Irish Players outside the Provinces 15/16

sfbdqc

thomond2006 wrote: »

David Mele has signed for Grenoble so it looks like James Hart will definitely be on his way out, the rumour is Racing 92.

He never plays anyway.

thomond2006

sfbdqc wrote: »

He never plays anyway.

Munster, Leinster or Ulster would take him I reckon. I think Connacht are well stocked with Marmion, Cooney and Blade.

errlloyd

Deleted User wrote: »

Lets bump this up.

Next season we'll also have to keep an eye on

Player Position Team League
Marty Moore TH Wasps Aviva Premiership
Ian Madigan OH Bordeaux T15
Rory Scholes WG Edinbrugh Pro12

thomond2006

JJ at Saints too.

errlloyd

thomond2006 wrote: »

JJ at Saints too.

Well we have to keep on eye on his this season.

former total

thomond2006 wrote: »

JJ at Saints too.

Unused sub in their win over Saracens at the weekend, doesn't seem to be panning out exactly how he would have planned.

bilston

He strikes me as another Jeremy Staunton or Paddy Wallace. Clearly very talented but not consistent enough for the 10 position. I would like to see him at 12. He could be very good there. Less pressure but still the platform to showcase his obvious abilities.

sfbdqc

Certainly good enough to be starting for Munster right now.

connachta

thomond2006 wrote: »

Munster, Leinster or Ulster would take him I reckon. I think Connacht are well stocked with Marmion, Cooney and Blade.

Not sure Cooney is staying, maybe going North or back East. And Hart or JJ would be valuable kicking solutions for ChampionsCup next season.

sfbdqc

Cooney's future is fairly cloudy.. Heard Porter could be heading North again too.

Hope Leinster bring Cooney home but doesn't look very likely.

Buer

thomond2006 wrote: »

Munster, Leinster or Ulster would take him I reckon. I think Connacht are well stocked with Marmion, Cooney and Blade.

Leinster approached him before and he turned them down. He's happy in France, apparently.

sfbdqc

Buer wrote: »

Leinster approached him before and he turned them down. He's happy in France, apparently.

he barely plays as is.. heard he didn't want to take lesser wages in Ireland fwiw

CatFromHue

former total wrote: »

Unused sub in their win over Saracens at the weekend, doesn't seem to be panning out exactly how he would have planned.

In hindsight it'd have been better if he stayed but equally how was he to know Blyendaal would be so injury prone or that Keatley's form would drop off a cliff.

If I remember right Keatley was doing pretty well for the most part when JJ was on the scene.

jacothelad

Darren O'Shea is a big lump. I'm surprised none of the provinces have tried to tempt him back.
I see Conor Carey has signed for Connacht. Another good player that Ulster couldn't retain.

connachta

So, after Adair has won his QF with Jersey, Hudson, McIliwaine, Heaney and Cusack all in action for B&I cup today (3PM)

the perfect ten

connachta wrote: »

So, after Adair has won his QF with Jersey, Hudson, McIliwaine, Heaney and Cusack all in action for B&I cup today (3PM)

A disappointing season for the provincial A sides with none of them making the semi-finals.

Buer

bilston wrote: »

He strikes me as another Jeremy Staunton or Paddy Wallace. Clearly very talented but not consistent enough for the 10 position. I would like to see him at 12. He could be very good there. Less pressure but still the platform to showcase his obvious abilities.

I always felt he was more of a 12. His decision making at 10 is suspect. Similar to Madigan, he's a little too eager to force a play ahead of time just as a chip or a cross kick when the defence is still set. He's clearly talented but needs to learn how to best utilise those abilities.

The move hasn't been good for him. It did seem for a spell that Mallinder was just easing him into things and was then pushing him ahead of Myler. JJH started 5 of 7 games in a run in December and January. But he has been out in the cold since then and hasn't started a game in 2 months.

I hope he gets enough game time to keep him sharp over the next year but I also wouldn't be too upset to see Myler being retained overall as first choice so Hanrahan comes back to Ireland to try and kick on in his career with a province.

thomond2006

Buer wrote: »

I always felt he was more of a 12. His decision making at 10 is suspect. Similar to Madigan, he's a little too eager to force a play ahead of time just as a chip or a cross kick when the defence is still set. He's clearly talented but needs to learn how to best utilise those abilities.

The move hasn't been good for him. It did seem for a spell that Mallinder was just easing him into things and was then pushing him ahead of Myler. JJH started 5 of 7 games in a run in December and January. But he has been out in the cold since then and hasn't started a game in 2 months.

I hope he gets enough game time to keep him sharp over the next year but I also wouldn't be too upset to see Myler being retained overall as first choice so Hanrahan comes back to Ireland to try and kick on in his career with a province.

In hindsight, had he stayed at Munster he would be probably be starting now. However if he is being paid the rumoured salary it would have been difficult to turn that down. Had he stayed at Munster and remained second choice for 1 or 2 more seasons then there's no way he would get an offer like it again. In the end players are always at the mercy of one serious injury etc from suddenly making no money.

pickarooney

If only he'd gone to Ulster he'd have had lots of game time while Jackson was away on international duty.

thomond2006

Lille Metropole have filed for bankruptcy. They were supposed to be promoted to ProD2 for this season but were prevented by the DNACG, the financial watchdog arm of the FFR. Hopefully Luke O'Dea will be able to find a contract elsewhere.

Buer

Another game with Hanrahan kicking his heels for the full 80.

Bloody waste.

the perfect ten

What did you expect? He was never going to just walk onto the team particularly given what a servant Myler has been to Northampton.

It is a two year deal and things can always change for the better for him next season.

Buer

the perfect ten wrote: »

What did you expect? He was never going to just walk onto the team particularly given what a servant Myler has been to Northampton.

It is a two year deal and things can always change for the better for him next season.

I didn't expect him to walk into the team. I rate Myler a lot more highly than most. Although I felt Myler would be ahead, I expected a good amount of sharing of the jersey though with a number of starts in the centre possibly and moving to 10 later in the game.

I didn't expect Hanrahan to have spent a number of games on the bench without even setting foot on the field; I don't think many expected him to be in that position.

Nor did I expect for his influence and involvement to actually start diminishing as his time there went on. Unless there's a significant change to things next season (and Myler is only 31), JJH should look at relocating once more.

case885

the perfect ten wrote:

It is a two year deal and things can always change for the better for him next season.

Is it two or three? Don't think it was announced but hopefully it's the former.

former total

Rugbyrama are reporting that James Hart is on his way to Racing.

Sounds like a great move but I'd fear that he's going as squad filler, and that another big name will be brought in to compete with Machenaud once Phillips departs.

CMOTDibbler

former total wrote: »

Rugbyrama are reporting that James Hart is on his way to Racing.

Sounds like a great move but I'd fear that he's going as squad filler, and that another big name will be brought in to compete with Machenaud once Phillips departs.

That rumour has been around for a while. He's become a bit of a squad filler at Grenoble where he's only had 9 appearances this season whilst the other two have been well into double digits.

On balance it has to be a good move for him. Racing are a bigger name than Grenoble and with Machenaud seeming to have captured a slot on the French team and Philips coming to the end of his career, they need another 9 at least.

thomond2006

As a scrum-half, I imagine the chance to play with Dan Carter would be difficult to turn down!

brokenhooker

thomond2006 wrote: »

As a scrum-half, I imagine the chance to play with Dan Carter would be difficult to turn down!

i'm sure a chance to play was appealing cause as 3rd choice at grenoble he wasn't getting much gametime.

Pink Fairy

Perhaps Charlie Mulchrone might be worth a look, he signing for Quins next season and he's IQ, a 26yo scrum half might be worth having a look at.

CMOTDibbler

thomond2006 wrote: »

As a scrum-half, I imagine the chance to play with Dan Carter be coached by ROG would be difficult to turn down!

FYP

former total

Peter Stringer to equal O'Gara's record of European appearances:

http://www.epcrugby.com/news/32769.php#.VwZQAvkrJMw

pickarooney

1998!

the perfect ten

Great to see two Irish players named in the 2015/2016 Championship Dream XV in England.

http://www.englandrugby.com/news/championship-dream-2015/

the perfect ten

And the evergreen Peter Stringer is Player of the Season at Sale Sharks - what an achievement at 38!!

phog

Mark Flanagan moving to England, possibly Saracens.

Strange Leinster didn' try get him when signing Nagle.

Glass Prison 1214

phog wrote: »

Mark Flanagan moving to England, possibly Saracens.

Strange Leinster didn' try get him when signing Nagle.

He's moving to England from ............... England?

phog

Glass Prison 1214 wrote: »

He's moving to England from ............... England?

I thought he moved to France from Leinster.


Edit
Wiki says he's in France

Mark Flanagan (born 2 August 1989) is a professional rugby player. Educated at St. Finians College, Mullingar, he plays in the second-row for French team Stade Montois, Mont de Marsan,

irishbucsfan

Flanagan plays for Bedford: http://www.bedfordrugby.co.uk/content/players/mark-flanagan

pickarooney

Denis Fogarty, former Munster hooker has retired after an injury-ravaged season in Provence.

irishbucsfan

Championship finals contested between Doncaster and Bristol.

Doncaster should feature Irish half backs in Michael "the Ulster lad who wasn't the midget" Heaney and Declan "oh yeah I remember that guy" Cusack.

Bristol have had Callum "time for another new thread" Sheedy starting at 10 and Jack "just another Leinster loosehead" O'Connell starting at loosehead.

thomond2006

Pau have just signed Ben Mowen, Pierrick Gunther and Ibrahim Diarra. That's a lot of competition for Butler, Coughlan and Dougall.

pickarooney

thomond2006 wrote: »

Pau have just signed Ben Mowen, Pierrick Gunther and Ibrahim Diarra. That's a lot of competition for Butler, Coughlan and Dougall.

Did those three get much playing time at Pau this year?

thomond2006

pickarooney wrote: »

Did those three get much playing time at Pau this year?

I'm not sure about Dougall but Coughlan and Butler were starters.

thomond2006

Alan Cotter is not being retained by Provence.

English Lurker

Tom Farrell's moving from London Irish to Bedford.

Hagz

I didn't even know Tom Farrell had left Leinster

irishbucsfan

Hagz wrote: »

I didn't even know Tom Farrell had left Leinster

I think he came across on a temporary deal this year. Maybe even a loan agreement.

thomond2006

Trevor Brennan's son Daniel has signed with the Toulouse academy. IIRC he's been playing underage rugby with them for a few seasons. He's 6 foot 3 and almost 20 stone and he's still just 17! :eek:

Edit: According to the article he's played U16,17 and 18 for France.

pickarooney

thomond2006 wrote: »

Trevor Brennan's son Daniel has signed with the Toulouse academy. IIRC he's been playing underage rugby with them for a few seasons. He's 6 foot 3 and almost 20 stone and he's still just 17! :eek:

There was a photo of him bench pressing Trevor a few years back. A monster.