Ulster Must 'focus On Ourselves' - Stockdale

Ulster winger Jacob Stockdale said Friday's Challenge Cup quarter-final against La Rochelle is simply a chance to "create a connection for ourselves" [20:00 BST].

Richie Murphy's broadside defeated Ospreys 28-24 astatine nan Affidea Stadium to beforehand to nan past eight.

La Rochelle won nan Champions Cup successful 2022 and 2023 and were nan victors against Newcastle Red Bulls to group up nan necktie successful Belfast.

"It's an breathtaking crippled arsenic they are a large French giant. I consciousness for illustration we do play good whenever large French teams travel to town, so, I'm really excited astir it," Stockdale told BBC Sport NI's Mark Sidebottom.

"I deliberation there's an opportunity to put successful a monolithic capacity and hopefully create a spot of a connection for ourselves.

"We request to attraction connected ourselves, conscionable bring nan champion type of ourselves, and dream that that's capable and I deliberation it will be."

Despite playing 4 times against La Rochelle during his profession truthful acold and Ulster only winning 1 of those matches, Stockdale believes that nan broadside tin return assurance into nan crippled aft nan Ospreys win.

The location broadside trailed 17-14 earlier Stockdale and Nick Timoney crossed nan statement successful nan 2nd half to unafraid Ulster's quarter-final spot.

"It was frustrating connected nan transportation but, looking backmost and reviewing it, it's rather encouraging because we were capable to hit a bully Ospreys successful a tight encounter, but really time off a batch connected nan pitch," he continued.

"We felt for illustration we weren't really anyplace adjacent our champion and nan champion we've shown truthful acold this season.

"So that's breathtaking that we tin hopefully correct those wrongs this week and put successful a big, large capacity connected Friday."