ON MORE THAN one occasion over the past few years, Eric O’Sullivan had resigned himself to departing Ulster so to have recently signed a contract extension represents a significant turnaround in the Dublin native’s fortunes.

At 29-years-old, the loosehead prop certainly ought to have plenty of mileage still left and landing his new deal, keeping him at Ulster until 2027, has made O’Sullivan determined to now make every moment count.

In terms of how close he came to leaving O’Sullivan, who made his debut in 2018, admits that it definitely looked on the cards.

“Yeah, a couple of times,” he says referencing situations when he had to sit behind Test players Steven Kitshoff as well as earlier signings such as Jack McGrath and Rory Sutherland while also finding that long-serving squad member Andrew Warwick could also be ahead in the pecking order.

“It was difficult,” he says, “and I was planning and prepping to be somewhere else but then I got an offer here, it all worked out and I’m happy to be here.”

Following Kitshoff’s earlier than anticipated exit due to injury, O’Sullivan got a run of six starts at the back end of last season which helped cement his importance in the squad going forward into this season, resulting in his contract extension.

“It is incredibly tough,” he says of previously not getting the starts he would have liked.

“I felt really young when I came on the scene, I played a load of games and then these guys come in and your game time maybe stutters a bit.”

“The first few years were definitely difficult for me with the challenge of being used to playing and then seeing your minutes dropping.”

Though he absorbed much from the double World Cup winner Kitshoff and British and Irish Lions Sutherland and McGrath, the need for gametime was, understandably, always the priority.

“I think it is a really difficult place for guys sometimes,” O’Sullivan says of not necessarily being a frontline squad member, “but being involved this year (for me) it is a lot easier to ride the emotional roller coaster as it (not playing) can be a tough place at times.”

Ulster head to this Fridays’ final Champions Cup pool game, at home to also winless Exeter Chiefs, knowing it is still possible to squeeze into the last 16 should they win big and then Bordeaux-Begles thump the Sharks on Sunday.

Failing that, victory will still see them clinch knockout rugby by heading to the Challenge Cup for the second year running.

“Going into it (the game) I think we have definitely underperformed and that is something that we want to set right.

“To get a win would also boost morale going into our next block of (URC) games,” says O’Sullivan with the province having won one of their last seven matches in all competitions.