Excited Allen Clarke believes ‘real Ulster’ now emerging after trouncing Toulouse

Ulster’s assistant coach Allen Clarke tasted European Cup triumph with his native province in 1999, and 16 years later he is hugely enthusiastic about the current squad.

The 38-0 Champions Cup win over Toulouse sent a shockwave through the competition, but the man charged with organising the forwards wasn’t surprised. Clarke believes the outstanding performance at the Kingspan had been fermenting, and in Pro12 games against Leinster and against Edinburgh glimpses of “the real Ulster” had emerged. “It hasn’t been difficult to keep a lid on the excitement we all shared last weekend, because we recognised that there were still many things we need to do better.

“What we have seen as a coaching group is the integration of the work in the scrum, for instance, with the needs of the backline. On Friday we defended really well, and we took our scoring chances. That was a win for the collective, not just one unit, one part of the side.

“Rugby is a simple game, and it’s coaches’ jobs to empower the players to perform at their best. We trust the players, and there was an example of just that last Friday.

“We spurned a penalty shot at goal, Rory Best went for the kick to the corner, and from that Nick Williams powered over. That said a lot about the decision-making and the leadership qualities in the team, and about Rory as a leader.”

Clarke was insistent the focus this week has been, and will be, on Sunday and a very different and difficult challenge.

“Toulouse are unbeaten at home this year, they’re second in the Top 14, they’re big men who’ll want to impress on their own ground and in front of their own fans.

“Saracens are clearly in pole position, we’ve played just two games and the group is definitely still open. That’s what makes the game with Toulouse such an exciting challenge, and the right result could make our game at Saracens a very big game.”

Clarke confirmed international centres Stuart Olding and Jared Payne were recovering well from long-terms injuries, but “are not quite there yet”, and he believed that almost certainly the matchday 23 would be unchanged from last weekend.

“What we must be is clinical, and we have prepared really well, there’s a ‘buzz’ around the place and we must feed of that in France,” said Clarke.