Munster Team Talk/Gossip/Rumours Thread.

Rattlehead_ie

CatFromHue wrote: »

Waht's up with Wally's arm? and what are those shin guard like things on his Achilles?

Not sure about the arm. The shin guard things would be supports I would presume, just part of the road to recovery

leakyboots

CatFromHue wrote: »

Waht's up with Wally's arm?

That's from fighting Chuck Norris.

You should see the state of Chuck.

Amazotheamazing

Very interesting to see Munster go from here. We've a really exciting young team coming through, thanks in no small way to McGahan. I'd have liked to see him really bring through guys like Nagle, DOCv2.0, Butler and Hanrahan.

ormond lad

Stringer Moving To Newcastle
23 February 2012, 10:39 am
By The Editor

Peter Stringer will move to Newcastle Falcons on a loan basis once his tenure in Saracens is over.



That will be in early March and it's expected he will be available for selection for the Falcons for their home game against Harlequins on March 12th.The Irish international scrumhalf has been on loan from Munster to Saracens since December providing cover to the Premiership champions following serious injuries to Neil de Kock and Richard Wigglesworth.
Mark McCall, Saracens Director of Rugby, said: "Peter has been a brilliant addition to the squad, on and off the field, and we are sorry his three-month loan spell will come to an end after our match against Northampton on March 4th."
Stringer will remain with the North East club until the end of the current season before returning to Munster.
http://www.munsterrugby.ie/news/10154.php

Iang87

CatFromHue wrote: »

Waht's up with Wally's arm? and what are those shin guard like things on his Achilles?

if i'd to hazard a guess the ankle may have gotten weak during the rehab which is very common when a player is out with a serious injury. Basically everything else has to work harder to compensate for the part not working.

That was my worry for wally when he got injured, I knew the knee was the problem but its the stupid niggles a lad his age could pick up during rehab could have been the ones to end him. Thankfully no set backs yet.

As for the wrist I assume its from the fight with Chuck Norris

phog

So Stringer moves to join up with Jeremy Manning, not sure what kind of a move it is but I suppose it keeps him playing rugby.

Hope everything works out for him.

phog

Munster rugby has tweeted that

Doug Howlett has agreed terms that extends his contract with Munster until the end of season 2012/2013.

I hope after that he remains on as a coach, I think he could have a lot to offer.

leftleg

Smal ruled out of remainder of Six Nations

Ireland forwards coach Gert Smal has been ruled out of the remainder of the RBS 6 Nations because of an eye condition.

He will be replaced by former Ireland international Anthony Foley, who does the same job for Munster. Foley will link up with the Ireland squad after Munster's RaboDirect Pro12 against Cardiff tonight.

Smal's playing career was ended when he injured his eye playing for Western Province in 1993.

Ireland's coaching structure has already been the subject of discussion during this year's competition with defence coach Les Kiss and kicking coach Mark Tainton combining to coach the team's attack.

thomond2006

phog wrote: »

Munster rugby has tweeted that



I hope after that he remains on as a coach, I think he could have a lot to offer.

Delighted that he is staying on, hopefully he will move into coaching afterwards as you say.

phog

leftleg wrote: »

Smal ruled out of remainder of Six Nations

Ireland forwards coach Gert Smal has been ruled out of the remainder of the RBS 6 Nations because of an eye condition.

He will be replaced by former Ireland international Anthony Foley, who does the same job for Munster. Foley will link up with the Ireland squad after Munster's RaboDirect Pro12 against Cardiff tonight.

Smal's playing career was ended when he injured his eye playing for Western Province in 1993.

Ireland's coaching structure has already been the subject of discussion during this year's competition with defence coach Les Kiss and kicking coach Mark Tainton combining to coach the team's attack.

Delighted for Foley, hope it benefit him and the team.

Otacon

I think this is the first time I've heard of a coach being injured.

CIARAN_BOYLE

Otacon wrote: »

I think this is the first time I've heard of a coach being injured.

same

PhatPiggins

phog wrote: »

So Stringer moves to join up with Jeremy Manning, not sure what kind of a move it is but I suppose it keeps him playing rugby.

Hope everything works out for him.

Fair play to Stringer, he'd be getting paid the same for sitting on his arse for Munster but is still hungry to play games.

Foley getting the nod for Ireland is a big show of faith. He's announcement as next Munster coach seems ever the more likely.

phog

PhatPiggins wrote: »

Fair play to Stringer, he'd be getting paid the same for sitting on his arse for Munster but is still hungry to play games.

Foley getting the nod for Ireland is a big show of faith. He's announcement as next Munster coach seems ever the more likely.

I think it may be too early for Foley at the helm but I wont be too disappointed if he does get the nod. More importantly, if he moves up another notch I'll be delighted.

CIARAN_BOYLE

phog wrote: »

Munster rugby has tweeted that



I hope after that he remains on as a coach, I think he could have a lot to offer.

Rules for next year is 4+1 in terms of NIQ
Botha, WDP, Lualua and Howlett so only one more NIQ and he must be project. Another project prop since Borlase's contract is unlikely to be renewed??

[Jackass]

Very surprised at Howlett deal, but obviously he should make a return fully fit. Would be very good in coaching set-up. I'd presume this has been agreed with the other provinces as part of the new IRFU rules, and with players like Howlett and Pienar etc. being offered new contracts makes me hopeful that Nacewa might get another few years deal too...

I see the Munster regeneration plan (MRP) is still in full swing with their coaches now being brought into Irish camp to be given tutorials on how to develop! :pac:

totallegend

[Jackass] wrote: »

Very surprised at Howlett deal, but obviously he should make a return fully fit. Would be very good in coaching set-up. I'd presume this has been agreed with the other provinces as part of the new IRFU rules, and with players like Howlett and Pienar etc. being offered new contracts makes me hopeful that Nacewa might get another few years deal too...

Howlett's deal will be over by the time the rules kick in, it only begins at the start of the 2013/14 season, but yeah, the Pienaar arrangement is hopefully a precedent in terms of what can be done for key guys.

It does limit Munster's scope for recruiting guys for next season though; trying to find either Irish-qualified guys or project players ain't going to be easy.

buck65

Jesus Christ look at the size of Wally's thighs from 2 pages back.

irishbucsfan

totallegend wrote: »

[QUOTE='[Jackass];77266723']Very surprised at Howlett deal, but obviously he should make a return fully fit. Would be very good in coaching set-up. I'd presume this has been agreed with the other provinces as part of the new IRFU rules, and with players like Howlett and Pienar etc. being offered new contracts makes me hopeful that Nacewa might get another few years deal too...

Howlett's deal will be over by the time the rules kick in, it only begins at the start of the 2013/14 season, but yeah, the Pienaar arrangement is hopefully a precedent in terms of what can be done for key guys.

It does limit Munster's scope for recruiting guys for next season though; trying to find either Irish-qualified guys or project players ain't going to be easy.[/Quote]
Pienaars deal was entirely within the rules set out originally though, it's not like the IRFU had to make an allowance. Just as a contract for Nacewa that starts in 13/14 and ends in 15/16 would be entirely within the new rules.

Howletts deal has absolutely nothing to do with them.

AtItAllDayRef

irishbucsfan wrote: »

Pienaars deal was entirely within the rules set out originally though, it's not like the IRFU had to make an allowance. Just as a contract for Nacewa that starts in 13/14 and ends in 15/16 would be entirely within the new rules.

Howletts deal has absolutely nothing to do with them.

nacewa is 30 this year so under current rules the IRFU won't allow him more than a one year deal.

totallegend

AtItAllDayRef wrote: »

nacewa is 30 this year so under current rules the IRFU won't allow him more than a one year deal.

But BJ Botha got a two year deal at age 31 so that rule isn't set in stone.

Amazotheamazing

totallegend wrote: »

But BJ Botha got a two year deal at age 31 so that rule isn't set in stone.

Rule came in after the Botha contract.

irishbucsfan

Amazotheamazing wrote: »

totallegend wrote: »

But BJ Botha got a two year deal at age 31 so that rule isn't set in stone.

Rule came in after the Botha contract.

Was it not the reason Warwick left?

CIARAN_BOYLE

irishbucsfan wrote: »

Was it not the reason Warwick left?

It was afaik, Munster got an exception for Botha given that Buckley was leaving and Hayes retiring. That was Munster down two international props, and Munster hadn't even been involved in negotiations with Buckley.

Cpt_Blackbeard

The rule applies to players already at the provinces but, it doesn't to new signings afaik.

profitius

Good article abut the Munster academy.

John O'Brien: Eyes to the future
Munster's academy set-up is beginning to throw up some gems, writes John O'Brien

So soon they'll bid farewell to home-bound Tony McGahan and the more highly-strung Munster supporter is left wondering who might be next in his wake.

They've fondly waved John Hayes back to the family farm. Tomás O'Leary, it seems, is Perpignan-bound alongside Lifeimi Mafi. They wonder too if they've seen the last Peter Stringer pass in a red jersey, sad they might never get to say a proper thank you for all the memories.

They scan match programmes and squad lists with increasingly furrowed brows, surveying the gnarled features of once-great warriors now on the wrong side of 30: O'Driscoll, Leamy, Flannery, Wallace, O'Callaghan. What life left in those creaking old bones now? As for the icy nerve of Ronan O'Gara and the steely glare of Paul O'Connell, well, let's not go there. Too raw. Too painful to contemplate.

To catch a glimpse of the future you cross the Living Bridge over the Shannon to the northside of the University of Limerick campus and behold a quiet revolution taking place. Slick new buildings sprouting up, all-weather pitches rolling into the countryside, all part of a €9m development in which a broad church of sports -- Munster rugby and Limerick GAA foremost among them -- share a base and similar notions of self-enhancement.

In the bar upstairs, Peter Malone, a genial Bruff native in his mid-30s, sips a coffee and talks about a future that excites and daunts him in equal measure. Malone is just eight weeks into his role as Munster academy director but it helps that he has been through the system, a former aspiring professional back-row forward whose misfortune was to be good at things Leamy excelled at. "No issues," Malone says. "Denis sailed ahead of me. He was an outstanding talent."

That Munster would entrust a key role in such youthful hands is evidence, in itself, of the province's commitment to revitalising its brand, a resolve that has often faced stiff scrutiny. When they were routed in Toulon just over a year ago, the shock of failing to reach the knock-out stages of the Heineken Cup for the first time in 13 seasons elicited much gloomy prognosis about the future and McGahan's ability to steer a supposedly listing ship.

In hindsight, much of that criticism seems short-sighted now. Not just in the results Munster have achieved on the field this season, but in the fact that the process of internal soul-searching had been initiated long in advance and, regardless of how they fare over the rest of the season, McGahan has already bequeathed a legacy they hope will stand them in good stead for generations to come.

When he succeeded Declan Kidney in 2008, McGahan offered a candid assessment of Munster's overall bill of health. Their academy, he said, was lagging two years behind Leinster's and, in sounding that warning, he found a hierarchy willing to listen. "There were changes and the game had moved on," says Munster chief executive Garrett Fitzgerald. "It takes time to readjust and we acknowledged that. We were behind where we should have been and we've worked hard to correct it."

Under McGahan's prompting, they hired an external consultant with expert knowledge of sporting systems and conducted a root-and-branch audit of how their academy system was functioning and, three years on, they are beginning to see the fruits of those labours.

"Tony is a very hands-on guy when it comes to the academy," says Donal Lenihan, chairman of the academy board. "He sets minimum standards for academy lads even before they get to train with the seniors and it's working. They're coming in younger and younger now."

On the surface it's easy to see why Munster might have fallen behind with their academy. Given his record, Kidney is beyond reproach in Munster, of course, but the price for nurturing a settled, world-class unit whose manic quest for European glory assumed mythical proportions was taking their eye off the ball when it came to the long-term future. "We were deficient in some areas," concedes Fitzgerald. "But I think that happens anywhere you have players in positions for long periods of time."

Yet while accepting they had serious issues to deal with, it clearly irritates them to hear the charge that they have a poor record in producing young, home-grown talent. "You accept criticism in this job," Fitzgerald says, "it comes with the territory. But I think the perception that Munster aren't doing things [with the academy] is wrong. It has been exaggerated."

On his desk Malone keeps a sheet of paper detailing the players who have come through the academy since the system was regionalised in 2004: O'Leary and Keith Earls among the first batch and a steady trickle all the way to last year's vintage which included gems like Conor Murray, Simon Zebo, Mike Sherry, Sean Henry and John Ryan. Malone scans through the senior squad and reckons "the bones of 50%" filtered through the academy, a figure he'd like to see rise in the years to come.

The figures don't impress everyone, of course, and unfavourable comparisons with Leinster's slick conveyor belt that has unearthed a multitude of stars over the past five years are a regular bane of their lives. They would sharply question the validity of the comparison, however. For one thing they can't match Leinster's relatively huge playing population or its vast network of rugby-playing schools and, by the very nature of their system, players are likely to develop at a later age.

The truth of that is regularly borne out on underage Ireland teams. On the under 20 side that played Italy in Athlone on Friday evening, for example, only two Munster players -- JJ Hanrahan and Niall Scannell -- featured on the first 15 while James Rael was the replacement hooker. Lenihan reminds you that a couple of years back both Murray and Ian Nagle struggled to get noticed at the same level. It's merely part of a familiar, underlying trend.

"Leinster have an advantage," Lenihan says. "Not just in school numbers, but they'd have less guys playing a number of different sports. I think that's a fair comment. A lot of our lads would be playing GAA and other sports from 15 to 18. We don't force them to specialise and nor would we want to. I remember talking to Ian McGeechan about this and he said that kids in Scotland who played a number of different sports tended to be better rugby players.

"I think that's very true. You look at Donnacha Ryan, for example, and you'd wonder if he'd have such superb hand-eye co-ordination if he hadn't grown up playing hurling. So while our lads might struggle a bit to make teams at underage level, by the time they're 21 or 22 they'll be catching up with guys ahead of them in other provinces."

As far as possible the academy system is structured on a needs-must basis with an obvious understanding that talent, in whatever position, can never be denied. There is a quota of 21 places in any given year but, with the emphasis on quality, that number is rarely reached. This year Malone has 18 in total with four -- Hanrahan, Luke O'Dea, Dave O'Callaghan and Dave Kilcoyne -- having tasted action in the Pro12 and that augurs well for their future prospects.

Ultimately, though, there are good bets and hopefuls but no sure things. In some quarters Hanrahan has already been hailed as the next Ronan O'Gara and they hope John Ryan can fill the void left by the retirement of John Hayes but nothing is guaranteed, particularly when it comes to the tricky business of nurturing prop forwards. They'd love to unearth a jewel like Cian Healy, of course, but freakish talent has a habit of appearing maybe once in a lifetime if at all.

The 23-year-old Ryan is a fair bet, though. A couple of years back he made a decision to take a year out of the academy and concentrate on playing club rugby for UCC, a critical switch for his development. For Munster, the link with clubs is considered vital. Lenihan isn't a fan of the directive that clubs can only use two contracted players per game. This time last year, he reminds you, Conor Murray, Simon Zebo and Peter O'Mahony were all playing regularly in the All-Ireland League.

"That's something we'd feel strongly about," says Malone. "Especially when it comes to the front-row guys. Sometimes the real value for a prop can be playing hard games every week. As good as the academy system is, sometimes the important thing is to go away and play club rugby and learn your trade that way."

Because he is only fresh in the door, Malone can't offer a perspective on what went before, but what he has inherited encourages him. He has two elite development officers, Greig Oliver and Colm McMahon, working closely alongside him and a network of regional development officers combing the schools and clubs to ensure the net is kept as wide as possible until the best talent is identified and brought into the sub academy or the academy proper.

He sees the game branching out beyond its traditional stronghold. Hanrahan hails from Castleisland and, in the vibrant youth structures being nurtured in Killarney and Tralee, he sees more hope for the future. He sees Tommy O'Donnell and Dave Foley augmenting the Tipperary contingent and, best of all, he sees the huge strides being made in Waterpark and Dungarvan and envisages Waterford one day becoming a fruitful outlet for Munster rugby.

It will take time, of course. Cork and Limerick still provide the bulk of the current crop of academy hopefuls but, lower down the chain, he notices the shifting boundaries. Each summer they bring the four regional development squads together and the old assumption that the North and South, Limerick and Cork respectively, would be strongest no longer apply. "The East [Tipperary and Waterford] were a very strong team last year. This year it seems to be fairly even. I'd say most of the players on last year's under 18 team came from the East. That's hugely encouraging."

Everywhere they look there is encouragement. Lenihan thinks back to the night in November 2010 when Munster beat Australia at Thomond Park and, in the wondrous performances of Nagle, Peter O'Mahony and others, a capacity crowd was given a reassuring glimpse of a future that lay beyond the heroes of 2006 and 2008.

Murray was on the bench that night. Less than a year later, he was Ireland's first-choice scrumhalf at the World Cup.

Not that it was the best night of their lives, of course. It wasn't even close. It wasn't beating the All Blacks in '78. There was no miracle about it, just clear signs they were getting some things right, all deftly handled by a coach keeping one eye on a future that would bubble with promise long after he had gone.

http://www.independent.ie/sport/rugby/john-obrien-eyes-to-the-future-3031912.html

phog

profitius wrote: »

Good article abut the Munster academy.

I see Colm McMahon is mentioned in that article, I've always viewed him in an Anthony Foley mould, pure brilliant rugby brain. I had wondered where he went to after being player coach with Nenagh Ormond a couple of season back.

ormond lad

phog wrote: »

I see Colm McMahon is mentioned in that article, I've always viewed him in an Anthony Foley mould, pure brilliant rugby brain. I had wondered where he went to after being player coach with Nenagh Ormond a couple of season back.

He's referred to as an elite development officer in the article, must have been promoted as he joined the branch as an RDO in aug 09 and had to quit his role as nenagh coach as a result of the job.
From training with him for 2 seasons and seeing him play during that time, i totally agree with you on colm having an excellant rugby brain. No surprise to me that he is doing very well in the munster set up

PhatPiggins

Weren't we being repeatedly told by the powers that be tha McGahan had nothing to do with the academy :rolleyes:

ormond lad

Niall O'Donovan steps up to replace Foley

http://www.munsterrugby.ie/news/10173.php

All Clear From The Weekend
27 February 2012, 2:38 pm
By The Editor

Munster report a clean bill of health from last Friday's RaboDirect PRO12 game against Cardiff Blues that ended in a narrow 16-13 win for Tony McGahan's side.


After the game Forwards coach Anthony Foley departed for Dublin to join the national management team in place of Gert Smal who has been ruled out of further involvement because of illness. In terms of replacing Foley in the Munster set-up for the coming weeks it was a case of going back to the tried and trusted with Niall O'Donovan stepping up to replace Foley.
O'Donovan was of course assistant to Declan Kidney when Munster won the Heineken Cup in 2006 and most recently has been Asst Coach/ Manager of the British & Irish side that has reached the semi-final of that competition this season.
Meanwhile, Damien Varley, Denis Hurley and Simon Zebo will spend the week in Carton House with the international squad as they prepare for the game against France.
Varley will be released back to Munster on Wednesday leaving him time to get in one session with the squad before their game against Dragons on Saturday (Rodney Parade). Zebo and Hurley may not be released until Friday morning.
The Munster squad assemble in Limerick in the moring for the first of their two squad sessions this week.