Young guns are pushing team forward says Ulster hooker Rob Herring

The Province were able to field their strongest available side, including their international stars, for the previous two games in the European Champions Cup - as they had for the middle group games - and secured a quarter-final place.

However, in between, with limited selection due to IRFU player welfare or injuries, Ulster spluttered through three Irish derbies in the Guinness PRO14 winning one of the three games.

The attention now returns to the PRO14 this weekend before a break as the Six Nations Championship gets underway the following weekend.

Ulster will be without several of their frontline players which provides opportunity for those on the periphery and in the Ulster Academy.

Given the importance of the game tomorrow night at Kingspan Stadium against Benetton in Conference B - the Italians are sitting in third place two points ahead of fifth placed Ulster - it is crucial those who are selected step up to the mark just as the team did last week in Leicester to win 14-13 and secure their European destiny.

Herring, who missed out on selection for the Ireland side for the first two rounds of the Six Nations championship, highlighted that it was the players not involved who really helped get those playing over the line.

He said: “There are going to be a few changes and a few boys going off for international duty but I think part of the reason why we played so well over the last two weeks is because of the efforts from the guys who weren’t playing managed to put in.

“We’ve had two really good training weeks and a lot of that has come from the way that the guys who aren’t starting have tested the starters.

“So a few boys are now going to get an opportunity and I think that maybe in the past that there would have been a dip in performance but I think just the culture that we’re trying to build here now there is an expectation on the guys coming in.

We don’t talk about holding the jersey for someone and just really trying to take the jersey and make it your own.

We’re going have to be good this week as Treviso are ahead of us in the table and they are a quality side but I think that if we can keep the standard we’ve had over the last few weeks then going into this game it will be a good match.”

Herring added: “Interestingly enough we had a couple of conversations as a group and it’s actually the younger boys who are bringing it out that we have to step up now and have to make sure that the levels are the same.

“I think coming from the younger guys it’s brilliant.

“They understand and know now how important this game is, especially how important it also is to wear the jersey.

“If you’re not going to go out there and fight for the jersey and fight for your place then Dan’s not going to pick you.

“This is the first game in a massive block of PRO14 games for us and we have to start putting in good performances in when in the PRO14 to start climbing that ladder,” he added.

Last week Herring found himself covering off in the back row instead of coming on as a replace in the front row.

Interestingly, Herring made his first international appearance with Ireland in the backrow when he came on as a replacement.

Against Leicester Herring ended up playing at either six, seven or eight depending on the play.

Ulster’s hand was forced after an early injury to Marcell Coetzee and then Sean Reidy left them short with backrow cover on the bench.

“I was at eight on the defensive scrum, six in attacking lineouts and seven on defensive lineouts so it was all a bit of a blur really.

“At every lineout I was asking the boys what I needed to do but outside of the set-piece you’re just another one of the players and you just try to make an impact that way.

“It was a big occasion for this group of players and for the club as a whole.

It’s not an easy place to go by any means and obviously after the first half we had we sort of fought back in the second half. It was a massive testament to the character of the squad,” he added.