KIERAN TREADWELL SAYS Ulster are looking to lift the tempo in their game again as the province prepare for the new United Rugby Championship season.

The new-look competition will see South African sides the Bulls, Lions, Stormers and Sharks add a new dimension to the league, with their inclusion expected to provide the Irish and UK teams will a different challenge when it comes to the power areas of the game.

And Ulster lock Treadwell says that while Dan McFarland’s side are looking forward to being tested physically, playing with pace remains their main focus.

“The maul went pretty well for us last year, both in Europe and in the league,” Treadwell says. “It’ll be good to put ourselves (to the test) against those South African sides that are coming in.

“They’ve some world class players in there so it’ll be a really good test against them. With regards to our own mindset and the way we want to play, it’s known to people that we want to play fast and I think we’re trying to up the pace a little bit more and hopefully teams can’t live with us at that sort of pace and tempo.”

One of the more interesting appointments over the summer saw Ulster bring Mikey Kiely, S&C coach to back-to-back All-Ireland hurling champions Limerick, to Belfast on a full-time basis.

“He’s a great guy,” Treadwell says. “He’s really knowledgeable and he gives a different perspective. His background, it’s very fitness-based and he’s very knowledgeable in what he does and how he delivers it. As a bloke he’s a really, really good guy and I’ve a lot of time from him.

“(Rugby is) similar enough (to hurling) in that it’s a team sport but the difference is that there’s more continuous play (in hurling). They’re quite transitional is how he put it to me, I’ve spoken to him quite a few times about how it differs.

“He seemed to be saying it was quite similar. but there’s more boys over 100 kilos so it is a bit different.

“We obviously saw that they (Limerick) got to the final and won, obviously the boys were talking about that. You see the way that they play, they have serious engines on them, the way they look, they’re big guys.”

Treadwell, who was speaking at the launch of the new URC season in Dublin yesterday, is not expecting to be fit for Ulster’s opening game against Glasgow next Friday.

However the 25-year-old – who signed a new two-year deal back in January – says he is confident the squad are heading in the right direction after finishing seven points behind eventual champions Leinster in Conference A of the Pro14 last season. 

“For me personally it was a good year. I enjoyed playing when I could and making myself involved in the squad whether I was playing or not playing.

“I think it’s a competitive squad. I’ve always thought that and I stand by it, it’s a massively competitive squad. That will drive us on to make inroads.

“The new league, the United Rugby Championship, there’s less games so that means less margin for error and makes everything more competitive.”

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