Leinster Team Talk/Gossip/Rumours Thread XI (The Finals Countdown)

arsebiscuits1

That was a very entertaining rewatch. Obviously made better by the result.

It was the expected dog fight of a game and both teams were well up for it. Some lovely moments on display.

I'll start with Luke. Initially I was underwhelmed by him as I thought his kicking was poor. Rewatching showed this to not be the case and I must change my opinion on him. His kicking was good, his passing solid and he controlled everything well around him. His 2 breaks up the blindside were excellent and really relieved pressure.

What I interpreted as poor kicks by MGrath were actually poor fielding by Leinster. Larmour had 3 occasions on kick chase where he just completely misread it and put Munster under no pressure. Poor night on both sides of the ball in the air for him. Overall we just lacked desire on kick chase. Really didn't seem to show enough want to put Munster under pressure.

Defensively however we were unbelievable. Immense shifts on display and an impressive team total of 200 tackles. But it was the impact of the tackles that stood out. Time and again lads put in a bone shuddering hit completely stopping Munsters momentum, and they'd get up and put another one straight in again. Ryan, Doris and Ruddock were hammering into Munster fellas. Frightening aggression and accuracy. The desire to really pin the opposition back after the initial contact was notable and showcased Leinster attitude.

A quick shout out to Ronan Kelleher who had a significant percentage of his 12 tackles classified as effective or impact. He did not come on to soak tackles. Serious shift in 30 minutes and he showed why despite his throwing (which was good last night), he can never be too far from the minds of international selectors. No other Hooker in Ireland offers the physicality he does.

James Ryan was a hyperbole that hasn't been invented yet. Jaw droppingly good performance. Commanding in the air, impactful in the tackle, consistently winning collisions with ball in hand and blasting Munster fellas off the ball in the ruck. Everything he did last night was head and shoulders above his peers on the pitch. A brilliant moment where Jack O'Donoghue had just come on (and he's got decent pace), he looked to have beaten Ryan on the outside shoulder but Ryan just hunted him down and completely swallowed him up. Attitude and energy levels just do not dip with him. Larmour owes him a few drinks too as he had 2 vital lineout steals in our 22 off the back of Larmours mistakes.

Ruddock and Doris teamed up very well. Often working in tandem with each other. Providing good latches and clear outs. Industrious from both hitting double digits in carries and tackles. Both comfortably out performed their opposite number. But the blot on Doris copybook comes from one of the most braindead penalties I have seen in a long time.

Connors was disappointing. The game just seemed to pass him by. His carrying wouldn't be considered a strong suit of his and the display didn't compensate for an underwhelming defensive display. A player like him I'd be expecting him to be shutting down a lot more ball. Uncharacteristic missed tackles also.

I sometimes forget just how lucky we are to have Andrew Porter in our squad. He conceded 3 disappointing penalties out of a team total of 8 but this is mitigated by the fact that as a tighthead, he can pack down the scrum for 80 minutes as well as carrying 9 times and making 21 tackles. Immense from the lad.

Byrne and Sexton were both decent. I wanted to point out the unusual passing selections they both employed. Neither would commonly fire the pop pass out to their outside receivers but both demonstrated it. Possibly the conditions dictating it. Who knows.

Byrnes clutch kick for the conversion was also excellent. On his wrong side, on the touchline and he nailed it. Totally changed the dynamic of the last 10 minutes as Munster would never have gone for the DG to go level where as they definitely would have taken that route to win it.

I have this strange quirk in my psyche where I tend to forget how unbelievably good Robbie Henshaw is and then time and again I'm completely blown away by how well he performs in big games. He's such a valuable player to Leinster and so much of what we do that is good is as a direct result of his actions. One dire kick aside he was brilliant last night. So many key involvements.

A quick shout out to Ross Molony who was a really assured presence coming off the bench. He's imperious in the air and this season season is showing us a strong carrying side of his game he'd previously been lacking. Great to be able to bring a player of his calibre come in and not let any standards drop.

Final thought: Leinster don't look like a team that will win in Europe this year. But they're definitely on an upward trajectory from a few months ago so long may that continue. They showed a real mental steel last night that will stand to us.

Additional final thought: I know Sexton has made many references to the influence that Lancaster has had on him. But I never thought that influence would extend to him copying his haircut!!

VANG1

Agree on value of Porter, the first penalty was debatable too. He has some engine.

Garda Kenny

Lads some of the guff in here is comical. 90% of you spend the past 3 years literally ripping POM a new one and now he is the Undisputed Irish 7? The politics around here stinks. true some people will have their likes and dislikes but a bit less rivalry for the good of the country please. Having said all that I think Josh is the best 7 we have Will is some way behind but is needed for the English and bigger teams. Dan is a spectator and some might say that’s a good trait but I feel he could get stuck in more consistently and stop reading play and picking moments. Rock is the remedy and Mehole Martin (my second cousin) will form an alliance with SF and all will be back to normal. Shut Beur (I mean Bob). I defer all my power and intentions over to Rock including Awec and Zzippy et al. You will find no further opposition from me. Caveat I reserve the right to be critical of Venjurs espoirs and you all know the (justified) reasons for that criticism.

El_Duderino 09

Garda Kenny wrote: »

Lads some of the guff in here is comical. 90% of you spend the past 3 years literally ripping POM a new one and now he is the Undisputed Irish 7? The politics around here stinks.

Pom's form wasn't good and people ripped him. Now his form is good and people acknowledge that by not ripping him. Where's the problem?

Teams should always be picked on form, regardless of how much you do or don't like a player.

arsebiscuits1

Garda Kenny wrote: »

Lads some of the guff in here is comical. 90% of you spend the past 3 years literally ripping POM a new one and now he is the Undisputed Irish 7? The politics around here stinks. true some people will have their likes and dislikes but a bit less rivalry for the good of the country please. Having said all that I think Josh is the best 7 we have Will is some way behind but is needed for the English and bigger teams. Dan is a spectator and some might say that’s a good trait but I feel he could get stuck in more consistently and stop reading play and picking moments. Rock is the remedy and Mehole Martin (my second cousin) will form an alliance with SF and all will be back to normal. Shut Beur (I mean Bob). I defer all my power and intentions over to Rock including Awec and Zzippy et al. You will find no further opposition from me. Caveat I reserve the right to be critical of Venjurs espoirs and you all know the (justified) reasons for that criticism.

Right

Garda Kenny

I’ll go one better. I surrender to Venjur my opposition to his players. Will and Tadgh are very good operators and have a bright Irish future ahead of them. No more opposition or uproar from me

Bazzo

The **** is happening?

Dubinusa

It was a decent match. Munster were up for it and were physical. In the end though, it took a little brilliance to win it. What a finish by Larmour. He had a tough night all right, but you know that he can bedazzle a defense in a split second.
I thought Murray was very good. His box kicks were accurate and kept us under serious pressure. But, Luke can open a defense a turn the game on it's head. Murray doesn't have that. Luke for me was great. I also thought that his tackling was great.
Ryan was immense. His all round game is fantastic. Molony was really good too. He is somewhat overlooked here, but he is a very good lock. Ruddock was great too and I think he will make the national squad.
Connors was decent, without standing out. I don't think he is a great player...yet. Certainly, I prefer VDF and a healthy Leavy. It will be interesting to see how the future contracts play out. I hope we retain Penny, there's just something about his play that I think will produce a top level 7. I think he can be a stalwart for Leinster and Ireland.
Munster are making progress. I think. But right now , we're a little better imo. It was nice to see Ringrose get through the match with no problems. I didn't think he stood out much. But getting 80 minutes will benefit him.
Keenan is just a superb player. Really great to watch.
So next week it's Scarlets and I hope we finally get Furlong back. He can't get back soon enough for me.

El_Duderino 09

Is Furlong coming back, on the cards for next weekend?

bayern

El_Duderino 09 wrote: »

Is Furlong coming back, on the cards for next weekend?

depends on if he is released by ireland.

El_Duderino 09

bayern wrote: »

depends on if he is released by ireland.

Is he back to full training and ready to play? If he’s with Leinster, is he even in the running to play this weekend?

Interested Observer

bayern wrote: »

depends on if he is released by ireland.

How could he not be? He hasn't played in a year. I know we like to rest players but throwing him straight into an international would be mental.

bayern

Interested Observer wrote: »

How could he not be? He hasn't played in a year. I know we like to rest players but throwing him straight into an international would be mental.

something about covid bubbles.. was in one of the papers this morning. I agree it would be mental.

Clegg

Porter is the starting tight head by right. Furlong will have to earn his spot back.

It's been a long time since Furlong played, but iirc he was struggling for form at the time, possibly due to injury. Porter's performances in the interim have been to a high standard. I don't see Furlong getting to jersey back unless he shoots the lights out.

El_Duderino 09

Clegg wrote: »

Porter is the starting tight head by right. Furlong will have to earn his spot back.

It's been a long time since Furlong played, but iirc he was struggling for form at the time, possibly due to injury. Porter's performances in the interim have been to a high standard. I don't see Furlong getting to jersey back unless he shoots the lights out.

It's the ideal scenario for Ireland and Leinster. Mcgrath and Healy all over again, if they play their cards right. They Can play and rest in such a way that they're always fresh and always one-upping each other. I think Porter is definitely the incumbent, but that's just the starting position in, what could be, a battle that takes place over the next few years.

We don't ned a clear no.1 and no.2. We need two blokes who push each other and are rewarded for recent form.

Interested Observer

bayern wrote: »

something about covid bubbles.. was in one of the papers this morning. I agree it would be mental.

Ah makes sense.

jacothelad

Bazzo wrote: »

The **** is happening?

HIA?

bayern

There’s positive news on the injury front from the game against Munster Rugby at the weekend, Cullen confirming that Garry Ringrose came through his return from a jaw injury with no issues and will link up with the Irish squad as planned this week.

And while Dan Leavy (calf) and Dave Kearney (hamstring) were ruled out of contention for that same game with minor issues, both are expected to train as normal this week and be available for selection for the game against Scarlets.

Unfortunately, Jimmy O’Brien has definitely been ruled out of the game with a hamstring injury that forced him off in the second half at Thomond Park.

Johnny Sexton was also forced off early in the second half of the game with a minor muscle injury but he will also link up with the Irish squad this week ahead of the Guinness Six Nations.

James Lowe is another player still working on his rehabilitation from a groin issue but he is also due to link up with the Irish squad this week for further assessment as he nears a return.

Tadhg Furlong is also very close to a return and he will look to increase his training involvement this week after recovering from a calf issue, while another tighthead prop, Michael Bent, is recovering from a neck strain picked up at training and he requires further assessment this week.

There was no update from Cullen on the following players:

Rory O’Loughlin (shoulder), Scott Penny (neck), Conor O’Brien (knee), Tommy O’Brien (ankle), Max Deegan (knee), Vakh Abdaladze (back) and Adam Byrne (hamstring)

bayern

Possible Leinster side:

1. Byrne/Dooley
2. Cronin/Tracey
3. Bent/Clarkson
4. Molony/Baird
5. Toner/Fardy
6. Murphy
7. Leavy
8. Conan
9. McGrath
10. HB
11. Kearney
12. Frawley
13. Turner?
14. Kelleher
15. Silvester?

bayern

PRO14 Rugby have confirmed details for fixtures in rounds 12 to 16 of the 2020/21 Guinness PRO14.

Leinster Rugby will travel to face Dragons Rugby in Round 12 on Friday, 19 February (KO 7.35pm).

There will be a nine-day turnaround until Leo Cullen’s men play again at home to Glasgow Warriors in Round 13 on Sunday, 28 February (KO 5.30pm).

The following Friday, 6 March, Leinster will travel to face Ulster in Belfast in what promises to be another massive interprovincial derby encounter (KO 7.35pm).

Leinster will travel to Italy to face Zebre on Friday, 12 March (KO 5.45pm), before welcoming Ospreys to the RDS Arena on Friday, 19 March (KO 8.15pm).

PRO14 Rugby have also confirmed that no play-off games will be required for European qualification and that rankings after Round 16 will be used to determine which teams will participate in next season’s Heineken Champions Cup once EPCR have confirmed the format.

Leinster are back in action this Saturday to take on Scarlets in Llanelli (KO 7.35pm, live on eir Sport) in a rescheduled meeting from November.

https://www.leinsterrugby.ie/guinness-pro14-fixtures-rounds-12-16/

no mention of rainbow cup.. basically league semi final to be played in the middle of 6 nations..

serious test of squad given how few ulster players will be away with ireland..

Garrigai

Surely Toner will be picked to equal D'arcy's record.

crisco10

Now Jimmy O'Brien is hurt. It's like the back 3 have replaced the back row as the injury hotbed. We're beyond testing our depth at this stage!

Is Adam Byrne just completely wrecked? According to the Leinster site (that I can see), he hasn't played since the Munster game in December 2019.

bayern

crisco10 wrote: »

Now Jimmy O'Brien is hurt. It's like the back 3 have replaced the back row as the injury hotbed. We're beyond testing our depth at this stage!

Is Adam Byrne just completely wrecked? According to the Leinster site (that I can see), he hasn't played since the Munster game in December 2019.

pictured running today at training.

arsebiscuits1

Not sure we will see Bent this week if it's a neck strain. I'm sure they'll be treading on eggshells there.

Would be a big test for Clarkson and McGrath.

Dev Toners heft would come in handy behind them I reckon

Clegg

Paddy Patterson has joined Munster on a short term loan.

https://twitter.com/Murray_Kinsella/status/1353767183323684864?s=09

bayern

Ben Murphys time with Munster ended over christmas. FYI

Patterson looks a long shot to get a leinster dev contract at the end of this season.

Miriam Gonzalez Durantez

Garrigai wrote: »

Surely Toner will be picked to equal D'arcy's record.

Darcy has 261 Leinster caps. His Wiki profile is incorrect. Toner has 256? Is there enough games left in the season to equal his record? If he doesn’t it is unlikely anyone will equal Darcys record again. They would have to start at 18 play 20 games a season for 13 years until the age of 31 to equal it , no injuries at all in that time, squad rotation permitting in larger squads nowadays where there is more rotation and competition for places. They would have to be immediately fast tracked out of club/school and be a mainstay in the team across several coaches. Maybe some player can play until 36 and beat it but with the physical nature of the pro game it is very unlikely. Maybe Leo will get sentimental and play Dev every game left in the season but I doubt it. I doubt has the legs either to get the job done but I hope he proves me wrong! Of course if the rainbow cup goes ahead all bets are off

bayern

seems like furlong will play this weekend.

El_Duderino 09

bayern wrote: »

seems like furlong will play this weekend.

That's brilliant news. I hope he's ready and they're not rushing him back or Ireland's sake. After waiting all this time, it is a bit of a coincidence that he's fit the week before the 6N. But We can assume everything is above board and it's just coincidence

bayern

they've been very cautious with him in order to have him available for Ireland, not wanting to risk a setback if he had tried to play earlier.