Rugby

O’Sullivan describes new deal as ‘huge’ as he commits his future to Ulster

Eric O’Sullivan admits to enjoying his rugby again and Ulster show their faith in their loose-head with a new two-year deal.

Prop Eric O'Sullivan has signed a two-year contract extension with Ulster Rugby
Prop Eric O'Sullivan has signed a two-year contract extension with Ulster Rugby (Niall Carson/PA)
By Paul McIntyre

Ulster’s Eric O’Sullivan has revealed that signing a new contract with Ulster was one of the easiest decisions of his career.

Having already amassed 125 appearances in an Ulster jersey, O’Sullivan had no hesitation putting pen to paper on a new two-year deal when an offer was put on the table.

“It’s huge and it’s nice to have a bit of security and I can focus on rugby now.

“I had a couple of turbulent years where I didn’t know where I was going to be but yeah, brilliant,” said a delighted O’Sullivan.

Now 29 years old, O’Sullivan was facing up to the possibility that his Ulster career may be coming to an end, and the Dubliner admitted that he started to look around for new opportunities.

“Yeah, a couple of times and it was difficult,” admitted O’Sullivan.

“I was planning and prepping to be somewhere else and I was just trying to see where else I could be. Then I got an offer here and it all worked out and I’m happy to be here.”

O’Sullivan has been a mainstay of the Ulster front row this season, but it hasn’t always been plain sailing.

Competing with World Cup winner Steven Kitshoff and Lions such as Jack McGrath and Rory Sutherland in recent times had been tough for O’Sullivan.

Instead of feeling sorry for himself, the former Trinity College student knuckled down and took on board as many learnings as he possibly could from that particular star-studded trio.

“It’s incredibly tough. I felt really young when I first came on the scene and these guys come in and your game time maybe stutters a bit.

“The first few years were definitely difficult for me. It was a challenge from being used to playing to see your minutes dropping.

“Like obviously it’s been great to learn from these guys, they’ve been through so much but ultimately you have to be out there as well to be able to develop.

So, it’s been a bit of a 50/50 there between how good it was for me. Obviously, I’d prefer to be out there more.”

O’Sullivan has appeared to have taken plenty of learnings on board.

This season marks O’Sullivan’s busiest season in an Ulster jersey since his debut in 2018-19, when O’Sullivan made 26 appearances from 30 games which is remarkable going for a prop forward.

Like any player in any position, it’s all about playing. And after a rocky number of years, O’Sullivan is enjoying his rugby again after getting more big-game action.

“I think it’s very difficult for guys week-to-week when maybe some weeks you’re playing, some weeks you’re not.

“There’s no hiding that when it comes to the big games because they are the ones that everyone wants to be playing in.

“So, I think it’s a really difficult place to be sometimes. So obviously being involved this year has been easier to ride the emotional rollercoaster but yeah it can be a tough place at times.”