Court highlight's Ulster's confidence

Victories in all bar one of their six group games has been followed by a similar stat in the five domestic games to have been played since the last instalment of European action.

A one-point loss to the Ospreys on February 13 has been succeeded by four straight Magners League wins as Ulster continue to go from strength to strength.

And while performance levels in the recent victories over Aironi and the Dragons haven't quite hit the expected standards, Court insists the belief within the camp is showing no sign of diminishing.

"Our main aim with the Heineken Cup this year was to make it out of our pool," said the Australian-born Ireland cap.

"But I think the boys have started to believe that beating Northampton is not beyond us. It's not just a matter of making it of the pool now - it's about taking on Northampton and trying to be better than them.

"There's a real buzz around here with the way results have gone and the way the boys have been playing.

"It's a matter of pushing on now. The boys have been building, the confidence is very high and everybody is very happy with the way things have gone."

Rewind a year and Ulster were in a very different position.

Heineken Cup home wins over Stade Francais and Edinburgh and an impressive double against Bath had signalled a marked improvement but Ulster's European campaign had once again been brought to a premature end.

Out of Heineken and Amlin Challenge Cup contention, Brian McLaughlin's men were fighting to finish in the top three Irish teams in the Magners League to ensure Heineken Cup qualification for the current season.

It was a bitter battle that wasn't decided until far too late on in the season for Ulster's liking.

This term has been a far more positive one in both Europe and at home yet Court admits that it will mean very little unless Ulster secure a semi-final spot in both remaining competitions.

"In the past, especially last season, the last few games of the year have been fairly intense because we've been fighting to finish above Connacht in the league and make sure we stay in the Heineken Cup places," added Court.

"It's a little bit of a different perspective this season. We've started pushing for the top rather than being at the bottom. It's now a matter of keeping that consistency up.

"You can say that it's gone a lot better this season and that Ulster are playing a lot better but we have very high expectations for the end of the season.

"It's all for nothing if everything drops off and we start sliding down."