Neil DRYSDALE in yesterday's Herald

Sometimes, as Tony McWhirter asserted, there is no rhyme nor reason to what happens in a cup competition and the former Ulster forward knows of what he speaks.

Back in the winter of 1998, he and his Ulster team-mates were within seconds of being eliminated from the Heineken Cup by Edinburgh at Myreside when Sheldon Coulter scored a last-gasp interception try. The Irish province capitalised on their great escape by trouncing Toulouse, Stade Francais and Colomiers in the subsequent stages of the competition to lift the prestigious trophy for the first – and so far only – time in their history.

At that stage, McWhirter had plenty of experience of tackling Scottish opposition, whether during his spell with Dundee HSFP, while he was studying for a degree in dentistry in Raintown, or once he had acquired the qualification and progressed into the professional ranks at Ravenhill. Now that he combines his day job as a cavity excavator in Ballymoney, by filling in the gaps as a BBC pundit in Northern Ireland, McWhirter can detect enough similarities between his compatriots' march to glory 13 years ago and Edinburgh's advance to the European semi-finals this weekend to be cautious of ruling out the Scots, despite the rising anticipation across the Irish Sea.

"It is too soon to believe that Edinburgh's name is on the cup, but I was listening to Greig Laidlaw the other day and I got the distinct feeling that he genuinely thinks his side can win the trophy; sometimes it works out that way," said McWhirter, who was not especially surprised when Laidlaw and his team-mates defeated Toulouse at Murrayfield earlier this month.

"Back in 1998/99, we were definitely staring at the exit door with the clock ticking down and we couldn't have complained if Edinburgh had knocked us out of the competition. They had a good bunch of players, with internationals of the calibre of Duncan Hodge and Cammy Mather in the ranks. We were in trouble, but there was a never-say-die spirit among our players and we just kept fighting on until the end.

"Edinburgh will need to approach this contest with that same mentality, because there is a huge amount of interest in these semi-finals [the weekend's other tussle pits the holders, Leinster, against Clermont-Auvergne] and the whole of Ireland will be rooting for Ulster when the match kicks off.

"Home advantage is a significant factor – I was looking at some statistics recently, which showed that 78% of the home sides had won their Heineken Cup quarter-finals since the tournament began – and the Irish supporters will vastly outnumber their Scottish counterparts at the Aviva Stadium [in Dublin]. If Ulster can thrive in that atmosphere – they are growing used to these major games – and can build a platform in their pack, I expect them to progress to next month's final. But these sort of intense occasions often produce strange results, as we saw with Chelsea in Barcelona the other night. You get the sense that Edinburgh have the quality, the confidence, and the spirit to beat anybody in a one-off game."

McWhirter once packed down with such redoubtable Mayfield warriors as Paul Rouse and Jon Petrie while he was at Dundee HSFP and his thoughts on the club circuit in Ireland will sound wearily familiar to those who have been toiling at the grassroots in Scotland since the advent of professionalism. "Our clubs are struggling a bit; they have frequent issues with their youngsters not being released [by the provincial structures], and another of their gripes is that the Academy teams are snapping up all the best emerging talent produced by the clubs, who never see these guys again," said McWhirter.

"When I was in Scotland, it was a really healthy circuit; I recall [Glasgow] Hawks coming into being and winning promotion in their first season and doing great things in the top flight. But the emphasis has shifted away from the clubs and there is no arguing with the fact that the Heineken Cup has become one of the best events in the rugby calendar."

As one of his country's doughtiest campaigners, McWhirter won more fixtures than he lost against Scottish rivals, and finished his career with another triumph over Edinburgh in the Celtic Cup final at Murrayfield in 2003. Yet, while he reckons that the impact of Ulster's "very good" Southern Hemisphere recruits could be pivotal to the outcome, he also worries about the threat of Edinburgh's longest-serving forward.

"Our main issue is who to play against Allan Jacobsen, because he has been immense in previous rounds and we need to pick a scrummaging unit with the ability to cope with him at close quarters," said McWhirter. "The battle of the back rows will also be huge and Stephen Ferris is a very influential figure. Basically, Ulster need their A game or they could be in trouble."

As one might expect from somebody in his profession, this fellow appreciates how sport can kick you in the teeth or provide crowning moments. But he is also licking his lips at the prospect of another classic encounter and he is not the only one.

This article was posted on 28-Apr-2012, 10:11 by Hugh Barrow.