Heineken Cup: Ulster look to the future as Paddy Jackson is made new No 10

ULSTER coach Brian McLaughlin will bow out at the end of this season and he has ensured that he will not do so wondering what might have been.

He has handed the No 10 jersey to young talent Paddy Jackson and insisted on the eve of Ulster’s first Heineken Cup semi-final since 1999, that he had no qualms about asking Ireland’s U20 skipper to take the reins for the first time in Europe in such a big game.

“Paddy has come in over the last few weeks and done exceptionally well,” he said. “His performances have warranted selection. It’s a very tough call on Ian [Humphreys] but we felt Paddy deserved a shot.”

Jackson was just seven years old when Ulster enjoyed that ’99 run, but he is confident that he can repay McLaughlin’s faith and play a key role in emulating that achievement.

He said: “I was living in England at that time [1999] because of my dad’s work, and I was more interested in football. I’m probably the one person in Ulster that doesn’t really remember what they were doing in 1999! I may be the youngest player in the squad but I have a job to do and I’m very comfortable making the calls. I’m playing alongside Ruan Pienaar, with Paddy [Wallace] and Darren [Cave] outside me and Stefan [Terblanche] behind so there’s lots of experience around me. Obviously, there will be a massive crowd and a lot of media attention but it is just a game of rugby and I’ll prepare for it in exactly the same way as I always do.”

Ulster have lost openside flanker Chris Henry, however, and McLaughlin admitted: “That’s a huge blow for us but Willie [Faloon] is vastly experienced and will put everything into his performance.”

He added: “Edinburgh are one of the form teams in Europe. They are not going to fear coming to the Aviva.”