MARCELL COETZEE WILL make his first appearance of the season as Ulster bid to bounce back from their heavy defeat to the Cheetahs when they face the Southern Kings in Port Elizabeth on Saturday afternoon.
Coetzee was ruled out of contention for South Africa’s World Cup squad after suffering an ankle injury against Argentina back in August, but he has made a strong comeback to start tomorrow’s round three clash at the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium [KO 3pm, eir Sport/Premier Sports].
The Springbok’s return is a major boost for Ulster as Dan McFarland makes five changes to his starting XV following last week’s 63-26 defeat in Bloemfontein.
Alan O’Connor is the only other change to the pack as Rob Herring retains the captaincy, with Coetzee joining Matthew Rea and Sein Reidy in the back row.
Stuart McCloskey joined the squad in South Africa this week and returns to partner up with Luke Marshall in midfield, while Louis Ludik comes into the back three alongside Craig Gilroy and Matt Fades.
On the bench, scrum-half Angus Curtis could make his first appearance for Ulster since October 2018.
Ulster:
15. Matt Faddes
14. Craig Gilroy
13. Luke Marshall
12. Stuart McCloskey
11. Louis Ludik
10. Billy Burns
9. John Cooney
1. Eric O’Sullivan
2. Rob Herring (captain)
3. Tom O’Toole
4. Alan O’Connor
5. Sam Carter
6. Matthew Rea
7. Sean Reidy
8. Marcell Coetzee.
Replacements:
16. Adam McBurney
17. Kyle McCall
18. Ross Kane
19. Kieran Treadwell
20. Greg Jones
21. Dave Shanahan
22. Angus Curtis
23. James Hume.
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