Leinster Team Talk/Gossip/Rumours Thread.

durkadurka

He got a lot of ball but I feel he's slowing up ( from his electrifying pace of old.....)

was it his second or third game in the past 4 months? Let him have some time tbh, but I would agree that he didn't look up to scratch

durkadurka

Deleted User wrote: »

was it his second or third game in the past 4 months? Let him have some time tbh, but I would agree that he didn't look up to scratch

Fair point- I'm just worried because we're stuck for top quality second rows.

chancer12

Cullen is a great Captain and like some of the other players he's beginning to slow a little but does a tremendous job in leading the players on the pitch. Have to say I feel so sorry for Isa, he's a wonderful 15 and its such a pity Kearney was given the jersey without really earning it. Also delighted to see Luke back on form but would agree with other posters that he's wasted on the wing; great jinker and wonderful defensively, would love to see what d'Arcy and himself could produce together

wixfjord

chancer12 wrote: »

Cullen is a great Captain and like some of the other players he's beginning to slow a little but does a tremendous job in leading the players on the pitch. Have to say I feel so sorry for Isa, he's a wonderful 15 and its such a pity Kearney was given the jersey without really earning it. Also delighted to see Luke back on form but would agree with other posters that he's wasted on the wing; great jinker and wonderful defensively, would love to see what d'Arcy and himself could produce together

Where is this theory coming from? I've heard it mentioned in a few places.
Kearney was great for Ireland at the WC, and played really well on Sat, unlike Isa!

durkadurka

Has anyone tried to get tickets for the 6N on the Leinster lottery?

the prices are double what it says in the email!

GerM

chancer12 wrote: »

Cullen is a great Captain and like some of the other players he's beginning to slow a little but does a tremendous job in leading the players on the pitch. Have to say I feel so sorry for Isa, he's a wonderful 15 and its such a pity Kearney was given the jersey without really earning it. Also delighted to see Luke back on form but would agree with other posters that he's wasted on the wing; great jinker and wonderful defensively, would love to see what d'Arcy and himself could produce together

Nacewa won player of the year in 2009/10 as a winger. The idea that him being on the wing weakens the side significantly is a myth. He's simply not in the form that he was 6 months ago. He saw plenty of ball against Montpellier but he just didn't perform on the day. In seasons past he would have crucified Montpellier with the ball he was given in tight spaces out wide. There's no arguing that he's superb generally from 15 and revels in the open space that he enjoys from there but the positional switch isn't the reason behind his lack of influence on the game.

wixfjord

Piece on Johnny in todays Indo:

Found the bolded interesting...

JONATHAN SEXTON must be wondering what he has to do to shake off his great rival in Irish rugby, Ronan O'Gara, after he proved, once again, that he has the fire in his gut, but also the ice in his veins to earn Leinster a draw against Montpellier.

The Irish and Leinster out-half managed to slot over a difficult touchline penalty with the last kick of the match to secure the reigning champions a creditable draw against a rampant French outfit, who proved almost too hot to handle for the Blues.

But, while Sexton was proving his credentials as a top European No 10, his great rival and the veteran out-half of Irish rugby, was going one better for Munster and clinching a remarkable win with a drop goal with the last kick of the game against Northampton Saints in Limerick.

It may have been a case of c'est la vie for Sexton and part of his gig as the younger man in this great rivalry, but nobody should doubt what the Dubliner did for Leinster, who were battered and bruised and, at times, thrown around like rag dolls by a brutal Montpellier outfit.

Sexton also proved, with this performance, that there's life without Brian O'Driscoll, who will miss the whole of Leinster's defence of their European crown, as there must be and that he's the side's leader-in-waiting.

But the No 10 is more than aware that while he has more than proved himself in the Leinster shirt -- especially with his heroics during last season's dramatic comeback to win the Heineken Cup in Cardiff -- he still has yet to really prove himself in the green shirt of Ireland.

The Leinster playmaker is suitably phlegmatic about his plight, but clearly feels he has something to prove in the Test arena. That, of course, can only be good for Ireland.

"Stuff happens," said Sexton. "I went to the World Cup with high hopes for myself and the team and things didn't go to plan and there are reasons for that, but it's how you bounce back.

"I am just delighted to be back playing with my mates at Leinster and it's a great set-up and we have a coach who allows us to go out and express ourselves.

"The World Cup is gone and I am sure I will be reminded of it for the next few months and maybe the next few years until the next one."

He doesn't have anything to prove to his coach Joe Schmidt, who waxed lyrical about his pivot and has nothing but admiration for the composure shown by Sexton towards the end of this gripping contest.

"That's typical Jonny," said Schmidt. "I don't think he was rattled by it at all. I think it helps him narrow his focus and get the job done and he did that superbly."

Leinster found themselves 16-6 behind midway through the second half thanks to a breakaway try from skipper Fulgence Ouedraogo and the boot of Francois Trinh-Duc, but two astute replacements by Schmidt saw Eoin Reddan and Sean Cronin, who showed an impressive turn of pace to score a try, drag the visitors back into the contest.

"It was left until the end to secure the draw and we would have maybe taken that at the start of the day and, I suppose, it's a good result for us away in Europe," said Sexton.

"At times we handled them well, but at times we were sloppy and turned the ball over too often off first phase, which is your bread and butter and that's why we struggled to get into the game.

"To be fair to Montpellier, they defended well and attacked us very directly and we fell off some tackles, but two points away from home in France you would take every day."

Fabien Galthie, the former France skipper and Montpellier coach, who guided his unheralded side to the Top 14 final last season, did an impressive job of keeping his obvious frustration in check after the match.

"Leinster had possession, they didn't lower their rhythm, they played in a methodical and structured manner," he said. "They didn't put us in too much difficulty, but they made us retreat and retreat and made us foul."

Montpellier -- L Amorosino; T Nagusa (M Bustos Moyano 66), G Doumayrou, S Fernandez, Y Audrin; F Trinh-Duc, B Paillaugue (J Tomas 51); N Leleimalefaga (M Nariashvili 78), A Creevy (r van vuuren 62), M Bustos (G Jgenti 61), M Demarco, T Privat (D Hancke 57), F Ouedraogo (capt) (r van vuuren 72), M Gorgodze, M Matadigo (R Martin 41).

Leinster -- R Kearney; I Nacewa, F McFadden, G D'Arcy, L Fitzgerald; J Sexton, I Boss (E Reddan 50); H Van Der Merwe, R Strauss (S Cronin 57), M Ross (N White 59), L Cullen (capt), D Browne (D Toner 57), K McLaughlin (S Jennings 57), S O'Brien, J Heaslip.

Ref -- D Pearson (England).

totallegend

durkadurka wrote: »

Has anyone tried to get tickets for the 6N on the Leinster lottery?

the prices are double what it says in the email!

Haven't gone into it yet, but I wonder are the prices doubled because you have to apply for two tickets?

Spud83

durkadurka wrote: »

Has anyone tried to get tickets for the 6N on the Leinster lottery?

the prices are double what it says in the email!

I'm seeing the top tier price with the ticketmaster charge added on. Are you seeing double because you have to apply for two?

durkadurka

I can only see the top priced ones - I cant see the €35 ones.

Spud83

durkadurka wrote: »

I can only see the top priced ones - I cant see the €35 ones.

My take on it is that you are entered into the lottery for all tickets regardless of tier, and they are showing you the maximum price you can end up paying.

There isn't a draw for Tier 4 tickets, and then a separate draw for tier 3 tickets. There is just one draw, with tier 1 going to the first people out, and tier 2 to the second lot of people, etc....

totallegend

durkadurka wrote: »

I can only see the top priced ones - I cant see the €35 ones.

The number of €35 tickets in the stadium is tiny; the seats in yellow below are the 'category 4' tickets, not even worth talking about really. The vast majority are 'category 1', in green below:

LeeroyJones

Healy seems likely to be fit this weekend. Hopefully he'll get the nod.

With regards second-row I'd have Toner in there. Browne hasn't shown enough to prove he's ahead of Toner and with Gray in Glasgow's lineout it would be nice to have somebody who could contest! Toner is one, I must admit, who I had regarded as a Celtic League player at best but to his credit he has stepped it up a level and he deserves the opportunity to stake a claim for Heineken Cup starts.

At the backrow, let's get Jennings back in there and reassert our breakdown dominance of last year. Montpellier showed us that we cannot be complacent.

In the backline I'd like to see Reddan start and have Boss ready for the impact. I sound like a broken record saying this, but I really really want us to reshuffle the backline! Fitzgerald's best form this season was at 12 and even in recent games his best impact is coming infield. Give him the 12 shirt with D'arcy outside him - I am certain that would strengthen our midfield defence and I am confident we would have more line breaks. For me anyway, McFadden is a more clinical winger than Fitzgerald and a reshuffle to 11. McFadden 12. Fitzgerald 13. D'arcy would be getting more out of the players who start anyway!

Fishooks12

Healys return will be a big boost to Leinster for next week

He was missed in the loose and the tight on Saturday

geekington

I really would love to see O'Malley get a shot in midfield along side D'Arcy for this game - just to see what he can do! Only time I can remember him playing with a full team was Clermont away last season and we no how good he was then!

tolosenc

wixfjord wrote: »

Piece on Johnny in todays Indo:

Found the bolded interesting...

Just confirmation of what we all figured was going on anyway, really. Discontent in the Irish camp, Heaslip is another prime example, he looked like he didn't want to be there.

If ROG gets picked for any 6N games, Sexton should give a post match interview and claim to be "done with Ireland in a few weeks".

danthefan

tolosenc wrote: »

Just confirmation of what we all figured was going on anyway, really. Discontent in the Irish camp, Heaslip is another prime example, he looked like he didn't want to be there.

If ROG gets picked for any 6N games, Sexton should give a post match interview and claim to be "done with Ireland in a few weeks".

Would be interesting alright. He could purposefully not play well when he got off the bench then just have a massive whinge to the media afterwards. I wonder how it would go down?

Teferi

tolosenc wrote: »

Just confirmation of what we all figured was going on anyway, really. Discontent in the Irish camp, Heaslip is another prime example, he looked like he didn't want to be there.

Do you reckon? All the noise that came out from camp during the WC was that there was a fantastic atmosphere.

tolosenc

danthefan wrote: »

Would be interesting alright. He could purposefully not play well when he got off the bench then just have a massive whinge to the media afterwards. I wonder how it would go down?

Pretty well, evidently.

Teferi wrote: »

Do you reckon? All the noise that came out from camp during the WC was that there was a fantastic atmosphere.

The French claimed that there were no problems in their camp too.

Teferi

tolosenc wrote: »

The French claimed that there were no problems in their camp too.

Everyone in the Irish camp was singing off the same hymn sheet. Lievremont was criticising his players to the media.

Podge_irl

Teferi wrote: »

Everyone in the Irish camp was singing off the same hymn sheet.

Much like they were in 07.

I genuinely don't think there was any problem. They looked to be fairly happy to me. However, unless there is a breakdown of cataclysmic proportions, then the player's public pronouncements don't really mean much.

Big Nelly

Something funny on radio this morning. Dublin GAA complaining about Leinster using the color blue because that is the Dubs colour. Talk about throwing your toys out of pram!!!

Someone in Dublin GAA talking about not been able to Trademark a color. Pure jealousy I would say because Leinster are starting to build up a good following and they are seeing grounds been full at rugby matchs and not at all the GAA match's.

I would have expected the FAI to start complaining first but they are too tied in with IRFU to start complaining.

Aviva will be full tonight, I was wondering today when was the last time it was full for an Irish international?

GerM

I don't want this to descend into a GAA bad, rugby good rubbish discussion. These two entities should be learning from one another and realise that there is a lot to be garnered from cross pollination. Brian Cullen will bring some excellent input to Leinster Rugby I'm sure. GAA could learn from the professional conditioning and training methods of rugby. Comments like the ones coming from the Dublin GAA officials are completely counter productive and serve only to drive a wedge between the two biggest sporting entities in the province. I was happy enough with Leinster Rugby's response last night:

"Leinster are based in Dublin but are very much a 12-county team representing one province and that is reflected in both our playing staff and support base.

"We don't see ourselves as a threat and likewise we do not see the GAA as a threat. Many of our players have played GAA and we took great pleasure in the achievements of the Dublin footballers and the Kilkenny hurlers this season.

"We are a branch of the IRFU who deal with both the amateur and professional side of our game."

On a side note, Dublin GAA are now looking to develop a 25k all seater stadium on the edge of the M50 which is designed to accommodate the commuter belt counties. It would be fantastic if LR could use it at some point if it became a reality to allow those from Kildare, Meath, Westmeath, Laois etc to attend games. Wholly unlikely though.

wixfjord

GerM wrote: »

I don't want this to descend into a GAA bad, rugby good rubbish discussion. These two entities should be learning from one another and realise that there is a lot to be garnered from cross pollination. Brian Cullen will bring some excellent input to Leinster Rugby I'm sure. GAA could learn from the professional conditioning and training methods of rugby. Comments like the ones coming from the Dublin GAA officials are completely counter productive and serve only to drive a wedge between the two biggest sporting entities in the province. I was happy enough with Leinster Rugby's response last night:



On a side note, Dublin GAA are now looking to develop a 25k all seater stadium on the edge of the M50 which is designed to accommodate the commuter belt counties. It would be fantastic if LR could use it at some point if it became a reality to allow those from Kildare, Meath, Westmeath, Laois etc to attend games. Wholly unlikely though.

I dunno, you're cutting off your nose a little bit if you build a stadium like that.
Dublin, Wicklow, Meath, Kildare and North Wexford would be the main Leinster markets, and it's probably as easy for fans from these counties to reach the city centre.

A stadium on the M50 would be very hard to get to for anyone without a car, and would be devoid of much of the atmosphere around the RDS and Aviva on matchdays imo.

I'm pretty happy with the current arrangement, the Aviva in particular is a blessing if we get a home SF for example.

wixfjord

http://www.independent.ie/sport/gaelic-football/leinster-hit-back-in-blue-row-with-dubs-2934279.html

LEINSTER rugby last night hit back at Dublin GAA chiefs who accused the Heineken Cup champions of "the subliminal exploitation of Dublin's unique" blue jersey.

In a strategy document for Dublin GAA 2011-2017 called 'Unleashing The Blue Wave', the county's top GAA officials stated that the "appeal of a flourishing professional franchise" represented a real challenge for GAA in the county and that they were determined to "reinforce the fact that Dublin is GAA Country."

"The Blue Jersey is an unique, inclusive brand, uniting Dublin's dense expanse, blurring the difference in class and possession which became so pointedly manifest during the delusional days of the Celtic Tiger," it says.

Jaysus that sounds very bitter!
Reminds me of that famous Dublin "Blue Book" thing back a few years ago, a load of hot air from someone using big words.

A guarded reference to Leinster's supposed D4 fanbase too at the end.

thomond2006

GAA is a summer sport, I don't think the popularity of the All-Ireland championship is affected by rugby. In September the All-Ireland finals always dominate public and media interest, only exception was perhaps this year with RWC. You could say the league is affected by the rugby season, but the league was never that popular anyway.

CatFromHue

GerM wrote: »

GAA bad, rugby good

I'm happy enough with that! :pac:

wixfjord

thomond2006 wrote: »

GAA is a summer sport, I don't think the popularity of the All-Ireland championship is affected by rugby. You could say the league is affected by the rugby season, but the league was never that popular anyway.

GAA player numbers certainly are though.
It's seen as a real threat to the GAA where i'm from.

justsomebloke

GerM wrote: »

I don't want this to descend into a GAA bad, rugby good rubbish discussion.

Either do I, so this is a warning to everyone that any pop shots at any other sport will be dealt with