Ospreys vs Ulster

BBDBB

tight game, a win, just about deserved for the second half, the half time score flattered the O's

P_1

Not sure how the Ospreys managed to lose that one to be honest. 6 unanswered penalties is brainfart material

ScissorPaperRock

Not much of a spectacle, but very tense stuff towards the end.

Delighted for Paddy, most of those kicks weren't easy. Hopefully he can kick on from here and develop consistency.

former legend

Richard Fussell isn't half the player he used to be, or maybe he's not suited to fb. Either way, he was pants.

Ugo Monye spacecraft experience

P_1 wrote: »

Not sure how the Ospreys managed to lose that one to be honest. 6 unanswered penalties is brainfart material

In fairness Ulster were the better side for most of the game

shuffol

Jackson must've spent the last week watching a dvd of the Aviva challenge. Fantastic kicking performance, only 1 was a gimme and there were some very low percentage kicks in there. One thing that struck me is how true he struck the ball, every kick straght as a dye, shows the ability is in there. Wet conditions seem to suit Ulster, they've a big pack that just rumbles over the gainline. Big performances from Best, Tuohy and Henry.

CatFromHue

2000: ROG can't kick
2010: Sexton can't kick
2013: Jackson can't kick

.ak

CatFromHue wrote: »

2000: ROG can't kick
2010: Sexton can't kick
2012: Madigan can't kick
2013: Jackson can't kick

FYP

.ak

Terrible game. Glad Ulster came out on top. Gives Leinster a bit of hope for travelling there next week.

Tox56

CatFromHue wrote: »

2000: ROG can't kick
2010: Sexton can't kick
2013: Jackson can't kick

Don't forget Madigan circa 2011

In fairness Jackson's kicking this season was so poor that going into this game he didn't even register on the Rabo golden boot list. He's always had trouble with it, the above players (Sexton in particular) set an encouraging precedent, but there's no guarantee that he'll become as good as those players

CatFromHue

Madigan is different in that he wasn't kicking. The others were kicking but were going through a bad patch at the time.

danthefan

.ak wrote: »

FYP

Madigan never went through a bad spell though really. He just wasn't actually taking the kicks before. Last season was his first as a frontline kicker and he won the golden boot in the Pro 12.


Edit - should also have said, very good win for Ulster.

bilston

Begs the question of who kicks next week. Jackson or Pienaar?

Good win added to the Williams news and hopefully some more contract news next week and we can go into the Tiggers game full of confidence.

bilston

Tox56 wrote: »

Don't forget Madigan circa 2011

In fairness Jackson's kicking this season was so poor that going into this game he didn't even register on the Rabo golden boot list. He's always had trouble with it, the above players (Sexton in particular) set an encouraging precedent, but there's no guarantee that he'll become as good as those players

Jackson's goalkicking won Ulster a HEC match in Glasgow last year and won Ulster a game with Munster last season as well. He is inconsistent yes but he has the ability. Remember Jackson has been at the coal face at a much younger age than any of the forementioned players.

I remain convinced he will come good consistently.

.ak

danthefan wrote: »

Madigan never went through a bad spell though really. He just wasn't actually taking the kicks before. Last season was his first as a frontline kicker and he won the golden boot in the Pro 12.


Edit - should also have said, very good win for Ulster.

Yeah but everyone was saying he couldn't kick, bizarrely.

BBDBB

I think the point is ALL goal kickers go through periods of misses, some kickes are more difficult and some have more pressure applied because of the situation/consequences involved. But most of the good ones manage to work through it and eventually strike a rich vein of form for a while. Paddys been through a rough patch but will come good.

CatFromHue

bilston wrote: »

Jackson's goalkicking won Ulster a HEC match in Glasgow last year and won Ulster a game with Munster last season as well. He is inconsistent yes but he has the ability. Remember Jackson has been at the coal face at a much younger age than any of the forementioned players.

I remain convinced he will come good consistently.

Not much younger than ROG who I think started playing for Munster when he was 20 but he was 22 when he really kicked off with them (that season ended up with them losing to Northampton in 2000).

This backs up what you're saying though.

damianmcr

bilston wrote: »

Begs the question of who kicks next week. Jackson or Pienaar?

Good win added to the Williams news and hopefully some more contract news next week and we can go into the Tiggers game full of confidence.

Will Ruan start next week? Maybe he will come of the bench. But PJ has to kick next week.

Ruan hasnt kicked through out the RC.

bilston

damianmcr wrote: »

Will Ruan start next week? Maybe he will come of the bench. But PJ has to kick next week.

Ruan hasnt kicked through out the RC.

He has to start surely.

Agree PJ should kick, but four hours ago I'd have said Ruan!

Ugo Monye spacecraft experience

Ruan should kick and will kick

matthew8

You can't let someone kick because of one good performance after many bad performances.

BBDBB

matthew8 wrote: »

You can't let someone kick because of one good performance after many bad performances.

true, the alternative view is that PJ is just getting into his groove and finding some confidence and form, you wanna risk that for someone who hasn't kicked in anger for your team in months?

bilston

Ugo Monye spacecraft experience wrote: »

Ruan should kick and will kick

You seem pretty sure!

Tox56

bilston wrote: »

Jackson's goalkicking won Ulster a HEC match in Glasgow last year and won Ulster a game with Munster last season as well. He is inconsistent yes but he has the ability. Remember Jackson has been at the coal face at a much younger age than any of the forementioned players.

I remain convinced he will come good consistently.

I'm sure he has, but right through underage he's struggled with it. It goes back to the 10 must be kickers nonsense, there is absolutely no reason Paddy J should be a top class goal kicker even if he is a top class outhalf.

From what I've seen id say he is either A) Not a naturally gifted kicker or He does not embrace the pressure of kicking, or maybe a mix of the two. He looked fine technically in that infamous Aviva game but he's also struggled in relatively low pressure environments (pro 12 games against the likes of the Dragons/Connacht, Ireland U20 games for eg.)

Madigan for example is not the most graceful kicker of a ball, he was not put on this earth to kick a rugby ball like the Dan Carter's of this world, but even from afar you can see he has an undeniable confidence that you (or I anyway) just don't see in Jackson.

Kicking well at the top level is not the difficult part, doing it consistently is, that's where I see the issue with Jackson. Clearly the biggest thing in his favour is his age, so this debate is probably 3-4 years premature, but there's a reason not everybody is a top class goalkicker

ambid

.ak wrote: »

Yeah but everyone was saying he couldn't kick, bizarrely.

Wasn't that because he apparently missed a kick in a schools match years ago? I remember reading quite a few posts about Madigan missing a kick late in a schools match so his ability to goalkick as a professional was questioned.

I didn't go to a rugby playing school so am not part of that clique, but remember being astonished at just how much credibility was attached to missing a kick in a schools match.

Absolutely bonkers.

Anyway, this is off topic. Well done Ulster.

ScissorPaperRock

I would give Paddy the kicking duties until he misses his next kick. I'd risk two/three points in order for him to build some continuity and consistency.

Hand duties over to Ruan when he misses, rather than undermining him now after a good showing.

Ugo Monye spacecraft experience

Ruan has been Ulsters first choice goal kicker, so why would that change now?

danthefan

ScissorPaperRoc wrote: »

I would give Paddy the kicking duties until he misses his next kick. I'd risk two/three points in order for him to build some continuity and consistency.

Hand duties over to Ruan when he misses, rather than undermining him now after a good showing.

That is completely ridiculous. Just yank the kicking from him if he misses one kick? Just no. Adds a crazy amount of pressure to every single kick he has to take.

mfceiling

What happened there?

Dropped herself into town and it was 12 - 3 to the hairsprays...game over??

Watched the rest of it on the sky box and we win!!

Subs made a huge impact. Fair play to PJ. Forwards really dogged it out tonight.

Ref really was a pedantic pat - went upstairs for practically everything.

CatFromHue

Madigan was having some issues kicking from hand, which is why some people were saying he needed to improve his kicking.