England v Australia Legends at Twickenham Stoop on Thursday October 31st

 

I don’t normally do this, but it’s for a good cause, and there are going to be some of the legends of the game on show. Let me just lapse into PR Speak for a bit:

To celebrate the 10th Anniversary of 2003 Rugby World Cup Final, Sportingclass and Harvey Thorneycroft Ltd are delighted to present the England v Australia Legends at Twickenham Stoop on Thursday October 31st, kick off is at 7.45pm. The match is in aid of the chatirities Restart www.restartrugby.org.uk, and the  Injured Player’s Foundation and is sponsored by Heathrow Express

Jason Leonard, Martin Corry, Jason Robinson, Phil Vickery, Josh Lewsey and many other members of the victorious England 2003 squad will take on a formidable Australian team, that includes Stirling Mortlock,  Al Baxter, Chris Whitaker and Richard Harry – and with a combined total of over 1,450 Test caps, there is going to be a lot of quality on show.

When I say legends, I mean players like Jason Robinson, who could just about weave his way through a brick wall. And Stirling Mortlock, who was a big strong player with all the skills to go with. I can remember him as captain being called over by the ref to reprimand the current Australian captain, James Horwill in one of his first tests for getting involved in a dust up, and failing spectacularly to control his grin at the state of Horwill’s face. Leinster supporters will be pleased to see Chris Whitaker putting his skills on display again.

Get on down there and support this, our game is based on respect, for the ref, for the fans, for the players, respect for the skills of players from another time, and  respect for the players who’ve come out the wrong side of a hugely physical game

And the English team is here: 
http://www.quins.co.uk/news/7961.php#.UnEUemwgHCQ

Ireland 4, Europe 0!

 (picture http://bit.ly/1b4nQyf)

I didn’t catch the Connacht match but they got a great win away at Zebre.

Leinster was next up for Ireland, who played some good rugby, some average rugby, then watched with interest as Castre imploded, and took full advantage. Julien Tomas gets the muppet of the month award for his yellow card for three crooked feeds. In fact, he can keep the award, someone is going to have to outdo themselves to win it off him. Leinster’s scrum is improved beyond recognition, we have 4 props now, 5 even, which is a pretty amazing turnaround. Our lineout was pretty average though, and the running rugby is still stuttering. But a good win at home nonetheless.

Ulster, meanwhile, were getting  a great away result at Montpellier. I didn’t see it, but that’s a massive result for them, from the form Irish province – they must have the best chance of bagging an HC for Ireland.

Finally, it was Munster’s turn to have a go at a strange looking Gloucester side. They put them away well in the end, but they, like Leinster, are missing a few gears. Great match for Peter O’Mahoney, but I’m, still not convinced with how Munster are trying to play. DOC, for instance, is not, and never will be a wing.
I also caught bits of the Toulouse Saracens match, where the English Galacticos slipped up when they surely had that one in the bag.

And huge  credit for Cardiff for sticking it to Toulon – maybe some of their stars are starting to show their age a bit, and Cardiff ran them into the ground eventually.

Quins battled hard with no return again, and Glasgow got their show on the road.

Finally, the all conquering All Blacks wrapped up their season with another good win, but Australia did themselves proud too.  Of concern will be that they’ve shipped 60 points in the last two matches.

Heineken Cup
Saracens  16 - 17  Toulouse    
Leicester  34 - 3  Benetton Treviso 
Cardiff Blues 19 - 15 Toulon 
Zebre 6 - 33 Connacht 
Leinster 19 - 7 Castres 
Munster 26 - 10 Gloucester 
Scarlets 26 - 26 Racing Metro 92 
Montpellier 8 - 25 Ulster 
Northampton 27 - 16 Ospreys 
Perpignan 31 - 14 Edinburgh 
Clermont Auvergne 23 - 13 Harlequins 
Glasgow 20 - 16 Exeter 

Seconds out, round 2!

 

Seconds out, round 2!

Leinster get things going for Ireland when they welcome Castre to the RDS. No BOD, no Cullen, maybe no Ross – but Macken and Moore will no doubt step up to the plate. Anytime I’ve seen Castres play, BIG has been the impression I’ve had.  Away from home, the intent of most of the French clubs gets sorely tested – a good finish in the T14 seems to be their main focus. Leinster know how to do this HC thing now, and as long as they don’t offer too many 3 point opportunities to Rory Kockott, they should get home.

Connacht get a shot at an away win at Zebre, and if they play like they did against Saracens, I can’t see any problems for them.

Montpellier V Ulster is a mouth watering prospect, think BIG  V BiG! Ulster’s title credentials are going to be given a stern examination, by high flying Monpellier. Leinster got a draw there last year, a touch lucky maybe, but it can be done. Ulster will have to pull their socks up from last week, and in reality will probably aim to get a losing bonus point.

Finally, Munster get a n opportunity to right the wrongs of last week when Gloucester come to town. At home they are different animal from the near sighted mole that crawled out of the ground in Edinburgh, and they’ll do the business no doubt.

Finally, the Wallabies get another crack at the All Blacks on Saturday – think high scoring match with the AB’s on the right side of that.
Heineken Cup

Friday , October 18
Saracens vs Toulouse 
Leicester vs Benetton Treviso 
Saturday , October 19
Leinster vs Castres 15:40
Cardiff Blues vs Toulon 13:35
Zebre vs Connacht 13:35
Scarlets vs Racing Metro 92 18:00
Montpellier vs Ulster 15:40
Munster vs Gloucester 18:00
Sunday , October 20
Northampton vs Ospreys 12:45
Glasgow vs Exeter 14:00
Clermont Auvergne vs Harlequins 15:00
Perpignan vs Edinburgh 12:45

Leinster get back on the horse, Munster fall off, Ulster are firing again and Connacht were superb

 

Is that an alice band I spy?  (picture http://bit.ly/15zGa2a)

That was a 50:50 weekend for Ireland inc. On Friday, Ulster started to show a bit of their form from the last few years with a hard fought win over the Tigers. Not the pyrotechnics of a few years ago, but it was one they weren’t going to let go. They have several players roaring back into form, Bowe, Touhy, Wilson, Jackson, and Tom Court, with a bit of advice on his technique at half time, got some sweet revenge against Mr Scrumbender himself, Dan Cole.  These guys are only going to get better – with players like Diack, Olding and Henderson on the bench they have real depth these days, not to mention Afoa and Ferris still injured. Are the Tigers feeling O’Connors loss? They have injuries, but they seem to have lost some of their physicality.

Connacht in Galway were typically superb – you only had to see Saracens celebrating at the end to know what a battle they were in. They are making the Sportsground their fortress in this competition.

Munster were up next for Ireland, but arrived with their B game, looking as if they thought the match started at 3 instead of 1.30. They played some decent rugby in patches, and in fairness Edinburgh played well. It doesn’t mean Munster won’t go on to top the group, but it’s one they should have won. To me they need to concentrate on a back to basics forwards based game, sort out their pretty awful line out, keep it tight and only let it out when at all necessary. Well, they can only get better you hope.

Leinster turned it around at the liberty stadium, putting last weekend behind them and getting back on the horse, with a tough away victory. It wasn’t a characteristic running game from Leinster, but based on defense, and powerful running the ball up from Healsip and O’Brien. And McLaughlin, Ruddock and Cronin. Their scrum stood up well too, even without Ross. The Ospreys couldn’t break through, and just moved the ball from side to side. Finally, one for the Ospreys fans – Richard Hibbard is a superb player, a mighty Lion and all – but is there any chance you could all chip in for an alice band to keep his hair back?

I also saw a fair bit of the Scarlets Quins match – mighty performance from the Scarlets, where Scott Williams and Aaron Shingler starred, and Rhodri  Williams has future international stamped all over him.

Heineken Cup
Friday , October 11
Ulster 22 - 16 Leicester 
Connacht 17 - 23 Saracens 
Toulouse 38 - 5 Zebre 
Saturday , October 12
Benetton Treviso 10 - 27 Montpellier 
Edinburgh 29 - 23 Munster 
Castres 19 - 13 Northampton 
Gloucester 27 - 22 Perpignan 
Ospreys 9 - 19 Leinster 
Harlequins 26 - 33 Scarlets 
Sunday , October 13
Exeter 44 - 29 Cardiff Blues 
Toulon 51 - 28 Glasgow 

This Heineken Cup season has a limited edition, final tour feel to it...

 

The HC is back, and this season has a limited edition, final tour feel to it. Catch it before they sell out and break up!As is my habit now, I go through the pools and make risible guesses on the eventual 8 that make it out of this stage.

Group 1 has Castres  Leinster,  Northampton and the Ospreys. Castres are near the bottom of the T14, while Saints are no 2 in the premiership. It’s not a bad group for Leinster – no easy games for them, but it could be a lot worse! I’m going to be completely biased and say Leinster will top the group – and start off with an away win at the Ospreys. With all their internationals back, both sides have handy squads, but I’m going with Leinster’s experience. Hope BOD makes his recovery in time.

Group 2 has the Cardiff Blues, Exeter , Glasgow Warriors and Toulon. In this pool I’m going with mmm, Car…Toulon of course, and I think Glasgow will come good and get a runners up spot here.

Group 3 is Connacht , Saracens,  Toulouse and Zebre. Saracens top the AP, while Toulouse are 3rd in the T14, but tied first on points. I’m going with Toulouse because of their squad size. Connacht have Saracens this weekend, who will be totally underestimating them, so I’m going with a close win for Saracens.

Group 4 is Clermont Auvergne, Harlequins, Racing Metro Paris, and Scarlets. Clermont are 5th RM are 8th, it was Clermont’s season last year…until they blew it, but I’m sure Cotter wants to notch this up on his CV so Clermont it is., with RM getting a runners up spot.

Group 5 is Treviso,  Leicester Tigers, Montpellier,  and Ulster.  Tigers are 3rd in the AP and Montpellier 2nd in the T14. Likely to be between Ulster and Tigers as Montpellier have always been fecking terrible in Europe. And I think of all the Irish teams this is Ulster’s year,  with Pienaar back they should do the business against the Tigers this weekend, and end top of the group.

Group 6 is Edinburg, Gloucester, Munster and Perpignan. Gloucester are 10th in the AP, and Perpignan 6th. Really, if Munster don’t top this they are going to have to play really badly indeed! They should get things with a comfortable win against Edinburgh.

Heineken Cup
Friday , October 11
Toulouse vs Zebre 
Connacht vs Saracens 
Ulster vs Leicester 
Saturday , October 12
Castres vs Northampton 15:40
Ospreys vs Leinster 18:00
Harlequins vs Scarlets 15:40
Benetton Treviso vs Montpellier 13:35
Edinburgh vs Munster 13:35
Gloucester vs Perpignan 18:00
Sunday , October 13
Exeter vs Cardiff Blues 12:45
Toulon vs Glasgow 15:00
Racing Metro 92 vs Clermont Auvergne 20:00

The Springboks and All Blacks dish up one for the ages, while Munster Ulster and the Wallabies come good

 

 (picture http://bit.ly/1b0kYmy)

I’m fairly square eyed after this weekend. Starting off with Ulster V Ospreys, where the Ulstermen showed a lot of character to dog out this win. I’m not one to talk about refs, but Peter Fitzgibbon was certainly even handed, with both sets of fans raging about him!

Munster got one over Leinster at Musgrave Park in a messy match. The ball didn’t move much more than a metre at a time in open play, apart from the usual kick fest. Paulie is like another loose forward, and Donnacha Ryan adds a lot to the team. Leinster just couldn’t impose themselves on the game – Lote Tuquiri played well, and SOB is very welcome back. Leinster aren’t quite the same without Sexton, and BOD in this match, but they’re getting there

The Springboks/All Blacks match was one for the ages. As a Springbok fan, when you saw how well the All Blacks were playing, to me anyway iit was obvious it was going to be an AB day. But that didn’t spoil my enjoyment – far from it, I couldn’t have been prouder of the Boks, or more impressed by New Zealand. What wasn’t there to enjoy, tries, pace,  skill, unmatched ferocity…that’s going to stay on the hard drive for a long time. New Zealand are the best team in the world, by a long way right now.

The Wallabies got back on the horse late on Saturday night, with a storming multi try performance. If they carry on playing like that, it’s going to be a proper 3 way tussle again for the Rugby Championship next year. In stark contrast, Argentina seem to be going backwards again after a good showing in the middle of the tournament

RaboDirect PRO12
Ospreys 12 - 18 Ulster
Newport Gwent D'gons  30 - 7  Zebre    
Benetton Treviso  23 - 3  Connacht 
Scarlets 12 - 17 Glasgow 
Munster 19 - 15 Leinster 
Cardiff Blues 29 - 12 Edinburgh
Rugby Championship
South Africa 27 - 38 New Zealand 
Argentina 17 - 54 Australia 

Leinster, Ulster, the Springboks and the Pumas - bring it on!

 

 Howya, Ronan. (picturehttp://bit.ly/15KTVxn)

The big match this weekend in the PRO12 is the all Irish clash between Leinster and Munster. It’s third plays fourth, and continues a long rivalry, it the one match that both sides want to win, and nearly more importantly that neither side want to lose. It was the scene in 2009 for the picture above, with Jonny Sexton politely enquiring if Ronan O’Gara is OK. Or something. It’s also the last warm up match before the HC kicks off, so time to bring out the big guns and get things settled for the week after. For Munster, that means Paulie starting and the return of Connor Murray. Meanwhile, Leinster should feature SOB and probably Lote Tuquiri pulling on the blue jersey in the pinnacle of his career.  Having watched only bits and pieces of Munster in the last couple of weeks,  they are starting to improve, but even away from home I think Leinster have a stronger team, so I’m going with Leinster.

Ulster have Andrew Trimble back to face Ospreys, and apart from Afoa and Pienaar, that looks like their strongest 15. Going to be a great match – and I’m going with Ulster.

On the other side of the world, the All Blacks will be in Johannesburg to take on the Springboks. There’s massive history from the first match, where a red card spoiled the match, and arguably gave NZ an extra bonus point they might not have got. They just need a point to retain the Rugby Championship. They showed last week against Argentina they can take some pressure, and then take the points after that. I can’t see them getting any less than 80 minutes of scary pressure from the Boks though. I think the All Blacks have a better drilled side, not better players than the Boks, and their scrum is just not as good. All in all, I’m going with a win for the Boks but no bonus point.

The last match of the Championship sees the Wallabies drag their sorry arses into Argentina. One win so far, and that was paper thin. It’s been a horrible year for them and likely to get worse, I mean, are the Argentineans going to be up for this or what? The best thing for Australia is just to take their medicine, write this year off, slink back home and come back better and stronger next year.

RaboDirect PRO12
Friday , October 4
Ospreys vs Ulster 19:05
Newport Gwent D'gons vs Zebre 19:15
Benetton Treviso vs Connacht 19:30
Saturday , October 5
Scarlets vs Glasgow 18:30
Munster vs Leinster 18:45
Sunday , October 6
Cardiff Blues vs Edinburgh 14:05
Rugby Championship
Saturday , October 5
South Africa vs New Zealand 16:00
Argentina vs Australia 23:40