Club or country?

Digifriendly

Richard Cockerill (Leicester Director of Rugby) is quoted in Daily Telegraph as saying he was delighted with the England result vs France as he will have his international contingent back although he feels disappointed for England. What's other's views on Ireland losing? Are you pleased your province will have players back maybe a bit sooner or is it country first and foremost? Purely from an Ulster point of view the way they have been playing recently they need their Irish contingent as well as the 2 S. Africans sooner rather than later. Having said that next 2 weekends are blank anyway with Irish/Scottish sides taking a break while English/Welsh have LV Cup. So maybe the question I pose is not really that important but I'll ask it anyway. Interesting to hear replies.

andrewdcs

International game for me every time. Kind of find the "money money bread on the table clubs first" thing crass (though I go to loads of away games / would be a season ticket holder if I was back in Dublin etc.)

I really enjoyed watching all the youth playing the past few weeks for their clubs, seeing as everyone loses out I like the way it hurts big spending teams with many internationals more (Leinster lost 16 I think!), so its good for the game.


I do think that clubs should play less games in a season though. What is it now, 10 international tests and 36 odd club games for likes of BOD, Healy, Heaslip etc. last year, that's insane. Not sure how to work it out though.

wixfjord

Delighted that the Leinster contingent came back with no injuries.

Should have a good crack at the HEC this year again hopefully, particularly with that group.

.ak

It's a bitter-sweet emotion to have the boys returning to the Leinster squad.

I've always been of the mind that I support Leinster first, then Ireland. It's marginal, but when you think about you spend a lot of money on a season ticket, you know the players inside out, you know the crowd, you drink with the team, your home ground is like your local pub, you follow their every move up and down, through thick and thin. But Ireland just get 5 cup games a year... It's a stark difference.

Although I've always believed that if our clubs do well in big cup games then so will our national team. Obviously I'm wrong. Or maybe I'm still right, and the coaching staff at IRFU need to learn from the foreign coaching influences we're getting at club level.

Big Nelly

Was great to see the young guys last few weeks for Leinster but glad to have the full squad back. Leinster where down something like 20+ players for more or less most of the match's. When will the Ireland guys be availabel to play? I guess they will get a week or two off?

MungBean

Country first for me. Winning at international level in the word cup is the pinnacle of achievement in rugby.

.ak

Big Nelly wrote: »

Was great to see the young guys last few weeks for Leinster but glad to have the full squad back. Leinster where down something like 20+ players for more or less most of the match's. When will the Ireland guys be availabel to play? I guess they will get a week or two off?

Well there's a break in the Pro12 til the end of the month anyhow. I'd say you'll see them get a week off, then back to training.

Podge_irl

Digifriendly wrote: »

Richard Cockerill (Leicester Director of Rugby) is quoted in Daily Telegraph as saying he was delighted with the England result vs France as he will have his international contingent back although he feels disappointed for England. What's other's views on Ireland losing? Are you pleased your province will have players back maybe a bit sooner or is it country first and foremost? Purely from an Ulster point of view the way they have been playing recently they need their Irish contingent as well as the 2 S. Africans sooner rather than later. Having said that next 2 weekends are blank anyway with Irish/Scottish sides taking a break while English/Welsh have LV Cup. So maybe the question I pose is not really that important but I'll ask it anyway. Interesting to hear replies.

Well Cockerill has a slightly more vested interest in this then the rest of us.

I'm happy the Leinster players are back with the squad, but I'd really rather they were still in NZ.

durkadurka

Gutted the boys are coming home but now that they are, I'm already planning who'll be back for the first game back in 19 days or so.

Cullen, Jennings, boss, mc fadden, Cronin must be dying to play a match. Even sexton and reddan aren't exactly overplayed.

Healy Ross bod, darcy and heaslip will be looking for a rest.

Kearney looks to be just getting going.

Trojan

durkadurka wrote: »

Gutted the boys are coming home but now that they are, I'm already planning who'll be back for the first game back in 19 days or so.

Cullen, Jennings, boss, mc fadden, Cronin must be dying to play a match. Even sexton and reddan aren't exactly overplayed.

Healy Ross bod, darcy and heaslip will be looking for a rest.

Kearney looks to be just getting going.

Agree with all that. Kearney is going to find it mighty tough though, he'll have to do something awful special on a consistent basis if he wants to take #15 from Isa.

JustinDee

Digifriendly wrote: »

Richard Cockerill (Leicester Director of Rugby) is quoted in Daily Telegraph as saying he was delighted with the England result vs France as he will have his international contingent back although he feels disappointed for England

Was just a quip. Always consider context.

Digifriendly wrote: »

What's other's views on Ireland losing? Are you pleased your province will have players back maybe a bit sooner or is it country first and foremost?

The national team and international level of the game is what basically funds the sport and underwrites each of the union's provincial branch teams.
It is gutting that the team is back after the quarter-finals stage. The game needed further progress through that competition. The effects on Irish rugby union would have been unprecedented.

The national team always comes first.

totallegend

Trojan wrote: »

Agree with all that. Kearney is going to find it mighty tough though, he'll have to do something awful special on a consistent basis if he wants to take #15 from Isa.

Yeah, it will be interesting to see how that all pans out. My hunch is that Nacewa will shift to the wing and Kearney will wear 15.

With Horgan still injured, I would expect the Leinster back three to be Nacewa, Kearney and Carr for the Munster game, but that means you have McFadden and Fitzgerald missing out...

funky penguin

.ak wrote: »

It's a bitter-sweet emotion to have the boys returning to the Leinster squad.

I've always been of the mind that I support Leinster first, then Ireland. It's marginal, but when you think about you spend a lot of money on a season ticket, you know the players inside out, you know the crowd, you drink with the team, your home ground is like your local pub, you follow their every move up and down, through thick and thin. But Ireland just get 5 cup games a year... It's a stark difference.

Although I've always believed that if our clubs do well in big cup games then so will our national team. Obviously I'm wrong. Or maybe I'm still right, and the coaching staff at IRFU need to learn from the foreign coaching influences we're getting at club level.

I'm with you on this, Leinster comes first (marginally) in my books. Mainly because I fell a closer connection to the team. Going the the RDS regularly obviously helps with this, and the relatively fewer internationals in the year. Time difference is gonna kill me this year. Can't frickin wait for the HEC. Best competition in the world in my opinion.

who the fug

Club, any player we send to England comes back with all ability coached out of them, and the IRFU told us F off over 12 years ago

totallegend

funky penguin wrote: »

I'm with you on this, Leinster comes first (marginally) in my books. Mainly because I fell a closer connection to the team. Going the the RDS regularly obviously helps with this, and the relatively fewer internationals in the year. Time difference is gonna kill me this year. Can't frickin wait for the HEC. Best competition in the world in my opinion.

Yeah, I'd go along with that. We had this discussion on the 'what province do you support?' thread, and for me, the hierarchy of what I would like to see would be:

World Cup for Ireland > Heineken Cup for Leinster > Grand Slam or Six Nations title > Celtic League > Triple Crown (which is meaningless IMO).

I think that going to 12-15 Leinster matches per year and seeing guys develop from prospects to world-class players makes me feel more of an attachment to Leinster; winning consistently helps as well of course.

The format of the Heineken Cup is brilliant too, I love the final weekend of the pool stages, frantically trying to figure out the quarter-final permutations, Sky with their 'As It Stands' graphics every five minutes. Great stuff.

.ak

totallegend wrote: »

Yeah, I'd go along with that. We had this discussion on the 'what province do you support?' thread, and for me, the hierarchy of what I would like to see would be:

World Cup for Ireland > Heineken Cup for Leinster > Grand Slam or Six Nations title > Celtic League > Triple Crown (which is meaningless IMO).

I think that going to 12-15 Leinster matches per year and seeing guys develop from prospects to world-class players makes me feel more of an attachment to Leinster; winning consistently helps as well of course.

The format of the Heineken Cup is brilliant too, I love the final weekend of the pool stages, frantically trying to figure out the quarter-final permutations, Sky with their 'As It Stands' graphics every five minutes. Great stuff.

This. So true. Best Club comp in the world imo.

wixfjord

.ak wrote: »

This. So true. Best Club comp in the world imo.

Sky do an incredible job on the HEC.
Nothing beats 5 or so good live games on a HEC weekend.

Iang87

With regards the world cup I would say country but I'd rather munster win a heineken cup than Ireland win a grand slam

bamboozle

my list of priorities
World Cup
Grand Slam
Heiniken Cup
Winning Lions series
long overdue AIL victory for Clontarf
Triple Crown
Magners league

Podge_irl

bamboozle wrote: »

my list of priorities
World Cup
Grand Slam
Heiniken Cup
Winning Lions series
long overdue AIL victory for Clontarf
Triple Crown
Magners league

I actually quite enjoyed Leinster's ML victory, and was more then a little annoyed at their capitulation in the final the last two years. I see more ML games then anything else after all.