Ulster hitting form at ideal time, says Malone

“We have some star players in really good form at the moment, Charles Piutau and Ruan Pienaar were outstanding last week, so I think they’ll have a lot to think about on Saturday.”

Ulster Skills Coach Niall Malone is relishing the visit of Clermont Auvergne to Belfast at lunchtime tomorrow and believes that back-to-back Champions Cup games with the leaders of the French Championship could hardly have come a better time.

“They are a very, very good side, but two wins in the last four games is not what they, or we, would see as success, so this could be the ideal time to meet them, and with two games in eight days against the same opponents, it does mean that the players have been able to prepare for the various threats Clermont pose.