Playing at Ulster was possibly the most miserable experience in my life, let alone rugby. The weather was so bad you couldn't put any sort of phases together. We couldn't even pass it from nine to 10, because the wind took it so much.
It was a forwards game and they did front up, but the conditions were just against us on the day. We'd planned for bad weather, but we didn't expect it to be that bad.
Speaking to a few of their boys after, they said they've never had it that bad in 10 years. The ground is not very sheltered, so the wind just blew straight onto the pitch. Then the hail started and, at one point, we couldn't even speak to each other. Even after everyone had been in the hot showers, there weren't many words exchanged because everyone was still too cold to speak.
I would have liked to play against Ulster's Isaac Boss in a game where we could have both shown what we're capable of, because it wasn't a game for a running scrum-half. However, it was nice to play against him, because I think he's a great player.
I wasn't too sure about my yellow card. I thought the ball was out, so I just tried to hack it through. But the ref thought it was in and I'll go with his decision. I thought I'd let the boys down a little bit, so I had to try and make up for it after.
Unfortunately we came unstuck in the end and, to be fair to Ulster, they probably deserved to win. It was a game that we wanted to win and, on another day, we would have gone in a bit smarter and maybe done it. Thankfully, Llanelli did us a favour against Stade Francais the next day.
Going into this weekend, we want to get as many points as possible against the Scarlets at the Stoop to get a home tie in the quarter-finals. We're definitely looking for a big win this weekend.
Recently we haven't been playing as well as we were at the start of the season, but I think we're still showing signs of developing into a great team. I think anyone can beat anyone in this Heineken Cup, and that gives us a massive chance. It would be nice to draw a non-English team next in the last eight.
After the next couple of weekends, thoughts will obviously turn to the Six Nations. Hopefully, I've done enough to stay ahead of Ben Foden and Harry Ellis in the pecking order for England. I'm in good form at the moment and, obviously, I would love to have that nine shirt in the first game, but it's up to Johnno and the coaches.
We'll obviously miss Matt Stevens' impact play during the tournament following his suspension earlier this week. He's a fantastic player and I count him as a mate. I went to New Zealand with him during the summer tour and played in the Autumn with him. I feel for him at this time and wish him the best. He'll be back.
However, his replacement Julian White brings a wealth of experience to the squad. He's a great scrummager and, hopefully, he'll keep alot of pressure on the props. We've got some great forwards in there now.
Our first game is against Italy, who will be a massively physical side. Sergio Parisse, the captain, is one of the best players in the world. It will be a really tough game and, definitely, one we won't take lightly. We owe the fans a good performance.
Cheers, DC
