Ireland A vs England Saxons

SimonPRepublic

Against my better judgement I am going to take the Mrs to see Danny Cipriani playing for England Saxons tonight, does anyone know if the match is still on? I think there was due to be a pitch inspection this morning.

dedon

is this on Tv?

Crash

Well, says the pitch inspection was supposed to be at 10am, and they were confident it would remain open. There's absolutely nothing else online about it, so at the moment i'd assume (fairly safely) that its still on. Keep an eye on here, i'm sure it'll be up fairly fast if it is cancelled.

edit: and yes, its on tv, rte 2 : 7.30pm

fenris

Pitch inspection passed at 12:30 so it is on!

irishbucsfan

Thank christ its on!! It'll be either a great match where I can satisfy my tribal urges to get a win against the English... or a bunch of highly trained saxon jerks running amock in donnybrook. Either way I'll enjoy it I'm sure.

toomevara

irishbucsfan wrote: »

Thank christ its on!! It'll be either a great match where I can satisfy my tribal urges to get a win against the English... or a bunch of highly trained saxon jerks running amock in donnybrook. Either way I'll enjoy it I'm sure.

Reckon its going to be a cracker..enjoy..only sorry I cant watch it over here. Big Bob won't let those saxon feckwallahs run amok, rest assured....

Paulw

I'd say it's going to be COLD there tonight, but hopefully will be a good game. Looking forward to it myself now.

Sangre

whats story with tickets/price? might go to this.

Boss is out.

IRELAND 'A' TEAM & REPLACEMENTS (v England Saxons, 'A' International Match, Donnybrook, Friday, February 6, kick-off 7.30pm):

15 - Gavin Duffy (Galwegians - Connacht)
14 - Andrew Trimble (Ballymena - Ulster)
13 - Darren Cave (Belfast Harlequins - Ulster)*
12 - Keith Matthews (Buccaneers - Connacht)*
11 - Mark McCrea (Malone - Ulster)*
10 - Jonathan Sexton (St. Mary's College - Leinster)*
9 - Eoin Reddan (London Wasps)
1 - Cian Healy (Clontarf - Leinster)*
2 - Sean Cronin (Buccaneers - Connacht)*
3 - Mike Ross (Harlequins)*
4 - Bob Casey (London Irish) (capt)
5 - Ryan Caldwell (Dungannon - Ulster)*
6 - Neil Best (Northampton)
7 - Shane Jennings (St. Mary's College - Leinster)
8 - John Muldoon (Galwegians - Connacht)*

Replacements:

16 - John Fogarty (Clontarf - Leinster)*
17 - John Andress (Exeter)*
18 - Donnacha Ryan (Shannon - Munster)
19 - Sean O’Brien (Clontarf - Leinster)*
20 - Chris Keane (Old Belvedere - Leinster)
21 - Ian Humphreys (Ballymena - Ulster)*
22 - Barry Murphy (UL Bohemians - Munster)

England;


15. Nick Abendanon (Bath Rugby)*
14. Topsy Ojo (London Irish)*
13. Dominic Waldouck (London Wasps)
12. Jordan Turner-Hall (Harlequins)
11. Matt Banahan (Bath Rugby)
10. Danny Cipriani (London Wasps)*
9. Harry Ellis (Leicester Tigers)* OR Paul Hodgson (London Irish)*
1. Matthew Mullan (Worcester Warriors)
2. David Paice (London Irish)*
3. Dave Wilson (Newcastle Falcons)
4. Jordan Crane (Leicester Tigers)*
5. George Skivington (London Wasps, captain)
6. Chris Robshaw (Harlequins)
7. Will Skinner (Harlequins)
8. Tom Guest (Harlequins)

Replacements
16. Rob Webber (London Wasps)
17. Dan Cole (Leicester Tigers)
18. Stuart Hooper (Bath Rugby)
19. Phil Dowson (Newcastle Falcons)
20. Paul Hodgson (London Irish)* OR Joe Simpson (London Wasps)
21. Stephen Myler (Northampton Saints)
22. David Strettle (Harlequins)*


Thats some backline england have.

big dan

€25 as far as I remember

sm.org

Sangre wrote: »

whats story with tickets/price? might go to this.

Boss is out.

IRELAND 'A' TEAM & REPLACEMENTS (v England Saxons, 'A' International Match, Donnybrook, Friday, February 6, kick-off 7.30pm):

15 - Gavin Duffy (Galwegians - Connacht)
14 - Andrew Trimble (Ballymena - Ulster)
13 - Darren Cave (Belfast Harlequins - Ulster)*
12 - Keith Matthews (Buccaneers - Connacht)*
11 - Mark McCrea (Malone - Ulster)*
10 - Jonathan Sexton (St. Mary's College - Leinster)*
9 - Eoin Reddan (London Wasps)
1 - Cian Healy (Clontarf - Leinster)*
2 - Sean Cronin (Buccaneers - Connacht)*
3 - Mike Ross (Harlequins)*
4 - Bob Casey (London Irish) (capt)
5 - Ryan Caldwell (Dungannon - Ulster)*
6 - Neil Best (Northampton)
7 - Shane Jennings (St. Mary's College - Leinster)
8 - John Muldoon (Galwegians - Connacht)*

Replacements:

16 - John Fogarty (Clontarf - Leinster)*
17 - John Andress (Exeter)*
18 - Donnacha Ryan (Shannon - Munster)
19 - Sean O’Brien (Clontarf - Leinster)*
20 - Chris Keane (Old Belvedere - Leinster)
21 - Ian Humphreys (Ballymena - Ulster)*
22 - Barry Murphy (UL Bohemians - Munster)

England;


15. Nick Abendanon (Bath Rugby)*
14. Topsy Ojo (London Irish)*
13. Dominic Waldouck (London Wasps)
12. Jordan Turner-Hall (Harlequins)
11. Matt Banahan (Bath Rugby)
10. Danny Cipriani (London Wasps)*
9. Harry Ellis (Leicester Tigers)* OR Paul Hodgson (London Irish)*
1. Matthew Mullan (Worcester Warriors)
2. David Paice (London Irish)*
3. Dave Wilson (Newcastle Falcons)
4. Jordan Crane (Leicester Tigers)*
5. George Skivington (London Wasps, captain)
6. Chris Robshaw (Harlequins)
7. Will Skinner (Harlequins)
8. Tom Guest (Harlequins)

Replacements
16. Rob Webber (London Wasps)
17. Dan Cole (Leicester Tigers)
18. Stuart Hooper (Bath Rugby)
19. Phil Dowson (Newcastle Falcons)
20. Paul Hodgson (London Irish)* OR Joe Simpson (London Wasps)
21. Stephen Myler (Northampton Saints)
22. David Strettle (Harlequins)*


Thats some backline england have.

I think the Saxons backline is better then the full team. Is Frank Murphy injured?? He's always been decent for the A's , Chris Keane

Sangre

heres hoping Keane comes on, plays absolutely amazing and whitaker is given the boot.

GiftofGab

what's the deal with tickets? can i just show up and pay at the stadium?

Stev_o

Sangre wrote: »

heres hoping Keane comes on, plays absolutely amazing and whitaker is given the boot.

But what will actually happen is that he comes on and the picks and drives from each ruck like a prop and calls it "sniping" then does some ruck inspecting, has his tea oh and then decides to pass the ball in slow motion.

Neil3030

Don't suppose there's any streams of this game for those of us not within RTE's IP durastiction?

Chucky the tree

Called off now?

juvenal

Now they're saying that the game might not be going ahead.

Apparently the referee decided 15 minutes ago that it was going ahead, but now the English clubs & players are kicking up and want to game called off?

Confusion at the moment.

dave13

according to the rte commentators the english staff want the game called off.

Spore

English players refusing to come out... WTF?!!

juvenal

Now the English players are refusing to come out?

And Stuart Lancaster (Saxons' coach) has just had a meeting with the ref.

juvenal

Game cancelled - sh1te. English players wouldn't play.

I think they're going to show the under-20 game instead?

zAbbo

Game off, disgrace.

Might have the u-20's on instead.

Boots09

Very bad form from the English tbh!! Was looking forward to this game all week, nearly as much as tomorrows game

juvenal

They'll be bringing live coverage of the u-20s match instead. What a shambles in Donnybrook. I doubt conditions have changed that much in the past few hours.

It appears the England wouldn't play, but ultimately the ref "made the desicion".

juvenal

Michael Bradley:

"With about 15 minutes to go, the ref announced the match was going ahead"

"Some of the English camp weren't too happy with that, and they made representations to the referee and it was called off"

"We were keen to play, and now we're very disappointed that it's not going ahead"

"Injuries are a concern, and ultimately the referee has the responsibility, so he called it off with about a minute to go"

Chucky the tree

Stev_o wrote: »

Here there's no need for that crap yes its disappointing that it's off but player safety has to come first. That pitch is probably rock solid and its in a dire state as it is. Why you'd call someone that for looking out for the safety of their own players is beyond me. Cop on man.

I'd love to know when they first saw the pitch. Why only bother complaining aobut it just at kick-off? They must of been at the stadium for atleast 2 hours and saw the state of the pitch. Disgraceful showing from them. Are you saying Michael Bradley wasnt looking out for the safety of his players?

Stev_o

Chucky the tree wrote: »

I'd love to know when they first saw the pitch. Why only bother complaining aobut it just at kick-off? They must of been at the stadium for atleast 2 hours and saw the state of the pitch. Disgraceful showing from them.

How many people here and infact any other rugby forum thought this match would go ahead?? The match should of been called off or moved this morning not at 7.30 .

I think some poster should go back and take a look at themselves at edit their comments. Here's a good quote form a poster from MF

"Looking at the state of the pitch and
knowing the history of Donnybrook, should this game EVER have been
fixed for here?RDS, Ravenhill, Musgrave Park OR wait a minute
THOMOND Park.

Silly decision to leave it this late..."

Chucky the tree

Stev_o wrote: »

How many people here and infact any other rugby forum thought this match would go ahead?? The match should of been called off or moved this morning not at 7.30 .

I think some poster should go back and take a look at themselves at edit their comments. Here's a good quote form a poster from MF

"Looking at the state of the pitch and
knowing the history of Donnybrook, should this game EVER have been
fixed for here?RDS, Ravenhill, Musgrave Park OR wait a minute
THOMOND Park.

Silly decision to leave it this late..."

Yes, lets take the world of a load of lads on a rugby forum and not the ref who has actually seen the state of the pitch to decide if a match should go ahead. :rolleyes:


Michael Bradley had no problems with the match going ahead, I'd also rather take his opinion rather then some lad sitting on his ass in front of computer back in Munster.

Spore

The ref said the match would go ahead, the English then petition the ref to call it off probably a bunch of them on their mobiles talking to their coaches / lawyers in the GP... bullshít. We've all played in these conditions and if the ref says its good enough to play, you play. You take your balls out of your handbag and you play. That's all there is. It's a brutal game played by tough men. Not pansies for Christ's sakes

Stev_o

Spore wrote: »

The ref said the match would go ahead, the English then petition the ref to call it off probably a bunch of them on their mobiles talking to their coaches / lawyers in the GP... bullshít. We've all played in these conditions and if the ref says its good enough to play, you play. You take your balls out of your handbag and you play. That's all there is. It's a brutal game played by tough men. Not pansies for Christ's sakes

I didnt know we are all professionals! If players think its not safe then its not safe. The pitch is in dire conidition from overuse with the SC add snow and rain and you'v got a bad mix. In those conditions you could have a very very long injury list.

Look this is anything to do with players saying "oh i cant be bothered" everyone player wants to represent their country and alot of those players would want to get into the senior setup. But at the end of the day its their bodies their putting out there on a crap pitch a injury could set them back months.

Chucky the tree

Stev_o wrote: »

I didnt know we are all professionals! If players think its not safe then its not safe. The pitch is in dire conidition from overuse with the SC add snow and rain and you'v got a bad mix. In those conditions you could have a very very long injury list.

.

How do you know this? Did you inpsect the pitch yourself today?

big dan

The ref said the pitch was fine earlier in the day, and it wasn't getting any better. The Irish were happy to play. It was only the English that were ''uncomfortable'' to play on it. That it got that close to kick off is a joke. damn fairys

juvenal

Fixing it for Donnybrook in the first place was madness.

As anyone around there knows, the place is the hotbed of the Leinster Schools Senior and Junior Cups in the spring, and as a result it's overused without fixing an A international as well.

The RDS is 500 yards from Donnybrook, and there's no logistical reason it could not have been moved there even this morning.

Stuart Lancaster (Saxons coach):

"We came down during the day, saw the work done on the pitch. Around 2/3pm it was fine. When we turned up for the game, it was harder, and it became more firm right up to kick off"

"I wasn't comfortable playing on that surface, at the end of the day it's my responsibility. It was the right decision"

"All in all, incredibly disappointing, but the right decision was made. The players will go back to their clubs and hopefully we'll see Ireland in the Churchill Cup"

He avoided the question regarding whether the players were behind the decision, and the word on RTÉ is that Cipriani was the main opponent to the match going ahead.

Stev_o

Chucky the tree wrote: »

How do you know this? Did you inpsect the pitch yourself today?

"The pitch in Donnybrook is in a fairly bad state at the moment, even without the snow and ice. "

"But the A game tomorrow night could be a big concern. I'll see how things go, since I'm supposed to be covering it."

"Well Donnybrook was pretty much covered in snow today so perhaps the A match could well be in doubt"

Couple that with the various SC games going on for the past two weeks you really think the pitch is in a good state?? Compare this to a RDS which hasn't been touched by a rugby or any other decent stadium.

Iv been in City centre with the snow, it has let up for 5 days and hell even the footpaths are still iced even though you have thousands of people walking over them.

Did you expect this match to go on during the week and indeed this morning? Honestly did you?

Chucky the tree

Interesting interview with the English A coach there. They saw the pitch this afternoon and said it was fine to play on. Then he said when they came back at 6 they thought it had gotten harder but we're still happy to go ahead, but then come kick off it's not playable? :rolleyes:

Chucky the tree

Stev_o wrote: »

"The pitch in Donnybrook is in a fairly bad state at the moment, even without the snow and ice. "

"But the A game tomorrow night could be a big concern. I'll see how things go, since I'm supposed to be covering it."

"Well Donnybrook was pretty much covered in snow today so perhaps the A match could well be in doubt"

Couple that with the various SC games going on for the past two weeks you really think the pitch is in a good state?? Compare this to a RDS which hasn't been touched by a rugby or any other decent stadium.

Iv been in City centre with the snow, it has let up for 5 days and hell even the footpaths are still iced even though you have thousands of people walking over them.

Did you expect this match to go on during the week and indeed this morning? Honestly did you?

I wasnt to sure this morning, I hadnt seen the pitch so I didnt know. I just think it's stupid that alot of people on the internet who havent been anywhere near the pitch, let alone even seen it somehow think it was the right decision to call it off.

The ref cleared it at 12 today, the English team thought it was fine at 3pm, when they turned up they didnt make any big effort to get it called off, the ref was still happy and no complaints from the Irish. Then at kick off the English kick up a fuss and the ref buckles and calls it off.

ktulu123

Just back from the "Match", I was in the terraces beside the pitch and could clearly see that the ground was fine(it even squelched when people ran by on it)
When the teams were out training before kickoff it was noticeable that the english didnt want to play as they did very little warming up! The saxon coach should of asked earlier on to call it off instead of last minute!
I wonder will many people go back for a refund, which can only be gotten at 2.30 on tuesday!

chupacabra

Awful disgrace, especially if its true that Cipriani was the main player behind it all. I just feel sorry for all the supporters who made the journey through the bitter cold, my hat goes off to ye lads.

juvenal

How much were the tickets as a matter of interest?

Crash

I've deleted a lot of the abusive posts that I was so glad to see after watching a decent enough match with the u-20's.

If over the weekend any of you who did post something that I felt was offensive, or just downright disrespectful, do so again, you'll find yourself on a weeks ban at least.

Anyone who posts that style of ****e again AFTER this post, will definitely find themselves on a weeks ban. No warnings.

Third_Echelon

This type of thing shouldn't happen in professional sport... Disgrace.

Paulw

I was surprised that the ref went out on the pitch 3-4 times to inspect it. The officials weren't sure, and asked both teams their opinions.

Now, from being on the pitch myself, I certainly wouldn't have been in favour of playing on it. In patches it was rock hard. The majority of the pitch was playable though.

In the end, I think it was the right decision, but what a waste of an evening (for me as well as the others who turned up).

ktulu123

juvenal wrote: »

How much were the tickets as a matter of interest?

€25 for stands
€15 for terrace
€5 for schoolboy

ScrubsfanChris

Ireland win 09-06
Good game with alot of running but also alot a aimless kicking by both sides and too many errors, but good to watch overall.

Crash

Only by what I could see on telly, some parts looked rock hard alright. Must've been a pain in the hole attending though - had thought about going, but knew in this weather it would be a pain to get to donnybrook, and to be honest kinda half expected something like this. Was really looking forward to this game, but the U-20's really put up a decent fight.

irishbucsfan

ktulu123 wrote: »

Just back from the "Match", I was in the terraces beside the pitch and could clearly see that the ground was fine(it even squelched when people ran by on it)
When the teams were out training before kickoff it was noticeable that the english didnt want to play as they did very little warming up! The saxon coach should of asked earlier on to call it off instead of last minute!
I wonder will many people go back for a refund, which can only be gotten at 2.30 on tuesday!

You must be insane. I was there, the game had to be cancelled. Cheika was there, and he was in agreement with the decision. Blaming the English seems so childish to me (especially Cipriani, give the chap a break for christ's sake, of course he wanted to play. He's a you player whose just been dropped, He wants to prove MJ wrong).

Can't really understand why the decision wasn't made sooner, the game was almost completely unimportant (the true value of that A squad comes during the week, as opposed to the matches). Perhaps the IRFU wanted some first-class level rugby (Reds-Leinster match doesn't count) played in Donnybrook this season to justify the refurbishment? I dunno.

Podge_irl

irishbucsfan wrote: »

Perhaps the IRFU wanted some first-class level rugby (Reds-Leinster match doesn't count) played in Donnybrook this season to justify the refurbishment? I dunno.

The IRFU didn't pay for the refurbishment though, the LB did (and I know the IRFU is its parent body, but its finances are relatively autonomous). The Stand needed to be replaced anyway - as things stand it gets decent use from the SCT.

irishbucsfan

Podge_irl wrote: »

The IRFU didn't pay for the refurbishment though, the LB did (and I know the IRFU is its parent body, but its finances are relatively autonomous). The Stand needed to be replaced anyway - as things stand it gets decent use from the SCT.

Yeah that's very true. Donnybrook is LB property, and they're certainly taking profits from it with the SCT and JCT. Not to mention skimming off the tops of the poor clubs around the county who offer to hold the games (but that's another debate).

Well then I have no idea what they were thinking wasting everyone's time, the forecast predicted a freeze. Still at least the people at home got to watch the 20s play. I missed it unfortunately.

Feckin wanted to see some good old Harpy-Rosey shenanigans...

Sangre

Thought the comments by the pundits on Cipriani were pretty out of line. The guy has just come back from months of rehab on a fractured dislocated ankle. Playing on a suitable pitch that was soft in spots and hard in others was a recipe for disaster. Don't know why he was singled out anyway.

Reminded me of a match Agassi was playing on a very wet surface, he was going mad they weren't cancelling as he had previously been badly injured on a surface slip. After about his 5th slip they called it off.

anonymous_joe

I really struggle to understand all the complaints here.

I'm €15 out of pocket until Tuesday, but fúck it, I walked from one end of the pitch to the other en route to the pub, and it was not playable. Why not?

Because while squelchy in some parts, in others it really was rock hard. The constant change of surface would be havoc for players, and downright dangerous.

Crash

As I stated, looked at it on telly, and parts of it looked like black ice. I would not have willingly run the length of it, let alone played 80 minutes. Bigger question to me is why a better ground wasn't picked IMO.

cgarvey

Donnybrook was a suitable venue because the pitch would have been fine, were it not for the weather, is IRFU owned, in a suitable location and of a suitable capacity.

There was very little hope, let alone financial incentive (given the cost of the RDS), of re-arranging it to the RDS on the morning. Logistical reasons, that someone asked for, included providing stewards, general staff and any bar/catering facilities would be too late to do effectively.

Should the game have been called off? Probably.
Should it have been called off with 1 minute to go? Absolutely not.