Ulster have a scrum deep inside their own half.

James McNabney with a barnstorming carry off the base of the scrum.

The hosts now going through the phases with a series of carries before Connor McKee's attempt to box-kick is charged down.

However, the referee spots Scarlets offside and it's a penalty to Ulster.

Ulster struggling to get out of their half, but they've won a penalty and it's finally a chance to attack with some territory.

Lineout to Ulster but it's a scrappy one and the ball is knocked on.

Frustrating for the hosts.

A kick over the top from Scarlets goes into the hands of Jacob Stockdale who calls a mark and clears his lines with a kick for territory.

Scarlets surge forward and are attacking with intent in Ulster's 22.

Superb break from Max Douglas but he is stopped in his tracks by Ulster fullback Stewart Moore.

Referee Sam Grove-White blows the whistle and we're off to a start in Belfast!

Ioan Lloyd kicks deep into Ulster territory and it is cleared into touch.

First lineout of the game goes to Scarlets.

The players are finishing their warm-ups and the Kingspan Stadium in Belfast is filling up.

It's a lovely spring day here in Belfast - perfect conditions for rugby.

Not long to go now.

Kick-off in a few minutes...

Ulster forward Matthew Dalton hopes he has put his "nomadic lifestyle" behind him after signing for a second spell with his native province in January following a successful trial.

A graduate of the Ulster academy, the 26-year-old made his senior Ulster debut in 2017 and remained part of the squad until 2019, playing for the senior team 10 times.

Dalton, who can play second row or back row, signed for Utah Warriors but did not make an appearance, then played for Newcastle Falcons between 2021 and 2023 and turned out for French side Soyaux Angouleme from 2023 to 2025.

"After the academy I had a few games here, I was in Newcastle, playing in the Premiership there, and then I was playing with the French side there.

"All the work away from here has for me been about coming back here eventually. This is my home, this is where I want to play rugby."

Dalton is determined to make his mark as he enjoys being reunited with family.

"It's amazing, getting settled, seeing family. It's just been a bit of a nomadic lifestyle, a bit back and forth in the past few years so it's amazing getting the opportunity.

"I'm focused on being with the team, training hard with them, so that we can build a real strong squad going forward and have a really positive start to next season."

Image source, Inpho

Ulster back-row Cormac Izuchukwu will be out for a "number of weeks" after sustaining an ankle injury in his side's defeat to Benetton earlier this month.

The forward, who won his first Ireland cap in November's win over Fiji, came off early in Ulster's 34-19 loss in Treviso and was withdrawn from international selection for Saturday's win over Wales.

Ulster head coach Richie Murphy is also without Iain Henderson [hamstring] for the game against the Scarlets at Kingspan Stadium.

Meanwhile Ulster have increased their options in the front row by agreeing a short-term deal for loose-head prop Sam Crean.

The Irish-qualified forward joins from Saracens.

Image source, Inpho

Ulster head coach Richie Murphy says his team is approaching their United Rugby Championship meeting with the Scarlets at Kingspan Stadium as "a must-win game".

The Irish province go into the weekend's fixtures in a lowly 14th position in the URC league table, having won just four of their 11 league fixtures to date and on the back of successive defeats against Italian sides Zebre and Benetton.

With seven rounds of matches remaining in the regular season, Ulster are in danger of not securing a place in the top eight which would ensure a berth in the end-of-season play-offs and qualification for next season's Investec Champions Cup.

"We're in a very difficult position. Some of that is to do with confidence in the squad and it's my job to try and build that back up," Murphy told BBC Sport NI.

"This is a must-win game for us – that's how we are approaching it.

"With that in mind we have got to be careful that we don't just concentrate on the win. We've got to concentrate on the process and how we go about making the win - nailing our set-piece, being a bit more disciplined than we have.

"If we can get those little bits right that gets us on the front foot and we know when we get the ball on the front foot we can play rugby."

Read more from Murphy here.

Image source, Inpho

BBC iPlayer

You can now watch Ulster's URC game against the Scarlets which is being shown live on BBC Two NI, BBC iPlayer and the BBC Sport website and app.

Click the play button above to watch it on this page.

Ulster centre James Hume says he is keen to find a balance between rediscovering his best form after a lengthy lay-off with a knee injury and helping to mentor the young players in the Irish province's squad.

The 26-year-old returned to competitive action after 10 months out in the United Rugby Championship defeat by Benetton earlier this month.

Hume has been undergoing ACL reconstruction and meniscus repair.

"It's a tough balance for me to accept at the moment, being a senior player at 26 is pretty mental," Hume told BBC Sport NI.

"I'm trying to get that balance of getting my own stuff right on coming back from injury but I do want to help the academy lads and the younger lads coming through as much as possible.

"That balance of focusing on what I'm good at but also giving them advice and experience when I can."

Read more from Hume here.

Image source, Inpho

Image source, in

For Scarlets assistant coach Jared Payne, the trip to Belfast is a homecoming, with the former Ireland centre spending 10 years as a player and coach with the province.

"It will be my first time on the visiting team," said Payne.

"It will be good to go back, see a few old friends and obviously try and get one over on them as well.

"They have had their fair share of injuries this season, they are getting a few players back this week and knowing a few of the guys who are stepping back into the fold they are pretty competitive and will want to right the wrongs of the last few weeks.

"I am sure they are going to come out fighting and are going to be a dangerous team."

Image source, Inpho

Earlier this week, former Ulster prop Steven Kitshoff was forced to retire from rugby after suffering a serious neck injury.

South Africa's two-time World Cup winner sustained the injury in September 2024 while playing in a Currie Cup match for Western Province, and subsequently revealed he was "two millimetres from death".

Kitshoff, who won 83 South Africa caps, played for Ulster during the 2023-24 season before returning to home side Stormers, the United Rugby Championship side based in Cape Town.

"It is obviously incredibly disappointing for my career to end in this way, but unfortunately the risk to my wellbeing was simply too high," said 33-year-old Kitshoff, who was part of South Africa's World Cup-winning teams in Japan in 2019 and France in 2023.

"After undergoing initial conservative therapy, the decision was taken to have stabilising surgery," his Stormers team said.

"Following an extensive rehabilitation process he has been left with significantly reduced rotation of his neck and the advice from a specialist neurosurgeon was that there would be a high risk of another injury should he continue playing."

Kitshoff's distinguished career began with Stormers as an 18-year-old, the front-rower making his debut for the club in 2011, before collecting his first international cap five years later.

He spent two seasons with French club Bordeaux, in addition to his spell with Ulster.

Wing Tomi Lewis will make his first Scarlets appearance for nine months.

Lewis, 26, has not featured since rupturing his Achilles in last June's defeat to Dragons.

He is named in a side showing seven personnel changes from the loss out in Munster.

Macs Page starts on the other wing, while there is new front row of Alec Hepburn, Ryan Elias and Sam Wainwright.

Elias takes over the captaincy in the continued absence of injured flanker Josh Macleod.

Lock Alex Craig starts alongside Sam Lousi, while Max Douglas switches to blind-side flanker in a back row that includes Dan Davis and Jarrod Taylor.

Wales squad centre Joe Roberts starts but Taine Plumtree misses out because of a head injury after the flanker was also released by national interim coach Matt Sherratt.

Scarlets: Ioan Nicholas; Macs Page, Joe Roberts, Johnny Williams, Tomi Lewis; Ioan Lloyd, Gareth Davies; Alec Hepburn, Ryan Elias (capt), Sam Wainwright, Alex Craig, Sam Lousi, Max Douglas, Dan Davis, Jarrod Taylor.

Replacements: Marnus van der Merwe, Sam O'Connor, Gabe Hawley, Jac Price, Vaea Fifita, Archie Hughes, Charlie Titcombe, Steff Evans.

Image source, Inpho

Scrum-half Conor McKee will make his competitive Ulster debut this evening.

McKee, 23, did score an impressive try in Ulster's friendly defeat by Queensland Reds earlier this month but has not played in the United Rugby Championship or at Champions Cup level.

He partners Jack Murphy in the half-backs as Nathan Doak and Aidan Morgan are not included in the starting line-up while John Cooney is unavailable after sustaining a calf injury in training.

The Ulster pack shows three changes from the Benetton defeat.

Callum Reid takes over at prop from Jacob Boyd with Matty Dalton replacing injured lock Cormac Izuchukwu and James McNabney drafted into the back row as David McCann drops out.

Izuchukwu sustained an ankle injury in the Benetton game while Iain Henderson remains unavailable because of the hamstring injury he picked up in Ireland's Six Nations win over Scotland.

Prop Sam Crean is set to make his debut off the bench after joining on loan from Saracens.

Andrew Warwick (ankle), Eric O'Sullivan (knee), Tom Stewart (hamstring), Ethan McIlroy (knee), Ben Moxham (knee), Michael McDonald (hamstring), Sean Reffell (calf), Marcus Rea (toe) and Rob Baloucoune (calf) are also currently ruled out for the Irish province.

Ulster: Moore; Lowry, Hume, McCloskey, Stockdale; Murphy, McKee; Reid, Herring, Wilson; O'Connor (capt), Dalton; Matty Rea, Timoney, McNabney.

Replacements: Andrew, Crean, O'Toole, Treadwell, McCann, Doak, Flannery, Postlethwaite.

Image source, Inpho

Good evening and welcome to our coverage of tonight's crucial United Rugby Championship encounter as Ulster host Scarlets at Kingspan Stadium.

Richie Murphy's side are in dire need of a win on home soil after successive defeats against Zebre and Benetton which leaves them in danger of finishing outside the top eight, unless they can turn around their form quickly.

Ulster have not lost at home to a Welsh region since Scarlets defeated them in February 2016 and the province have won their last five league fixtures against Dwayne Peel's side, so there are some good omens.

The game in Belfast will be live on BBC Two NI, BBC iPlayer and the BBC Sport website and app from 17:15 and we will have live text commentary of the game on this page.

Thanks for joining us - hopefully it's a good one!