St Patrick’s Day celebrations were put on hold for Stuart Lancaster and his Connacht players this year. The Connacht boss said with a game on Friday, there was no day off to join the festivities ahead of their URC fixture against Ulster in Belfast.
As he eyes up a possible sixth win after a solid bonus-point victory over Scarlets at Dexcom Stadium, he says "with a game on Friday, Tuesday is always important".
It will not be easy - victories in Belfast are rare, and this Ulster side is currently sitting pretty in third position with eight wins from 12, and 41 points. However, Connacht will head to Ulster with a renewed sense of confidence, boosted by the expected return of their internationals - Bundee Aki, Finlay Bealham, Billy Bohan, Darragh Murray and Cian Prendergast - having come through the Irish win over Scotland without injuries.
In addition, Dave Heffernan, Shamus Hurley-Langton, Sam Illo and Matthew Devine have recovered from their respective injuries. Still to be assessed are Paul Boyle (calf ), Sean Jansen (hip ) and Denis Buckley (hamstring ). Unavailable are Dylan-Tierney Martin (shoulder ), Sam Gilbert (ribs ), in addition to the longer term absentees Temi Lasisi, Oisin Dowling, Caolin Blade, Hugh Gavin, David Hawkshaw, Byron Ralston, Mack Hansen, Harry West, and Shayne Bolton.
The return of Connacht’s internationals will bring a huge amount of confidence, he says.
“Darragh Murray as an example, and experienced players like Cian and Finlay and Bundee - so yeah, they're all important players for us. But that said, there's been a lot of confidence built in their absence. So it's always about balance.”
Connacht head to Belfast well aware of Ulster’s depth and strength.
“They have a deserved top-four position at the moment,” Lancaster says. “The width of their game, work off the ball, quality of attack, their shapes defensively, well-organised and a good set piece. So for us, we have to be at our very best.”
However, there is a growing confidence in his Connacht team.
“We have good group coming back in ourselves, who are confident as well, and we've had some good performances recently, so we'll go there with confidence, but with a lot of respect for what they've done.
“It's a matter of hitting the right sweet spot between the cohesion and the confidence we've built, and selection in order to integrate those players.”
With a “few grey areas” from the weekend, Lancaster has not settled on his starting XV yet.
“We've held off on one or two positions - it's that balance of reintegration of players and those players who have done more for us recently.”
Connacht last beat Ulster in Belfast in 2023 - only their third win at the venue since 1960. They will have to be at their very best to secure a fourth win.
