"It is great to be back at Ulster" says Faloon. "I was away for three years and it was great for me but I am very excited to be back. I am closer to family, closer to friends and back in the fold with guys I have played with before." Having missed the entire redevelopment of Kingspan Stadium, he was surprised at what the Home of Ulster Rugby now has to offer:
"The set up here is completely different from when I left, it was a total shock when I first walked into the gym compared with what we had here before, and all around the facilities are top class. That coupled with the fact that Les Kiss is making Ulster his home next season is certainly a driver which influenced me to come back."
"I have worked with Les before and I like the way he operates, his sessions are quick and sharp and very technical, it will be great to get stuck in and work with him again."
Having left to join Connacht in 2012, Faloon explains that he probably wouldn't be the person he is today without having the experience away from Ulster... "There is no doubt I have developed as a person and a player having been away for three years. If I knew back then what I know now I would have been a much better player. I train a lot harder now and I take care of the smaller details which I didn't do three years ago. I have learnt that I need to look after my all-round game and take care of every detail in order to perform well."
"Today we started the first block of pre-season training which focuses on strength, speed and power, so we are doing a lot of weights, prowlers, some off-feet conditioning, grappling and wrestling - that is what we have on the cards for the next few weeks but I'm looking forward to it."
He returns at a time when competition in the squad is rife but with Chris Henry named in the Ireland Rugby World Cup training squad, he has the potential to make his mark early in the season: "Wherever you go there is going to be competition for places, if there wasn't it probably wouldn't drive you as hard so I am excited at the opportunity to come up against the other guys to challenge my game and keep learning."
The 28 year old is back in Belfast for at least another year but claims it's like he never left: "I have moved back into the same house where I stayed before, back into the same bedroom, so you could say it's like I've never been away. It's good to see friendly faces, I am not coming in completely raw. I know a lot of the guys but there are some new faces as well so I am looking forward to meeting and getting to know those guys. It will be great to pull on an Ulster jersey again and get involved in what should be a really exciting time for the province."