THE REAPPEARANCE OF Luke Marshall in an Ulster matchday squad is down primarily due to necessity with so many other options injured.
However, as Dan McFarland alluded this afternoon, there’s something fitting about the centre returning in a Heineken Champions Cup quarter-final against Leinster, a marquee European fixture.
Because it was in the line of duty, in helping Ulster qualify for this tournament in the play-off against Ospreys, that Marshall suffered the ACL injury which landed him on the absent list from May to the last weekend in March.
“It’s great for Lukey,” McFarland said after the captain’s run at the Aviva Stadium this afternoon.
“The last time he played was against Ospreys, running across the pitch to make a try-saving tackle with three other Ulster players that was absolutely crucial at the time.
“It sums up who he is as a player, his willingness to give everything he has for the team. It’s really good to see him back and ready to play.”
McFarland doubled down on that last three-word phrase and is confident Marshall’s work done on the training field will have him prepared to add something to Ulster when called upon.
“Lukey’s done a lot of training, he’s up to the kind of speed that there will be in the game.
“He may not be used to the physical intensity and collisions and impacts that go on. But in terms of the speed of our training and the uncertainty of our training, he’s done a lot of that. So he’s ready to go.”
The key men ruled ready to go in the starting XV are Iain Henderson and Darren Cave.
The 13 has shrugged off a rib injury to provide a balm for what was an injury crisis with Will Addison, Louis Ludik and James Hume all injured and Marshall without game-time since May.
Most crucial, though, is surely Henderson. The Ireland and Lions lock had to manage his workload in training but will be a formidable obstacle for Scott Fardy and James Ryan to contend with.
The unveiling of today’s team-sheets showed that Leinster have injury issues of their own to deal with, but McFarland wasn’t prepared to count it as a boost that world player of the year Jonathan Sexton will be in the stands.
On top of pointing out Ross Byrne’s track record, McFarland feels it’s better to look within his squad for confidence.
If we are reliant on feeling good because they do not have something, that is totally the wrong attitude.
“We want to go out there and put our best game on that is the bottom line.”
“I think there would have been a lot of interest around that (Leinster team selection), particularly around Johnny not playing, but from my point of view: Ross Byrne played well in rounds five and six.
“(He) steered them to comfortable victories away to Wasps and at home to Toulouse, he’s an excellent player with some great facets to his game.”
