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Ulster Rugby have confirmed their new captain.

It has been announced that Iain Henderson will take over from Rory Best who is set to retire following the Rugby World Cup in Japan.

Henderson made his Ulster and Ireland debut in 2012 and has gone on to make 105 appearances for the province.

The versatile lock has been capped 42 times by his country, winning three Six Nations titles.

He was also part of the Lions tour of New Zealand in 2017.

"I'm incredibly proud and excited to be appointed captain," Henderson said.

"I had a good chat with Dan (McFarland) and I think we’re closely aligned in terms of how we see Ulster moving forward.

"When I’ve captained Ulster on previous occasions, it’s been made a lot easier because of the presence of a number of great leaders around me. It really helps when you’ve got people like Al (O’Connor), Rob (Herring) and Marcell (Coetzee) behind you, who understand what you’re doing and provide unbelievable support.

“Our squad has a very low age profile and one of the most exciting things for me is seeing the hunger within the group and the players’ desire to improve. We also have the likes of Jack (McGrath), Sam (Carter) and Matt (Faddes) coming in, who will add significant additional experience, so I think we’ve got a lot to be excited about going into the new season.”

Head coach McFarland added: "As a leader, he has demonstrated his ability to command respect through his professionalism and talismanic play.

"Asking Iain to be captain was not a difficult decision and because he is surrounded by a squad of good men, I know that he will flourish."