Ian Humphreys starts for Ulster

The former Ballymena Academy pupil and Leicester Tigers fly half will be hoping to continue the Humphreys tradition at Ravenhill with a big performance in front of the home crowd. Ian is clearly excited about the game and said this earlier,

"I am really excited, this is obviously my first time playing at senior level and my first time playing at Ravenhill in a while so yes, I am really excited and looking forward to it. In truth I can't wait for Friday night."

Ian continued to talk about the pride of wearing the Ulster jersey,
"I will be really proud when I run out on Friday night, Ulster is the team I always supported when I was growing up and obviously with David playing for Ulster for ten years I have been a regular attendee to the games.

Matt Williams talks a lot about the honour of playing for Ulster Rugby and wearing the Red Hand, it is really easy to pick up on that if you are from Ulster. The foreign players have to buy into it but once they see the dedication from the players and staff and the massive commitment and passion shown by the supporters it isn't hard for them to realise what it means to play for Ulster.

Matt talks about it but we are all aware of it and know it ourselves, it is a great honour."

Williams has named a strong side for the Reds clash with three Irish internationals starting. In the backline former Reds star Clinton Schifcofske starts again for Ulster at fullback with Fijian international Nagusa named on the wing alongside Scottish speedster Simon Danielli. In the centres young Darren Cave partners seasoned pro Paddy Wallace with Ian Humphreys and Isaac Boss making up the half backs pairing.

The front row is boosted with the return of Captain Rory Best and loose head prop Bryan Young while Tom Court retains the number 3 jersey from last week. The second row pairing of Ed O'Donoghue and Carlo Del Fava will certainly cause headaches for the Reds coaching staff with O'Donoghue a former Reds player. The back row looks particularly strong with McCullough, Pollock and Diack all keen to claim their jersey for the season.

Tickets for the fixture are still available online at www.ulsterrugby.com, over the counter at Ravenhill and will be available on the gate on Friday night.

Ulster Team
Ulster Team: (15-9) C Schifcofske; T Nagusa, D Cave, P Wallace, S Danielli; I Humphreys, I Boss; (1-8) B Young, R Best(C), T Court, E O'Donoghue, C D Fava, M McCullough, D Pollock, R Diack
Replacements (16-22) N Hanna, J Carey, T Anderson, C Henry, C Willis, R Dewey, B Cunningham