Leinster Team Talk/Gossip/Rumours Thread XII (The Byrne Supremacy)

pickarooney

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121793439#Comment_121793439

It'll just be crappy pool games for the most part, hardly worth moving to play twice a year against Castres or Gloucester.

Podge_irl

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121794488#Comment_121794488

Sure, but it's more than he is likely to get at Leinster. I'm not pushing him to move or anything, but he'll almost definitely get higher level games elsewhere.

pickarooney

I wouldn't consider that kind of game higher level than the URC opposition, tbh. Irish clubs and fans hold the CC in higher regard than their domestic league but they're the only ones really and the current state of both competitions doesn't really sway the argument much.

The likes of Deegan and Penny get dropped like a hot snot when Leinster get to the late stages of Europe but realistically none of the other provinces will be playing in those games any time soon.

Podge_irl

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121794605#Comment_121794605

Deegan gets dropped like a hot snot in group games without an injury crisis. He hasn't started a Euro game at all since the 19/20 season. He has 91 minutes of Euro rugby in the last 3 seasons. He also won't play in any high level URC games without the same background.

I'm fine with him staying at Leinster, he's a good squad player to have. But it would be silly to suggest he is staying to play European rugby or high level rugby in general.

pickarooney

He played 13 URC games last season including both knockout matches.

My point is not that he's getting European games at Leinster but that he wouldn't be getting more meaningful game time at another province so there's little draw there.

He wouldn't be first choice 8 or 6 at Munster in any case, maybe 8 at Connacht and who knows who Ulster would pick from one game to the next. He wouldn't get more than 13 URC games, wouldn't play the knockouts and the only possible improvement in game time would be one or two European group games, quite likely against a disinterested French team's second string. That's not going to get him international exposure either.

Weighing that up against moving across the country to play under lesser coaches and training with weaker players for the same money, I'd stay put as well, even if the odds of playing a European final or international game were very long.

aloooof

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121794605#Comment_121794605

I think I mentioned this before, but I think Munster and Ulster have played LAR or Toulouse something like 7 times in the last 2 and a half seasons?

Podge_irl

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121795688#Comment_121795688

Starting in our second knockout URC game last season isn't really a positive.

I'd say he would make the bench at Munster at least and have a good shot at starting for the other two. That would be more like 5 or 6 extra European games a season and he would definitely be involved in URC knockouts. I mean if he couldn't even make the 23 elsewhere the whole argument is silly really.

jonok28

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121794635#Comment_121794635

Max Deegan is in the unenviable position that he has a former world player of the year (JVDF), a former lion (Conan), a current world player of the year candidate (Doris) and a current Irish international who is a hybrid lock/forward (Baird) ahead of him. If there is a need at openside flanker Will Connors and Scott Penny step in due to that being their natural position. If Doris is injured, Conan steps in, if Baird is injured Conan or Doris step in. As European games aren't played during international windows, you can expect Leinster will field a full team in them games.

He is just unlucky honestly, at times this season, especially in the URC Deegan has been one of Leinster's best players.

If Deegan were to go to Ulster, he would get game time, but it would also force Ulster to move Nick Timoney to openside flanker permanently in order to facilitate Ewers, Timoney and Deegan.

pickarooney

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121796300#Comment_121796300

I'd forgotten Connacht made it to a second URC knockout game last year. I don't know if he'd have started over Prendergast. He wouldn't have started over Coombes or POM at Munster so making the bench there is hardly a step up from starting for Leinster.

The CC group stages are only 4 games. Neither Connacht nor Ulster are going any further, Deegan or no Deegan. He'd be playing Challenge Cup games at best.

Fair enough, Ulster and Munster played the big French teams last year, but Deegan doesn't get ahead of Duane Vermeulen (or Coombes/POM) any more than he does Doris or Conan for those matches.

sydthebeat

Max Deegan is very focused on life after rugby, and sees rugby for what it is, a temporary profession until a certain time where he has to look at gaining work outside of the game. He is business orientated so i cant see him leaving Dublin for another irish province, unless the financial reward was extraordinary.

hold my beer

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121796550#Comment_121796550

Do you know him?

Dubinusa

Belvo lost to Zaga. Nooooo

Ben Bailey

Gonzaga beat Belvedere who beat Clongowes. Ad Majorem Harpastum Gloriam.

Foxtrol

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121796300#Comment_121796300

All being fit, who are you dropping for Deegan to make the bench out of POM, Hodnett, Coombes, and Ahern? You better cover your head from some depending on the answer...

Then you have JOD and highly hyped young players in Gleeson, Kendellen, Quinn, and Edogbo who he'd be taking game time away from. If they all make progress it wont be long until there is a good argument to be shifting some of the Munster backrows elsewhere, even without Deegan moving there, and I'm sure some will be very quickly changing their tune about fair 'resource allocation'.

Deegan going to the other two provinces makes more sense from a purely game time decision but he will Connacht even be in the CC next year and Ulster is a complete shambles right now and he isn't guaranteed to start for either.

AbusesToilets

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121799548#Comment_121799548

Deegan is a better player than Coombes and Hodnett imo

johnh6767

Anyone know what the team is for Saracens friendly and if it’s streamed? Friday night I gather

50HX

Do any if ye know where/who to contact to get a jersey signed by a former or current player

Edit to say its not for me or a collectable but for a young lad who has had a sh1t few years & has kept himself straight which was a great achievement as a minor

DelMcG

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121800423#Comment_121800423

A particular player or just any Leinster player(s)?

My thoughts would be to either contact the Leinster press office with your request/backstory or if it's a particular player, maybe contact their agent/agency. NavyBlue Sports have a lot of players on their books. You could also try LineUp Sports or Frontier Sports Management.

50HX

Thanks for that @DelMcG, if I could get Johnny Sexton twould make his year

ulsteru20s

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121800071#Comment_121800071

I think his best position is probably 6 but it would be tough to beat out ahern there as ahern's upside is so high. He might be better right now but ahern seems to be already ahead of prendergast there for ireland so maybe not.

He is a completely different player to hodnett. Hodnett is definitely better at his role in their offense than deegan is. I generally can't remember Deegan playing seven either.

He doesn't seem to be definitively ahead of coombes in the ireland reckoning even though he is a much closer role fit to doris than coombes. So, i don't know if he is better there.

However, he would play loads. Ahern and coombes seem to play lock a decent bit, and with normal rotation he'd play alot of 6 and 8 .

Hey_Ho_Lets_Go_3

Leinster Rugby (caps in brackets)

15. Henry McErlean (1)

14. Aitzol King (1)

13. Liam Turner (24)

12. Ben Brownlee (5)

11. Andrew Osborne (0)

10. Sam Prendergast (11)

9. Ben Murphy (10)

1. Michael Milne (32)

2. John McKee (22)

3. Rory McGuire (3)

4. Brian Deeny (16)

5. Conor O’Tighearnaigh (1)

6. Rhys Ruddock (225) (CAPTAIN)

7. Will Connors (44)

8. Diarmuid Mangan (0)

Subs From:

Gus McCarthy (0)

Paddy McCarthy (4)

Thomas Clarkson (34)

Temi Lasisi (2)

Jason Jenkins (30)

Scott Penny (65)

Max Deegan (106)

Fintan Gunne (1)

Luke McGrath (202)

Luke Kritzinger (0)

Jamie Osborne (37)

Ruben Moloney (0)

pickarooney

No Culhane?

Never heard of Kritzinger before.

Milne's first outing of the season?

Hey_Ho_Lets_Go_3

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121802447#Comment_121802447

Culhane is injured along with Tector, Cooney, Molony, Cosgrave.

Kriztinger is a centre who didnt make irish u20 squad.

pickarooney

How many Moloneys do we have at the moment? Ross, Martin and is there another guy who was u20 last year? Liam? Conor?

Hey_Ho_Lets_Go_3

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121802503#Comment_121802503

yep Liam.

There are Molonys - Ross/Liam

and Moloneys - Martin & Ruben.

Dubinusa

Is this the last chance to lay down a marker for Lasisi?

durthacht

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121802729#Comment_121802729

It is a rare chance to impress for a lot of those guys. These opportunities are rare so I imagine lots of them will be very nervous.

Hey_Ho_Lets_Go_3

ruben moloneys try at the weekend, from 3:41: https://youtu.be/P8_AnJ3gZf8?si=tgQB5kjWUABAOLHA

Is there any word of a YouTube stream or anything for the match tomorrow?

CORMACREYN

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121804528#Comment_121804528

It’s not being streamed.