Ulster’s young international star Iain Henderson has been ruled out for the remainder of the season with a hamstring tear.

Former Irish international Conor O’Shea fears that a huge injury toll will derail Ireland’s bid for World Cup glory.

Discarded Ireland wing Andrew Trimble gets a chance to show what he is made off as Ulster’s quest for Guinness Pro12 success begins in earnest at the Kingspan Stadium this evening when Ospreys are the visitors.

International centre Luke Marshall is likely to start as an emergency fly-half when Ulster play the Ospreys in the Guinness Pro12 opener at the Kingspan Stadium tomorrow night.

When Ulster coach Neil Doak named 33 players in his matchday panel for tonight’s friendly with Leinster (7.30pm), he said he was throwing down a challenge in his squad.

Tiger Woods was in contention for his first PGA Tour win in two years as he lay in joint third after his second round of the Quicken Loans National.

Glasgow 16 Ulster 14: Glasgow left it late to book a place in the Guinness Pro12 final after a nail-biting 16-14 win over Ulster at Scotstoun.

While it had initially looked like Matt O’Connor would see out the final year of his contract with Leinster, yesterday’s news of his departure wasn’t all that surprising.

Ulster head coach Neil Doak has decided that though a win in Glasgow this afternoon is both possible and rich with reward, he’ll put the Top Four play-offs at the top of his list of priorities.

Ulster will make some changes to the side which dramatically earned a last-gasp draw with Munster for the province’s final regular season Pro12 game at Glasgow Warriors on Saturday afternoon.

Ulster’s decision to appeal Iain Henderson’s sending off at Ravenhill on Saturday would be understandable to Munster head coach Anthony Foley who described the punishment issued by referee Nigel Owens as “an unfortunate circumstance”.

An enormous game for both teams. So said Tommy Bowe earlier this week of tonight’s Guinness PRO12 meeting in Belfast between Ulster and Leinster.

It has been framed as a mission impossible, but Matt O’Connor’s coaching colleagues in Munster and Ulster believe Leinster can return from France next Sunday with Toulon’s scalp swinging from their pelts.

Connacht 20 Ulster 27: Ulster’s title hopes and Connacht’s less ambitious but equally important Champions Cup qualification dreams both remain on target after a seven-try Pro 12 thriller at the Galway Sportsground.

European Champions Cup Pool 3

Treviso 20 Ulster 24: This was one of the most astonishing games in the league for a long time.

Connacht arrive at Ulster’s Kingspan Stadium on Stephen’s Day evening with real hopes of recording a first win in Belfast since 1960.

If there is one person Ulster have missed more than any other during an injury-plagued 2014, it has been their cultured scrum-half Ruan Pienaar.

Dublin-born winger Matt Healy is hoping Connacht can do the double over Leinster for the first time ever in the history of the league.

European Rugby Champions Cup Pool 3

Ulster 24 Scarlets 9

Ulster 13 Toulon 23

Ulster coach Neil Doak refused to admit defeat in his side’s European campaign despite a second straight loss in Pool Three at the hands of champions Toulon.

Ulster head coach Neil Doak is pressing on with preparations for Saturday’s Champions Cup ‘Final’ against mighty Toulon with one word on his mind: intimidation.

Ulster are familiar foes for the patrons at Leicester’s Welford Road.

European Champions Cup Pool 3

Les Kiss will leave the Ireland set-up after Rugby World Cup 2015 to become Ulster’s full-time director of rugby.

Les Kiss will leave the Ireland set-up after Rugby World Cup 2015 to become Ulster’s full-time director of rugby.

Peter O’Mahony has backed Ireland team-mate Sean O’Brien to bounce back from his injury nightmare.

Ireland’s Shane Lowry set the clubhouse target on a difficult second day of the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship on Friday.

Ulster and South African scrum-half Ruan Pienaar is suspected of rupturing the medial ligament in his right knee during the narrow Rugby Championship defeat against the All Blacks at the weekend.

Neil Doak may have ambitions to become a head coach but that does not necessarily mean he would be comfortable succeeding Mark Anscombe at Ulster in the near future.

After the injury fall-out from a midweek victory over Uruguay, Neil Doak is expecting an even more intense physical challenge from Romania in tomorrow’s IRB Nations Cup decider.

Emerging Ireland head coach Dan McFarland expects much more resistance from Uruguay than the feeble Russian effort, but won’t be sidetracked for the second of three IRB Nations Cup games at the Stadeionul National Arcul de Triumf today (2 pm Irish time).

Ulster and Irish Wolfhounds assistant coach Neil Doak has warned the festive season is a dangerous period where teams can fall away following the intensity of the Heineken Cup.

Seven players enjoyed a share of the lead after the first round of the Portugal Masters as a total of 68 players broke par on the Oceanico Victoria Golf Course.

RABO DIRECT PRO12

Ireland hooker Rory Best will start for Ulster when they host in-form Italian side Benetton Treviso in Friday’s RaboDirect Pro12 clash at Ravenhill.

British Open champion Ernie Els today said he was glad to make an early exit from the Aberdeen Asset Management Scottish Open, just days before the defence of his title at Muirfield.

Joe Schmidt will be on hand to ease Matt O’Connor into the Leinster job before he takes over with Ireland.