Ulster Defence Coach, Jonny Bell, spoke to the media ahead of this Friday's crunch match against Connacht and told the press how pleasing the Racing 92 victory was and how Connacht will pose the Ulstermen a threat at Kingspan Stadium.
On how the team are performing...
"We have tried to grow our attack massively and that doesn’t just happen overnight, it takes time and that creates frustration, we are creating opportunities and it’s been difficult to take those. I think we created space and opportunity against Bath but through some good defence and not exploiting the opportunities we didn’t fulfil our expectation.
Against Racing we saw more intent in getting the ball out to wider channels and getting the ball out to our fast wingers. That was really pleasing and we were delighted with the result."
Analysis of Racing 92 win...
"The way we played at the start of the game at Racing we had quality with the ball, we stretched them and kept the ball well through phases. That possession gave us entry into their 22. We attacked with intent and from a defensive point of view, it was great to see how we defended against a team that scored 31 tries this season from transition ball. We managed to keep a team who score bonus points for fun to three tries.
To see the happiness in changing room afterwards was a joy to see."
On Rob Herring's injury...
"A shame but there is depth through the squad and we have quality players like Tom Stewart and John Andrew in the mix. Disappointing for Rob but hopefully it’s not too serious and he can be back in contention for Leinster on New Years Day."
On Connacht threats...
"Connacht are a good side, they went to Saracens and scored five tries, so they can score points. They are are on the back of a losing run, they will cause us problems but we have to deal with our own game and impose what we want to do.
When Connacht come to town they will challenge your breakdown and attack well. We need to be good across the board but the boys are confident, we know what we want to do and its about putting that out on the pitch."
On James Hume form...
"When I was across the water watching as a fan, I was watching a young, fast centre with good footwork and good defensive reads, I think he is back to that form again. He struggled with injury last year, he's relaxed but driven and playing so well. He is a real leader for us, he brings an energy and it reflects in how he plays, he is excited to play and feels good in his own skin."
Fresh after scoring two tries against Racing, flanker, Nick Timoney, spoke to the media about his anticipation for a huge Interpro derby, with the Quarter Final loss of last season still in the players' minds.
Importance of two big interpros coming up...
"It’s huge and it’s a large part of how you judge yourselves, against your closest rivals and the teams you play most often.
In our situation at the moment the Irish teams are generally the standard bearers or pretty close to it.
It’s obviously important to us both from a pride point of view we want to win, we’re at home, it’s an interpro, there’s a million reasons why that’s important but just in terms of keeping track on our season and where we are compared to other teams in the league it’s a big marker."
Building consistency...
"Consistency is always a thing for every team but I think if you’re striving to improve then you hopefully avoid those dips, if you’re happy with the level where you’re at then that’s maybe where you are 5% off one week and it hurts you where if you’re aiming for an extra 5% every week you’re not always going to get it but as long as you’re striving in that direction that’s generally when things trend up.
Saturday is one of the most enjoyable games I’ve played for Ulster in a long, long time. It was a buzz I hadn’t really felt for a while and it’s important to not let yourself get ahead of yourself because that’s not going to be every week, not every week is going to smoothly and all our plays come off and everyone is happy about it and the fans are getting behind us.
Weeks are going to be tough but certainly keeping that momentum going would be nice. It’s a nice short week to focus the minds."
On whether he prefers playing at seven or eight...
"I don’t mind at all. I think this year has confirmed in my head even more just the variety, it’s not like it’s the same three players in the back row this year, it’s been all sorts, young lads making their debuts and Dave (Ewers) coming in.
Even this season there are a couple of lads yet to be back from injury and when I look at the options we have and the talent we have, I just feel it would be foolish of me to try and pigeon-hole myself into something where if I can be adaptable, it gives myself a better chance of being part of some special back rows."
On Connacht test...
"Connacht will have a point to prove as they always do playing against us.
They won’t be as happy how their couple of weeks in Europe went and they started incredibly fast against Saracens but the game got away from them so they’ll have some frustrations, but they’ll get back up with some confidence as they showed what they could do against one of the best teams in Europe.
Nothing we’re trying to do they’re not going to be trying to do back to us. We have to be ready for that and back ourselves."
Ulster scrum-half, John Cooney, reflected on his contributions against Raxing 92, including a brilliant charge down against the French scrum-half that caused two kicks to sail wide of the post. Cooney also spoke about his feeling about playing his former side...
About stepping up against Racing 92...
"I think last week I led more, sometimes I try to concentrate on myself but I tried to bring people along with me collectively. Last week I tried to pull people with me and I tried to get people going. This week at half time we came out really keen to come out and score. Energy is infectious, I feel I can drive people and I tried to lead by example."
About his charge downs...
"We said that every score we concede we should come together as a group, but I thought I would charge hi down, he was playing well and I tried to put him off his game. When I saw him go very slow at the start I thought I'd get him here. I thought if I put him under pressure and he misses that kick then he would be a little rattled."
Putting aside friendships...
"Jack Carty would be one of my closest friends, so the Whatsapp group gets a little quieter closer to the game! In the past we have maybe tried to wind him up, I've maybe sent him videos of me trying to charge him down, but after the last couple of losses I shouldn't!
It's an interesting dynamic to play against a friend!"
On playing with different half-back partnerships...
"I've played with Doaky at ten against Connacht when we won last year, I played with Jake at ten against Sharks, so its not personnel Ive never played with. Billy and I have a good relationship and he is a close friend after years of playing together but I always enjoy playing with other players. It always takes a couple of games to gauge them and see how other players play. Time in the saddle is the best way to get used to the ways of different players."
On what this game means...
"This game means more to us because of what they did in the Quarter Final, it's the most disappointing result I've ever had for Ulster. It bugged me for about three months int he summer, until the point to where I couldn't wait to get back. I missed the last game against them in Galway, from playing with them its always a proper game, they like to push me, they like to talk to me, and call me all sorts of stuff...Bundee Aki in particular, so I look forward to these games!"