Glasgow Warriors v Ulster, Scotstoun, Friday 22 February 2013, 1935 hrs

Huge game for The Warriors and a real test for the so called 'dirt trackers' against the top of the table. Who starts at FH with Wee Dunky presumably back with Scotland for the Sunday 6Ns? Does The Messiah start or Peter Horne (if available)? Who goes at hooker with Pat MacA back with Scotland and Dougie Hall and Fin Gillies injured ? Where do we play Mata - SH please Toonster ? The previous games this season at Ravenhill and Scotstoun have been too easy for Ulster so we need to big up, front up and play the game we are capable of starting with the forward battle.

Looks like it will be a sell out boys and girls so get your tickets soon. My one and two teams in the Rabo going head to head at two and one in the league - cannot wait to see who will be !

Could be a great game even though so many are missing on both sides. The players who are not there are not the point. We know the players that are know this is massive.

If I may be so bold, should Ulster win we'll start looking hard to catch. Should Glasgow win everyone will know Ulster are only one more slip up from being caught and the sense will be blood is in the water. It's a big game.

I want Weir to play - he needs games not to sit on the international bench

Aye but he (Weir) is needed on Sunday so he won't let him play on a Friday night - or could he ????

I think he should play. He needs the game time and he didn't even get on the pitch last week

I can't figure out whether I want Ulster to win, cause they're Irish and it makes 2nd place easier for us, or whether I want them to slip up so we have a glimmer of 1st place.

Win win I suppose. we do have both sides at home in March, which is nice.

Jen, I'd just relax and enjoy the game!

Notch wrote:Jen, I'd just relax and enjoy the game!

yup. Hopfully enjoyable with one team winning by 8 points and 3 tries or less.

Any Ulster fans a bit concerned at what they're facing given Glasgow's 8 try wedgie of the unfortunate Dragons at Dave Parade (given that hardly any of the Warriors' international contingent were playing)?

Whats the glasgow prop situation like. Low is with Scotland. Where is Cusack? Without both them we can target the scrum I think

George Carlin wrote:Any Ulster fans a bit concerned at what they're facing given Glasgow's 8 try wedgie of the unfortunate Dragons at Dave Parade (given that hardly any of the Warriors' international contingent were playing)?

Yes, but as Ulster fans we also know the dangers of getting ahead of ourselves and assuming that good form and winning means you'll always be in good form and win

Actually, I don't know if Ulster fans know that. But it's true I think.

Worth noting that Dragons and Connacht are the least affected in the league by intl call ups.

Both were at home. Connacht beat the Ospreys. Makes Glasgow's huge win away look all the better.

I agree Jen. They deserve a huge amount of credit, although it was Zebre they played before Dragons not Connacht.

Ulster are at a bit of a low ebb right now, form wise, probably inevitable with the run at the start of the year. It is a marathon not a sprint and this is where we will be tested the most.

I still think deep down we have the right stuff but Glasgow away represents both a challenge and an amazing opportunity for the team. Having had the pressure of having to perform at home for a now highly expectant crowd, this week we go away from home and in a sense away from that pressure. It's an interesting inversion of recent seasons that we now have a better away record than home record- although I find the fact we've struggled more at home troubling.

No question Glasgow will feel like they owe us one and now is the time to deliver it after the run we've had against them this season. You guys must be pumped up for this one.

Standulstermen wrote:Whats the glasgow prop situation like. Low is with Scotland. Where is Cusack? Without both them we can target the scrum I think

It's not too bad, Stand, although with Afoa and his buds, you can always target the scrum - especially as our favourite Yorkshire immovable object Mr Cusack is still suffering with a bad shoulder. UiG, Dorothy or Schiz might have more on when he will return.

On the assumption that Grant, MacArthur and Low will be involved in Scotland's famous forthcoming record points victory over the Irish (), then we will start with big Gordy Reid on the loosehad - he is a great young talent who really throws his considerable weight around and took apart his Dragons counterpart at the weekend. Scrummaging is still his biggest area for improvement, however - these games will be good for him.

Our new man from Cross Keys, young Gezzy Price will be hooker and he's looked an excellent short term signing - certainly causing Blues and Dragons fans to ask why he had to go to Scotland to get a professional deal.

John Welsh is (certainly, 'was') an exceptional talent at loosehead (the best in Scotland for a while, I think) who is being consistently moved to tighthead after his return from injury to accommodate Ryan Grant who is without doubt the best loosie in Scotland.

Telfer described Welsh as one of the strongest men he's ever seen and he was Mr Consistency for ages, as evidenced by his inclusion in the RaboDream Team 2011/12. He's one of the reasons that the England Saxons front row folded like a sandwich against Scotland A this month and so I guess it's possible SJ could include him in the Scotland XXIII, but I think it's too soon.

Bench cover is pretty reasonable, with Glasgow's favourite Tongan wrecking ball Ofa Fainga’anuku making massive hits -
he's a loosie that we signed from the Tahs and the boy has done well - we've just extended his contract to the end of the season.

Notch wrote:I agree Jen. They deserve a huge amount of credit, although it was Zebre they played before Dragons not Connacht.

Ulster are at a bit of a low ebb right now, form wise, probably inevitable with the run at the start of the year. It is a marathon not a sprint and this is where we will be tested the most.

I still think deep down we have the right stuff but Glasgow away represents both a challenge and an amazing opportunity for the team. Having had the pressure of having to perform at home for a now highly expectant crowd, this week we go away from home and in a sense away from that pressure. It's an interesting inversion of recent seasons that we now have a better away record than home record- although I find the fact we've struggled more at home troubling.

No question Glasgow will feel like they owe us one and now is the time to deliver it after the run we've had against them this season. You guys must be pumped up for this one.

point I was making was that Connacht and dragons were both at home this weekend. Both with relatively 1st string sides. Connacht beat the Os, Dragons did not do so well.

Ahhh, now I get you. Yes.

Again, I agree. Glasgow are flying right now. Confidence is high.

Coo is still suffering from the dodgy shoulder. Kalman is back and will probably face Ulster. Low could play as Cross may be preferred to him... Depends on whether Welsh is called up or not.

Suspicion that Glasgow will be without Welsh, McArthur, Weir, Low, Dunbar, Murchie and Pyrgos from the team that beat the Dragons. Maybe even Barclay too

Likely team

1. Reid 2. Price 3. Kalman 4. Ryder 5. Swinson 6. Strauss 7. Barclay 8. Wilson 9. Matawalu 10. Wight 11. van der Merwe 12. Horne 13. McGuigan 14. Seymour 15. R Lamont

16. Brown 17. Fainga'anuku 18. Allan? 19. Campbell 20. Eddie 21. Kennedy 22. Russell 23. Thompson

Apart from quite a soft front row, that's a reasonable team UiG.

2 important questions:

1. Won't we see the Messiah at 13 rather than Barry? I hope so.
2. I presume that you will be doing your usual impression of Judas Iscarriot for the purposes of this fixture?

Depending on whether Glasgow's league campaign is considered as important as Scotland's 6N campaign then Weir could be allowed to play on Friday night and Heathcote, who played well for Bath yesterday, could take the bench place for the Ireland game?

George Carlin wrote:Apart from quite a soft front row, that's a reasonable team UiG.

2 important questions:

1. Won't we see the Messiah at 13 rather than Barry? I hope so.
2. I presume that you will be doing your usual impression of Judas Iscarriot for the purposes of this fixture?

Aye UiG spy in the camp and all that

Anyhoo what is the latest on The Coo - we really need him in the run in. Bloody fantastic news re DTH though !

Messiah and Gray Junior will be with U20s... And I doubt Scotland will allow Dunc to play vs Ulster. Too much risk, as he's considered No.2 for Scotland.

And yes I will be... Although I'm praying nobody scores while I'm in the suit... And that the Ulster boys don't steal my seats!!!

Why can weir not play for glasgow and be on the bench for scotland? Its not like Johnson actually plays him is it?

Because if he plays say 60 on Friday, and Jacko pull a hammy in the first 5 mins then he'll be dead by half time... It should be Heathcote on the bench, as he's in better nick fitness wise but I'd expect Dunc to not play!

I don't think you can question Weir's fitness after Friday night he was everywhere, his energy like all the team was top notch.

I see Heathcote kicked well liked Weir but have not seen highlights to compare.

Tough choice for Johnson!

With all the additional call-ups to the Ireland squad (as well as injuries), what sort of team do we expect? Not many backs or forwards left to choose from. Is this going to be like the Munster match and send the Ravens?

Beginning to look that way Meister - an awful lot of players included in the Ireland squad for Scotland.

Court, Best, Fitzpatrick, Stevenson, Henderson, Henry, Jackson, Masrhall, Cave and Gilroy all called up to Ireland camp. I'd imagine Cave will be released. Stevenson might be, depending on whether they go with him or Toner.

Injured we have Muller (possibly - he might be back), Tuohy, Ferris (although there's vague rumours he might be back next week), Wilson, Williams, Bowe, Payne and D'Arcy. Out for the rest of the season are McAllister, Macklin, Doyle (I think) and Farrell.

Best stab at a "here's hoping" team would be:
Black
Herring
Afoa
Muller
McComb
Ferris
Birch
Diack
Pienaar
Olding
Allen
Wallace
Cave
Trimble
Andrew

If we're missing Muller and Ferris, I'd put two young pups in - Alan O'Connor and Conor Joyce. We have no other second rows, and having heaped praise on McComish earlier in the season because I thought he was really punching above his weight, it looks to me now he is back at the level he was. Never makes yards, gets turned over regularly in contact. Joyce, on the other hand, has looked assured for the U20s.

We're going to lose, I think - I'd take a LBP gladly. We have the easiest run of the top six teams, with only one game against any of the others - away to Leinster. So hopefully we can still finish top.

In terms of this team - it's not actually a bad backline. And we could very well still do the business in the scrum. But the disruption as much as anything will put us on the back foot.

Says a lot about the strength of both squads that we can each put together a very serviceable team in this international window.

Strong looking front row, back row and back 3 for Ulster, all things considered.

Can someone tell me how Stephen Ferris is playing, please?

UlstermaninGlasgow wrote:Messiah and Gray Junior will be with U20s... And I doubt Scotland will allow Dunc to play vs Ulster. Too much risk, as he's considered No.2 for Scotland.

And yes I will be... Although I'm praying nobody scores while I'm in the suit... And that the Ulster boys don't steal my seats!!!

Here's the most simple question I've ever asked on these boards.

The Messiah turned 20 about a fortnight ago.

Doesn't that make him ineligible now? Or do you have to be under-20 when the squads are chosen?

Not sure who the messiah is? Ian Madigan is over 21 now. Bit you have to be under 20 on the 1st of jan.

That's an in-joke amongst Scots posters, Jenifer.

The Messiah is Mark Bennett, someting of a prodigy that was grabbed by Clermont from his club side Ayr (having rejected the overtures of Glasgow at the time to sign professional terms with them) and he's just back from 18 months in their Academy. He tore his ACL which kept him out for 6 months and to get game time, Clermont have loaned him back to Glasgow until the end of the season.

The nickname is a self-mocking reference to the amount of hype he's received from the Scottish press since playing for Ayr, aged 17, which is when I watched him. You will see this symbol a lot () from Scottish posters. We don't really mean it. Well, a lot of us don't.

I will say nothing more. We're trying to keep the hype down to a dull roar. I'll say only that it's plainly just a matter of time before he makes Brian O'Driscoll look like the proverbial asthmatic snail with heavy shopping.

George Carlin wrote:Can someone tell me how Stephen Ferris is playing, please?

He isn't. IF he's involved- and we have no idea whether or not he will be as of yet- it will be him coming back from another long injury lay-off.

Surely a degree of commonsnse must prevail here. Mark Bennett ( ) and Jonny Gray must be released to play for The Warriors from the Under 20 team. It is in their interests to test themselves v top of the table as opposed to the under 20s (apologies to SL) - but it is not as big or intensive a game.

I completely agree Schiz - the Glasgow game is more important to Scottish rugby and a far higher standard for the players than the U20 game.

Whilst Jonny Gray might not be needed (big Nick Campbell could just as easily fulfil that bench slot), Mark Bennett most certainly is. He's a better 13 than McGuigan, by some distance.

Robbie Ferguson should start for the U20s in his place if fit.

George Carlin wrote:

UlstermaninGlasgow wrote:Messiah and Gray Junior will be with U20s... And I doubt Scotland will allow Dunc to play vs Ulster. Too much risk, as he's considered No.2 for Scotland.

And yes I will be... Although I'm praying nobody scores while I'm in the suit... And that the Ulster boys don't steal my seats!!!

Here's the most simple question I've ever asked on these boards.

The Messiah turned 20 about a fortnight ago.

Doesn't that make him ineligible now? Or do you have to be under-20 when the squads are chosen?

its dodgy. Its something like you have to be u20 at the start of the season in question, I knew a guy once who played for them despit being almost 21 at the time.

I have a suspicion it's like the wendyball where if you're eligible at the start of the tournament or before a certain date then you continue to be eligible even if you are older than the age limit.

JMcLadyboy has answered the question - it's your age on 1st Jan of the current year that's relevant.

It's surely a no brainer. If Bennett is needed by Glasgow in this crucial match then that's where he should be.

Scotland U20s and Scotland A are important development tools and all that, but after the main Scotland squad the pro sides should rank next in the order of priority. If an U20 player is good enough to be required by his pro side, then that's his priority.

Bennett has played enough kids rugby already.

Muller out for 4-6 weeks with a groin strain... Well that sucks.......

This should be a good game and as others have said will really test the squad depths for both teams. Bad news re these new injuries for Ulster, they've really not had much luck this year. Regarding the conflict between U20 vs club, I know that club takes precedence in England at least - young Jack Nowell has been appearing for the Chiefs rather than U20. However, it wouldn't surprise me if it was the other way round in Scotland, just a hunch. Really important for Warriors to keep the momentum going at this vital stage of the season now

All things considered the Ulster team could be worse shows how far we have come in terms of depth in the last year. Even if Ferris is fit I don't see him starting he has been out too long we need to ease him back in. 2nd row could now be an issue if Muller is now supposedly out too it looks like McComb and the infamous A N other in there. Still bring it on. SUFTUM

AsLongAsBut100ofUs wrote:This should be a good game and as others have said will really test the squad depths for both teams. Bad news re these new injuries for Ulster, they've really not had much luck this year. Regarding the conflict between U20 vs club, I know that club takes precedence in England at least - young Jack Nowell has been appearing for the Chiefs rather than U20. However, it wouldn't surprise me if it was the other way round in Scotland, just a hunch. Really important for Warriors to keep the momentum going at this vital stage of the season now

Stuart Olding, our 19 year old 10, is being held back from U20s rugby. He'll be starting I'm sure. So our inspirational Captain is out injured for a third time this season? Who else is missing? Too many to list when you combine Ireland duty with the massive injury list.

We're gonna be top of the league after this game you know- mental when you consider everything that this squad has been through. All the obstacles in our path... Against all odds we keep going.

We've never been down to barer bones than this. Wouldn't write us off either. 15 men going out there with good structures and the feeling its them against the world- I'm not worried about them. Win or lose they'll make their own luck. John Afoa or Paddy Wallace to Captain?

Afoa did it earlier in the year, Wallace is the most experianced in an Ulster jersey, Diack is given a lot of responsibility maybe he is seen as a leader? going to be a very interesting team selection

Notch wrote:

AsLongAsBut100ofUs wrote:This should be a good game and as others have said will really test the squad depths for both teams. Bad news re these new injuries for Ulster, they've really not had much luck this year. Regarding the conflict between U20 vs club, I know that club takes precedence in England at least - young Jack Nowell has been appearing for the Chiefs rather than U20. However, it wouldn't surprise me if it was the other way round in Scotland, just a hunch. Really important for Warriors to keep the momentum going at this vital stage of the season now

Stuart Olding, our 19 year old 10, is being held back from U20s rugby. He'll be starting I'm sure. So our inspirational Captain is out injured for a third time this season? Who else is missing? Too many to list when you combine Ireland duty with the massive injury list.

We're gonna be top of the league after this game you know- mental when you consider everything that this squad has been through. All the obstacles in our path... Against all odds we keep going.

We've never been down to barer bones than this. Wouldn't write us off either. 15 men going out there with good structures and the feeling its them against the world- I'm not worried about them. Win or lose they'll make their own luck. John Afoa or Paddy Wallace to Captain?

Worse than the Zebras away?

I really don't know who I want to win this. I can't decide which would be better for the league ...... well, by that I mean the Scarlets. Ulster to win every game left and be untouchable as they're going to be in the playoffs anyway lessening the gap between Glasgow and the 3 below, or Glasgow to win and give everyone hope and maybe a late Ulster implosion will open the top four a bit.

I've decided not to give a rats backside and just hope for a good game. After that I'll persuade myself that the result was the best one for the Scar... I mean league.

Notch wrote:

AsLongAsBut100ofUs wrote:This should be a good game and as others have said will really test the squad depths for both teams. Bad news re these new injuries for Ulster, they've really not had much luck this year. Regarding the conflict between U20 vs club, I know that club takes precedence in England at least - young Jack Nowell has been appearing for the Chiefs rather than U20. However, it wouldn't surprise me if it was the other way round in Scotland, just a hunch. Really important for Warriors to keep the momentum going at this vital stage of the season now

Stuart Olding, our 19 year old 10, is being held back from U20s rugby. He'll be starting I'm sure. So our inspirational Captain is out injured for a third time this season? Who else is missing? Too many to list when you combine Ireland duty with the massive injury list.

We're gonna be top of the league after this game you know- mental when you consider everything that this squad has been through. All the obstacles in our path... Against all odds we keep going.

We've never been down to barer bones than this. Wouldn't write us off either. 15 men going out there with good structures and the feeling its them against the world- I'm not worried about them. Win or lose they'll make their own luck. John Afoa or Paddy Wallace to Captain?

Notch, quite right, anyone writing Ulster off would be sadly well wide of the mark - as you allude, it will be 15 vs 15 on the day, and anything could happen

Jenifer McLadyboy wrote:

Notch wrote:

AsLongAsBut100ofUs wrote:This should be a good game and as others have said will really test the squad depths for both teams. Bad news re these new injuries for Ulster, they've really not had much luck this year. Regarding the conflict between U20 vs club, I know that club takes precedence in England at least - young Jack Nowell has been appearing for the Chiefs rather than U20. However, it wouldn't surprise me if it was the other way round in Scotland, just a hunch. Really important for Warriors to keep the momentum going at this vital stage of the season now

Stuart Olding, our 19 year old 10, is being held back from U20s rugby. He'll be starting I'm sure. So our inspirational Captain is out injured for a third time this season? Who else is missing? Too many to list when you combine Ireland duty with the massive injury list.

We're gonna be top of the league after this game you know- mental when you consider everything that this squad has been through. All the obstacles in our path... Against all odds we keep going.

We've never been down to barer bones than this. Wouldn't write us off either. 15 men going out there with good structures and the feeling its them against the world- I'm not worried about them. Win or lose they'll make their own luck. John Afoa or Paddy Wallace to Captain?

Worse than the Zebras away?

Hmm, good point- this was our team then.

Ulster
(15 - 9) R Andrew; M Allen, J Payne, P Wallace, C Cochrane; N O'Connor, M Heaney
(1 - 8) C Black, N Brady (c), J Afoa, R Diack, N McComb, N Williams, M McComish, R Wilson
Replacements (16 - 23) R Herring, T Court, D Fitzpatrick, J Simpson, A Birch, B McIlroy, S Olding, P Nelson

Hard to compare until we get to see our team this week but certainly the backrow will be weaker. Not sure who is going to play second row/back row. Seems to be a lack of available players. I would absolutely love to have just one of Williams or Wilson available.

We will be missing more players this weekend than Zebre away - at least by my calcualtions

21 players missing, is that right Geoff?