Ulster Team Talk/Gossip/Rumours Thread.

thomond2006

CatFromHue wrote: »

Honestly what is going through some of these guys heads!

They have the bonus point but insist on fannying about in their 22!

The American Football scrimmage style one was class!

.ak

Payne was outstanding tonight.

CatFromHue

Gilroy was done too easily for the Glasgow try which is disappointing but unfortunately not surprising.

A win is a win though but a few things for Anscombe to think about.

When Williams went off they'd no big ball carrier in the second half.
NOC's kicking was poor.
The lineout and the scrum went well though and their defence was usually good, if not tested too hard.

bilston

Diack, Williams, Stevenson, Herring, Payne and Marshall were the standout performers in a generally scrappy performance IMO.

The pack in general were pretty good with an excellent set piece. The backs didn't click enough for me, Marshall showed some nice touches and has a lovely cut out pass to bring in the back three. Payne is getting back to his best with every game, when he hits full throttle he'll be an excellent player for Ulster.

Special mention for Michael Heaney and Michael Allen, neither will be first choice or really near first choice but both can be happy with their nights work, particularly Allen. Heaney looked what he is, a third choice 9, but at 21 he can get better and while there were one or two errors it was a solid performance by him.

Has anyone heard from Jaco? Has he survived NOC's kicking performance?

profitius

Good win for Ulster. A bit scrappy but its early season. They'll be happy with that considering the age of the backline and the performance of the new players. Herring looks a good thrower.

Glasgow are a tough nut to crack. They conceded an intercept try which you feel is something that wouldn't have happened under Lineen.

The negatives are NOC and Nick Williams. Williams played well but as usual he didn't last long. NOC missed easy kicks.

CIARAN_BOYLE

thomond2006 wrote: »

I'd worry about Williams' fitness, he doesn't like he'll last 60 minutes, nevermind 80.

I'm wondering if William's main role will be as an impact sub in the big games. He was certainly impressive while on the pitch today.

BTW does anyone else think that Doyle looked really good today. A little underpowered but a year or two as a professional would sort that out. He looked really good for a forward in their first professional game with his past experience before this season being at semi pro level in australia.

profitius

Anyone else happy with the ref tonight? I was impressed for once.

Also the new scrum law changes are a step in the right direction in terms of speeding up the scrums.

bilston

profitius wrote: »

Anyone else happy with the ref tonight? I was impressed for once.

Also the new scrum law changes are a step in the right direction in terms of speeding up the scrums.

Yeah the new scrum law caught me out a few times! I kept thinking early engagement thinking the ref hadn't finished his bit.

I also think the 5 second rule wil help speed up the game a bit as well, you could hear the referee constantly telling Ulster to use it in the last few minutes when they were on the Glasgow line. Saying that I'm not sure how this will work in the amateur game where fitness levels aren't as good as the pro game, it could lead to a bit of a farce at the breakdown.

RoundBox11

Have to say i thought Nick Williams looked very good while he was on the pitch. I was impressed with Heaneys quick pass too. Futures bright for Ulster anyway!

backawaygo onahead

Having watched the game on TV now to confirm what I thought I saw at the game, I have to tell you that the most significant thing about reviewing it is the lack of the usual handling errors made by Ulster.

Error count way down on what we have seen the last few seasons so I have to ask has Mr A been concentrating on something us older farts call "the basics"?

Much greater continuity and the breakdown, though not perfect was a major improvement in an area where we were too often relieved of the ball in recent seasons.

Lineout excellent, lost one to a marginal not straight from the otherwise impeccable darts from Red Herring, but Johannes Gysbert Muller, Big Lewis & Robbie each took one on Weegies chuck & were safe as houses on our own throw. All three had all round excellent games.

Fat Nick, if he sheds a few kilos & gets fit has a big role to play. Much debate as to whether he can play 80 minutes, in the main he doesn't need to. Once Roger is fit, Stevie is about, Chris Henry returns, young Henderson is fit, Robbie stays as aggressive as he has started the season then we can nurse the large one through games or just as likely, bring him on as a genuine HIGH IMPACT sub to molest weakening defences. Having laughed a bit at his signing, I now see exactly what the incredible bulk has to offer, great go forward and for 60 minutes he was at the heart of setting up our best attacking positions. Time will tell but if 90% fit for most of teh season he could prove a clever signing.

Scrum pretty good too barring one sight of John Afoa biting the dirt & conceding a penalty. My joy at Callum Black's early season is unconfined especially after the shocker of PaddyMacs woeful injury, wee Black is a tough wee nut and I reckon with a run of games he will be great back up to TC, a big favourite on the Hill who got a great reception as he notched up his 100 caps.

The young backline did as well as could be expected in the first competitive game together & if they were a touch blunt then all should be well when DC, Paddy, Tommy Bowe, Rev Trimble not to mention the saintly Ruan eventually rock up for a game. Jared Payne drips class & his take & pass to Michael Allen gave a run in that I could have finished.

Have seen some criticism of Gilroy for Tommy Seymours try and it wasn't great but he is a nipper with a great strike rate & his defence is usually more secure when he has Darren beside him all night to direct him.

NOC - I'm saying nothing, I want to be positive. Small p - yet another brainfart kicking the ball out with seconds left on the clock, then at the next opportunity he plays on - go figure ?????????????

Much talk in various places I visit about how poor Weegies are so let me give this some perspective.

Weegies play a game based in defence, they show as much as no ambition to play any rugby. Last year they had the best defensive reord in the league. They have been top 4 twice in the last 3 seasons. They look awful but are generally extremely effective. On Friday they had pretty near a full strength squad albeit plenty of that strength was on the bench. They also have a knack of reducing most teams game to a level where scrapping for the win becomes the norm.

Against that there was a very solid Ulster pack albeit an under strength back row & a very young backline with 2nd & 3rd choice players in most positions.

Don't underestimate that win, it should of course have been very comfortable but for the kicking of .....................nah not going to be negative.

CatFromHue

backawaygo onahead wrote: »

NOC - I'm saying nothing, I want to be positive. Small p - yet another brainfart kicking the ball out with seconds left on the clock, then at the next opportunity he plays on - go figure ?????????????

Was that not Paul Marshall who kicked the ball out thinking the game was over?

thomond2006

It was Marshall alright.

backawaygo onahead

CatFromHue wrote: »

Was that not Paul Marshall who kicked the ball out thinking the game was over?

Cat, Thomond, re-read needed thats exactly what I said, Small p (aka Paul Marshall)

I skillfully linked our finishing half backs to indicate where our struggles will come from for teh next clatter of weeks.

backawaygo onahead

profitius wrote: »

Anyone else happy with the ref tonight? I was impressed for once.

Also the new scrum law changes are a step in the right direction in terms of speeding up the scrums.

Was a little worried at the start as he appeared to allow a fair bit of side entry but overall, yeah he was decent.

Positive too about the scrum & breakdown law changes, what a treat not to have interminable resets & Ruan especially with his quickness of mind could well benefit at teh breakdown more than most.

CatFromHue

backawaygo onahead wrote: »

Cat, Thomond, re-read needed thats exactly what I said, Small p (aka Paul Marshall)

I skillfully linked our finishing half backs to indicate where our struggles will come from for teh next clatter of weeks.

Ah I thought the small p related to a small positive.......which didn't make any sense either :pac:

backawaygo onahead

By the way, spoke to Dan Tuohy, Paddy Wallace & Roger Wilson at half-time. Big Dan available for Munster game, Paddy & Roger sadly not available before October.

Understand that Stevie & Tommy are likely to be available next week but may not be selected !! No word on my radar yet about Andy Trimble and not sure how much Darren or Fat Deccie or Tom Court are allowed to play yet.

The young Ginger Maestro should be ok next week, no word if Fat Nick will be.

jacothelad

A NOCfearing anxious crowd wait outside Ravenhill for news of Paddy Jackson's injury.

CIARAN_BOYLE

https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10151136716848118&set=a.454616908117.255049.43254528117&type=1&theater

Team Gumbie

On a more serious note Ulster have named their squad for the weekend
ULSTER SQUAD FORWARDS (16)
Rob Herring, Niall Annett, Nigel Brady, Adam Macklin, Declan Fitzpatrick, Callum Black, Tom Court, John Afoa, Lewis Stevenson, Neil McComb, Johann Muller, Mike McComish, Stephen Ferris, Robbie Diack, Sean Doyle, Nick Williams
ULSTER SQUAD BACKS (12)
Paul Marshall, Michael Heaney, Niall O’Connor, Paddy Jackson, Luke Marshall, Chris Farrell, Darren Cave, Michael Allen, Craig Gilroy, Andrew Trimble, Peter Nelson, Jared Payne

http://www.ulsterrugby.com/news/10723.php

Might see a team of

Black Herring Afoa Stevenson Muller Diack Doyle Williams
Marshall Jackson Gilroy Marshall Cave Allen Payne

Brady Court Afoa McComb Ferris Heaney NOC Trimble

Anyone know how long Henderson will be out for, he isn't mentioned in the injury update but I'm pretty sure that he is injured.

irishbucsfan

Seeing as Court was on the bench last week I don't think it's beyond the realm of possibility that he could start this week?

thomond2006

Ferris to be benched alright, plus Diack deserves another run at 6 after last weekend.

GerM

If Diack keeps up his performance level, at 26 years old, he could find himself in the Wolfhounds squad. Hope he has a big season. Stevenson has already done enough over the past year to be in the Wolfhounds set up and should get a look against Fiji. I wonder how Adam Macklin will fare this season given that he's unlikely to get anything more than a handful of sub appearances when Fitzpatrick goes on Irish duty (assuming he'll be our sub tighthead in autumn).

Not surprised to see such a strong Ulster panel. This is going to be a game that will have an implication on the business end of the season. Hopefully they turn over the Ospreys and ensure that the Ospreys have to work very hard for anything they get this season.

backawaygo onahead

CIARAN_BOYLE wrote: »

Might see a team of

Black Herring Afoa Stevenson Muller Diack Doyle Williams
Marshall Jackson Gilroy Marshall Cave Allen Payne

Brady Court Afoa McComb Ferris Heaney NOC Trimble

Anyone know how long Henderson will be out for, he isn't mentioned in the injury update but I'm pretty sure that he is injured.

Not too far wide but

Black Herring Fitzpatrick
Muller Stevenson
Doyle Fat Nick Diack

Marshall NOC
Gilroy Marshall Cave Allen
Payne

Bench looks impressive: Court Brady Afoa Ferris Trimble plus 3 (probably the mighty Red to cover NOC)

He is a cool dude Mr Anscombe, no rush to get his best team on the park. Must be generating hope amongst the nearly men. Play well and I'm in with a shout is how it looks.

.ak

backawaygo onahead wrote: »

Gilroy Marshall Cave Allen
Payne

Would love to see that backline in action, especially Marshall + Cave.

bilston

.ak wrote: »

Would love to see that backline in action, especially Marshall + Cave.

Aye they linked up pretty well for the 20 mins or so they played together on Friday. Thinking back Marshall did throw some lovely passes out to his back three 3 last week and his defence was very good as well. If he had an out half inside him who didn't lie deeper than most full backs we might even get to see what he can do as a runner so Jackson can't get back quick enough for the sake of the rest of the backline.

If Goonhead is right it looks like we might have a bench containing Court, Afoa, Ferris and Trimble..not bad if we're in a tight game going into the last 20...

backawaygo onahead

.ak wrote: »

Would love to see that backline in action, especially Marshall + Cave.

Oi .AK , what are you saying, you don't trust me?

You will see that backline, honest injun - it has been decreed, its done, its dusted, its happening at a South Wales stadium this very weekend - ya heard it here first.;)

Prepare to salivate when Rev.Trimble replaces young Micky Allen. It could be seen quite often as a certain Patrick Wallace may play more games at 10 than even Deccie would like, though a certain T Bowe will be given a chance.

backawaygo onahead

bilston wrote: »

If Goonhead is right it looks like we might have a bench containing Court, Afoa, Ferris and Trimble..not bad if we're in a tight game going into the last 20...

Never doubt a Goonhead, he speaks little but true william. Would appear that early season at least Mr A intends to keep all hands as busy as is reasonable & sees no panic to get his supposed best team on the pitch.

I'm liking the cut of Mr A's bake to date, early days or no.

bilston

backawaygo onahead wrote: »

Oi .AK , what are you saying, you don't trust me?

You will see that backline, honest injun - it has been decreed, its done, its dusted, its happening at a South Wales stadium this very weekend - ya heard it here first.;)

Prepare to salivate when Rev.Trimble replaces young Micky Allen. It could be seen quite often as a certain Patrick Wallace may play more games at 10 than even Deccie would like, though a certain T Bowe will be given a chance.

Tough one on Wallace, putting Ireland to one side, and I think Wallace and Ireland should say their goodbyes now, Wallace played some of the best rugby of his career last season at 12 for us. To move him from 12 would in theory cost us an excellent 12 in search of an inconsistent 10. However the emergence of Luke Marshall could facilitate this a bit more smoothly and with Pienaar at 9 and a footballing 12 who can kick and pass, maybe this Ulster side is tailormade for Wallace to have a last hurrah at 10. However if Paul Marshall was at 9 and Nevin Spence was at 12 then sorry forget it...

irishbucsfan

I can't wait to see Ferris back.

I think the Marshall/Cave combination might lack a bit of strike running ability but their quality in other areas are mouth watering.

I like the idea of Wallace playing 10 this season. What he lacks in game management he more than makes up for in "Not being NOC"ness.

backawaygo onahead

irishbucsfan wrote: »

I can't wait to see Ferris back.

I think the Marshall/Cave combination might lack a bit of strike running ability but their quality in other areas are mouth watering.

I like the idea of Wallace playing 10 this season. What he lacks in game management he more than makes up for in "Not being NOC"ness.

We have three viable options at 10. None are particularly inspiring:

1) The Ginger Maestro - the next time Ulster win with Paddy Jackson starting will be only the 2nd time it has happened :eek:

2) Ruan Pienaar at 10 is a complete waste of a magnificent player, I don't buy into the "he's as good at 10 as at 9" theory. Manifestly untrue.

3) On last season's form Paddy Wallace remains far and away the best 12 we have. Too much of Paddy's career was wasted between 10 & worse still 15 where he was lamentable. I would hate to see his natural position wasted albeit I have highish hopes of young Luke Marshall.

Almost, but only almost makes one yearn for the iHumph of two seasons ago much as he was inconsistent.

irishbucsfan

As much as Pienaar is not as good a 9 as he is a 10, there is absolutely no point in having a great 9 if your 10 isn't at the same standard, it's just wasted performance. Although I don't know is P Marshall is good enough to make Pienaar at 10 a viable option in big games.