Ferris returns for Edinburgh clash

Ulster will have British and Irish Lions loose forward Stephen Ferris back for their first Magners League home game of the season against Edinburgh on Friday.

Ferris told ulsterrugby.com earlier in the week that he will be delighted to be back in an Ulster shirt and was excited to start his first game of the season at home in amongst the 'great buzz' at Ravenhill.

The return of Ferris to the No. 6 shirt sees skipper Chris Henry move to eighthman, with South African import Robbie Diack shifting to the bench. In the week's other change Neil McComb comes in at lock to replace the injured Dan Touhy.

The backline remains the same from the lineup which recorded an impressive away victory over the Ospreys last weekend.

Ulster head coach Brian McLaughin has urged his team to maintain the level of performance which earned them the win at Liberty Stadium.

"We came out all guns blazing last weekend against the Ospreys, and performed very well," he said,"We must play like this time and time again, maintaining that level of play and driving it forward.

"Our defence was good, our set pieces were strong, our passing was more accurate and our finishing was clinical."

Despite their impressive start, he insists that there is still plenty to come from his side this season and is eager to put on a good show in front of the Ravenhill faithful.

"There are always areas in which we can improve, and most importantly we need to ensure there is continuity in our game week in week out.

"We can't afford to go out and play under par; we must be punching our weight every time we play and for the full 80 minutes.

"With every game played, we must make sure that we do both yourselves and our supporter's justice, and this is especially important in front of our home crowd."

Teams:

Ulster: 15 Clinton Scifcofske, 14 Timoci Nagusa, 13 Darren Cave, 12 Ian Whitten, 11 Simon Danielli, 10 Ian Humphreys, 9 Isaac Boss, 8 Chris Henry (captain), 7 Willie Faloon, 6 Stephen Ferris, 5 Ed O'Donoghue, 4 Neil McComb, 3 Brendon Botha, 2 Andi Kyriacou, 1 Bryan Young
Replacements: 16 Nigel Brady, 17 Declan Fitzpatrick, 18 Tamiati Horua, 19 Robbie Diack, 20 Cillian Willis, 21 Paddy Wallace, 22 Andrew Trimble

Edinburgh: TBC

Date: Friday, September 18
Venue: Liberty Stadium, Swansea
Kick-off: 19:05 (18:05 GMT)
Referee: Nigel Owens (Wales)
Assistant referees: David Keane (Ireland), Ken Beggs (Ireland)