Leinster Team Talk Thread (Love you Furlong time)

ulsteru20s

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121051360#Comment_121051360

I don’t think that’s a given with farrell. He has picked guys who weren’t starters before. He even did it for this world cup.

aloooof

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121051708#Comment_121051708

He's picked guys who weren't starters since the start of his tenure, tbh, like JGP and Connors at the outset. But they've been picked in their respective positions tho.

Keenan is maybe one who wasn't de facto provincial starter at FB when he started nailing down the FB position for Ireland. Even then tho, Farrell started him initially on the wing.

Buer

12 months ago, I think Frawley was in the mix. In NZ, he had a captive audience in the coaching team and no other outhalf to compete with for the third choice spot. He returned in a great spot due to that.

But injury changed that. Neither Crowley nor Byrne were named in the original November squad. Crowley was on the bench behind Frawley against NZ A until Frawley was carried off with a significant injury. And I think that's where his real chances of being third choice ended. Crowley and Byrne were brought into the main squad and, owing to further injuries, the 23.

I think the coaching team were still very interested in what Frawley could bring to the set up but I'd guess it was no longer as a dedicated outhalf. The picture had changed dramatically in the intervening months since his injury. His USP is very much as a back player who can play outhalf.

I'd guess there's as much chance of him being outside the squad entirely by the 6N than being in the 23. I do think he would be a very interesting option for Australia but obviously that ship has sailed.

Dubinusa

On the Leinster site, Lasisi is listed at 125 kg's! McGuire at 121 kg's! C.O.T is listed as 118 kg's. Hard to know if these listing are true.

Deeny is listed at 116 kg's. Leinster tend to inflate the size of the players.

Quin_Dub

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121051179#Comment_121051179

The players that will move to Central contracts when space is freed up by Sexton, Stockdale etc will be people like Doris , Keenan Hansen and Sheehan.

El_Duderino 09

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121068869#Comment_121068869

https://www.irishrugby.ie/2023/02/15/hugo-keenan-signs-three-year-irfu-contract/

Keenan already has one apparently.

Is Earls still centrally contracted or did that end last year?

POM has been written off more times than he's been written on. But at 33 he'll surely be in has last couple of years at the top.

Likewise, Murray at 34 must be towards the end of his centrally contracted days.

Does anyone remember when Kelleher was the shiny new hooker and Dan Sheehan had to really step up to fill the gap until Kelleher got back from injury? Now you'd assume Sheehan will get a central contract instead of Keenan. He's been shafted by injury the last couple of seasons.

ulsteru20s

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121068869#Comment_121068869

Whoever is the next long term 10 for ireland will get a central deal. Its the most important position. They will want to have maximum control over that player.

It probably won’t be for a while.. crowley has a couple of years left on his deal at least and its hard to see anyone having it definitively locked down and out of contract by then.

El_Duderino 09

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121070496#Comment_121070496

Yeah crowley is probably in second because it's the world cup and you need to play your best players rightnow. But taking potential into consideration, I'd say Crowley will be the no.1 in the 6N.

But Sam Prendergast needs a chance to show his stuff in the next year or 2 before we know what's going to happen there in the medium term.

Podge_irl

Central deal or not makes very little or no difference to how much control the IRFU really have over the player.

There also may not be a "long term" 10

El_Duderino 09

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121070863#Comment_121070863

Yeah the IRFU still call the shots. Central contracts are a bit more than just signing the best player. Henderson has an IRFU Contract even though he's probably not going to start games. But he's a marquee player for Ulster. So the IRFU pay some of his wages to keep him happy at ulster. Otherwise he'd be likely to head to France for the money.

Likewise, the IRFU paying the players wage is a boost to their club. Even if the Ireland starting team was all from leinster, they would still have some centrally contracted players in other provinces. Otherwise leinster would have all their best players paid for and they could focus their resources elsewhere to widen the gap to the other provinces.

It's a tricky balance. It will never be perfect.

Must love hardship

Screenshot_20230907_122110_X.jpg

Team for munster match

Lots of young talent on the bench and frawley starts at 10 incase there is an injury to one of the flyhalves at the world cup.

Clegg

Hopefully Culhane gets a good run this season. Been a bit lost in the mix of ultra talented backrows being produced around the country. But he's a massive talent in his own right.

Was player of the tournament in the 2022 u20 Six Nations Ireland Grand Slammed.

sydthebeat

Anyway of watching this?

Quin_Dub

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121080384#Comment_121080384

It's live streamed on the Access Munster app - but it costs €6 (for a 1 month sub)

https://accessmunster.ie/

El_Duderino 09

Happy for Culhaane. He was very good in the u20s last year. I haven't heard of the tight head Rory Mcguire. No Soroka. Bad time to be injured.

2 Osbornes and the younger Mccarthy brother. And Gus Mccarthy, this year's u20 captain. Exciting team. It will probably be a mess of a game but I hope they all get good experience.

pickarooney

McGuire was TH in the U20s 2022. Looked very solid but was injured all last year.

leakyboots

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121080421#Comment_121080421

Pony up lads!

DelMcG

Did anybody watch it in the end?

Hearing that James Culhane put in a big old shift 👍️

Also, Conway got yellow carded for collapsing a maul, which just raises so many questions 🤣

Frank Murphy obviously wasn't ref then.

Dubinusa

The match report states Larmour was withdrawn with an injury. Jeasus.

arsebiscuits1

I was in and out of it. It wasn't a bad game at all. Leinster did some things very very well and were looking sharp. Especially on D and first up hits. The line speed and tackle accuracy was very impressive for a first game of the season.

There was almost no continuity in the backline however. Frawley looked poor at 10 and Foley looked average at 9. Then Luke McGrath came on and his passing was 'player covering 9s sinbin' standard of poor.

Jenkins looked like an overage kid at an under 12s game at times. He's frighteningly large and physical. He scored from 5 out going through Alex Kendellen as if he wasn't there.

Jack Boyle did very well against a wily scrummager in Stephen Archer. Physically he looks ready for senior minutes and he impressed me here. So too did Paddy McCarthy who struggled but didn't break against John Ryan which can be considered a win. Leinster clearly see him as a LH at least for now. On the tight side McGuire and Lasisi both looked large and capable without standing out.

Shades of a younger Doris about Culhane. Rangy, athletic all around backrow. If he gets to half the ability of Doris we will be doing well. Promising stuff though.

Prendergast didn't get any minutes that I could tell. Hopefully has some pencilled in against Ulster.

Overall Leinster looked organised very well for game 1 of preseason. Defence was good and pack were very good. Backline needs work

conquestscarer

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121096004#Comment_121096004

Heard Boyle got the better of Archer? Did he get the shove on? I think if he has the mass now we need to play him a few URC games, the breakaway's he was making in the AIL last year seemed to be every game and scored a few classy trys. I'd love to see him get some proper games this year in our weakest position IMO.

I reckon Culhane breaks out this season, thought he was pretty impressive at the latter half of last season but, in the Cardiff game it was clear he needed another few months of Strength and Conditioning, he was very technically good but due to a lack of strength struggled to turn that technique into results.

Very Impressive if Paddy Mc managed to keep it steady against Ryan, who is a superb tighthead scrummager.

Dubinusa

Boyle should get plenty of minutes this season. At least URC minutes. Culhane will be on a senior deal next year. He's class. I wonder why Frawley is playing at 10? Pressure from Faz?

Must love hardship

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121097711#Comment_121097711

Irish management looked for the inter pro games to keep the players on the stand by list someway match fit in case they were called up.

Rigor Mortis

Euro jersey is nice. Pink trim is an interesting development.

salmocab

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121103882#Comment_121103882

Easily the nicest looking of the 3

Clegg

Sam Prendergast front and centre in Leinster's jersey marketing.

We are so back.

pickarooney

It looks awful. I don't understand the attraction with these random geometric designs.

Rigor Mortis

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121104554#Comment_121104554

It’s all about the STEM, baby! Or alternatively, That’s physics, bitch!

DelMcG

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121103882#Comment_121103882

I quite like the colour scheme & I don't find the pattern too, well, "patterny", if you know what I mean. It's a little bit like a Bristol Bears kit, maybe?

I just can't trust Castore though, especially not for €90. I was watching the Ireland U21s last night & by the end of the game, a couple of the lads had literal strips torn off their jerseys. I know it's not necessarily like for like sports but if that's what the hulking thugs of (checks notes) the San Marino U21s can do to a football shirt, I dread to think what some big farm boy from Durban is going to do to the rugby equivalent