Leinster Team Talk/Gossip/Rumours Thread VI: End of the MOC [Revenge of the STH]

CMOTDibbler

awec wrote: »

I mean, why would we accept Dom Ryan in a trade for Payne?

Not exactly like-for-like. Be like me buying you a pint at the pub and then you giving me a glass of water for your round.

Yes but it would be Perrier

Neil3030

awec wrote: »

I mean, why would we accept Dom Ryan in a trade for Payne?

Not exactly like-for-like. Be like me buying you a pint at the pub and then you giving me a glass of water for your round.

You're making it sound like I proposed only Ryan for Payne which is just acting the maggot.

awec

CMOTDibbler wrote: »

Yes but it would be Perrier

I am not d4 enough to know what this is.

former total

awec wrote: »

So what sort of team do Leinster field on Saturday?

Rest men for a meaningless fixture, or go for it to try and avoid a 0% winning record?

It's a home Heineken Cup game; we have to go all out to win it. Rest people next week.

We're already missing Healy, Ross, Triggs, M Kearney, Heaslip, Conan, Boss and Fitzgerald so the scope for making huge changes is limited.

aimee1

awec wrote: »

So what sort of team do Leinster field on Saturday?

Rest men for a meaningless fixture, or go for it to try and avoid a 0% winning record?

home game, strong team with mcgrath, molony, ringrose, tracy and VDF getting meaningful [minimum 25-30 min] gametime in a ERCC game

Buer

awec wrote: »

So what sort of team do Leinster field on Saturday?

Rest men for a meaningless fixture, or go for it to try and avoid a 0% winning record?

I would think they'll have a reasonably strong side out but may take the opportunity to give game time to some guys who are thereabouts already such as Furlong starting his first European game and McGrath getting a start at 9. Maybe Ringrose.

I'd expect a mostly full strength side though for the home game. I can see them not being as sharp in the away game, unfortunately for Ulster.

CMOTDibbler

awec wrote: »

I am not d4 enough to know what this is.

French enough even?



You Ulster lads aren't doing anything to dispel the stereotype :P

awec

CMOTDibbler wrote: »

French enough even?



You Ulster lads aren't doing anything to dispel the stereotype :P

Evian is exotic enough for us.

TICKLE_ME_ELMO

Injury update, which doesn't really tell us anything... Heaslip is undergoing the return to play protocols and Luke Fitzgerald is being assessed as the week goes on.

They did say that Healy and the other injured players, other than Boss, are still a few weeks off returning. Healy a doubt for the 6 Nations? I know a few people, myself included, are of the opinion he shouldn't be 1st choice at the moment anyway but I wouldn't want him ruled out completely.

Neil3030

Assuming Heaslip and Luke are out, I'd go with:

1. McGrath
2. Strauss
3. Moore
4. Toner
5. Mike Mac
6. Ruddock
7. VDF
8. SOB
9. L McGrath
10. Sexton
11. Kearney
12. Te'o
13. Ringrose
14. Isa
15. Kearney

16. Cronin
17. Dooley
18. Furlong
19. Molony
20. Ryan
21. Reddan
22. Madigan
23. Reid

It would be nice to give Trace experience in this game, but the otherwise lack of ooomph from the bench really necessitates Cronin to be there imo.

molloyjh

awec wrote: »

So what sort of team do Leinster field on Saturday?

Rest men for a meaningless fixture, or go for it to try and avoid a 0% winning record?

There is no such thing as a nothing home game. Rest guys away to Wasps, but go all out for this one. As you said we need to avoid losing all of our games. And it will be important to maintain the momentum of the last few weeks as well.

Tox56

molloyjh wrote: »

There is no such thing as a nothing home game. Rest guys away to Wasps, but go all out for this one. As you said we need to avoid losing all of our games. And it will be important to maintain the momentum of the last few weeks as well.

Our strength in depth is back to being very good/outstanding, we made 10 changes to the 15 between the Munster and Connacht game and I dont think its that easy to tell which side was better. We can make pretty extensive changes between these two games and be competitive in both, and thats what I would expect to happen.

aimee1

TICKLE_ME_ELMO wrote: »

Injury update, which doesn't really tell us anything... Heaslip is undergoing the return to play protocols and Luke Fitzgerald is being assessed as the week goes on.

They did say that Healy and the other injured players, other than Boss, are still a few weeks off returning. Healy a doubt for the 6 Nations? I know a few people, myself included, are of the opinion he shouldn't be 1st choice at the moment anyway but I wouldn't want him ruled out completely.

Healy had a minor knee op last week so i think might miss the 6n. I think it might do him good to skip the 6n tbh. It might benefit him.

Is Jordi injured? Reckon he might feature to give either ruddock or SoB a rest (even just a bench spot)

molloyjh

aimee1 wrote: »

Healy had a minor knee op last week so i think might miss the 6n. I think it might do him good to skip the 6n tbh. It might benefit him.

Is Jordi injured? Reckon he might feature to give either ruddock or SoB a rest (even just a bench spot)

The word is that he elected to have the op because he would be back in time for the 6 Nations.

aimee1

molloyjh wrote: »

The word is that he elected to have the op because he would be back in time for the 6 Nations.

Ah right just i read something last week in the info i think which quoted Leo and it was very much of the not sure play it by ear variety which is always a bit iffy.

TICKLE_ME_ELMO

molloyjh wrote: »

The word is that he elected to have the op because he would be back in time for the 6 Nations.

They said today he's a couple of weeks off returning. Not sure whether that's off returning to play or returning to training. Either way he'll be cutting it fine.

molloyjh

TICKLE_ME_ELMO wrote: »

They said today he's a couple of weeks off returning. Not sure whether that's off returning to play or returning to training. Either way he'll be cutting it fine.

Yeah I think he will be cutting it fine. But I think the general feeling was he'd make it back in time.

Bridge93

CatFromHue wrote: »

I wonder how important, on the field anyway, Henshaw actually is to Connacht. This is easily your best season in a long time yet he's barely played (only 2 games in the Pro12 anyway).

Well if you look at the league since the teams got their players back from the World Cup Connacht have won 3 and lost 4 I think. Henshaws only two games were two of those wins.

Neil3030

Will Dan Leavy feature during the Six Nations do people reckon? He was certainly held in very high esteem coming out of the Academy, and I see he got a hat-trick a few weeks ago for the A's.

salmocab

Neil3030 wrote: »

Will Dan Leavy feature during the Six Nations do people reckon? He was certainly held in very high esteem coming out of the Academy, and I see he got a hat-trick a few weeks ago for the A's.

we have back rows coming out our ears, be nice to see him get some game time as he seemed to be ahead of VDF a while back. Hard to see him getting game time ahead of him now as they are both 7s as I remember it.

Neil3030

salmocab wrote: »

we have back rows coming out our ears, be nice to see him get some game time as he seemed to be ahead of VDF a while back. Hard to see him getting game time ahead of him now as they are both 7s as I remember it.

Yeah, except you'd imagine a healthy contingent from SOB, Ruddock, Heaslip, VDF, Murphy etc will be away at Ireland camp. Leavy benched a few times during the WC, so hopefully he gets back into the fold.

LostArt

salmocab wrote: »

we have back rows coming out our ears, be nice to see him get some game time as he seemed to be ahead of VDF a while back. Hard to see him getting game time ahead of him now as they are both 7s as I remember it.

I'm not sure if he's ever been ahead of Vdf in the coaches minds tbh, Vdf has constantly played at every grade and Leavy has been constantly injured.

Sangre

LostArt wrote: »

I'm not sure if he's ever been ahead of Vdf in the coaches minds tbh, Vdf has constantly played at every grade and Leavy has been constantly injured.

The coaches have made a lot of efforts to play Leavy when they can because they see so much potential however at senior level VDF has always been ahead of Leavy.

Zzippy

The_Captain wrote: »

Great move for Ireland though, and that's why it will happen.

In what universe is it a good move for Ireland? It weakens one province, and clogs up the 13 position at another province, so the 13 who needs gametime most to develop there will be picking up splinters in his arse. Unless he's played at 12, which is a waste of his talent and not good for Ireland, as McCloskey is looking like our best option at 12 long term. Or unless he's signed to play 15, in which case we'll have RK getting splinters - again, not ideal for Ireland.

jacothelad

CMOTDibbler wrote: »

Yes but it would be Perrier

Eauverpriced, Eauverrated.

Buer

If someone had told me there's 4 flankers coming through the Leinster academy system in a short space of time (Coughlan, Gilsenan, VDF and Leavy) and, based on what you've seen of them for Ireland at U20 who is going to be the one that breaks into the Leinster 23, I'd probably have had VDF last in that list.

I know there were mitigating factors such as injuries for Gilsenan and Leavy and the wasteful experiment with Coghlan as a centre, but VDF still didn't stand out like the others who were fast tracked into the Leinster A team.

It really goes to show how cautious we should be on quality underage rugby players in terms of developing into quality senior players.

On another note, Coghlan can pretty much wrap up his career unless he holds a very frank meeting with his employers. He played in the centre for Garryowen this weekend. It's an utter waste of his talents given he's now a flanker again, fully, it seems. The AIL clubs need to put out teams and win games but the provinces pay the salaries and should not be allowing this sort of shifting around of a young player unless Munster actually want him in the centre. Reminds me of the situation when Cork Con played POM on the wing.

Neil3030

jacothelad wrote: »

Eauverpriced, Eauverrated.

I l-aqua-t you did there.

salmocab

Buer wrote: »

On another note, Coghlan can pretty much wrap up his career unless he holds a very frank meeting with his employers. He played in the centre for Garryowen this weekend. It's an utter waste of his talents given he's now a flanker again, fully, it seems. The AIL clubs need to put out teams and win games but the provinces pay the salaries and should not be allowing this sort of shifting around of a young player unless Munster actually want him in the centre. Reminds me of the situation when Cork Con played POM on the wing.

Wonder would he be better going to a second tier English club and playing his way up instead of being stuck in that. Leinster probably did him a disservice moving him to centre, extra year or not.

Stainalert

salmocab wrote: »

Wonder would he be better going to a second tier English club and playing his way up instead of being stuck in that. Leinster probably did him a disservice moving him to centre, extra year or not.

Garryowen got hockeyed in that game so probably not an experiment they are likely to repeat

shuffol

Buer wrote: »

If someone had told me there's 4 flankers coming through the Leinster academy system in a short space of time (Coughlan, Gilsenan, VDF and Leavy) and, based on what you've seen of them for Ireland at U20 who is going to be the one that breaks into the Leinster 23, I'd probably have had VDF last in that list.

I know there were mitigating factors such as injuries for Gilsenan and Leavy and the wasteful experiment with Coghlan as a centre, but VDF still didn't stand out like the others who were fast tracked into the Leinster A team.

It really goes to show how cautious we should be on quality underage rugby players in terms of developing into quality senior players.

On another note, Coghlan can pretty much wrap up his career unless he holds a very frank meeting with his employers. He played in the centre for Garryowen this weekend. It's an utter waste of his talents given he's now a flanker again, fully, it seems. The AIL clubs need to put out teams and win games but the provinces pay the salaries and should not be allowing this sort of shifting around of a young player unless Munster actually want him in the centre. Reminds me of the situation when Cork Con played POM on the wing.

Still early to say but VDF just seems like somebody who's got something about him attitude wise and who works his arse off, it's possibly harder to spot how that will pan out at underage level, Ringrose likewise if your judging him on his schools career. I don't think there was much expectation of him when he was first lining out for Ireland u-20s.

Injuries obviously do play a part as well however.