Whitten wants strong finish

By Mark Stevens
15/1/17

When Ian Whitten returned home to Belfast back in October, it was like a long-lost son had all of a sudden pitched up from a far away land.

Greeted by family, friends and other well-wishers, the 29-year-old – along with compatriot, Gareth Steenson – were back at the place where it all started for both of them in terms of senior rugby.

Although both products of the Ulster Academy ranks as youngsters, Steenson (pictured) had to up sticks and leave earlier than that of his club-mate when, following a meeting with then coach Mark McCall, he was told the Irish province would be extending the shelf life of experienced No.10 David Humphreys on for another year at least.

Unsure of his next step, Steenson’s nerves were settled by a conversation with mum Helen and his late father John, himself a former president at Armagh RFC.

Having been courted for years by Andre Bester, a South African coach who was looking to get him to move from Dungannon to Belfast Harlequins, the opportunity arose for both men to finally link up with National League One side Rotherham Titans.

It heralded the start of Steenson’s distinguished career in England, where he featured not only for the Yorkshiremen, but then for the Cornish Pirates, before he was snapped up in 2008 by the Chiefs.

Since then, Steenson has been an integral part of Exeter’s rise, not only within the domestic game, but also in Europe, establishing himself not only as a masterful goalkicker, but a proven playmaker.

As for Whitten, he was very much part and parcel of the Ulster make-up, debuting in 2008, before going on to play over 60 times for the province. He was one of a number of homegrown talent – alongside the likes of Stephen Ferris, Roger Wilson, Andrew Trimble and the late Nevin Spence – brought through the system.

But whereas some of those others forged a regular spot within the Ulster match-day squad, opportunities at Ravenhill were becoming somewhat limited for Whitten. Although he had accrued five international caps during his career there, the time had come for the Lisburn-born back to try something new.

In 2012 he made the decision to cross the Irish Sea, signing up to be part of Rob Baxter’s Exeter side. His versatility was there for all to see straight from the outset, producing top-notch performances either on the wing or at centre.

And in the years that have followed, Whitten has not only gone on to feature over 100 times for the Chiefs, but he’s become a popular figure both on and off the field at Sandy Park.

Today, though, there will be no old pals act for Whitten, who will be looking to shoot down his former club and ensure the Chiefs grab a victory in their final home game in Pool 5 this season.

Defeats to Clermont Auvergne and Ulster in the opening two rounds of this season’s Champions Cup were followed with another setback in December when visiting Bordeaux-Begles produced the perfect ‘smash and grab’ raid in Round Three.

A week later the Chiefs gained their revenge when they won 20-12 against the Frenchmen on their own patch, but with qualification hopes all but over for another year, Whitten is keen he and his team-mates bow out on a high note.

“Qualification is going to be tough, I don’t think we’ll get the same kind of miracle outcome as we had last year,” said Whitten. “That said, we’ve got two games to play and we want to finish with a bang.

“Sunday is not only a massive game for the club, but it’s a big game for myself and Steeno as well. We know we’ve not acquitted ourselves all that well in Europe this season, but we’re in good form at the moment and it’s important we look to continue that this weekend.

“Ulster, we know, have a great European history and I know the importance they put on games and the competition as a whole. Like us, they’ll be fired up for the game and we have to be ready for that.

“Obviously we went close over at their place earlier in the season and we could easily have won it right at the end. For sure it was weird going back there again after so long. The stadium has changed a fair bit in that time, but there are still a lot of people I know from the club still there.

“Had we won that night and also against Bordeaux here, we could easily have been going into this weekend right in the mix and pushing hard. Sadly we’re not in the mix, but that doesn’t mean we don’t want to finish strongly.

“Each season you work hard to get to play at this level, so it’s important you make the most of every opportunity that you have.”

Whitten added: “In terms of results, we’ve had a good run coming back into Europe. Yes, we’re a wee bit hurting from last week [against Saracens] because we knew we had a great opportunity to get something up there on the day.

“That said, whenever you play Saracens you know they are never going to go out of the game. If you want to beat them, you have to be at your very best. They never give you anything and they just keep going for one another. Fair play to them, they hung in there even with a man less and they dug deep right at the end to get the score.”