Chris Henry was one third of a very impressive back row unit in Saturday's 30-6 win over Leinster at Kingspan Stadium.
Director of Rugby, Les Kiss, opted to play two natural opensides in the team, in the form of Henry and Sean Reidy; the latter shifted to number 8, with Henry and Iain Henderson providing power on either side of the scrum.
“I think we’ve probably been together in that combination before but it was the first time the three of us have started together. I thought it worked well and I certainly enjoyed it,” said Henry.
“It’s always special beating Leinster. We haven’t done it very often during my career. As a one off game, at a full house, it was right up there. We wanted to give the crowd something to cheer about and I think we did that. We are very happy, but we have only done part of the job,” said the 31-year-old, clearly focused on the upcoming battle against Ospreys, which could seal a play-off spot.
Despite outscoring Leo Cullen’s outfit by three tries to nil, Henry believes there is still more to come from the Ulster men. “We just need to keep the head down and keep building. I don’t think any team has really hit top gear yet, including us, and I think whichever team in the top four kicks on, will take it. It’s going to be a massive finish to the season.”
Henry has recently returned from a shoulder injury, but the Ireland international is happy with his form after a busy performance against a strong Leinster back row. However, despite winning three turnovers on Saturday, he was quick to deflect praise:
“Overall, I was happy enough. Throughout the season I’ve had a few niggles but at long last my body feels pretty good. Hopefully I can kick on. I’m just keeping my head down. I don’t focus on individual battles, it’s about the team. That’s how I have always approached it.
“We keep fighting for each other, we dig in, we work hard. We might not have the biggest forwards, and we are missing power players like Nick Williams, Dan Tuohy and Wiehahn Herbst, but our strength is in our collective and I think that’s going to be important as we go into, hopefully, our last three games.
“Guys like Franco van der Merwe and Ricky Lutton have put their bodies on the line week in, week out to get us into this position so we can’t let it slip away.”
The journey continues at Liberty Stadium, Swansea, on Saturday. Kick off is 3.00pm, with live television coverage on Sky Sports and BBC Northern Ireland.
Director of Rugby, Les Kiss, opted to play two natural opensides in the team, in the form of Henry and Sean Reidy; the latter shifted to number 8, with Henry and Iain Henderson providing power on either side of the scrum.
“I think we’ve probably been together in that combination before but it was the first time the three of us have started together. I thought it worked well and I certainly enjoyed it,” said Henry.
“It’s always special beating Leinster. We haven’t done it very often during my career. As a one off game, at a full house, it was right up there. We wanted to give the crowd something to cheer about and I think we did that. We are very happy, but we have only done part of the job,” said the 31-year-old, clearly focused on the upcoming battle against Ospreys, which could seal a play-off spot.
Despite outscoring Leo Cullen’s outfit by three tries to nil, Henry believes there is still more to come from the Ulster men. “We just need to keep the head down and keep building. I don’t think any team has really hit top gear yet, including us, and I think whichever team in the top four kicks on, will take it. It’s going to be a massive finish to the season.”
Henry has recently returned from a shoulder injury, but the Ireland international is happy with his form after a busy performance against a strong Leinster back row. However, despite winning three turnovers on Saturday, he was quick to deflect praise:
“Overall, I was happy enough. Throughout the season I’ve had a few niggles but at long last my body feels pretty good. Hopefully I can kick on. I’m just keeping my head down. I don’t focus on individual battles, it’s about the team. That’s how I have always approached it.
“We keep fighting for each other, we dig in, we work hard. We might not have the biggest forwards, and we are missing power players like Nick Williams, Dan Tuohy and Wiehahn Herbst, but our strength is in our collective and I think that’s going to be important as we go into, hopefully, our last three games.
“Guys like Franco van der Merwe and Ricky Lutton have put their bodies on the line week in, week out to get us into this position so we can’t let it slip away.”
The journey continues at Liberty Stadium, Swansea, on Saturday. Kick off is 3.00pm, with live television coverage on Sky Sports and BBC Northern Ireland.