Ulster are set to rest Paddy Wallace, Andrew Trimble, Stephen Ferris and Tom Court for their Boxing Day Magners League game with Leinster.
Coach Brian McLaughlin has named his 24 man squad ahead of the away clash on Saturday evening.
Ulster face back-to-back Magners League provincial derbies, starting with the encounter with European champions Leinster in Dublin followed by a Ravenhill clash with Munster in the New Year.
They are looking to bounce back from consecutive League defeats at the hands of Glasgow and Munster.
Since then, Ulster achieved a magnificent Heineken Cup win over Stade Francais at Ravenhill, followed by defeat in the return clash in Paris last weekend.
McLaughlin has told UTV a crucial period is coming up for his men.
"It's absolutely tough now", he said.
"We've got Leinster coming this week, Munster coming next week and Ospreys the week after before we go back to Europe. But we're looking forward to them and we're looking forward to getting back from last week's disappointment."
"It's a smashing opportunity for us to learn from the things we didn't do well at the weekend and to try, and improve on them", he said.
"We know that Leinster will be ready for us, especially after we gained the home victory over them last time we met."
Ulster squad forwards:
Declan Fitzpatrick, Bryan Young, BJ Botha, Nigel Brady, Andy Kyriacou, Ed O'Donoghue, Dan Tuohy, Ryan Caldwell, Chris Henry, David Pollock, Willie Faloon, TJ Anderson
Ulster squad backs:
Jamie Smith, Clinton Schifcofske, Simon Danielli, Darren Cave, Ian Whitten, Timoci Nagusa, Ian Humphreys, Niall O'Connor, Isaac Boss, Paul Marshall, Cillian Willis, Jonny Shiells
© UTV News