Chris Henry made a welcome return for Ulster in last weekend's visit to Cardiff and marked the occasion with a try on route to a bonus point win.
It was the Ulster and Ireland back row’s first appearance of the season, and he was delighted to be back on the field of action:
“It felt fantastic to be back. I’ve obviously really missed it and I hope that showed. It was six months since the (Guinness PRO12) semi-final against Leinster so it’s definitely the longest time that I’ve been out from playing rugby. I’d be lying if I said that I wasn’t nervous and I know I’ve still plenty to work on but overall I was happy with my first game back.”
TICKETING: A limited number of tickets are still available for Saturday's game, and can be purchased online at www.ulsterrugby.com/buytickets
Henry got the full eighty minutes under his belt on his return, where he was partnered with fellow internationals Iain Henderson and Sean Reidy in the back row, and the trio worked well against the Welsh opposition. However, Henry knows that none of them can take anything for granted when it comes to team selection:
“Hendy and Reidy are two unbelievable ball carriers and if I can do as much of the grunt work as possible and give them the ball, then that’s what I will try to do. Clive Ross has done unbelievably well this season as well, and hopefully Marcell (Coetzee) is going to be available in early January so there’s going to be some really tough decisions for the coaches. The depth of the squad is just getting greater so you’ve got to be right on your game, and as I said, I’m just glad to be back in the mix and hopefully causing a few headaches for the guys making the team selection.”
Ulster last hosted Clermont back in November 2011 when Ian Humphreys guided the home side to victory, landing all the points in a 16-11 win. Henry is just one of two surviving members from the pack that day, along with Rory Best, but he admits it isn’t something that he has spent much time thinking of this week:
“I hadn’t even realised that! I suppose I can take a bit of confidence from those memories, but it’s two totally different teams. Ultimately it doesn’t what has happened in the past, the past is done. On Saturday we need to make sure that from the very first whistle we’re right on it - this isn’t a game where we can build into it, it’s a game where we come out and show our intent from the very beginning.
While content with his performance last weekend, Henry knows bigger challenges lie ahead, both for himself and the team, and they don't come much bigger than the Top 14 table-toppers:
“This week is obviously another bigger test for me, a step up in opposition. No matter who they line out, numbers 1-23, they are a team of real superstars. This is what playing big games for Ulster is all about, a big French team coming to town. The fans get up for it, we get up for it and already there’s a great excitement about the week.”
“Our collective is hopefully going to be a big strength for us. We’ll work hard for each other, we’ll get stuck into them early doors and hopefully they’ll realise they’re in for a tough game.”
It was the Ulster and Ireland back row’s first appearance of the season, and he was delighted to be back on the field of action:
“It felt fantastic to be back. I’ve obviously really missed it and I hope that showed. It was six months since the (Guinness PRO12) semi-final against Leinster so it’s definitely the longest time that I’ve been out from playing rugby. I’d be lying if I said that I wasn’t nervous and I know I’ve still plenty to work on but overall I was happy with my first game back.”
TICKETING: A limited number of tickets are still available for Saturday's game, and can be purchased online at www.ulsterrugby.com/buytickets
Henry got the full eighty minutes under his belt on his return, where he was partnered with fellow internationals Iain Henderson and Sean Reidy in the back row, and the trio worked well against the Welsh opposition. However, Henry knows that none of them can take anything for granted when it comes to team selection:
“Hendy and Reidy are two unbelievable ball carriers and if I can do as much of the grunt work as possible and give them the ball, then that’s what I will try to do. Clive Ross has done unbelievably well this season as well, and hopefully Marcell (Coetzee) is going to be available in early January so there’s going to be some really tough decisions for the coaches. The depth of the squad is just getting greater so you’ve got to be right on your game, and as I said, I’m just glad to be back in the mix and hopefully causing a few headaches for the guys making the team selection.”
Ulster last hosted Clermont back in November 2011 when Ian Humphreys guided the home side to victory, landing all the points in a 16-11 win. Henry is just one of two surviving members from the pack that day, along with Rory Best, but he admits it isn’t something that he has spent much time thinking of this week:
“I hadn’t even realised that! I suppose I can take a bit of confidence from those memories, but it’s two totally different teams. Ultimately it doesn’t what has happened in the past, the past is done. On Saturday we need to make sure that from the very first whistle we’re right on it - this isn’t a game where we can build into it, it’s a game where we come out and show our intent from the very beginning.
While content with his performance last weekend, Henry knows bigger challenges lie ahead, both for himself and the team, and they don't come much bigger than the Top 14 table-toppers:
“This week is obviously another bigger test for me, a step up in opposition. No matter who they line out, numbers 1-23, they are a team of real superstars. This is what playing big games for Ulster is all about, a big French team coming to town. The fans get up for it, we get up for it and already there’s a great excitement about the week.”
“Our collective is hopefully going to be a big strength for us. We’ll work hard for each other, we’ll get stuck into them early doors and hopefully they’ll realise they’re in for a tough game.”