Roddy Grant: Ulster forwards coach hopes Munster come to Belfast fully loaded

Munster may opt to rest Tadhg Beirne and Peter O'Mahony for the New Year's Day derby in Belfast

Ulster forwards coach Roddy Grant says he's hoping Munster come fully loaded for the New Year's Day game in Belfast but that's he expecting a tough contest whatever side they pick.

British and Irish Lions Peter O'Mahony and Tadhg Beirne have played all five Munster games since late November.

Thus there is speculation Graham Rowntree may rest the duo and others after Monday's defeat by Leinster.

"You want to play their best players," said Grant.

"You want to dominate the best players. You want to bash the best players and bash the good teams. You want to stamp your authority and reputation on them so I hope they [O'Mahony and Beirne] play.

"But the dangerous thing is that whenever they've not played in the past, other players have stepped up and played really well. Jack O'Donoghue for example.

"It's always a good challenge with Munster but we'll back ourselves. We've gone alright against them the last few times we've played forwards wise."

Ulster edged out Munster in last meeting

O'Mahony and Beirne were among Munster's absentees when they were edged out 15-14 at Thomond Park by Ulster in late October although the northerners had to work hard to hold on in the closing stages against a largely second-string home side.

Munster go into Sunday's contest only 11th in the United Rugby Championship table - eight spots below Ulster - but they have won four of their past six games and will feel they should have accounted for a largely second-string Leinster on Boxing Day as they conceded two tries when Leo Cullen's side were down to 14 men.

Those two scores helped Leinster snatch a 20-19 victory as Munster missed an opportunity to put real momentum in their campaign after the gutsy European win in Northampton.

In spite of that and whatever line-up Rowntree picks, Grant insists that Munster have improved considerably since the late October meeting.

New attack coach Mike Prendergast is gaining kudos for Munster's more inventive backs play although Grant says that their traditional forwards strength remains in place.

"They are a better team now than when we played them at Thomond which wasn't too long ago. They've been playing some good stuff and got a [losing bonus] point against Leinster.

Roddy Grant says Ulster will pick a "strong team" for the New Year's Day contest

"They haven't reinvented themselves but across the board they're playing well. They've got some really good attack, the set-piece has been going well, the scrum has been going well and they've been defending pretty well.

"They've got a lot of jackal threats with the personnel Tadhg Beirne and O'Mahony."

After ending a concerning run of three straight defeats by hanging on to defeat Connacht 22-20 in Galway on 23 December, Grant says "a couple" of Ulster changes are likely for the New Year's Day contest but that coach Dan McFarland will still pick a "strong team".

"We're going to have a crack at them. Playing at home…..a good crowd…..we beat them away there. We know they are going to be coming up after us. It's competitive. Every win is important. Yeah we'll be putting out a strong team."

After leading 19-3 with 20 minutes left at the Sportsground, Ulster needed Connacht fly-half Jack Carty to miss a last-kick conversion to secure the victory and Grant laughed that there was "a bit of emotion in the coaches' box - especially in the last 10 minutes".

"It was a big game going down there after the three losses we had. Looking at selection, they picked their strongest side and definitely picked it for us so it was always going to be a big challenge. It's a tough place to go.

"We were pleased with the result. We got the points and all the rest of it. Not a perfect performance but some games in pro sport that's what you need.

"There were some good aspects in it. Likewise there are some areas that we need to get right for Munster this week."