Harry Sheridan has two objectives this week: help Ulster beat the Lions and catch the Traitors.
In between the two legs of Ulster’s South African tour, the squad have been playing their own version of the popular BBC gameshow.
“We’re in the deep end now, there’s two traitors left out of 14 people and I’m still in,” said Sheridan.
Sheridan insists he is a Faithful and reckons fly-half Jack Murphy and centre Stewart Moore are “definitely sus (suspicious)” when asked about the remaining Traitors.
Come Saturday, Sheridan’s newfound calling as a tenacious Traitor-hunter will take a backseat when Ulster step out at Ellis Park to face the Lions in the United Rugby Championship (12:45 BST).
In the early stages of what proved a torturous 2024-25 season, Ulster lost both games in South Africa, conceding a combined 82 points against the Lions and Bulls.
This season has so far been a smoother ride with three bonus-point wins from three games. Now, having sunk the Sharks in Durban, they have the chance to do a rare double on South African soil.
But Sheridan insists Ulster must overcome a multitude of factors to land a big victory in Johannesburg.
“I think with the Irish (international) lads away, a bit of rotation and then obviously the altitude and the fact that the Lions are such a great, dangerous team, especially at home, it’s a completely different challenge,” added the 24-year-old second row.
“I’d say it’s certainly going to be one of the hardest games of the year. If we can front up there, it’ll put us in a really good place.”
Sheridan, who has played for the Ireland Under-20 and Emerging Ireland teams, played all 80 minutes in Ulster’s wins over the Dragons and Sharks, with a late cameo off the bench in the victory over the Bulls.
After a trying campaign last year, he says he is benefitting from conducting more robust reviews of his own performances.
“It’s definitely about having a review process. Last year, I maybe flew through things willy-nilly and didn’t lock down why these things went wrong, I just dismissed them,” he said.
“This year I’ve been very particular about going through my strengths and weaknesses and what I want to do after each game to review them.”
