Leinster Team Talk/Gossip/Rumours Thread.

.ak

Great to hear Conway possibly back in the mix soon! The guy was putting in some serious hits in the pre-season games. Really enjoy watching him when he plays, bags of potential.

irishbucsfan

If I was Cillian Willis I dunno if id stick around. It's not worth it. Surely he can get work somewhere else

GerM

irishbucsfan wrote: »

If I was Cillian Willis I dunno if id stick around. It's not worth it. Surely he can get work somewhere else

It depends on whether he wants to pursue a rugby career. His original intention was apparently to retire and begin work with the family business. He has a business degree and he has seen the good and the bad side of the pro game. He has experienced MOTM performances in the HEC in Lansdowne Road but he has spent seasons on the bench at Ulster and Connacht. There's a good chance he's happy to walk away if Leinster aren't going to give him a good enough offer. I reckon it's a decent offer from Leinster or nothing. It's a shame because 6 years ago he really did look like being the next great Irish scrum half before the shoulder reconstruction and knee injuries.

Monty Burnz

profitius wrote: »

Same for me.

Heres some interesting interviews about route 6'6".

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TUp5nCrwOZc

The guy in the 17 jersey running at 1:45 in the video looked pretty damn quick for a guy of 6'6 or more - I'd like to think they aren't just looking for second rows if a guy shows promise in another role.

GerM

Monty Burnz wrote: »

The guy in the 17 jersey running at 1:45 in the video looked pretty damn quick for a guy of 6'6 or more - I'd like to think they aren't just looking for second rows if a guy shows promise in another role.

Put another 2-3 stone of weight on him though and have him keep his speed. I wouldn't say there's many of those lads that weigh much more than 14.5 stone.

Monty Burnz

GerM wrote: »

Put another 2-3 stone of weight on him though and have him keep his speed. I wouldn't say there's many of those lads that weigh much more than 14.5 stone.

Indeed, and there were a few big bellies there too. But the guy in that clip was running like a genuine athlete, not the usual 'lanky' galloping lock. You don't usually see that sort of athleticism in guys so big (Usain Bolt possibly an exception).

profitius

They should get them running up slopes and see if theres much of a loss of speed. The more powerful they are the less difference there should be when running on a flat surface or a slope.

tolosenc

GerM wrote: »

Put another 2-3 stone of weight on him though and have him keep his speed. I wouldn't say there's many of those lads that weigh much more than 14.5 stone.

His technique could also be improved. A lot of side to side motion. Cut that out and that'd allow him to add even more weight and retain speed.

[Jackass]

RE Willis, such a talented player and has been great cover, but with the two Irish internationals there and 2 young lads trying to develop them by giving them game time, I just don't think it'll work out for him. It's a shame, he had a shot at Leinster and Ulster and didn't really make an impact, hence his "retirement", but whilst it may not be at Leinster, it's something I really think he should re-consider, he would certainly be able to get game time at another pro12 club or even in the AP, he's a good player.

RE Munster game, I'd say it'll more or less sell out alright. Good earner for Leinster, just a shame we can't have more big games there, thanks to the RDS lease, but Ulster and perhaps a second Heineken Cup group game.

Also think it's a shame we don't move play-off games there.

durkadurka

The play off game with ulster only attracted 14k attendance so not much justification there, unless you think that the stadium itself would attract a crowd.

The regular season Ulster game usually gets around 17k so it probably wouldnt justify a move to Lansdowne either.

I think a play off game with munster would generate a good crowd alright.

wixfjord

durkadurka wrote: »

The play off game with ulster only attracted 14k attendance so not much justification there, unless you think that the stadium itself would attract a crowd.

The regular season Ulster game usually gets around 17k so it probably wouldnt justify a move to Lansdowne either.

I think a play off game with munster would generate a good crowd alright.

I think the occasion would attract a larger crowd for sure.
Could easily get 35,000 into the Aviva around Christmas imo for an Ulster game with a bit of marketing. Whether that's cost effective for the branch is another story. If it can be done in with Sarries, Quins, Wasps and LI, it can surely be done with Leinster and Ulster.

thomond2006

durkadurka wrote: »

The play off game with ulster only attracted 14k attendance so not much justification there, unless you think that the stadium itself would attract a crowd.

The regular season Ulster game usually gets around 17k so it probably wouldnt justify a move to Lansdowne either.

I think a play off game with munster would generate a good crowd alright.

Problem there was that game was only confirmed as a semi-final a week before it was played, that probably affected crowd numbers.

pajunior

thomond2006 wrote: »

Problem there was that game was only confirmed as a semi-final a week before it was played, that probably affected crowd numbers.

Very good point, there would be very limited options for marketing a play-off semi-final. But a Stephens day clash could be advertised very very well. Always the most popular fixture in the English Soccer PL and some of the English clubs, mainly in London are starting to catch on to it.

I can imagine a lot of families being interested in a trip to the Aviva for Christmas. Make it cheap enough and they'll come.

.ak

thomond2006 wrote: »

Problem there was that game was only confirmed as a semi-final a week before it was played, that probably affected crowd numbers.

... also people were skint from spending money on the HEC play-offs and travel options to Cardiff.

durkadurka

The late confirmation of the game will be a perennial factor in play off games. And if its not another irish team the attendance will be further depressed.

The stephens day game might be marketable alright. Problem is they target the December HEC game for lansdowne and this would only be a week or two later. I don't think they can go to the well that much more tbh.

Big Nelly

pajunior wrote: »

I can imagine a lot of families being interested in a trip to the Aviva for Christmas. Make it cheap enough and they'll come.

Last season they put a package together for families etc for over the Xmas period. can't remember what it was

tolosenc

Dilemma:

My graduation is on the 4th of November. However, no one else in my class is even vaguely interested in rugby. So ditch them and go to the Aviva, or go to my grad night?

durkadurka

Go to your grad. There'll be more games. You probably won't see half your class again after that night. Mine was a savage piss up. Too many years ago.

Big Nelly

.ak wrote: »

Aren't terrace tickets the cheapest? Where else would they be putting you?

Just seen this post about 3-4 pages back. If I was Leinster I would take care of season ticket holders first and then the odd stray that wants to go because Munster are coming to a game.

wixfjord

I see those lovely chaps on MF going on about Heaslip again.
Well see on 4th November how their backrow fares...

tolosenc

wixfjord wrote: »

I see those lovely chaps on MF going on about Heaslip again.
Well see on 4th November how their backrow fares...

*cough*

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4-JToT2_ZBo

profitius

wixfjord wrote: »

I see those lovely chaps on MF going on about Heaslip again.
Well see on 4th November how their backrow fares...

I have to say, he was anonymous during the world cup.

irishbucsfan

profitius wrote: »

I have to say, he was anonymous during the world cup.

Rubbish! Did more work at the breakdown than any of our other forwads. It's impressive that he is capable of doing more than just the ball carrying. My issue with having no groundhog was alleviated thanks to the work he was putting at the breakdown.

Our entire back row were impressive at the world cup. What was potentially a terribly unbalanced back row was saved by the way Heaslip changed his game, and thankfully he was capable of doing that.

profitius

irishbucsfan wrote: »

Rubbish! Did more work at the breakdown than any of our other forwads. It's impressive that he is capable of doing more than just the ball carrying. My issue with having no groundhog was alleviated thanks to the work he was putting at the breakdown.

Our entire back row were impressive at the world cup. What was potentially a terribly unbalanced back row was saved by the way Heaslip changed his game, and thankfully he was capable of doing that.

Its not rubbish. He made no impact ball carrying. Against Wales he ran out of touch with the ball and shouted out in frustration. Not only was it a stupid thing to do but the shout was music to Welsh ears because they knew Ireland were rattled. Compare his world cup to SOB and Ferris. He was by some distance behind those 2 in terms of performance.

thomond2006

profitius wrote: »

Its not rubbish. He made no impact ball carrying. Against Wales he ran out of touch with the ball and shouted out in frustration. Not only was it a stupid thing to do but the shout was music to Welsh ears because they knew Ireland were rattled. Compare his world cup to SOB and Ferris. He was by some distance behind those 2 in terms of performance.

It's very rare that you watch a game where the whole backrow are all carrying like animals. 1 or 2 of the loose trio have to do the grunt work if you like.

I was disappointed Heaslip was relatively quiet, but perhaps if he had been carrying in his typical way we would have seen less of Ferris or O'Brien.

shuffol

Heaslips a class act with so many facets to his game and a tremendous work rate that when one aspect isnt firing on all cylinders he makes up for it in other ways. However he hasnt been carrying the ball with the same aggression as he was at the time of that clip. Its a pity that just when Ireland develops a potent scrum that our no.8 loses his form with ball in hand.

irishbucsfan

profitius wrote: »

Its not rubbish. He made no impact ball carrying. Against Wales he ran out of touch with the ball and shouted out in frustration. Not only was it a stupid thing to do but the shout was music to Welsh ears because they knew Ireland were rattled. Compare his world cup to SOB and Ferris. He was by some distance behind those 2 in terms of performance.

My point is that he was covering our lack of groundhog. You're right that he made no impact in ball carrying, but with Stephen Ferris and Sean O'Brien doing what they did we didn't need another ball carrier, need needed someone to attack opposition possession, which he did brilliantly.

And whether or not he cried out in frustration at some point is hardly relevant to his performance...

I agree that he wasn't on par with Ferris or O'Brien, but he performed very very well. Ball carrying is something he obviously enjoys and something he's excellent at, but its also something he needed to sacrifice given the other players we've got.

People saying he didn't perform in those games annoy me almost as much as people who don't think Shane Jennings performs.

WeeBushy

profitius wrote: »

Its not rubbish. He made no impact ball carrying. Against Wales he ran out of touch with the ball and shouted out in frustration. Not only was it a stupid thing to do but the shout was music to Welsh ears because they knew Ireland were rattled. Compare his world cup to SOB and Ferris. He was by some distance behind those 2 in terms of performance.

No he wasn't, he played a completely different game to them, and to what we are used to of him. That doesn't mean he played poorly, just differently. But still damned effective. We had SOB and Ferris making the big runs, but no one to do the work at the break down so Heaslip stood up and put in some monumental shifts there. You can't use one example of a poor choice to carry as indicative of his whole WC.

No one is giving out about O'Gara's or Ross' lack of ball carrying during the WC because that isn't their role. Same way ball carrying wasn't Healslip's role at this WC. It has been in the past, and probably will be in the future, but he had other things to be doing because of who was in the back row with him. And did them damned well, I might add.

Amazotheamazing

irishbucsfan wrote: »

Rubbish! Did more work at the breakdown than any of our other forwads. It's impressive that he is capable of doing more than just the ball carrying. My issue with having no groundhog was alleviated thanks to the work he was putting at the breakdown.

Our entire back row were impressive at the world cup. What was potentially a terribly unbalanced back row was saved by the way Heaslip changed his game, and thankfully he was capable of doing that.

So what happened against wales? Our backrow had the ball something like 38 times and only made 45m's? That's downright pathetic.

Take away the Oz result and we beat some ordinary teams and over the last year that's all we managed. We love to hype Irish players but did we buy into the hype a bit too much?

Also, it's pointless saying he was playing as a 7 in open play, that doesn't excuse his failure off the base of the scrum, one of the most important parts of any 8's game.

Getting out-carried by SOB and Stephen Ferris is nothing to be ashamed of...