FORMER Ulster Director of Rugby, Les Kiss, will return to Ravenhill next year when the Queensland Reds play Ulster in a friendly match to mark 100 years at Ravenhill.
The Australian Super Rugby Pacific team has been coached by Kiss since the beginning of this 2024. He will be taking the Reds on a European tour before their 2025 season kicks off.
They will clash with the Ulstermen in the ‘Bank of Ireland Mid-Season Challenge’, which will take place on February 7. It forms part of the club’s centenary celebrations for its home ground next season.
Next year’s fixture will be the third time that Ulster have faced the Brisbane based Wallabies.
The two sides first met at Ravenhill in 1986, with the Australian visitors winning a tight match by six points to four. They would then not clash again until 2008, when a Reds Development team were beaten 24-0 by Ulster in a pre-season friendly
Next year’s exhibition match will also see the return of fan-favourite prop Jeffery Toomaga-Allen to Kingspan Stadium. The Kiwi spent the 2022/23 playing for Ulster, before he left to join the Reds.
Speaking ahead of the fixture, Kiss, who was also a former Ireland assistant coach said:
“Personally, I can’t wait. I have great memories of my own time at Ulster and players like Iain Henderson, a Lions player in his own right.
“The stadium is an intimidating place to play. I can’t think of a better experience for our players than to meet when the fans are singing ‘Stand Up for the Ulstermen’ on a cold Friday night.”
