Ulster coach Jimmy Duffy highlights 'someone you'll be talking about in the next 10 to 12 years'
Ulster have signed hooker Tadgh McElroy on a short-term contract with both Tom Stewart and Rob Herring on the injured list.
The 27-year-old has had spells in England with Saracens and London Irish, made four Leinster appearances plus played 13 times for Connacht. He is expected to be named in Ulster’s travelling squad for the two games in South Africa.
Another new face in the squad heading to the Rainbow Nation is Queen’s captain Charlie Irvine, who made his Ulster debut in the pre-season friendly against Benetton.
“I was fortunate enough to view Charlie with the 20s (Ireland under 20s) in 2022 when he came down as a 19-year-old and we were looking for a second-row option.” said Ulster forwards coach Jimmy Duffy. “He's an enormous human being, he's 6' 9" or so and he's packed on a size as well...but for a man of his size he gets around the park well.
“Very bright young man as well, he's going to be someone you'll be talking about in the next 10 to 12 years.
“He's been great, fantastic to work with, he's quietly spoken within the group but wants to learn in and around the line-out, in particular.
“He's another one good in that position, we have a number of players in that second row/back row area that can double job...it's about getting minutes and exposure and continuing to learn.”
Irvine could make his competitive debut in the next couple of weeks, especially as Cormac Izuchukwu and Harry Sheridan are on Emerging Ireland duty.
“Number one is they're real competitors (Izuchukwu and Sheridan) and very, very driven, you can only assess that by actions and those two, I don't know where their ceiling is and that's exciting from an Ulster and an Ireland perspective,” said Duffy. “Huge humans and athletes, they love the game, they like to think about the game and they're willing to work hard.
“For me, it's been really refreshing, we have experienced players and they're ably supported by physical and smart young players...very exciting those two and it's been enjoyable working with them.”
Duffy was at Western Force in Australia when Ulster came calling and the Galway native had no hesitation returning to work with Richie Murphy (Ulster head coach).
“We started coaching in and around the IRFU many years ago, probably around '02, '03, somewhere like that,” said Duffy. “Started working with Ireland under 18s, he would have worked in Leinster and I worked in Connacht but that was our first contact.
“Then you always keep up through the ranks, through the Academies and then the under 20s, when he was in the senior set-up he would have been in Galway quite a bit.
“That's one thing that's great about the Irish system, it taps into the national coaches, so they're here regularly.”
“They've had a couple up already and they'll be back again and we're all on the same page about what we want for the players, so we have a good relationship, and this is the third or fourth time we've worked together...it didn't take a lot of thought.”
Duffy added: “(I) just discussed it with the family, it's a massive club with a massive history.
“Probably the most pleasing thing for me is, particularly up front, a lot of the group are early 20s and I think if people get up and behind him then you're looking at a squad of players that could be here for 10, 12 years, which is impressive.”