Welcome to my 80+ column, a weekly post featuring final thoughts from the week of rugby just gone.
WRAP OF A WRAP
All due respect to the Glasgow Warriors, but let’s just say Leinster’s win last Saturday is not one that will go down in the memory. Or at least not one that will inspire the province to bring out the available players who took part at half time in a match 10 years down the road, like Leinster did with the 2011/12 HCup winning teams!
Despite the comparative lack of importance, I still think the lads did a really good job describing the action in our Sunday pod, each of them providing their own expertise with Keego bringing the witty references and Mark the coaching expertise, just goes to show what a wide variety of Leinster fans are out there and while I have said it before I’m happy to say again that I’m lucky to have such an awesome set of contributors.
I also consider myself lucky to be able to go to these matches at the RDS since no matter what the overall importance of the occasion I never fail to enjoy being there on matchday.
Our extra chat this week was on Leinster’s defence, we have harped on it before but as we continue to remain this consistent without the ball no matter what the lineup, I’ll feel like bringing it up again and again on these pages until the standards start to slip. And as I bring up the near perfection I see week in week out, it’s always good to have fellow fans to bring me at least a little bit back down to earth as you can see in the clip below.
Mark’s point that Glasgow didn’t really challenge us and Keego’s that we need to be wary of relying too much on it are both well made, in fact that all comes into play in last season’s Champions Cup final. We not only found out that keeping the opposition’s score down isn’t worth much if you can’t find the tries yourself, but also if anything our defending was TOO perfect in those closing minutes – ironically if we had let La Rochelle score much earlier in their late seige we would have at least had time left to respond! Anyway, here’s the chat…have a listen for yourself and maybe subscribe to the channel too if the mood takes you…
DODDIE WEIR
A Lions Tour, 61 caps for Scotland where he scored 19 points from four tries (one under the old money of four points) and starring for both Newcastle Falcons and Border Reivers as the sport was just turning professional is a brief summary of Doddie Weir’s achievements on the pitch, but it’s what happened after his retirement for which he will be most remembered. Of course I don’t just mean the tragic ailment of MND but of course the lengths to which he went to help raise awareness through the My Name’5 Doddie Foundation. Here’s the opening couple of paragraphs from their post from Monday, click here for the full article and by all means feel free to contribute if you can.
Instantly recognised as an outstanding rugby player, Doddie was diagnosed with MND just two days before Christmas in 2016, eventually going public with the news the following summer on what was Motor Neuron Disease Awareness Day.
Since making his condition known, Doddie has championed the campaign for more to be done for sufferers of the disease, both in terms of finding a possible cure, and with the treatment and welfare of patients and their carers.
My Name’5 Doddie Foundation
@IRISHWOMENS
We have interviewed the owner of the @IrishWomens account a few times for the pod, but understandably they wish to remain anonymous as their aim is to further the cause of the women’s game throughout the four provinces. We’re very sorry, if not entirely surprised, to learn that they have received a good bit of abuse on social media, especially recently and I hope my readers would join me in offering them and indeed anyone encountering such treatment online our full support.
I was glad to see this particular situation was resolved and I hope it doesn’t happen again although unfortunately I fear there are more bad faith actors than this one so we need to look out for each other and call it out when we see it.
Meanwhile those of us with a genuine interest in full inclusivity in the sport can go on having our rational adult discussions.
I'm relieved to see the defamatory tweet in question has finally been removed.
A difference of opinion is fine. Doxxing, defamation & bullying isn't. I hope now that the person in question can move on.
Rob Russell’s 1st try for Leinster on Saturday, coming as it did after an out-of-this-world offload by Charlie Ngatai, reminded me of technology I have seen in rugby league which could really be used in union.
Thankfully for the boys in blue the try I mention above was clear cut after a couple of looks on the replay, but often in tries in the corner it is difficult to see whether the grounding was made before or after a trailing foot drags into touch. Or at least it’s difficult when you only see one angle at a time.
I have to admit I don’t watch a whole lot of rugby league but I am pretty sure I have seen a feature used where your can watch four different angles at once played simultaneously so everyone can see exactly what they need to see to make a decision. Baffles me how something as helpful as that can’t be brought into Union. We often complain about TMOs for wasting time but sometimes maybe they can be improved.
SEVENS ARE BACK
Unfortunately for all I have said on these pages about football being played in Qatar, Dubai isn’t a whole lot better when it comes to human rights and after the final RWC2023 qualifiers taking place there over the past few weeks, it’s now time for the Sevens circuit to pass through with both Ireland’s Women’s and Men’s teams taking part.
Both squads will be looking to improve on their respective 7th place finishes in Hong Kong in the first round, and the action is all being streamed on the World Rugby website from 5am (Irish time) on Friday.
INJURY REPORTS
Delighted to see Messrs Larmour & Lowe continuing to move up the list and it would be great to see one or both of them involved against Ulster at the weekend. The news is not so great for Robbie Henshaw however and I doubt we’ll see him before the start of the 2023 Six Nations. That also means of course it would be extra beneficial for Leinster if Charlie Ngatai’s injury isn’t as bad as it looked when he was removed at halftime last Saturday, especially as he was playing so well.
INJURY UPDATE – AVAILABLE FOR SELECTION:
Harry Byrne and Rónan Kelleher: came through the game at the weekend against Glasgow Warriors with no issues after their return from hamstring injuries
Ryan Baird: came through the game at the weekend with no issues following his return from the Graduated Return to Play Protocols
Jordan Larmour: will train fully with the squad this week after his recovery from a foot injury
James Lowe: will train fully with the squad this week after his recovery from a calf injury
INJURY UPDATE – FURTHER ASSESSMENT REQUIRED:
Johnny Sexton: will be further assessed as the week goes on for a calf injury before a final decision is made on his availability
Charlie Ngatai: will be further assessed as the week goes on for a shoulder injury before a final decision is made on his availability
INJURY UPDATE – UNAVAILABLE FOR SELECTION:
Robbie Henshaw: had a procedure on a wrist injury last week which will rule him out of action until early in the new year
There are no further updates on:
Martin Moloney (knee), Ciarán Frawley (knee), Will Connors (bicep), James Tracy (neck), Charlie Ryan (knee) and Tommy O’Brien (knee)
AIL UPDATE
The Women’s AIL plays to a finish before Christmas with teams vying for a place in the final which will be screened live on TG4 on Dec 9. This weekend sees the semifinals with 1st seed Rock hosting UL Bohs in one while the other is a Dublin derby between Railway Union and Belvo.
Meanwhile in the men’s version they are at round 7 of 18 with Terenure continuing their perfectly perfect start with 35 points out of 35 although Clontarf did stay close enough to them in the round’s biggest clash for a losing bonus. The Nure have another 1st v 2nd clash in the next round when they host Trinity at Lakelands.
It was a good weekend for most of the Munster clubs in Div 1A with Shannon and Young Munster both defeating Dublin opposition while Cork Con stayed in touch at the top thanks in part to the ridiculously long penalty by George Coomber you see in the clip below.
Women’s AIL
Dec 3
SEMIFINALS
Blackrock v UL Bohemians
Railway Union v Old Belvedere
Men’s AIL
Sat Nov 26
Shannon 36-24 UCD
Ballynahinch 13-20 Cork Con
Clontarf 24-29 Terenure
Dublin University 24-25 Young Munster
Lansdowne 47-28 Garryowen
Sat Dec 3
Cork Con v Clontarf
Garryowen v Ballynahinch
Terenure v Dublin University
UCD v Lansdowne
Shannon v Young Munster
There are long-range penalties, really long-range penalties and then there's *this* from @CorkConRugbyFC's George Coomber who landed this penalty from the car park against @HinchRFC in the #EnergiaAIL this weekend.
The return of the URC also means the return of the Harpin’ Prediction League and the good news for me this week is that I made up a lot of ground on Kino who was getting a little too comfortable at the top. However the bad news for me was that I’d be an extra point closer if only I had remembered to get my prediction for Stormers and Scarlets in on time!!! Still though, at least the Ospreys came through for me this weekend, while the URC’s 2 upset results, namely Benetton beating Embra and Cardiff’s shock whitewash of the Sharks, not being forecast by any of us. Down at the bottom of the table as you can see, it’s not looking good for Keego who may have to don The Jersey Of Shame at season’s end.
THE NEXT BATCH OF HARPIN’
Ulster up next at the RDS so we’ll have Ian Frizzell back on the pod to offer an opposition view on Wednesday, Keego will be helping me with the preview and then for the wrap on Saturday it will be Conor Cronin and Tom Coleman on duty. Also we’ll have all the usual features including the return of Eurowatch with some TikTok videos showing how Leinster’s Champions Cup opponents are getting on in their domestic competitions.
In the meantime, be sure to enjoy your rugby wherever you are. JLP
26 November 2022; Charlie Ngatai of Leinster offloads to teammate Rob Russell in the build up to his side’s second try during the United Rugby Championship match between Leinster and Glasgow Warriors at RDS Arena in Dublin. Photo by Harry Murphy/Sportsfile
Martin Loughrey Good result today with some good performances, but we’d have struggled against a better team. Far too many penalties, 15 in total really held us back. Russell obviously had a great game, I thought the back row were solid, and Osbourne impressed also. Ngatai’s offload for the 2nd try was some kind of witchcraft! Good to see Kelleher come through unscathed. All in all, not a vintage performance, but a solid result.
Andrew Potts Leinster played well and a number of solid performances by the next generation . Not sure about the penalty count, its unlike Leinster to be so spendthrift.
Chris McDonnell Harry made a big difference when he came on as did foley and Cosgrave.
TWITTER
Well Leinster for me are the benchmark in this league. And on the basis of today, we’re a long way behind them.
Brian Nisbet 40-5 in the RDS. Glasgow had so much possession but just couldn’t turn it into points. Leinster did, over and over
RichardMifsud Dominant display by #LeinsterRugby against Glasgow Warriors Great to see returns from key players after injury Poor discipline and inaccuracies will keep the coaches busy but overall a very welcome return to #URC action for the boys
Welcome to my 80+ column, a weekly post featuring final thoughts from the week of rugby just gone.
WRAP OF A WRAP
Was happy to have Ian Frizzell and Stephen “Master Of None” Murphy on the pod this week to harp on the narrow win over Australia, always good to get a perspective from outside Leinster although we pretty much agreed on most of what went on, ICYMI you can check it out by clicking this link.
HARPIN’ ON NIC WHITE’S HIA
As often happens with our Sunday pods, while we have a tight schedule of topics for the show itself to keep it under the hour, sometimes the conversations do go on and I’m happy to let them – even if they get cut I can always produce videos for the YouTube channel and this week we had two such clips.
First up we have the chat over Nic White’s HIA which was the focus of a post match discussion on Virgin Media with Matt Williams’ poor attempt at defending the decision. I’ve seen some opinion out there that we shouldn’t attack him so much as the officials but IMO it’s about much more than this one incident. A lot of people watching what these pundits say will likely be involved one day in making important decisions way below test level and I believe we should all be on the same page with the message “if in doubt sit ’em out”.
HARPIN’ ON JACK CROWLEY
We had another good chat about Jack Crowley’s start and for me it was a good chat to have because we had opinions from three non-Munster provinces and all were positive, check for yourself…
One feature of this season is that assuming there are no COVID-style interruptions to the calendar, Leinster & Ireland aren’t scheduled to clash on the same weekend, which is really good news for fans of both who are watching their pockets.
But if there absolutely had to be a clash, this match at Energia Park in Donnybrook is almost exactly what makes a good exception to that rule, I say almost because of the 2pm Friday kickoff which would have been a struggle for many, although they did allow for that by offering both free admission plus live streaming on YouTube (it’s still up if you didn’t get to watch just click this link).
Meanwhile here at Harpin’ Manor although I have enjoyed the switch from article writeups to podcast wrapups, I do miss the old way so maybe matches like this one can be an opportunity to briefly go back to the “old way”.
Actually myself and Tom Coleman did do some brief harping on the match in last Friday’s Preview Show, although that recording was not long after the match finished and now I’ve had a chance to watch over it again, I do have a few headings under which I’d like to share some thoughts…
DEFENCE – One observation I made on the preview show was that “this match reminded me of the old British & Irish Cup matches down in Donnybrook where it was Boys vs Men and the boys winning handily”. I still believe this to an extent, but I should probably add a caveat because Chile were clearly a much better outfit than some of the sides Leinster A faced back in the day.
They definitely came to play but not for the first time a Leinster side has posted a scoreline like this where I’m much more impressed by the “3” in the scoreline than I am by the “40”. From the first minute to the last while “Los Cóndores” did everything they could to add some five-pointers to the penalty they converted in the sixth minute to take the lead, they just could not break down the home side’s defensive organisation which is yet another clear indicator that it matters not if it’s the elite XV or a side like this with mostly academy and club hopefuls, the standards without the ball seem to run right through the squad.
I’ll mention individuals in a later point but for this one it would be unfair to single people out as there did not seem to be a weak link in the chain and even on the rare occasions there was a line break it was always snuffed out by excellent scrambling. Not a bad quality for a trophy-chasing club to be able to rely on.
SIX TRIES – But of course no matter how well you’re defending you also have to put points on the board and after settling in with a couple of “penalty-lineout-maul-Lee Barron try” scores, our third was an amazing tap n go penalty by Cormac Foley where he started 10m in his own half, jinked around 3 forwards like they weren’t there and then accelerated through the backfield sevens-style for the score.
The “bonus point” try came with the visitors being a man down as this the set move of an attacking lineout went through the backs where Andrew Smith, who overall didn’t have the best day with a few missed chances, made no mistake here with a neat in-out step to get around the final tackler.
Early in the second half right at the end of the sin bin period skipper for the day Liam Turner ran a lovely line to take a pass breaking through under the posts to make it 33-3 while on 49 minutes we got our 6th and final try when number 8 Sean O’Brien took an offload after a Nick McCarthy snipe to go over.
Being the defensive nerd that I am I actually didn’t mind the lack of tries in the final half hour as Chile really did all they could to get their side of the scoreboard working again only to be denied even after we went heavily into our bench. For me, that kind of defiance is as good as a seven pointer.
STANDOUT PLAYERS – Charlie Tector got PotM yet while I do think he played well and seems to be progressing nicely after his U20 Six Nations heroics earlier in the year, if Cormac Foley had played the full 80 (he left the action on 44m although did come back on briefly for McCarthy later) I’d have gone for him, not only for the “worldy” try, but also for his over distribution and decision making which was mostly at the heart of everything positive for our attack.
Others that stood out for me were second row pairing Brian Deeny & Cormac Foley, and back rowers Conall Boomer and Seán O’Brien. Also having already harped on the team defending, there was an amazing individual effort from Liam Turner in stopping a certain try with a last-ditch tackle in the corner, his stock is definitely rising in a Leinster set up already well stocked with quality centres.
JUSTIN & JAMES – I remember a Leinster match back in the old Pro 14 (though not the opposition sadly) when the TV commentators were Reggie Corrigan and Bernard Jackman and I remarked that they would be perfect for ALL Leinster matches, even if just as a red button option if that could be organised.
But I reckon Justin Middleton & James Lowe did a decent job putting themselves forward for such a role on this match, not only did they describe the action perfectly but we also got to know some of the lads’ nicknames, like Rob Russell “The TikTok Dancer”, Tom Clarkson “The Italian Stallion”, and also according to JLowe it seems Michael Milne is a bit of a grumpy sod!
Imagine people with accents that are definitely not Irish banging on about Leinster Rugby like that? I doubt anyone else would dare giving it a go…
FINAL THOUGHTS – All in all a good run out for all involved and a decent bonus to have on the calendar to help get us back into the URC mindset after the Autumn internationals. And I’m pretty sure the occasion helped greatly in Chile’s World Cup preparations, too. The mini-bustup at the end (or dare I call it a “mini-Donnybrook”?) shows just how seriously both sides were taking it.
JVDF & TK = 🌎 POTY
A moment I’ll cherish forever..
Feeling very grateful to be part of two brillant teams with world class players, coaches and staff. I wouldn’t be in this situation without their hard work and the support of my family.
“And when Irish Men’s Rugby saw the breadth of its domain, it wept, for there were no more worlds to conquer.”
Obviously that’s tongue in cheek but whatever happens in the future we can always say we remember a time when Ireland’s XVs team were ranked number 1, we had the best XVs player in the world, the best 7s player in the world, plus of course a World Cup 7s bronze after only taking the discipline seriously a few years ago.
Absolutely delighted for Josh & Terry on their much-deserved awards, obviously there are many out there who will highlight the case for others to have gotten them but just let them grumble.
Next up, as well as keeping the men’s standards where they are heading to RWC2023, we can also aspire to bringing the women’s game up to those levels as well.
RAS-TOO-FAR-IAN
Ugh. I’m sick and tired of harpin’ on f**kin’ Rassie. But he gives me no choice. I do my best to stay level headed on the social media as others seem to find themselves all too easily “triggered”, but when he posted last week about his spate of tweets and videos after the Boks lost to both Ireland & France in successive weeks, suggesting that the posts were “not aimed at the officials,but to our fans on what we should do better”, I’d had enough of the BS and had to respond.
Step 1, grow a pair. Step 2, own up to your responsibility. Step 3, apologize. Step 4, promise to never do tweets like that again.
Not surprisingly a lot of South African fans replied with not too kind suggestions as to what I could do for steps 5, 6 and sometimes even 7, but I realise I did kind of leave myself open to that with the framing and I certainly don’t regret posting the tweet at all.
It later emerged that he had been banned for two more games by World Rugby [very weak sauce IMO given his previous but at least it was something] so I’m assuming his tweet was done having found out about the sanction before us.
Whatever the reality behind the scenes, the guy really needs to stay in his lane.
A BRIDGE TOO QATAR
I’m definitely not “one of those” rugby fans who likes to turn up his nose at football, but when it comes to the 2022 World Cup that just started last weekend, I’m definitely a rugby fan who is happy to turn his back on it for a few weeks. Plenty of URC & Heineken Cup action to satisfy my sporting taste buds in that time.
Sadly, as I have said before on these pages, with Qatar Airways sneaking on to the URC officials jerseys and the final RWC qualifiers taking place in Dubai of all places, I fear our own sport might be tempted down a similar road.
We try and we try to keep sport and politics apart but the feckers in the blazers sure don't make it easy do they.
I don’t know very much about my Portuguese heritage on my father’s side, but after their dramatic last-gasp penalty to clinch a draw against the USA which was enough to get them to RWC2023, I might find out a bit more so I can get behind them as my second team when the tournament comes around. Massive achievement for them although I reckon Francisco Issac, who appeared on our pod talking about the Rugby Europe Super Cup a few weeks ago, explains their journey a whole lot better in this Squidge-esque video…
INJURY REPORTS
Biggest news in this week’s Leinster list is Rónan Kelleher reaching the “Available for selection” portion although of course it’s great to see Ryan & Harry there too. As great and all as it has been to see Dan Sheehan tearing it up this season, it won’t hurt to have Rónan back to his best as well and he must be chomping at the bit to get out there.
Meanwhile down in the dreaded “no further update” portion it’s not good to see Henshaw in there for sure, although it is definitely good news to see James Lowe move out of there, as much as I enjoyed his commentary I’d enjoy seeing him in a Leinster jersey a whole lot more.
INJURY UPDATE – AVAILABLE FOR SELECTION:
Harry Byrne: will be available to train this week following his return from a hamstring injury
Ryan Baird: has completed the Graduated Return to Play Protocols and will return to full training this week
Rónan Kelleher: will be available to train this week following his return from a hamstring injury
INJURY UPDATE – FURTHER ASSESSMENT REQUIRED:
Jordan Larmour and James Lowe: will again step up their rehabilitation this week as they return from foot and calf injuries respectively
INJURY UPDATE – UNAVAILABLE FOR SELECTION:
Johnny Sexton: will be assessed this week for a calf injury sustained in the build-up to the Australia game on Saturday
There are no further updates on:
Martin Moloney (knee), Ciarán Frawley (knee), Will Connors (bicep), Robbie Henshaw (hamstring), James Tracy (neck), Charlie Ryan (knee) and Tommy O’Brien (knee)
AIL UPDATE
The round robin portion of the Women’s AIL came to a close last weekend with UL Bohs clinching their spot in the semifinals with a home win over Galwegians, although their chances of progressing further look slim as they have to travel to play 100% Blackrock College, who just put the 79 points on Suttonians. The other semi looks to be a lot closer as Railway Union’s 22-5 win in Wicklow meant they will host Belvo for a place in the final on Dec 9, which will be televised on TG4.
Over in the men’s they had the weekend off and they are back in action this weekend with the big match in Division 1A being 100% 1st place Terenure travelling to Castle Avenue to play 3rd place Clontarf, a match which should feature several of the players who did so well in Leinster blue against Chile last Friday.
Women’s AIL
Ballincollig 15-3 Cooke
Blackrock College 79-0 Suttonians
UL Bohemian 13-7 Galwegians
Wicklow RFC 5-22 Railway Union
Men’s AIL
Sat Nov 26
Shannon v UCD
Ballynahinch v Cork Con
Clontarf v Terenure
Dublin University v Young Munster
Lansdowne v Garryowen
THE NEXT BATCH OF HARPIN’
The Best League aka the URC is back in action this week, and Leinster hope to continue their unbeaten start to the season by hosting Glasgow at the RDS on Saturday afternoon. I’ll be speaking to Warriors fan David Arnott on Wednesday for a bonus pod to see how their season has gone so look out for that, then on Friday Keego will join me for the Preview Show, with the wrap as always getting recorded on Sunday evening.
Also there will be the usual features on our various social media channels, including Mastodon which seems to be attracting more and more rugby fans each day so why not check it out if you haven’t already.
In the meantime, be sure to enjoy your rugby wherever you are. JLP
The game however wasn’t all it could’ve been. Game management was lacking, kicks for touch not getting any distance. Defence was good on the first half, that’s a real positive. No one really making yards or running decent lines from my pov. Is it that we were missing Johnny? Or were the rest of the team not ready to step up in his absence?
MASTODON
RichardMifsud One for the purists in the Aviva tonight Happy with the W but the performance was way down on previous ones. D was good but our attacking shape wasn’t great and too many inaccuracies didn’t allow us to create pressure .Good learning for the young lads Ross B with a serious pair to kick that one over. Crowley had a good outing. Big Joe Mc with some minutes under his belt. Respect to the Wallabies 🙌🏻 #IREvAUS
The2ndrow Well that match happened
OZ will be kicking themselves they didn’t win that
They had chances but we were able to hold them out
We lacked accuracy which led to a lack of discipline & we invited OZ onto us
The How to beat Ireland blueprint is there just make a mess of the breakdown
No clean ball have JGP and moreso Crowley a tough time. That said Crowley did well enough & thats perfectly fine in a first cap like that
Doris at times looked like he was literally dragging Ireland to that win
David Cahill Well I’m off to buy some lotto tickets coz the luck is with us right now
Kevin “The Spiddal Kid” It’s games like that which help to build the mental resistance you need in a tight game when you’re tired and need to go to the well one more time to get the result.
For the less experienced players who got game time today that will do them well to be able to draw upon that experience in future.
