This seasons Heineken Cup competition has already served up plenty of thrills and spills in the opening rounds and with only Biarritz Olympique remaining unbeaten at the half way point of the Pool Stages it looks as though there are going to be plenty more of those thrills and spills to come.
Having dispatched first Bath (12 – 12) and then Stade Francais (23 – 13) at “Fortress” Ravenhill, Ulster must be ruing their nervy performance against Edinburgh at Murrayfield where they failed to hold on to a second half 6 – 13 lead to lose 17 – 13 at the final whistle.
With two of their remaining three fixtures away from home Ulster must find some sort of form on the road and they have no better chance than this weekend when they face Stade Francais in the Belgian capital of Brussels.
Both sides will be playing in the unfamiliar surroundings of the King Baudouin Stadium and the French team is reported to be in disarray following the citings from the fractious encounter at Ravenhill. If Ulster can remain calm and clinical in this return fixture they have a real chance to come away with a vital win which should put them in poll position for qualification.
Leinster and Munster find themselves in a similar position to Ulster, both having lost one of their opening three fixtures.
Munster will improve their chances of qualification considerably if they beat Perpignan away this weekend. However, having conceded three tries in their match at Thomond Park, the Irish side will probably be happy with a losing bonus point setting up a likely winner takes all encounter against Northampton Saints in the final round of their Pool matches.
Similarly, Leinster have little room for any slip-ups in their home fixture against the Scarlets as their Pool looks to be spiralling towards an enthralling decider against high flying London Irish, also in the final round of their Pool matches.
Plenty to play for for the three Irish sides, check back next week to see how they have progressed.
You can view all the Heineken Cup Pool standings on the Official ERC Site.
