Ulster wing Tommy Bowe will make his first appearance since the opening round of the Heineken Cup when Mark McCall's side take on London Irish on Saturday.
The Ireland international has been out of action since Ulster's win over Toulouse in October having picked up a hamstring injury. The injury ruled Bowe out of the subsequent defeat at Llanelli and he also missed the autumn international series with Ireland.
Andrew Trimble, whose own troublesome hamstring problem has cleared up, joins Bowe in the starting line-up with Bryn Cunningham keeping his place at fullback.
The news that Stephen Ferris faces four to six weeks on the sidelines following a minor operation on his hand means Kieron Dawson will face his old teammates for the first time since his summer move to Ravenhill.
Ulster(v London Irish): Bryn Cunningham; Tommy Bowe, Paul Steinmetz, Paddy Wallace, Andrew Trimble; David Humphreys, Isaac Boss; Bryan Young, Rory Best, Simon Best (capt); Justin Harrison, Matt McCullough; Neil Best, Kieron Dawson, Roger Wilson
Replacements: Paul Shields, Justin Fitzpatrick, Tim Barker, Neil McMillan, Kieran Campbell, Kevin Maggs, Mark Bartholomeusz
