Fermanagh Herald reporter Gareth McKeown sharing a lighter moment with Ulster kicker Ruan Pienaar at the press conference gkfh49
AHEAD of their Heineken Cup quarter-final match against Saracens tomorrow (Saturday), the Ulster rugby team enjoyed some relaxation in the plush surroundings of the Lough Erne Resort, the venue for the G8 Summit.
The team bus arrived on Monday afternoon, and the squad have been staying in Fermanagh ahead of Saturday’s game. They leave today (Wednesday) to return to Belfast. Speaking yesterday, head coach, Mark Anscombe, explained to the Herald the reasoning behind the team coming down to Fermanagh.
“We planned this a little while ago. Every day we go to Newforge where we train and it’s the same venue, same spot, same old thing and this is not a same old game, it’s a big quarter-final at Twickenham and for us it’s our test match and we needed to get away and get our focus.”
Mark and his players have run out of superlatives for the Lough Erne Resort, calling it a fitting venue for the 2013 G8 Summit
“It’s excellent, unbelievable, it is superb. It’s not raining, there’s a bit of a cool breeze outside, it’s very nice. There’s also a great golf course, I would love to actually play it, but I unfortunately can’t otherwise I would have brought my clubs.
“I can’t play tomorrow (Wednesday) as I have to go back up to Belfast, but maybe another time.”
Young forward, Iain Henderson, in his first season of Heineken Cup rugby was equally impressed by the surroundings.
“This is my first time down at the Resort here and I think it’s absolutely brilliant, the food is delicious. We were going to train yesterday (Monday) afternoon, but there were a few niggles, a few knocks, so we just took it easy, relaxed and walked about.”
Yesterday, the Ulster forwards trained at the Portora pitches, before meeting the media and then completing a team run in the afternoon.
After some food, a team meeting and some video analysis, they enjoyed a team quiz organised by Ulster rugby masseur, Kyle Alexander.
Assistant coach, Neil Doak explained the main reason behind the stay in the Lough Erne was to relax the players ahead of Saturday’s game.
“Yeah, just getting away from things, just having a bit more time to study Saracens. We have done it before, taking things outside. It’s absolutely superb here and it’s pretty dry, so it’s good we can regroup and get everybody focused for the job at hand.”
As for the game itself, head coach Mark is under no illusions the side face a difficult task.
“In these big games there is nothing given and everything we get we will have to work hard and scrap for and work the 80 minutes. Anything less than that will not do for the result we seek.”
When asked about the support travelling over from Fermanagh and across Ulster for the game, Mark had this message.
“I hope they have a good weekend and we hope we give them the result that will make their weekend better, but you know it’s going to be a good weekend. We don’t take our supporters for granted, and the fact is the people that travel, the people that come, the guys love it and the only message I’d give them is we cherish the support that they give us, and it’s something that keeps the guys going.”
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