A significant chapter will be written into rugby history this weekend when the first-ever Guinness PRO14 season kicks off after the addition of the Toyota Cheetahs and the Southern Kings.
A large crowd is expected at Kingspan Stadium on Friday night for the opening game of the Championship, when Les Kiss and his Ulster side will be the first team from the Northern Hemisphere to take on South African opposition.
Tickets for the ground-breaking game are still available via ulsterrugby.com/buytickets.
For Ulster, the game will also mark the arrival of Australian international Christian Lealiifano, who has signed on a short-term deal to provide cover at outhalf.
Visiting Head Coach Rory Duncan has assembled a strong squad for the Cheetahs’ trip to Ireland, which also sees them travel to Limerick to face Munster in Round 2. The men from Bloemfontein are buoyed by their entry into the PRO14 and hope to transfer that energy into their opening performances.
“The thing that makes me excited, and the players as well, is going in and being able to see how we compare to the Northern Hemisphere," said Duncan.
“It's something that we've wanted for a long time, it's something our supporters have wanted for a long time, and now they're going to get the opportunity to see it.”
Duncan is under no illusions that the testing start will act as something of a crash course in PRO14 rugby.
“I normally watched it with a steak on the fire and a beer in my hand, so that's going to have to change going forward," he joked.
“We did watch a fair bit, but it wasn't something we were doing week in, week out.
“Ulster is an exciting fixture to start with and then obviously going to Limerick as well will be tough. We're going to face everyone over the course of the season so we may as well get them out of the way first.
“I’m confident that we can put together a team that is going to compete,” enthused Duncan.
The Cheetahs, who are currently top of the table in the Currie Cup, have named a strong travelling squad for their first foray north.
One of them is back-rower Niell Jordaan, who says the players are relishing the opportunity to play in Europe.
“At the beginning of the year, nobody would have suspected we'd be in the PRO14,” he admitted.
“I think the guys are all excited and, any challenges that there might be, we'll figure it out as we go.”
CHEETAHS 28-MAN SQUAD:
Charles Marais, Ox Nche, Joseph Dweba, Jacques du Toit, Torsten van Jaarsveld, Erich de Jager, Aranos Coetzee, Tom Botha, Justin Basson, Armandt Koster, Reniel Hugo, Rynier Bernardo, Paul Schoeman, Henco Venter, Gerhard Olivier, Niell Jordaan, Shaun Venter, Tian Meyer, Zee Mkhabela, Cecil Afrika, Robbie Petzer, Makazole Mapimpi, Ali Mgijima, William Small-Smith, Rayno Benjamin, Rosko Specman, Sergeal Petersen, Clayton Blommetjies
Visit ulsterrugby.com/buytickets to attend on Friday or check out ulsterrugby.com/seasontickets for information on our Season Ticket packages.
A large crowd is expected at Kingspan Stadium on Friday night for the opening game of the Championship, when Les Kiss and his Ulster side will be the first team from the Northern Hemisphere to take on South African opposition.
Tickets for the ground-breaking game are still available via ulsterrugby.com/buytickets.
For Ulster, the game will also mark the arrival of Australian international Christian Lealiifano, who has signed on a short-term deal to provide cover at outhalf.
Visiting Head Coach Rory Duncan has assembled a strong squad for the Cheetahs’ trip to Ireland, which also sees them travel to Limerick to face Munster in Round 2. The men from Bloemfontein are buoyed by their entry into the PRO14 and hope to transfer that energy into their opening performances.
“The thing that makes me excited, and the players as well, is going in and being able to see how we compare to the Northern Hemisphere," said Duncan.
“It's something that we've wanted for a long time, it's something our supporters have wanted for a long time, and now they're going to get the opportunity to see it.”
Duncan is under no illusions that the testing start will act as something of a crash course in PRO14 rugby.
“I normally watched it with a steak on the fire and a beer in my hand, so that's going to have to change going forward," he joked.
“We did watch a fair bit, but it wasn't something we were doing week in, week out.
“Ulster is an exciting fixture to start with and then obviously going to Limerick as well will be tough. We're going to face everyone over the course of the season so we may as well get them out of the way first.
“I’m confident that we can put together a team that is going to compete,” enthused Duncan.
The Cheetahs, who are currently top of the table in the Currie Cup, have named a strong travelling squad for their first foray north.
One of them is back-rower Niell Jordaan, who says the players are relishing the opportunity to play in Europe.
“At the beginning of the year, nobody would have suspected we'd be in the PRO14,” he admitted.
“I think the guys are all excited and, any challenges that there might be, we'll figure it out as we go.”
CHEETAHS 28-MAN SQUAD:
Charles Marais, Ox Nche, Joseph Dweba, Jacques du Toit, Torsten van Jaarsveld, Erich de Jager, Aranos Coetzee, Tom Botha, Justin Basson, Armandt Koster, Reniel Hugo, Rynier Bernardo, Paul Schoeman, Henco Venter, Gerhard Olivier, Niell Jordaan, Shaun Venter, Tian Meyer, Zee Mkhabela, Cecil Afrika, Robbie Petzer, Makazole Mapimpi, Ali Mgijima, William Small-Smith, Rayno Benjamin, Rosko Specman, Sergeal Petersen, Clayton Blommetjies
Visit ulsterrugby.com/buytickets to attend on Friday or check out ulsterrugby.com/seasontickets for information on our Season Ticket packages.