Rory Best: We need to roll our sleeves up for one more effort

When you had the season Ulster have endured, thoughts of moving quickly on to the 2018-19 campaign would be perfectly understandable, yet Rory Best is not done with 2017/2018 just yet, not while there is a Champions Cup place still grab.

Ulster’s 24-24 draw at Thomond Park on Saturday consigned the northern province to fourth place in the Guinness PRO14’s Conference B, denying them a place in the end of season play-offs but giving them a lifeline into next term’s Champions Cup.

The route into Europe will most likely involve a play-off match with Conference A’s Ospreys, pencilled in for the weekend of May 18-20 in Belfast although other scenarios, such as Leinster winning the Champions Cup or Cardiff Blues taking the Challenge Cup final, mean it is still possible for Best’s team to qualify automatically as those outcomes would free up an extra spot for the PRO14.