Chris Henry: We Are Going Back To Do Something Special

Chris Henry believes that the next two weeks are the most important of his Ulster career. With a play-off against Glasgow Warriors before a potential final at Kingspan Stadium, there is a massive amount at stake. The openside forward captained the side in the 32-10 defeat to Glasgow. However, that team saw just three starters from the previous week and Henry is relishing the return to Scotstoun:

“We will have another rattle at them next week,” says Chris. “Obviously we are disappointed, I don’t think that the score reflected the effort that the boys put in and it was just a shame that we didn’t get more points in that first half, then we got sloppy and the penalty count went against us. Some guys have stepped in and did well but I don’t think the score-line reflected the game.

“There were a lot of positives. Our maul worked well, our scrum was good and I though Ricky Lutton coming in was outstanding. Sam Arnold at just 19, didn’t do too much wrong on his first start. I can’t wait for this week. We are very focused, we are going to come back to Scotstoun to do something special and to get to the final. It’s the biggest two weeks of our provincial careers.”

That focus will be directed toward beating the Warriors and Henry says Ulster will be a different proposition come Friday night.

“They don’t lose often at home but there were plenty of Ulster fans at Scotstoun today and I am sure there will be lots there next Friday night,” says Chris. “We have cavalry coming. A lot of our usual starters weren’t playing but I think Doaky will have a few selection headaches given the performances of some of the guys this week. Now it’s just about regrouping. We know that it is going to be tough, but anywhere away from home is tough. We know that we have a massive opportunity to win and we know that we have the incentive of a home final.

“A final at Kingspan Stadium puts some pressure on us. However, a couple of years ago we had to go to the RDS and that was unlucky. This year with things like Iain Henderson being cleared of his red card – maybe there is a bit of luck going our way. I just have a belief that something is building and something is happening. It’s going to be tough but we are going to regroup and give it our all next week.”