Connacht Team Talk Thread VI - Some like it TOH

ClanofLams · 11-06-2021 04:21PM

Peter McCabe would be good squad addition but to replace Buckley, which Connacht really need to do, especially with McAllister also retiring, need someone like Cronin.

ClanofLams · 11-06-2021 04:29PM

Did anyone watch virtual fanzone with new coaches?

Tried to have a look today but YouTube/Connacht have it age restricted and in order to verify my age want credit card or ID, f..k that.

sydthebeat · 11-06-2021 04:45PM

ClanofLams wrote: »

Did anyone watch virtual fanzone with new coaches?

Tried to have a look today but YouTube/Connacht have it age restricted and in order to verify my age want credit card or ID, f..k that.

what in hell do those connacht coaches be getting up to that their clips are age restricted?? the baby oil bill for connacht must be huge !!!

freyners · 12-06-2021 11:49PM

Roux has published an interview with Cian Tracey in the independent. Don't subscribe to the independent due to not wanting to support the hate Francis and Fitzgerald spew so I unfortunately can't read but the byline alone makes it seem a good read.

testtech05 · 14-06-2021 11:27AM

Congrats to the lads on the call ups for the summer internationals, especially delighted for Boyle Daly and Blade hopefully they will all get capped. Does anyone know if Thornbury is injured? (I know he missed last couple of games for us) After the season he had I thought he might get in.

Bazzo · 14-06-2021 11:29AM

testtech05 wrote: »

Congrats to the lads on the call ups for the summer internationals, especially delighted for Boyle Daly and Blade hopefully they will all get capped. Does anyone know if Thornbury is injured? (I know he missed last couple of games for us) After the season he had I thought he might get in.

Fairly sure he is injured, very unlucky as I think he would have made the squad otherwise.

testtech05 · 14-06-2021 11:30AM

Bazzo wrote: »

Fairly sure he is injured, very unlucky as I think he would have made the squad otherwise.

I was assuming so based on his performances this season, very poor timing for him!

ShineyShiney · 14-06-2021 11:32AM

testtech05 wrote: »

I was assuming so based on his performances this season, very poor timing for him!

Hard to imagine that Wycherley would be selected ahead of him. He must be injured, Maloney I'm fairness has had a decent few games this year.

testtech05 · 14-06-2021 12:12PM

Conor Kenny off to Newcastle:
https://www.independent.ie/sport/rugby/connachts-conor-kenny-really-excited-after-joiningnewcastle-40535721.html

Zzippy · 14-06-2021 01:37PM

testtech05 wrote: »

Congrats to the lads on the call ups for the summer internationals, especially delighted for Boyle Daly and Blade hopefully they will all get capped. Does anyone know if Thornbury is injured? (I know he missed last couple of games for us) After the season he had I thought he might get in.

Saw a mention on twitter that he had his arm in a sling recently, so assume he is out through injury and not selection. His form this season has really deserved a call-up.

FACECUTTR · 14-06-2021 05:09PM

Roux to Toulon confirmed.
https://www.the42.ie/quinn-roux-connacht-toulon-5466414-Jun2021/

ClanofLams · 14-06-2021 11:39PM

The new Pro16 format is going to make Connachts efforts to make playoffs/European cup much tougher…

Details announced tomorrow but from what is being speculated now it seems Connacht will be in Irish pool with other provinces. 4 pools with teams from each country (Scotland Italy pool too), pool winners into quarter finals and then top four teams not qualified as pool winners from combined league table also into playoffs and European cup apparently.

Play teams in your pool twice and everyone else once, 18 games in the league. A third of Connachts fixtures will be interpros.

Leinster are obviously going to win pool barring freak stuff so only hope is to be top four in combined table, which Munster Ulster three Saffer teams, second team from Wales Scotland who don’t win their pool will all be chasing also….

Basically 8 horse race for four spots. Might need 12 wins out of 18 to get it and Connacht have the joy of playing the three best teams in the current league at least twice as opposed to everyone else facing them once…

its_phil · 15-06-2021 12:28AM

ClanofLams wrote: »

The new Pro16 format is going to make Connachts efforts to make playoffs/European cup much tougher…

Details announced tomorrow but from what is being speculated now it seems Connacht will be in Irish pool with other provinces. 4 pools with teams from each country (Scotland Italy pool too), pool winners into quarter finals and then top four teams not qualified as pool winners from combined league table also into playoffs and European cup apparently.

Play teams in your pool twice and everyone else once, 18 games in the league. A third of Connachts fixtures will be interpros.

Leinster are obviously going to win pool barring freak stuff so only hope is to be top four in combined table, which Munster Ulster three Saffer teams, second team from Wales Scotland who don’t win their pool will all be chasing also….

Basically 8 horse race for four spots. Might need 12 wins out of 18 to get it and Connacht have the joy of playing the three best teams in the current league at least twice as opposed to everyone else facing them once…

The Scottish/Italian group is the most frustrating of the lot. How is that comparable to the Irish pool?

We’ve just as good odds of qualifying through the Challenge Cup if South Africans get into Europe.

RonnieL · 15-06-2021 09:43AM

I, for one, welcome our new insect overlords...

We've definitely drawn one of the shorter straws as a result of the structure, but in it's old form the league was dying a slow death. If we want to compete, we just need to get better.

15-06-2021 10:38AM

RonnieL wrote: »

I, for one, welcome our new insect overlords...

We've definitely drawn one of the shorter straws as a result of the structure, but in it's old form the league was dying a slow death. If we want to compete, we just need to get better.

And I think you can see with some of the younger lads let go. There seems to be a feel that you need to be stepping up quicker to stay

connachta · 15-06-2021 12:31PM

This is the end of Connacht in Champions Cup
Let's be clear about that

Leinter will qualify 99% of the time
Munster and Ulster will at times (not often) surpass SA teams + Cardiff, Scarlets and Scots who are hugely and unfairly favoured by the format
And we won't see Toulouse or Bristol ever again

connachta · 15-06-2021 12:34PM

"Arrangements" to come all over the place between teams from the same country

If Pro16 wants to limit that, no derbies should be scheduled after March in money time

ClanofLams · 15-06-2021 12:39PM

connachta wrote: »

This is the end of Connacht in Champions Cup
Let's be clear about that

Leinter will qualify 99% of the time
Munster and Ulster will at times (not often) surpass SA teams + Cardiff, Scarlets and Scots who are hugely and unfairly favoured by the format
And we won't see Toulouse or Bristol ever again

Need to come in top four of three South African teams Munster Ulster and maybe the second Scottish/Welsh teams if they improve (it has been a while since either country had two good teams). Not easy by any stretch but not impossible either.

connachta · 15-06-2021 12:44PM

ClanofLams wrote: »

Well it doesn’t come into force until next season anyway so Connacht have this season and very likely next season in the European Cup.

After that need to come in top four of three South African teams Munster Ulster and maybe the second Scottish/Welsh teams if they improve (it has been a while since either country had two good teams). Not easy by any stretch but not impossible either.

2 saffers will hopefully "neutrelize" each other

But 2 welsh and 2 scots will march on Italians/Dragons again and again

that make 6 plus Leinster

Ulster OR Munster, just 1 of the 2, needs to beat us in the table,

will happen 99% of the time

we're just back in 2003 and everyone in Ireland applaudes

ClanofLams · 15-06-2021 12:52PM

connachta wrote: »

2 saffers will hopefully "neutrelize" each other

But 2 welsh and 2 scots will march on Italians/Dragons again and again

that make 6 plus Leinster

Ulster OR Munster, just 1 of the 2, needs to beat us in the table,

will happen 99% of the time

we're just back in 2003 and everyone in Ireland applaudes

I edited my post above, they can qualify from this season on it seems.

The structure is definitely unbalanced but Connacht already had extra games against the Irish teams and managed to qualify despite this.

I would be very surprised if there was four Welsh and Scottish teams qualifying. Connacht just need to focus on themselves, 12 wins out of 18 should be enough I guess and that’s a realistic aim if they cut out the inconsistency.

Tommybojangles · 15-06-2021 01:04PM

If it legitimises the tournament a bit and we're not constantly looking at schedules wondering when we might get 5 against a B team then I'll take the disadvantage. Winning the Challenege Cup should be a legitimate goal for us anyway. What we produced this year was poison anyway and its a personal opinion but I took no real pride in finishing second, compared to other years like the Cardiff win at home that scraped us into the Champions Cup so we need to rebuild our rep as a team that wins all their home games and then go from there

thomond2006 · 15-06-2021 01:13PM

Haha is it Connacht Conspiracy season again?

evil_seed · 15-06-2021 01:33PM

thomond2006 wrote: »

Haha is it Connachta Conspiracy season again?

FTFY

sydthebeat · 15-06-2021 01:33PM

thomond2006 wrote: »

Haha is it Connacht Conspiracy season again?

more like the connacht pearl clutching season....

"wont some one think of the children poor westerners

evil_seed · 15-06-2021 01:41PM

I don't see anyone fretting too much.

On balance, playing Zebre x2 and Dragons x2 is going to fair better to those teams. But Connacht just need to get better. Otherwise we're in the same class as those 2 and the other teams are saying they're at a disadvantage playing us x2.

We've proven we can do it. We just need to be more consistent.

Utopia Parkway · 15-06-2021 02:55PM

connachta wrote: »

This is the end of Connacht in Champions Cup
Let's be clear about that

Leinter will qualify 99% of the time
Munster and Ulster will at times (not often) surpass SA teams + Cardiff, Scarlets and Scots who are hugely and unfairly favoured by the format
And we won't see Toulouse or Bristol ever again

Going to be pretty difficult to qualify from now on alright but it is what it is. Just have to get on with it. Any structure that doesn't have every team playing every other team home and away is going to have inequalities.

Zeugnis · 15-06-2021 02:56PM

Is the new structure for a defined duration or just next year?

sydthebeat · 15-06-2021 02:59PM

Zeugnis wrote: »

Is the new structure for a defined duration or just next year?

committed to next 5 years at least

FACECUTTR · 15-06-2021 03:10PM

Looking forward to the new format. The interpos this season had a marked improvement and it could create great rivalry between the 4 provinces. You only get better by playing against the best teams so we just have to suck it up and beat them more regularly.

On a side note has any work started at the Sportsground or is it going to start soon ? You would think with Covid restrictions lifting they might start.

connachta · 15-06-2021 03:45PM

sydthebeat wrote: »

committed to next 5 years at least

****

So everyone knows it's unfair but everybody accomodates with a poor smile? I don't get it, guys.

Hope we'll be back to the home and away competition
Pro12 can happen again
Probably when, starving for any Champions Cup year, Dragons, Zebre, Ospreys and Connacht will be disbanded

Very very sad day for the underdogs. We may be, as many wished and wish secretly, just wiped out. They'll say we "had our chances". Omitting it's harder to beat Leinster than Zebre

Connacht Team Talk Thread VI - Some like it TOH

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