Ulster hooker Rob Herring insists his side will be out for redemption in the GUINNESS PRO12, after letting a golden opportunity to top the table slip through their fingers last time out.

A second-half show from Newport Gwent Dragons saw them overcome the in-form Ulstermen 26-22, with Ulster moving up to second in the table with a losing bonus despite the loss.

Ulster were chasing a fifth straight league victory on that occasion, but after the defeat Herring is desperate to get back to winning ways against Cardiff Blues and keep the pressure on those around them in the hunt for play-off places.

"We're keen to put things right," he said. "We let a chance go to put a bit of distance between ourselves and the other teams. We did manage to pick up a point, the other provinces losing gave us a bit of a lucky escape, and we still went second but we wanted that buffer.

"It was pretty tough, especially last week when we ended up training pretty hard, I think just to take a bit of the frustration out during the contact sessions.

"It is always hard when you have that wait but we're fired up and ready to go for this one.

"The coaches will have us prepared, especially with the extra training week, and we'll know what we have to do to break them down and what we have to do to put them under pressure. It's just up to us to perform."

Head coach Neil Doak has received a big boost ahead of the clash, with Paddy Jackson and Stuart Olding finally returning to the starting line-up at outhalf and inside centre after both were injured against Toulon in January.

Those are the only changes to the side that lost in Newport, with an unchanged pack ready to scrum down against the Blues.

Ruan Pienaar, who passed the 500 points mark in the GUINNESS PRO12 at Rodney Parade, starts at scrum half, while Darren Cave continues as captain in the absence of Rory Best.

Meanwhile, Cardiff’s attack coach Paul John is hopeful his side can continue their momentum in the GUINNESS PRO12 by causing an upset at the Kingspan Stadium – where Ulster have won eight games from eight so far this season.

The Blues have made just three changes to the line-up that defeated Connacht in dramatic circumstances in their last game, when Rhys Patchell’s last-gasp conversion handed them an 18-17 win.

Matthew Rhys and Adam Jones return as interim coaches John and Dale McIntosh look to firm up the front row, while Lucas Amorosino is called onto the wing with Argentine international team-mate Joaquin Tuculet ruled out with a hand injury.

John said: "This game is important to us and we are looking forward to the challenge of going to the Kingspan.

"We need to apply ourselves to an important game and get the maximum points we can from the rest of this season.

"There are only a few weeks left and we want to finish on a high. It's important we have momentum and are positive for the rest of this season. Ulster is a difficult place to go but we are looking forward to the test.”

At Kingspan Stadium, 7.35pm.
Live on BBC Northern Ireland and BBC Wales

Referee: Marius Mitrea (FIR, 38th competition game)
Assistant Referees: Gary Conway, Olly Hodges (both IRFU)
Citing Commissioner: Eddie Wigglesworth (IRFU)
TMO: Alan Rogan (IRFU)

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