Ulster head coach Dan McFarland spoke to OTB Sports about Jacob Stockdale ahead of their Heineken Champions Cup opening round encounter with Toulouse on Friday, December 11th.
Much has been made of the discussion surrounding whether Stockdale should be used on the wing or at fullback in recent months.
The 24-year-old has made most if his recent appearances for Ireland in the 15 jersey, which has led many to believe that Ireland coach Andy Farrell has been pushing him into that role.
“The fantastic thing is that Jacob can play left wing, right wing I suppose if you asked him to, and fullback as well,” McFarland said.
“He has a skillset that can cover off all of those positions. We put him at fullback, Will Addison was injured, and we needed somebody who was of quality in that position.
McFarland suggested that the decision to move to the back was Stockdale’s.
“So, we played him there. We knew that he wanted to have a go at that, and that he had done a really excellent job in the previous season when we played away at Edinburgh.
“He had a fantastic performance in that fullback slot; fullbacks tend to get a few more touches and of course as an athlete and ball-carrier, you want Jacob getting a lot of touches.”
With his side back up to relatively full strength, particularly in the back three, McFarland has to make a decision on whether or not to keep Stockdale at 15.
“What we will do now is we will do what is best for the team, as we always do,” McFarland said.
“Coming into these games, it will depend on the combination of players that we want to put on the pitch as to how we go.”
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