Glasgow Warriors v Leinster Friday 7.35 Premier/TG4

[Oldschoolsocks]

Making an effort to spell gaeilge correctly is a choice.

Correct

Your spelling of correct endorses my point.

What’s your point?

[Oldschoolsocks]

Making an effort to spell gaeilge correctly is a choice.

Correct

Your spelling of correct endorses my point.

Whether you choose to use it or not is one, thing. Not spelling gaeilge correctly at any age past 10 is another matter.

Oh right, mistaken identity there mo chara, Oldschool is a different guy.

[FLIP]

Ruddock, Molony and Luke are all good at Club level.

Ruddock who has either a very high or perfect win rate as Ireland captain is only good at club level? In any timeline where Ireland weren't as cursed with POM being selected regardless of form Ruddock would be Ireland captain with Sexton VC.

Leavy is a very good lead by example player but hasn't even captained Leinster, and hasn't shown the ability to manage the game in terms of strategic choices. He'd need to prove that first.

[Blueberry]

Ruddock, Molony and Luke are all good at Club level.

Ruddock who has either a very high or perfect win rate as Ireland captain is only good at club level? In any timeline where Ireland weren't as cursed with POM being selected regardless of form Ruddock would be Ireland captain with Sexton VC.

Leavy is a very good lead by example player but hasn't even captained Leinster, and hasn't shown the ability to manage the game in terms of strategic choices. He'd need to prove that first.

Look POM's angry face is world class and we have no one who even gets one on that front. I watched Connacht v Munster last week and POM was on vintage form, numerous variations of angry face, frowns, glares and stares. He is a master and pours the fear into you.

When the Leinster coaches understand the importance of teaching this skill it will give Ruddock etc a chance but until then POM is a shoe in. Sure even spotted Ruddock last night chatting and exchanging pleasantries with a touch judge as a kick was being lined up, POM would have just glared at him, basic stuff we need to improve on.

[Blue Man]

Ruddock, Molony and Luke are all good at Club level.

Ruddock who has either a very high or perfect win rate as Ireland captain is only good at club level? In any timeline where Ireland weren't as cursed with POM being selected regardless of form Ruddock would be Ireland captain with Sexton VC.

Leavy is a very good lead by example player but hasn't even captained Leinster, and hasn't shown the ability to manage the game in terms of strategic choices. He'd need to prove that first.

I think Ruddock is the best 6 in Ireland and can’t understand how he doesn’t make the Ireland side let alone the squad

[Oldschool]

Have to say the comments on my "Gaelge" post are way OTT based mostly on inaccurate assumptions.
Have ye nothing better to do than to slag off a poor old dislexic, half blind (untreatable eye condition), semi illiterate man with one redeeming feature, very good hearing.
Hence the need for easily understandable commentary.
Truly it must have been a shyte game.
PS I'll wait with bated breath for the litory correcshin post that will no doubt follow.

[Oldschoolsocks]

Have to say the comments on my "Gaelge" post are way OTT based mostly on inaccurate assumptions.
Have ye nothing better to do than to slag off a poor old dislexic, half blind (untreatable eye condition), semi illiterate man with one redeeming feature, very good hearing.
Hence the need for easily understandable commentary.
Truly it must have been a shyte game.
PS I'll wait with bated breath for the litory correcshin post that will no doubt follow.

you do you man

[riocard911]

The commentary on TG4 was fairly useless today. Baird & Doris were both Baird, Leavy was Molony at one point and Osbourne was a second Frawley.
That and giving incorrect explanations of why penalties were awarded

So making an effort to learn the gaelge would be wasted because the commentary still wouldn't make much sense.

Unfortunately we got their bargain basement production yesterday - coverage started 5 minutes before kick-off with a pre-recorded intro from Máire-Treasa, there was no one in studio and we had their B Team on comms (who also did the HT "analysis")..

TG4 obviously have a much smaller group to pick from but they're usually much better (and more knowledgeable) than yesterday. They actually had Colm de Buitléir in one of the week's which was great.

I would fully encourage you to make an effort Gaeilge a fhoghlaim either way!

+1

[Blue Man]

I thought this was a very decent performance with fewer turnovers than previous weeks and greater cohesion in our play. Some of the passing close in, particularly quick transfers under pressure between forwards, was really good and there were some excellent offloads in the lead up to the tries.
Room for improvement at the line out (I think we lost four) so work to do for Robin McBryde, although both hookers are fantastic open field players in both attack and defense; there can be few better hookers than Kelleher in Eurrope. The scrum was a a bit of a lottery at times, I always think that 4G pitches diminish the scrum as a contest, limiting it as a weapon for the stronger pack, and last night the ref seemed to give free kicks / penalties without really knowing why. I don’t like focusing on the ref, rugby is an impossible sport to referee, but there were some odd calls last night against Leinster. World Rugby and UTC really need to invest in refereeing.

Glasgow we’re definitely up for this match and brought plenty of intensity but couldn’t compete with the physicality of Leinster. The line speed in defense was excellent and the counter ruck was really good; I think I counted four turnovers won through counter rucking.

I have been critical of Ross Byrne but he had a decent game; he seemed to play closer to the line and the mix and accuracy of his passing and kicking was good. Frawley is great as a second distributor at 12, it really adds to our options. After his poor defence last week, J Lowe had a really good game and was safe under the high ball whilst Keenan was also very good.

Leo will be happy with the first block of games overall although there’s plenty to improve.

Hopefully the team will continue to play with more ambition and evolve the attacking game as the season unfolds.

[Oldschool]

So making an effort to learn the gaelge would be wasted because the commentary still wouldn't make much sense.

Unfortunately we got their bargain basement production yesterday - coverage started 5 minutes before kick-off with a pre-recorded intro from Máire-Treasa, there was no one in studio and we had their B Team on comms (who also did the HT "analysis")..

TG4 obviously have a much smaller group to pick from but they're usually much better (and more knowledgeable) than yesterday. They actually had Colm de Buitléir in one of the week's which was great.

I would fully encourage you to make an effort Gaeilge a fhoghlaim either way!

+1

Falling by the wayside, that one.
Plus if you are going to ignore the information provided then what's the point to your post.
You evidently foghlaimed nothing.

[LeinsterLeader]

First Time I've see it but yeah that was bizarre. Not been a good couple of weeks for ref/tmo decisions in URC

https://www.balls.ie/rugby/leinster-gla ... try-488664

[Dexter]

First Time I've see it but yeah that was bizarre. Not been a good couple of weeks for ref/tmo decisions in URC

https://www.balls.ie/rugby/leinster-gla ... try-488664

If only we had video technology to help the officials....

[fourthirtythree]

I think we are playing better, and differently, to last year.

Which is pleasing. As Leo would say.

While we scored all our tries through the forwards last week as EOS pointed out on the telly, we cut them open on many occasions. Though Jack Conan's was the pick of those last week. Great to see him in such fine form again.
Keenan is another player who is just on a steady, relentless upwards trajectory. If you'd told me 3 years ago he was going to be that good I would not have believed you

Real pity about the lineout. JRyan coming back could give us a defensive lineout as a weapon (which would be key to beating a team like la Rochelle). Not sure what went wrong yesterday but you do have to suspect it's the only thing that kept Kelleher from the Lions team.

[ronk]

First Time I've see it but yeah that was bizarre. Not been a good couple of weeks for ref/tmo decisions in URC

https://www.balls.ie/rugby/leinster-gla ... try-488664

It was dodgy in real-time but he didn't replay it. It was obviously much worse and more obvious from his far side.

[Ruckedtobits]

Regularly we hear on commentary, "that's a try straight off the training pitch". Hugo Keenan's try against Glasgow Warriors was precisely that - but only if you train like Leinster!

Stuart Lancaster almost always includes in his training sessions three Squads of 15 players lined out on each goalline and the halfway line. The group on one goalline take possession and play, full-on, until they reach the halfway or score. They then restart on the halfway against the next group of 15. When they reach the second goalline, the next group get possession and repeat the process in the opposite direction.

All of this is played out at full pace with whatever calls and moves the side in possession consider appropriate. No lineouts or scrums, just running, tackles & breakdowns. To watch a non-stop session of such play for possibly 12 minutes continuous work is to begin to understand how significant tempo is to Leinster teams. Nothing in their preparation is about stop - start. Everything is about continuity.

For Hugo Keenan's try, play was continuous for c. 2 mins 25 secs over 17 phases and every Leinster player on the pitch carried or passed during the build-up. If the try had been scored by the AB's or Crusaders, it would already be on YouTube.

So the next time you hear the phrase "that's straight off the training pitch", just remember this example. Pure class!

[Experimental]

Thought Leavy was brilliant, I honestly think if he can stay injury free, he can reach Johnny Sexton kind of heights. Imo Farrell missed a trick not including him in the Ireland squad, and we may yet see him. Having said that, Timoney is playing very well at the moment and deserves his chance.

[ronk]

Thought Leavy was brilliant, I honestly think if he can stay injury free, he can reach Johnny Sexton kind of heights. Imo Farrell missed a trick not including him in the Ireland squad, and we may yet see him. Having said that, Timoney is playing very well at the moment and deserves his chance.

With Leavys injury record it would have looked a bad move to recall him so soon when there's cover.

[Dexter]

Regularly we hear on commentary, "that's a try straight off the training pitch". Hugo Keenan's try against Glasgow Warriors was precisely that - but only if you train like Leinster!

Stuart Lancaster almost always includes in his training sessions three Squads of 15 players lined out on each goalline and the halfway line. The group on one goalline take possession and play, full-on, until they reach the halfway or score. They then restart on the halfway against the next group of 15. When they reach the second goalline, the next group get possession and repeat the process in the opposite direction.

All of this is played out at full pace with whatever calls and moves the side in possession consider appropriate. No lineouts or scrums, just running, tackles & breakdowns. To watch a non-stop session of such play for possibly 12 minutes continuous work is to begin to understand how significant tempo is to Leinster teams. Nothing in their preparation is about stop - start. Everything is about continuity.

For Hugo Keenan's try, play was continuous for c. 2 mins 25 secs over 17 phases and every Leinster player on the pitch carried or passed during the build-up. If the try had been scored by the AB's or Crusaders, it would already be on YouTube.

So the next time you hear the phrase "that's straight off the training pitch", just remember this example. Pure class!

Great post. Thanks.

[Oldschool]

Scottish teams tend to play a high tempo game mainly because they can't match the top teams physically.
Leinster out Tempo-ed Glasgow last night.
Leinster, the other provinces and Ireland face the same problems as the Scots only not as severe.
The real question, if you are a coach is how do you inject tempo into your style of play.
Last night was really only near the start of this evolution (Lancaster and previous coaches have usually had a leaning this way anyway).
For example Baird has been singled out a bit for his handling errors. Maybe there is a reason for the errors that we're not seeing.
It's easy to stuff the ball up your jumper and not knock it on. The alternatives become more difficult depending on their degree of difficulty (nicked that bit from the diving btw)

[Serb]

I agree that we’re looking to try something new, and in respect to Baird, the second of his three knock ons was a result of him trying to hit the line at pace and maybe overcooked the run a little. That could be down to the new system and just getting timing a little bit wrong.

The problem for him is more that he has had at least 7 clear handling errors between the Dragons and Glasgow game (I didn’t see the Zebre game unfortunately so maybe he was better there), which is an awful lot.

Could just be bad luck, but if you’re going to play a high tempo system and move players around at pace like that, you really need to catch your passes and retain the ball when you do go into contact. He’s not doing that right now.