Dan McFarland fired up for Leinster test

Ulster secured their place in the knockout stage with a dramatic 22-11 win over Sale Sharks in Belfast on Saturday, snatching the final Pool B qualification place at the expense of their opponents.

That sees Ulster travel to interprovincial rivals Leinster, who finished top of Pool A after picking up four straight bonus-point wins.

McFarland is excited by the task of facing the four-time winners of EPCR’s elite tournament in Dublin and says it will be a great test for his team.

“That’s the goal, you want to play in the play-off games, and we’ve done it again,” McFarland said. “I think our reward is a trip to Leinster.

A win over Sale Sharks sent @UlsterRugby into the #HeinekenChampionsCup Round of 16 👏

Relive all the best moments from the match on YouTube 👇

— Heineken Champions Cup (@ChampionsCup) January 21, 2023

“I quite fancy Leinster, challenge yourself against the best.”

McFarland went on to hail the home support for Ulster’s win over Sale, with the Kingspan Stadium providing a crackling atmosphere on chilly January evening.

“We came out, we wanted to put on a performance at home, in front of our fans, in our house, and I thought the crowd was electric tonight, the atmosphere was brilliant,” he added.

“I think a chunk of that was to do with how we played. I thought we were excellent on both sides of the ball. It wasn’t perfect obviously but Sale are a really good team, they don’t let many tries in.

“I thought across the board we had some fantastic performances.”