RUGBY ANALYST:All four could have done with game time ahead of a crucial couple of weeks in their seasons, writes LIAM TOLAND
ON SUNDAY, January 2nd, I sat in Dublin Airport with a tough decision facing me. I needed to get to Ravenhill for the Ulster v Munster Magners League game. The roads were pretty much out of bounds and I had missed the 11am train, which left the 1.20pm. Unfortunately, I would have arrived late for my appointment with Setanta’s coverage of Connacht entertaining Leinster in the Sportsground. To quote Dr Liam Hennessy’s advice this week relating to golfers changing their physical make up, I set off in my car northwards to “hasten slowly”.
Clearly my effort in negotiating the road to Belfast was not in vain, as the Galway game was declared off limits. Both Connacht and Leinster missed out on vital matches in preparation for this weekend.
After Ulster’s win that evening I headed back to Dublin, a 210-mile round trip without a glitch. So you can imagine my surprise when I disembarked from my car at Custom House Quay 400 metres from O’Connell Street to slip and land on my rear end. Five hours of trouble-free driving followed by a fall in the capital, Murphy’s Law!
Many coaches will embrace the opportunity for a mini mid-season break that would allow players a temporary reprieve, nursing wounds and working on “luxury” areas such as core and Pilates.
The reality over the past few weeks, however, is much different as both the Irish provinces and individual players were desperate to play each weekend. Their schedule was based on that outcome.
Regardless of what coaches say, missing games is a disaster. Mentally it is very draining preparing for the opposition, studying their strengths and weaknesses and tailoring training to these lessons, travelling to the fixture before finally being stood down. Shane Jennings needed pitch time, Johnny Sexton and Marcus Horan likewise.
And the Munster midfield probably needed it most. Ulster, on the front foot, exposed their defence that needed an immediate riposte. Defence takes time and the ever evolving and unpredictable environment of a match is the only way to iron out difficulties.
Ditto for live scrums. Most amateur club sides will break down training as follows; warm-up, drills/skills before the backs split from the forwards and finally the team run. During that split the forwards will line up against the scrummaging machine and bang out 30-50 scrums. Although an excellent fitness exercise, doing repetitive scrums does not account for the rough and tumble of a live match which is far less sanitised. With only 10 scrums a game, one every eight minutes on average, the players must battle on several fronts before scrumming down.
The one consolation for our provinces is simple; the “cold snap” was not exclusive to Ireland. Brive, playing on a white pitch, struggled to beat a poor Albi. Britain has been affected also, with Northampton Saints losing out to the Recreation Ground conditions against Bath.
But they had a massive win over London Irish the previous week. With frontrow performers Soane Tonga’uiha, Dylan Hartley (capt) and Euan Murray in mind the trip to Treviso is timely for Munster.
Murray, in particular, needs to be tamed in the scrum next week. A win is important, obviously, but the Munster midfield must be water-tight in defence. Munster will not come through against the Saints at Thomond Park if the scrum performs as it did at Ravenhill, hence matches are vital; winning is also vital but a solid scrum and midfield is crucial.
There are no prizes for guessing that tonight’s clash at Ravenhill is as important to Ulster as Connacht’s is to them in Galway. The Sportsground should be hopping for tonight’s Amlin Challenge Cup match against Montpellier and although it’s a massive game Connacht should remain comfortable throughout.
However, it is such a pity Ulster couldn’t build on their very impressive pre-Christmas performance at the RDS and their hard-earned victory over Munster. Ospreys, who top a very strong Pool Three in Europe, would have been excellent opposition, proving a hybrid of styles between Munster and Edinburgh.
Brian McLaughlin’s men must be brave this week. With ball in hand they will threaten the Scots and score tries. Their Achilles’ heel remains their tendency to lower the pace as the game goes on. This will be very dangerous against the Scots. Combine that to a potential lack of concentration around the fringes, which killed them in Edinburgh, and break down penalties and Ulster could be caught.
Two Ulster players to watch tonight are in the “row”; neither are household names but both Dan Tuohy and Ed O’Donoghue are crucial because the frontrow men of the match against Munster won’t have it all their way tonight.
It’s interesting to note the positive murmurings from players in Ulster. Young talented forwards Nigel Brady, Chris Henry, Willie Faloon and back Ian Whitten signing long contracts tells its own story. But there is a cautionary tale as five Ulster Academy players have all signed one-year deals. It is a wonderful opportunity for them but young players throughout the island can be left very exposed with short-term contracts.
If John Hayes is crucial to Munster’s campaign so too is CJ van der Linde for Leinster. He has been desperately unlucky with his injuries and again against the Scarlets at the RDS, but if Leinster are to retain the cup he is vital.
As always, the fixture list can influence the pool outcome. Leinster hammered Brive in France some time back. Regardless of the change in coaching structures and the big recent victories in the Top 14 the brand is so diluted by mercenaries, a meaningless match for them should not allow for a Leinster slip-up.
PS: Jamie Smith’s meteoric rise from Phoenix Ulster Rugby Academy Squad to European Cup starting fullback in a matter of weeks has been so fast the nerds in the Ulster Branch haven’t been able to keep up. He is hot property, but he has neither a “player biog” nor any “player’s news” on the website.
liamtoland@yahoo.com
