Press Notes: Rob Herring

Rob Herring spoke to the media earlier this week ahead of the Challenge Cup Round of 16 clash with Harlequins on Sunday, and he’s looking forward to some knockout rugby with Ulster this weekend. Now you’re back from international duties, how much are you looking forward to some play-off rugby with Ulster this week? It’s exciting to be back. As a club, we want to be competing for Championships. It’s not the Heineken Champions Cup we aspire to play in, but it’s an opportunity for us to go and do that [in the Challenge Cup]. There’s a lot of excitement around it and there’s a good focus on a tough game against Harlequins. They’ve turned their season around massively and are playing good rugby at the moment. It’s a tough challenge for us but one as a squad we’re ready to take on. How do the likes of yourself, Iain Henderson and Jacob Stockdale bring the momentum you had at the end of the Six Nation in to Ulster? We’ve got to fit in first. The guys have been playing some good rugby here and for Hendy and myself, the set piece has been going brilliantly at Ulster, so we need to step in and add what we can. We have to get our basics right first and bring some energy into the squad. We had a bit of a rest week last week and the guys are ready to go. How much did you enjoy working with Paul O’Connell and what has he brought to your game? It was great; I played with Paulie only briefly. He has achieved so much as a player and a leader; he’s been a great addition to the Ireland squad. He’s focused on the set piece and breakdown area. He’s a great student of the game; his rugby brain is brilliant. His mentality around the way he does things, I try to soak up as much of that as possible. How do you find dropping back into the Ulster team having been away with Ireland for so long? It is a bit of a different situation for me. In past Six Nations campaigns, I’ve been back and forward in the squad. The Autumn Nations Cup took a lot of time away from Ulster as well. It’s different but it’s also exciting. I love playing with the guys at Ulster; we’re a really tight squad and to come back in, you can feel that energy and I’m looking forward to contributing as much as I can. Having taken control of that Ireland Number 2 jersey, do you feel you’re in a position to contribute more to the Ulster squad? I think so. Having that experience now at international level where the consequences to a missed line-out or mistake in the scrum, it’s that much harder and to feel that pressure and overcome it, that adds to whatever experience you have. I’m always trying to get better as a player; I’m nowhere near the perfect player and I’m always trying to learn things. That’s an area I’ve grown in the Six Nations. If I can bring that composure back to Ulster, then that’s great. Does it feel any different preparing for a Challenge Cup game compared to the Heineken Champions Cup? We obviously want to be in the Heineken Champions Cup but the way things have gone this year, we only had two Rounds and things have had to adapt and we found ourselves in the Challenge Cup. It’s still a tournament with a trophy at the end of the day. We want to be competing and that’s the next step we need to take. We’ve been close for the last few years and got into play-offs. We need to take that step forward and this is a great opportunity for us. You won your last two visits to The Stoop, does it hold no fears? We have good memories from there. It’s been a good away trip for us in the past, but I think when you look at Harlequins at the moment, they’re the in-form team in the Premiership. The way they play, they’re the best team in transition and the backs are brilliant. The forwards bring a good maul. Yes, we’ve had good times in the past but it’s going to take a lot to achieve that again this weekend. For someone who has been in the Ulster squad for quite some time now, what would it mean to you personally to bring a piece of silverware back to Belfast? No-one in the squad has won anything with Ulster. We’ve been so close on multiple occasions but we just haven’t got across the line for various reasons. I’m a big believer that the squad we have now with young guys coming up, I think we’re in a really good place. There’s so much to be excited for but we have to take that next step now and actually go and win something. That just drives everything forward again, to get that feeling of winning that makes you want to win it again. With the young guys in the squad, we need to get that monkey off our back and start driving forward from there. There’s a big difference between believing you can do something and actually doing it. That brings a whole new level of confidence and know-how in those tight play-off games. I’m a massive believer that we need to go further and that will breed further success.