25 minutes 


31

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Mike Lowry 

Full Back 

20/08/1998 

170cm 

75kg 

46 

Ulster’s full-back / out-half spoke to the 

media earlier this week and he’s excited 

to get the new season underway… 

How important is it to get off to a winning 

start this weekend against Glasgow? 

Absolutely. Being at home in front of your 

own fans, you need to get off to a winning 

start. It’s always important to make a 

good start in terms of league standings 

and confidence around the camp that 

what we’ve done in pre-season is working. 

Looking back at the Saracens’ friendly in 

London, how much do you take from that 

result given that they defeated Bristol 

Bears last weekend? 

There were a lot of positives taken from 

that game. We worked a lot that week on 

things that didn’t go well for us the week 

before and we fixed them. Hopefully we 

continue that into the season. We can’t 

take too much from pre-season games 

because they aren’t competitive fixtures 

as such, but they are good learning 

experiences – win or lose. It’s good seeing 

our attacking structure working well and 

different aspects of our game we’ve tried 

to bring in. 

You got some exposure to the Ireland 

squad over the summer – how did you 

find that? 

It was a great experience. It was a late 

call-up into the camp but I felt I learned a 

lot from being around those players who 

have played at that level. I’ve brought that 

back into Ulster and I feel it’s added a lot 

of experience even though I’ve not yet 

played a game, but being in and around 

the game days, it was great. I’ve brought 

it in here to help boys coming through or 

even boys who weren’t at camp – I feel I 

have a big role to play now. 

Were there any words of encouragement 

from the Ireland Head Coach 

Andy Farrell? 

Yeah, I hope he was pleased enough and 

hope that I put myself into a positive 

mindset for him. Selection is out of my 

control – it’s in his – and all I can do is focus 

on playing well and forcing the coaching 

staff to pick me. It’s about controlling the 

controllables, really. 

You go back a long way with Dan Soper 

– are you seeing a slightly different side 

to him now he’s taken up the Assistant 

Coach role? 

I know ‘Sopes’ quite well. He’s always had 

the same coaching style and we all buy 

into it and it’s a great way to coach the 

way he does. Everybody is really excited 

about it and yes, we did well in that second 

pre-season game against Sarries, but we 

realised how many opportunities we had. 

We just need to execute a bit more and we 

could be a seriously dangerous side. It’s 

an exciting time for us. 

How much are you looking forward to the 

season ahead and the inclusion of the 

top South African teams? 

It definitely adds to the competition as a 

whole. We can’t wait to play the likes of 

those South African sides; they will bring 

a real excitement to the Championship 

and it’s an exciting time to get back out 

there in front of 15,000 fans at home to 

kick-off the season. 


35

Ulster Society of Rugby 

Football Referees’ corner 

We welcome Ben Whitehouse (WRU) and 

his team of officials to Kingspan Stadium 

this evening for Ulster Rugby’s first home 

game in the United Rugby Championship. 

The match officials and players will 

hopefully be well briefed on the Global Law 

Trials which came into effect at all levels of 

the game on the 1 August 2021. 

How well do you understand these Law Trials? 

50:22 

If the team in possession kicks the ball from 

inside their own half indirectly into touch 

inside their opponents’ 22, they will throw 

into the resultant lineout. The ball cannot be 

passed or carried back into the defensive half 

for the 50:22 to be played. The phase must 

originate inside the defensive half. 

Primary intention: To encourage the 

defensive team to put more players in the 

backfield, thereby creating more attacking 

space and reducing defensive line speed. 

Goal line drop-out 

If the ball is held up in in-goal, there is a 

knock-on from an attacking player in in-goal 

or an attacking kick is grounded or made 

dead by the defenders in their own in-goal, 

then play restarts with a goal line drop-out 

anywhere along the goal line. 

Primary intention: To encourage variety 

in attacking play close to the goal line and 

to increase ball in play time by replacing a 

scrum with a kick that must be taken without 

delay. An opportunity for counter attack is 

also created. 

Flying wedge 

To sanction the three person pre-bound 

mini-scrum by redefining the flying wedge. 

Primary intention: To reduce number of 

events where the ball carrier and multiple 

support players are in contact (latched) prior 

to contact, and to protect the tackler who 

can be faced with the combined force of 

three opposing players. 

1-player pre-latched 

To recognise the potential for 1-player prelatching 

prior to contact, but this player must 

observe all of the requirements for a first 

arriving player, particularly the need to stay 

on their feet. 

Primary intention: To be more consistent in 

the management of the 1-person pre-latched 

player. 

Cleanout and the safety of 

the jackler 

To introduce a sanction for clean outs which 

target or drop weight onto the lower limbs. 

Primary intention: To reduce injury risk to the 

player being cleaned out. 

Further explanation and some excellent 

video examples can be found at : 

world.rugby/the-game/laws/global-law-trials 

As with all new Laws and Law Trials, they 

will take some time to get used to. 

If interested in knowing more, please 

contact Richard Kerr 

Referee Development Manager 

richard.kerr@irfu.ie 

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UlsterRugby.com 37

New Season, New League, 

Guest article: 

Rod Nawn 

New Hopes! 

NOW the serious business of a new Ulster 

rugby campaign begins in earnest, with a 

new format and a new tournament name. 

The United Rugby Championship is a 

competition which is truly shaping a new 

era for the game. 

The Kingspan Stadium gates will admit up 

to 15,000 eager spectators as the arena 

edges closer still to capacity crowds, and 

the bars and catering outlets will be open 

for business as something like the normal 

ebullience of a big rugby occasion takes 

its grip. 

Tonight’s welcome visitors, the Glasgow 

Warriors, are traditional and formidably 

consistent foes but, like their Kingspan 

Stadium hosts this evening, the next eight 

months will centre on a new 16-team league. 

The arrival of the four strong South African 

franchises transforms the prestige and the 

challenge which faces the Scarlets, Leinster, 

Cardiff and the rest of the sides with which 

we have all become familiar. 

The Bulls, Stormers, Lions and Sharks 

have made a huge sporting and financial 

decision to make the URC its home, leaving 

Super Rugby behind and bulwarking the 

reputation of the European tournament and 

bringing some heavyweight rugby figures 

to the competition. 

One of them, remarkably, will be wearing 

the white jersey of Ulster from November. 

Duane Vermeulen, a World Cup winner 

with the Springboks and currently in 

wondrous form for his country in the Rugby 

Championship - his display last weekend 

against Australia whetting the fans’ appetite 

to see this powerful intelligent back-rower 

make Belfast his base until 2023. 

His acquisition came out-of-the-blue, 

lock Mick Kearney’s arrival in the summer 

apparently the only notable addition to 

the squad Head Coach Dan McFarland has 

carefully assembled. 

With Marcell Coetzee departing, the 

breakaway group of players perhaps 

required some more heft, but the deal 

negotiated over many weeks by Bryn 

Cunningham was nothing short of a coup. 

In England and in France, particularly, 

Vermeulen’s signature was greatly coveted, 

Ulster’s ‘pitch’ proved to be the best! 

Of course, it is the team, the group, which 

succeeds or fails in its ambitions, but some 

individual imports can, by the commitment 

to the team ethos, lift those around them on 

and off the pitch. Think Pienaar, Constable, 

Muller, Piutau, Afoa and Payne, from abroad, 

whose skillsets and presence aligned 

perfectly with the more local harvest which 

included David and Ian Humphreys, the 

Best brothers, Trimble, Bowe, Ferris and 

Henderson. 

But tonight is very much about the present, 

late September and the hopes and recurring 

desire for winning and capturing that elusive 

silverware. Both Ulster and Glasgow will be 

well prepared for the sterling challenges 

ahead, aware too of a URC format which 

will take time for supporters to grasp but 

with which coaches have fully absorbed. 

For Ulster, for example, this is no simple 

‘home-and-away’ fixture list, the nature of 

a ‘Shield’ system means that all four Irish 

Provinces will indeed play each other twice, 

so too the South African newcomers and 

the Welsh quartet. Nobody would question 

that the Leinster, Munster, Connacht and 

Ulster group is the most testing, the highquality 

sides at the RDS, Thomond Park 

and Sportsground strongholds of the game, 

and certainly dominant in the league in its 

previous incarnation as the PRO14. 

So, the new league might initially appear 

complex and certainly an even more 

competitive calendar, and this evening’s sides 

will be well aware of what promises to be a 

daunting, if certainly compelling, campaign. 

For Ulster, add the imminent Champions 

Cup duels with Northampton and Clermont, 

and it is a fixture list which will be savoured 

by fans and relished by a squad which 

has established players in the shape, for 

instance, of Billy Burns and the marvel who 

is John Cooney, Stuart McCloskey, Jacob 

Stockdale, Rob Herring, Iain Henderson, 

Nick Timoney, Jordi Murphy and Sean Reidy. 

On top of that there is the very real talent 

wealth in the firm emergence of youngsters 

such as Tom O’Toole, Eric Sullivan, 

Stewart Moore, James Hume and Robert 

Baloucoune, many of whom have already 

been capped by Ireland in the last year. 

Indeed, over twenty of the squad are now 

fully fledged internationals. 

That is testament to McFarland’s investment 

in domestic products, his careful coaching 

nurture of players drawn from way beyond 

traditional pathways, and he has been just 

as earnest in his recruitment of a coaching 

team which adds great value and shares 

his passion for improvement, McFarland’s 

measure of the drive towards trophies at 


Danny Wilson, the Warriors’ Head Coach, 

has not always had the stable foundations 

in his squads since taking the reins at 

Scotstoun so the familiar sustained league 

challenges of the last few seasons has 

not materialised. 

39

Like McFarland, he knows that his club’s 

major contribution to the international 

fold means that some of the more familiar 

names might not be available for a few 

weeks, but he will still assuredly field a welldrilled 

and dangerous unit. 

Any squad which includes Ali Price, 

Fraser Brown, Matt and Zander Fagerson, 

Richie Gray, Rob Harley, Peter Horne and 

the evergreen Duncan Weir has flair and 

physicality in abundance, and with the bulk 

of the panel in their twenties, many of the 

less familiar names on show tonight will 

want to impress. 

The opening rounds of the URC are no less 

important because some bigger names 

are ruled out for a time: nothing quite 

breeds success like winning games and the 

points tonight will be just as valuable as 

those squeezed out of full-strength battles 

with the currently commanding teams in 

Dublin and in Limerick, at the Scarlets and 

in Cardiff, plus the increasingly confident 

Italian outfits, Zebre and Benetton, the 

Rainbow Cup winners. 

The fans will play a key part this season 

in a quite different way. The protocols 

demanded by the spectre of Covid will 

surely be followed rigorously, and full 

adherence will quicken the return of what 

we all know as ‘normal’ at the games at 

Belfast and around the country. 

There is a growing buzz surrounding 

tonight’s game, and history suggests that it 

will be a rumbustious encounter but laden 

with prolonged periods of enterprise. That 

it excites and quickens the pulse will be 

just reward for the players, management 

and administrators who have worked 

relentlessly to return rugby to its proper 

place in our diaries and in our partisan 

hearts. 

The sounds of a full house at Kingspan 

Stadium are quite unique, and what 

promises to be an intriguing and influential 

new competition deserves a typical Celtic 

flavour to tease the rugby palate. 

UlsterRugby.com

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43

Important: 

To ensure a safe and enjoyable experience for all supporters, 

Ulster Rugby would ask all supporters to follow the latest public health 

guidance in relation to COVID-19 restrictions. 

Please DO NOT attend Kingspan Stadium if you are 

experiencing any symptoms of COVID-19. 

RAVENHILL PARK GARDENS 

SPIRIT OF ‘99 

THE 1924 

PROMENADE 1 

PROMENADE 2 

ONSLOW PARADE 

TURNSTILES 

Clean Hands Keep Distance Wear Face Covering 

ABBEY AUTOLINE FAMILY STAND 

FOOD 

VILLAGE 

ADMIN’ 

BUILDING 

When travelling around the Stadium, please wear a face covering, 

make use of hand sanitisation stations, and be distance-aware and 

respectful of other supporters. 

EAST TERRACE 

A&L GOODBODY LOUNGE / VIP BOXES 

ISOLATION 

ROOM 

C-19 MEDIC 

Respect Policy 

Stadium Facilities 

TURNSTILES 

We are passionate 

in our support 

We are silent during kicks 

at goal 

We respect the match 

officials’ decisions 

We drink 

responsibly 

Catering 

The Food Village will be in operation, 

serving a variety of cuisines, while the 

Cool FM Crew provide the soundtrack to 

the evening. 

All five public bars will be in operation, with 

one-way queueing and no mingling indoors. 

Audio descriptive match commentary to 

enhance the match experience for people 

affected by sight or hearing loss will be 

available. Earpieces can be collected from 

the admin building reception prior to the 

game, or you can book your equipment by 

calling Jen on (028) 9049 3222. 

We do not tolerate 

abusive or discriminatory 

language 

We respect opposition 

players, management 

& supporters 

We are mindful 

of our language 

INCIDENT HOTLINE 

07790 

200 200 

Kukri Store 

The Kukri Store will be open from 6.05pm 

until 30 minutes post-match. 

OUR Club 

The activity centre for our Junior Season 

Ticket holders will not be in operation for 

this fixture. 


45

Thank You! 

FIXTURES 

Ulster Rugby wish to thank all of our sponsors 

and partners for their continued support. 

Main Sponsor 

Kit Sponsor 

Official Sponsors 

Domestic Sponsors 

Official Partners 

Official On-kit Sponsors 

H Glasgow Fri 24 Sep 7.35pm URC 

A Zebre Sat 2 Oct 5.15pm URC 

H Benetton Fri 8 Oct 7.35pm URC 

H Emirates Lions Fri 15 Oct 7.35pm URC 

A Connacht Fri 22 Oct 7.35pm URC 

A Leinster Sat 27 Nov 8.00pm URC 

A Ospreys Sat 4 Dec 3.00pm URC 

A Clermont w/o 10-12 Dec HCC 

H Northampton Saints w/o 17-19 Dec HCC 

H Connacht Sun 26 Dec 5.15pm URC 

H Leinster Sat 1 Jan 7.35pm URC 

A Munster Sat 8 Jan 7.35pm URC 

A Northampton Saints w/o 14-16 Jan HCC 

H Clermont w/o 21-23 Jan HCC 

H Scarlets w/o 28-30 Jan URC 

A Dragons w/o 18-20 Feb URC 

H Cardiff w/o 4-6 Mar URC 

A DHL Stormers w/o 25-27 Mar URC 

A Vodacom Bulls w/o 1-3 Apr URC 

H Munster w/o 22-24 Apr URC 

A Edinburgh w/o 29 Apr-1 May URC 

H Cell C Sharks w/o 20-22 May URC 

BACK 

TOGETHER 

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