The log-leading Stormers will need to be on point if they hope to knock over high-flying Ulster in round 17 of the URC in Belfast on Friday.
PREVIEW: 2025/26 URC – Round 17 – Ulster v Stormers
To Win
Ulster | Draw | Stormers
Handicap
Ulster | Stormers
Match context
The Stormers’ 48-12 thumping of Glasgow Warriors in Cape Town two weeks back elevated them to top of the pops with just two rounds of URC action remaining, a position which John Dobson and his team will be desperate not to relinquish with the quarterfinals just around the corner.
The manner of that victory over Warriors, though admittedly in the Western Cape, was the perfect response following the side’s shock home defeat to Connacht just one week before and suggests the inaugural winners of the competition will be difficult for any team to stop from here on out.
They’ve had a week to put their feet up as the European semi-finals played out over the weekend and should be well rested ahead of this seismic task against a confident Ulster outfit.
Richie Murphy’s men are fresh off of downing Exeter Chiefs 29-12 in their EPCR Challenge Cup semi-final on the weekend and could be on course to end their two decades’ long trophy drought this term.
While things may appear promising in Europe though, back-to-back recent URC defeats to Irish rivals Leinster and Munster has seen them drop to eighth on the log and in real danger of missing out on the playoffs.
Considering they next welcome Glasgow to the Ravenhill, and have ninth-placed neighbours Connacht breathing down their necks, besting the Stormers here has become something of a non-negotiable.
Ulster triumphed 38-34 when the sides met in Northern Ireland last season, though the Stormers have claimed three wins from the five previous meetings between the sides.
Players to watch
Nick Timoney (Ulster)
Timoney has long been one of Ulster’s most loyal servants, having racked up close to 200 appearances for his beloved club. The 30-year-old was seismic in the Challenge Cup semi-finals last week, defending like an absolute trojan and causing chaos on the deck for Chiefs.
If Timoney, alongside former Capetonian Juarno Augustus, can produce a similar showing against the Stormers and their much-vaunted loose trio, Ulster will be on the front foot.
Ntuthuko Mchunu (Stormers)
The former Hollywoodbets Sharks loosehead is in career-best form and dotted down twice in the opening 15-minutes against Glasgow two weeks ago. His dynamic ball-carrying and solid scrummaging have earned him many more admirers since trading Durban for Cape Town, and his performance at set piece time should set the tone again for the Stormers this week.
Coming up against an experienced Ulster front row that includes veteran tighthead Tom O’Toole, Mchunu’s display will go a long way to defining the outcome.
Tactical overview
Perhaps the biggest question surrounding this matchup will be whether Ulster’s walking wounded will have sufficiently recovered following their bruising game against Exeter Chiefs.
In spite of the one-sided nature of that final scoreline, the match certainly took its toll on Murphy’s squad, with talismanic trio Stuart McCloskey (hamstring), Jacob Stockdale (facial fracture) and David McCann (knee) all confirmed to be ruled out of this one.
On the bright side, the return to training of Scott Wilson, Angus Bell and Rob Herring will be welcome news for the hosts in the face of the Stormers’ star power.
Despite being starved of possession against Chiefs, Ulster did superbly well to take their chances when they presented themselves and ultimately dotted down four times in total, with three of those tries coming in the second-half.
Whether they can increase, or even maintain a similar level of intensity as this game plays out will be an interesting subplot given the attritional nature of what occurred last week, and against the Stormers’ lethal attacking weapons.
Dobson’s men know how to score tries, and if they’re accurate in the fundamentals they will be hard to stop — even in Belfast.
Expect them to have made the most of their week-long break and be raring to go.
Prediction
Get on the Stormers to down Ulster on the board and maintain their ascendency
the URC standings with the playoffs just around the corner.
