For our first Opposition View pod of 2023 I was delighted to speak to Lee & Rhys from the excellent WRRAP pod about the regions’ season so far plus the Welsh Six Nations squad.
Our guests…
LEE GRIFFITH &
RHYS JOHN
Their pod on the Welsh 6N squad > https://anchor.fm/wrrap/episodes/Bonus-pod—The-Wales-squad-e1tl9ph/a-a8qnq0j
To commemorate the news of Leo Cullen staying on at Leinster’s helm for another two years, I’m posting this article I wrote back in July 2015 just before it was officially announced he was taking on the role.
I have put off writing this post for long enough…although nothing has been formally announced, there have certainly been enough rumblings around the media to suggest that Leo Cullen is to be the new head coach for Leinster, so I suppose it’s about time I gave some thoughts on it.
Of course to anyone who knows the game, the move would be considered a risk. Though I find some of the comparisons being made to appointments in the past to be very baffling. Steve Staunton? Eh, no. Chalk and cheese, mate.
Sure, Stan made a bucketload of appearances for and was a part of the successful times for the team he was taking over, but his involvement with the Republic of Ireland consisted of about a dozen or so appearances per season while the rest of the time he was with his club of the day.
In Leo’s case, we are not only talking about a club with which he has spent the bulk of his professional career, however unfortunate or indeed unfair his limited Ireland caps total may be, it means he has probably clocked more working hours around the provincial set-up since the start of our “glory days” than any other.
Or to put it another way…if we were to confer the title “Mr. Leinster Rugby” on any individual, I can think of no better man to receive it.
So when it comes to stepping into this role, one big advantage he has over Staunton is a near perfect knowledge of virtually every aspect of the organisation surrounding the head coach’s chair without ever actually having sat in it.
If we must compare this appointment to an iffy decision from history, I’d be more inclined to go for Martin Johnson’s for England (yes, that actually did happen, as much as the press across the water tries to airbrush it out of history). I mean the similarities are very easy to find…legendary lock/skipper who led the side to the highest honour his team could achieve.
But even that comparison has flaws – I mean, for one thing, I doubt we’ll be hearing stories of dwarves being tossed around Krystle night club any time soon!!! Joking aside…the assumption around the RFU’s decision with Johnson seemed to be that he’d be an instant success. That the spirit of 2003 was one that could be bottled and spread to future generations of players.
I think it’s pretty widely known that Leo was never the first choice for the job, and we have all heard the Who’s Who of Rugby Coaches that has been linked with the post. And given his personality I’m sure he will approach the position with an air of pragmatism as opposed to the air of arrogance that went with Johnson.
So that brings us to the next area we need to consider…how the decision of who gets the job is actually made.
With the success of Leinster and Munster in Europe since 2006, the two provinces are quite rightly considered up alongside the great outfits in European rugby like Toulouse, Leicester Tigers, Wasps and of course most recently Toulon. And it’s hard not to cross-over to the round ball game and draw comparisons to Champions League greats like Barcelona, Real Madrid, Bayern Munich and Manchester United.
There is absolutely no doubt that the head coach role at any of those institutions is one of an importance near to (if not more so in soccer’s case) international equivalents, and whenever those positions go on offer, the debate over who will fill them is extensive.
But here is where we must draw attention to one very important distinction. Toulouse, Wasps and Man Utd are CLUBS. The Irish provincial teams are not, at least not in the traditional sense. They are branches of the national rugby union. Many soccer clubs answer to shareholders alright but never to their football association.
At Leinster, Mick Dawson as CEO leads an extensive organization that has a mountain of work to get through from spreading the sport around the 12 counties to organizing match days to putting plans in place for improvements to the RDS Arena.
But when a big decision like a head coach appointment comes around, while I certainly wouldn’t say it’s “out of their hands”, it does need to be looked at through an IRFU-wide lens rather than simply a Leinster one.
The reason I was reluctant to do this post was that I had hoped that my last one on Matt O’Connor meant I could put the matter in a box and file it away in the HoR archives to gather dust but here is where I must drag it up again if only briefly. As far as its head coaching position is concerned, Leinster Rugby together with the Leinster Professional Games Board and the IRFU had a plan already in place for this coming season…namely the last year of O’Connor’s 3-year contract.
And putting the disgruntled Leinster supporters aside just for a moment, this arrangement seemed to be one that suited everyone, given that right now, in the summer of 2015, the Prime Directive of Irish Rugby has to be preparation for our assault on the Rugby World Cup – and I sincerely hope nobody has any argument with that!
Yet now we must bring the supporters back into the equation. We can look at them two ways…the reality is that over the past 12 months there have been extremely varying opinions on Matt O’Connor’s tenure at Leinster and these have all been expressed on this site by several different contributors. Then there’s the perception that the Leinster fan base is all of one mind and never wanted O’Connor in the first place.
That external perception would still seem to hold to this day, and to be fair, when Leinster had their worst dip in form of the season during the Six Nations, more and more fans were warming to the idea that change was needed and even coming within the width of a goalpost of defeating Toulon and reaching another European final wasn’t enough to claw it back.
Given that wave of what I called “Anti-Matter” opinion, the Leinster management could well be entitled to raise an eyebrow when those same fans have qualms about anyone who assumes the role. (“Leo Nay-Sayers”?)
Say you’ve been waiting for a table at a busy restaurant and they offer you one but you don’t want to sit there because it’s too near the kitchen, so the maître d goes out of his way to find you another one, only for you to complain about that for a different reason.
Given it’s a World Cup year, the coaches with CVs worthy of a 3-time European champion outfit are all either in contracts or at least are on career paths that revolve around the four-year World Cup cycle…meaning the summer just before one is a marketplace similar to the busy restaurant I mention above. And I suspect those involved in the Leinster decision were well aware of this when they installed the word “interim” in Leo’s title, just in case. It would appear the “in case” has happened.
If we like, we can convince ourselves that we have been “stuck” with Leo. We can doom his tenure to failure before it even begins.
Or…we could pay attention to someone like Bernard Jackman, himself a table in that restaurant that is already taken. I strongly recommend you listen to his contribution on Second Captains’ Monday edition but here are some of the things he had to say in Leo’s favour…
“Leo Cullen’s great strength is in powering others”
“Culture is what wins you championships and Leo Cullen is very clued into that”
“His skill set probably suits being a head coach more than being a unit coach”
I also suggest you read this post from Big Joe Shep here on this site looking at the new Leinster coaching ticket more as a “collective”. With hopefully a quality backs coach appointment on the horizon (preferably from the outside) to finish it off, it actually is quite a decent mix of talent and with someone who both “gets” the Leinster culture and has been heavily involved in making it work within the Irish framework at the helm, I definitely cannot classify the move as a “disaster” as some suggest.
On the point that he was part of the coaching staff responsible for the disappointing effort last season, it’s hard not to concede that as a negative but a bit like the point Berch makes, if we’re going to tag Leo with the ills of our pack last season then this new set-up has given responsibility to someone else so we’ve every reason to expect an improvement.
And talk of a 2- to 3- year deal also seems baffling when hearing it first, but once more we have to consider all the angles…Leinster will want the matter decided sooner rather than later, and no doubt Leo’s representatives in the negotiations will do what they can to get the most security out of the deal. It’s simply how the modern game works.
Finally as fans we have to look at our expectations for the future in general, and this coming season in particular. Are they the same as they have been in recent years? Is it really silverware or bust for us in the 2015/16 campaign? I’m not so sure.
And given all the variables surrounding the province this season…so much talent being away for the first couple of months, the possibility of some getting injured at the World Cup, the absolute stinker of a Rugby Champions Cup pool, the likelihood of limited integration time before it kicks off, the necessity of blooding a raft of promising youngsters into the senior squad…I’m not sure there’s a head coach out there who could walk fresh into the job and make it an instant success – and yes, I’m including Joe Schmidt in that list.
If I had to set a minimum target on the results front, I would go with a return to the final four of the Pro12 and at very least a decent effort to get out of that Euro pool. Does this mean Leo should lose his job if we don’t make that goal? Absolutely not. There are several other factors like the style of rugby we play and the type of team selection decisions we make to consider, but it would certainly be nice to have more than one match in May again.
So before we look away from these Leinster headlines and back towards the World Cup ones (which is absolutely what I will be doing after this post!), my advice to fellow fans would be to consider the big picture for Irish rugby at this particular time and get behind our teams both blue and green in every way we can.
Not so much a “wait and see” approach, rather a much more interactive and constructive “Come On You Boys In Blue” one. JLP
#COYBIB
(all times Irish)
NOTE : PREMIER SPORTS IS NOW ALSO KNOWN AS VIAPLAY
2:28AM – IRELAND WOMEN V SPAIN – SYDNEY 7S – WORLD.RUGBY
3:22AM – IRELAND MEN V SAMOA – SYDNEY 7S – WORLD.RUGBY
8:35AM – IRELAND WOMEN V BRAZIL – SYDNEY 7S – WORLD.RUGBY
7:35PM – ULSTER V STORMERS – URC – RTÉ TWO, VIAPLAY 1, URC.TV*
7:35PM – SCARLETS V BULLS – URC – BBC2 WALES, VIAPLAY 2, URC.TV*
7:45PM – SALE SHARKS V BATH – PREMIERSHIP – BT SPORT 1
10PM – IRELAND MEN V SPAIN – SYDNEY 7S – WORLD.RUGBY
10:30PM – SCARLETS V BULLS (REPEAT) – URC – PREMIER SPORTS 2
2:56AM – IRELAND WOMEN V AUSTRALIA – SYDNEY 7S – WORLD.RUGBY
4:05AM – IRELAND MEN V USA – SYDNEY 7S – WORLD.RUGBY
6:64AM – WOMEN’S PLAYOFFS BEGIN – SYDNEY 7S – WORLD.RUGBY
8:37AM – MEN’S PLAYOFFS BEGIN – SYDNEY 7S – WORLD.RUGBY
12:30PM – BRISTOL BEARS V SARACENS – WOMEN’S PREMIER 15S – PREMIER15S.COM*
2PM – LEICESTER TIGERS V NORTHAMPTON – PREMIERSHIP – BT SPORT 2
2:30PM – BENETTON V MUNSTER – URC – TG4, VIAPLAY 2, URC.TV*
3PM – DRAGONS V GLASGOW WARRIORS – URC – VIAPLAY 1, URC.TV*
3PM – SARACENS V BRISTOL BEARS – PREMIERSHIP – PR.TV*
3PM – WORCESTER V LOUGHBOROUGH – WOMEN’S PREMIER 15S – PREMIER15S.COM*
4:30PM – EXETER V GLOUCESTER – PREMIERSHIP – BT SPORT 2
5PM – LEINSTER V CARDIFF – URC – RTÉ TWO, VIAPLAY 1, S4C, URC.TV*
5:15PM – EDINBURGH V SHARKS – URC – VIAPLAY 2, URC.TV*
7:35PM – CONNACHT V LIONS – URC – TG4, VIAPLAY 1, URC.TV*
10:45PM – LEINSTER V CARDIFF (REPEAT) – URC – PREMIER SPORTS 1
11:15PM – RACING 92 V LA ROCHELLE (TAPE DELAY) – 🔝🐱🐴 – PREMIER SPORTS 2
12:30AM (SUNDAY) – BENETTON V MUNSTER (REPEAT) – URC- PREMIER SPORTS 1
3PM – ST MICHAEL’S V BELVEDERE – LEINSTER SCHOOLS CUP – IRISHRUGBYLIVE.IE*
3PM – ZEBRE V OSPREYS – URC – S4C, VIAPLAY 2, URC.TV*
3PM – LONDON IRISH V HARLEQUINS – PREMIERSHIP – BT SPORT 1
8PM – TOULOUSE V MONTPELLIER – 🔝🐱🐴 – VIAPLAY 2
3PM – BLACKROCK COLLEGE V PRES BRAY – LEINSTER SCHOOLS CUP – PREMIER SPORTS
8PM – AGAINST THE HEAD – RTÉ TWO
3PM – NEWBRIDGE V KILKENNY – LEINSTER SCHOOLS CUP – IRISHRUGBYLIVE.IE*
3PM – TERENURE V CLONGOWES – LEINSTER SCHOOLS CUP – IRISHRUGBYLIVE.IE*
* paid streaming service
RUGBY ON TV
IS BROUGHT TO YOU BY
THE IRISH RUGBY
YOUTUBE CHANNEL
#205F27
WRAP OF A WRAP
Now I’m glad I didn’t bore you every other week in this column with my disaster stories travelling to and from the RDS/Aviva for home Leinster matches because last Saturday everything went absolutely swimmingly. Short wait time for buses in both direction, no getting lost in the lower reaches of the Stadium which made me go the looooong way round to my seat because I turned left not right, no hitches of any sort which I thought wasn’t possible.
Oh, and Leinster also won on top of it all, maybe with a hitch or two, but still with some cracking scores along the way. And all of the last bit was brilliantly summed up by both Tom and Nathan on Sunday night’s pod. If you missed it, check it out here or on most major platforms.
HARPIN’ ON…GARRY RINGROSE : LEADERSHIP & FORM
For our extended clip this week I thought it was the perfect opportunity to harp on Garry Ringrose who has really grown into the captaincy role this season and it definitely looks like one he could be taking over once Johnny Sexton hangs up the boots.
If you’re playing the clip above maybe pop over and subscribe to the channel too? That’s where we post our Preview Show as well as other content throughout the week.
JASON JENKINS TIK TOK
We have a core team of Sunday podsters but I’me very grateful to Nathan Johns for being able to step in the odd Sunday, he works for the Irish Times and covers a lot of Irish cricket including the recent T20 World Cup but as you can see in the TikTok below he also provides great rugby insight like this point about Leinster’s defensive maul.
THE OTHER PROVINCES
“All four provinces into the knockout phase” is the most important takeaway. Sure there were some disappointing results along the way, and it’s not ideal that three must play away and also two of us have to play each other in the round of 16, but still progression is a major goal when the process starts and should be applauded. I’m skirting close to the format debate here so I’ll save that for a later point.
IRISH SQUAD
I have to be honest, squad announcements are actually starting to get boring, if only because the reactions are so predictable. With the list being announced during a pair of HCC weekends it’s not easy to remove the provincial goggles I suppose, but I’m not sure they’d be taken off under any circumstances.
Even when a coach has a record that suggests his choices can be trusted for the immediate future, still the accusations of bias over form get bandied about. Really, really, boring.
Did the Carbery omission raise an eyebrow? Of course it did, although with Ben Healy’s decision they did have to take Munster’s current situation into account – still not guaranteed HCC qualification for next season so the mid 6N URC matches will be vital – and also if it was down to himself and Crowley I dare say the latter would certainly benefit more from time with the test squad while Carbery can easily slot in later in the comp if required.
MY FINAL DEVIL’S ADVOCACY OF THE HCC FORMAT…
Yes, yes, I know I’ve harped on this a lot in recent weeks, but in my defence, so have most people on social media before during and after each of the four pool rounds so I reckon I’m entitled to another swing at pushing back just a bit.
Once again, to be clear…this is NOT my ideal format. However, the things many people are complaining about seem to be things that won’t be necessarily solved by returning to 5 or 6 pools of four.
“You can win just one match and still qualify for the knockouts”
First, can we please all be clear that “knockouts” means something different in the two formats? Here it’s getting you into the last 16, while “the old way” it was into the last 8. And under that regime, I clearly remember teams going through having won just 3 of their 6 matches while others got nowhere despite having won 4. And under this current system, sure, you can win 1 and progress like Ulster did however (a) they needed bonus points, all of which were hard earned, to just about get them into 8th spot, and (b), look at the task ahead of them in the Last 16.
Another mark against the old way of knockouts was that I hated the way you could meet a team in the quarterfinals that you already played twice in the pool phase. Seems strange that everyone is going wild about the quirks about this current format while forgetting those from the last one.
Overall I still contend that simply switching back won’t make all things fine and dandy…if you really want to give the competition the elevated status it deserves then we can carve out a block of the season and play it in successive weeks so that all the coaches can have full access to all their squads from start to finish, which I always feel is the best way to run tournaments for our wonderful sport.
Right, that should be that when it comes to me going on about formats. Until the draw for next year’s comp, of course…
TACKLE HEIGHT IN ENGLISH LOWER TIERS
And as the format debate recedes, another one takes its place. This has mostly been on English social media of course given it’s an RFU ruling, but the change is bound to be observed by all other unions as well and besides, Johnny Sexton weighing in at the Six Nations Launch certainly got the Irish rugby world involved.
Like I always say about this issue of concussion and tackle height, the most important thing is the discussion. First that there is one, but more importantly that it is being conducted by people acting in good faith. Unfortunately I feel this RFU ruling for lower tier grades might be a few steps too far in the other direction, which gives the “ruining the game” brigade the opportunity to opine without the need for ridiculous superlatives like they usually do over this matter (although I have heard that some are saying they’ll quit the game altogether over this, which seems absurd).
One element of the pushback against this announcement that is concerning is that it appears the RFU didn’t do a whole lot of consultation with grass roots clubs before reaching this decision, which could mean they were more about preventing further litigation than they were actually helping the game.
But overall I feel we have to be ready to accept some changes to the laws that will make the game safer. Yes, I get that tackling low can still lead to a head knock, but the guidelines also state that the player carrying is meant to stay upright so, at least in theory, it’s possible just as many penalties will go the other way. The only way to know for sure is to test it in actual matches, although maybe running the test across the vast majority of clubs in England was a bit hasty.
DOWNLOAD THE FANZO APP
6Mas Day is just around the corner, and this year we’re partnering with the Fanzo App to run a prediction league throughout the Six Nations where you can win a free pint for yourself (regardless how others do, more info to come later).
Basically we’re offering a prize ourselves for the best predictors over the five weeks of the Six Nations, but also you can help us out here at Harpin Manor just by joining the league. We’ll post more details on the site over the next week or so but feel free to join know if you like, just download the Fanzo app, click “Let’s Go” in the “Guinness Pint Predictor” tab, tap “Leagues”, then “Join or Create a League” and finally the code is “Harpin”.
WOMEN’S INTERPROS
Congrats to Munster on their title, and also to all in the Leinster squad for bouncing back from last week’s disappointment to post a convincing win in the final match against Ulster. Again, it’s a shame they didn’t at least have a home and away schedule, something Tania Rosser herself pointed out on Twitter, especially when you consider that it’s conceivable that the senior Leinster Women’s team may not take to the field again until 2024!
But there is still a lot of top level rugby to look forward to, starting with this new Celtic Challenge competition, where Ireland Scotland and Wales each have one team for now but probably two next season and maybe eventually this can become something of a URC in its own right. We named our squad for the competition and hopefully there will be some kind of broadcast coverage to see how they’re getting on ahead of the Women’s Six Nations.
SEVENS UPDATE
Both squads were involved in the Hamilton 7s last weekend, with the women faring best as their fourth place finish after a quarterfinal win over France means we remain in the top 4 on the overall standings.
Meanwhile the men also got out of their pool only to run smack back into the hosts New Zealand but a win in the placings playoffs scored a few axtra series points with a 6th placed finish leaving us 9th overall on the ladder, with a good bit of daylight between us and 10th meaning we can hopefully move our way up in the remaining rounds.
Next on the circuit is Sydney next weekend, I don’t see a schedule as I type this column so maybe check back in later in the week.
INJURY REPORT
“No new injury news” is always good news, although it would still be nice to see names moving out of that list down at the bottom. Not easy to tell what kind of team we’ll have for the visit of Cardiff this coming weekend, although I’m thinking one or two might still be available despite being named to the Irish squad.
Cosgrove, Russell, Turner, Osborne, Kearney, H Byrne, McGrath.
Milne, McKee, Ala’alatoa, Molony, Deeny, Ruddock, Penny, Deegan.
Bench : Kelleher, Hanan, Clarkson, J McCarthy, Connors, Foley, R Byrne, Brownlee
(note – the above team is purely from my imagination, it’s not one of those Thornley teams which is always 22 out of 23 correct)
INJURY UPDATE – AVAILABLE FOR SELECTION:
Caelan Doris: rolled his ankle in the second half of the game against Racing 92 but is expected to join the Irish Rugby squad as planned this week
Josh van der Flier: suffered a dead leg in the second half against Racing 92 but is expected to join the Irish Rugby squad as planned this week
Joe McCarthy: came through the game against Racing 92 with no issues following his return from an ankle injury
Luke McGrath: came through the game against Racing 92 with no issues following his return from an ankle injury
INJURY UPDATE – UNAVAILABLE FOR SELECTION:
There was no new injury news from the game against Racing 92 at the weekend
There are no further updates on:
Johnny Sexton (cheek bone), Tadhg Furlong (calf), Charlie Ngatai (hamstring), Ed Byrne (knee), Jason Jenkins (hamstring), Robbie Henshaw (wrist), Martin Moloney (knee), Ciarán Frawley (knee) and Tommy O’Brien (knee)
AIL UPDATE
Some big matches in Round 11 of Division 1A which had some big results that left some big consequences. Cork Con’s win at Tarf meant Nure extended their lead at the top to 6pts after beating Trinity, which in turn meant Ballynahinch have moved themselves to just two points off the top four. Down at the bottom it looks like Garryowen are close to the trap door while Shannon and UCD are close for the second spot, which makes their meeting on Saturday a critical one. Nure have another top four battle to come when they host Tarf at Lakelands which Cork Con will try to keep the pressure on although Hinch won’t make things easy for them.
Men’s AIL
Lansdowne 23-20 UCD
Clontarf 12-24 Cork Con
Trinity 7-12 Terenure
Hinch 24-7 Garryowen
Cookies 31-27 Shannon
Sat Jan 28
Cork Con v Ballynahinch
Garryowen v Lansdowne
UCD v Shannon
Young Munster v Dublin Univ
Terenure v Clontarf
SCHOOLS CUP TIME
It’s that time of year again with the kick off of the Leinster Schools Senior Cup where we get to watch the future stars of the game in action. As I type I have received word of broadcast coverage of the first round so here are the details…
(everything in italics below is from Leinster Rugby)
Bank of Ireland Leinster Rugby Schools Senior Cup, First Round:
Sunday, 29 January
St Michael’s College v Belvedere College at 3pm in Energia Park (Streaming Available)
Monday, 30 January
Blackrock College v Presentation College, Bray at 3pm in Energia Park (Live on Premier Sports)
Tuesday, 31 January
Newbridge College v Kilkenny College at 3pm in Energia Park (Streaming Available)
Wednesday, 1 February
Terenure College v Clongowes Wood College at 3pm in Energia Park (Streaming Available)
Thursday, 2 February
St Mary’s College v Wesley College at 3pm in Energia Park (Streaming Available)
The streaming will be available on a subscription basis with each game costing €7.99 for the live and €8.99 for the VOD (video on demand) option.
There is also a five match bundle that can be purchased for €35.00 and the subscription can be purchased through the Videos on the Net platform, www.irishrugbylive.ie
Leinster Rugby can also confirm that similar to last season there will be no cash accepted at the turnstiles for games played at Energia Park.
All tickets can be purchased online at the following link HERE, with student and OAP tickets costing €6, and adult tickets costing €11.
THE NEXT BATCH OF HARPIN’
Next up it’s Cardiff Rugby…we’re planning a bonus pod recording for Wednesday where we’ll be chatting to hosts of a Welsh pod to get an “opposition view” not just for Saturday but also for the Six Nations opener, then it’s all the usual features like Rugby on TV, preview, wrap pod, etc, you know the drill.
Follow us and/or subscribe to all our social media channels to keep in touch and get involved in the conversation when the mood takes you.
In the meantime, be sure to enjoy your rugby wherever you are. JLP
THIS WEEK’S GUESTS
FULL TIME TAKES
Conor Cronin The number of penalties is a concern. A strong win, and some great individual performances weren’t. We’d a strong first and last 20, needed to be more conscious of the ruck in the middle 40, that’s where we lost our most to Racing. I found a group of Racing fans after the game and brought them to the pub, great group, great fans who really love the game and are very passionate about good rugby, I’m really glad we could meet up expectation, particular the O’Brien try
Gavin Hegarty I actually enjoyed how they challenged us. They clearly did their homework. But still, the good will out. Yes we were not at the level we were last week, but class is permanent. Highlight was ringer flick, sublime.
Richard Collumb Racing slowing the game right down caused us problems. Scrum, some sloppy passing & silly penalties will be punished in later rounds, but last 20 minutes was great. Ringrose just gets better & better.
John Hyland (reply to Richard Collumb) don’t agree re scrum. Other teams are cheating and getting away with it. Our scrum is collapsing on the loosehead side because opposition tightheads are boring in, leaving Porter / Milne nothing to push against. Refs have been clueless.
MASTODON
Richard Mifsud We weren’t at our best for long periods and credit R92 for parts of that but it’s an 80 minute game and when we clicked it was sublime. We need these tests to keep us honest and sharp it’s about finding a way and thus far this season we’ve been pretty good at that this season. Very satisfying BPW
Koochulainn The numbers do not lie LEINSTER 4 games 20 points (and did not concede a single losing BP) 28 tries +150 points difference #PerfectRecord
RugbyNerd Too good again! But good game for around 60 minutes and good refereeing. Very clear communication.
FRONT FIVE ARTICLES
HCC ROUND 4 WRAP
ROUND 4
LYN 31-7 BUL
LEIC 26-27 OSP
HAR 39-29 SHA
NOR 13-31 LAR
BOR 17-26 GLO
LEIN 36-10 R92
STO 30-16 CLE
EXE 40-3 CAS
ULS 22-11 SAL
MON 21-21 LIR
TLS 20-16 MUN
EDI 20-14 SAR
LAST 16 (weekend of Mar 31/Apr 1,2)
LEIN V ULS
LEIC V EDI
TLS V BUL
SHA V MUN
EXE V MON
STO V HAR
LAR V GLO
SAR V OSP
HARPIN’ MATCH WRAPS
ARE BROUGHT TO YOU BY
THE IRISH RUGBY STORE
Leinster: 15. Hugo Keenan 14. Jordan Larmour 13. Garry Ringrose > CAPTAIN 12. Jamie Osborne 11. Jimmy O’Brien 10. Ross Byrne 9. Jamison Gibson-Park
1. Andrew Porter 2. Rónan Kelleher 3. Michael Ala’alatoa 4. Joe McCarthy 5. James Ryan 6. Caelan Doris 7. Josh van der Flier 8. Jack Conan
16. Dan Sheehan 17. Michael Milne 18. Cian Healy 19. Ross Molony 20. Ryan Baird 21. Luke McGrath 22. Harry Byrne 23. Scott Penny
Racing 92: 15 W Gelant 14 C Wade 13 O Klemenczak 12 G Fickou (c) 11 L Dupichot 10 F Russell 9 N Le Garrec 1 E Ben Arous 2 J Tarrit 3.T Nyakane 4 B Chouzenoux 5 B Palu 6 W Lauret 7 M Coulibaly 8 K Kamikamica
16 P Narisia 17 G Gogichashvili 18 G Kharaishvili 19 A Hemery 20 M Baudonne 21 A Gibert 22 F Saili 23 M Spring
Heineken Champions Cup 22/23
Round 4
Sat Jan 21 KO 3:15pm
Aviva Stadium
Ref: Matthew Carley (ENG)
AR1: Craig Maxwell-Keys (ENG)
AR2: Gareth Holsgrove (ENG)
TMO: Ian Tempest (ENG)
Live on: RTÉ 2, BT Sport 2
(all times Irish)
NOTE : PREMIER SPORTS IS NOW ALSO KNOWN AS VIAPLAY
8PM – LEICESTER TIGERS V OSPREYS – CHAMPIONS CUP – BT SPORT 1
8PM – LYON V BULLS – CHAMPIONS CUP – BT SPORT 2
8PM – GLASGOW WARRIORS V BATH – CHALLENGE CUP – VIAPLAY 1
8PM – TOULON V ZEBRE – CHALLENGE CUP – VIAPLAY XTRA
8PM – BRISTOL BEARS V PERPIGNAN – CHALLENGE CUP – EPCRUGBY.COM
8:54PM – IRELAND MEN V URUGUAY – NZ SEVENS – WORLD.RUGBY
9:38PM – IRELAND WOMEN V USA – NZ SEVENS – WORLD.RUGBY
12:44AM – IRELAND MEN V USA – NZ SEVENS – WORLD.RUGBY
1:18AM – IRELAND WOMEN V SPAIN – NZ SEVENS – WORLD.RUGBY
3:50AM – IRELAND MEN V JAPAN – NZ SEVENS – WORLD.RUGBY
4:12AM – IRELAND WOMEN V USA – NZ SEVENS – WORLD.RUGBY
1PM – CONNACHT V MUNSTER – WOMEN’S INTEPROS – TG4
1PM – HARLEQUINS V SHARKS – CHAMPIONS CUP – BT SPORT 2
1PM – NORTHAMPTON V LA ROCHELLE – CHAMPIONS CUP – BT SPORT 3, ITV 1
1PM – BAYONNE V SCARLETS – CHALLENGE CUP – S4C
3:15PM – LEINSTER V RACING 92 – CHAMPIONS CUP – RTÉ TWO, BT SPORT 2
3:15PM – BORDEAUX V GLOUCESTER – CHAMPIONS CUP – BT SPORT 3
3:15PM – BENETTON V STADE FRANCAIS – CHALLENGE CUP – EPCRUGBY.COM
8PM 3:15PM – BRIVE V CARDIFF – CHALLENGE CUP – EPCRUGBY.COM
[changed from 8pm kickoff time due to expected cold weather]
5:30PM – ULSTER V LEINSTER – WOMEN’S INTERPROS – BBC2NI/TG4 PLAYER
5:30PM – EXETER V CASTRES – CHAMPIONS CUP – BT SPORT 2
5:30PM – STORMERS V CLÉRMONT – CHAMPIONS CUP – BT SPORT XTRA
5:30PM – NEWCASTLE FALCONS V CONNACHT – CHALLENGE CUP – EPCRUGBY.COM
8PM – ULSTER V SALE SHARKS – CHAMPIONS CUP – BT SPORT 2
[FROM 8:30PM SAT EVE TO SUN MORN] – NZ SEVENS PLAYOFFS – WORLD.RUGBY
1PM – MONTPELLIER V LONDON IRISH – CHAMPIONS CUP – BT SPORT 2
1PM – DRAGONS V LIONS – CHALLENGE CUP – VIAPLAY 2
2:30PM – HARLEQUINS V GLOUCESTER – PREMIER 15S – PREMIER15S.COM
2:30PM – EXETER V BRISTOL – PREMIER 15S – PREMIER15S.COM
3:15PM – TOULOUSE V MUNSTER – CHAMPIONS CUP – BT SPORT 2
3:15PM – CHEETAHS V PAU – CHALLENGE CUP – VIAPLAY 2
5:30PM – EDINBURGH V SARACENS – CHAMPIONS CUP – BT SPORT 2
8PM – CHAMPIONS CUP HIGHLIGHTS – BT SPORT 2
RUGBY ON TV WAS BROUGHT TO YOU BY
THE IRISH RUGBY YOUTUBE CHANNEL
WRAP OF A WRAP
Another strong performance by Leinster in Europe for us to wrap in the latest Sunday pod, and also another strong performance by both my guests Mark Jackson and Conor Cronin as they highlighted the positives but also acknowledged the things that we need to work on for the latter stages of the competition.
If you missed the pod, check it out here or on most major platforms.
HARPIN’ ON…CIAN HEALY’S CAREER
For this week’s ‘bonus clip’ we harped on the career of Cian ‘Proper Church’ Healy who made his 100th appearance in Europe for Leinster, becoming only the 5th player in the history of the competition to do so. The other four are also Irish as I say in the clip, which probably should come with the caveat that in the first years of the competition the provinces were nominated by the IRFU as opposed to qualifying as did the English and French clubs which is why they don’t have names as high up on the list, but it still counts as an honourable milestone in Healy’s career and as I also say in the clip, it’s not like he’s finished quite yet.
If you’re playing the clip above maybe pop over and subscribe to the channel too? That’s where we post our Preview Show as well as other content throughout the week.
THE OTHER PROVINCES
Munster and Connacht both had good wins on Saturday, maybe one was a tad more comfortable than the other, but still good to see both on the way to the knockouts.
As for Ulster…they really can’t buy a bit of luck these days, can they. How could Leinster fans in particular have anything but empathy for them as they were desperately trying to hold out La Rochelle in the dying minutes after what had been a torrential slog up to that point and they obviously considered themselves unlucky not to have been even further ahead by that point anyway.
Thing is though, they can still qualify for the knockouts with a decent win over Sale at the weekend, and maybe there’s a strong possibility their “reward” will be a trip to the Aviva in the last 16, but still a good performance against the Premiership outfit could well be the kick start they need for their season and I wish them all the best as we always want to see all four progressing beyond the pool stages whatever the format.
SPEAKING OF HCC FORMAT…
It’s still a bone of contention with many on HCC weekends; I have pushed back against the complaints before on these pages but I feel I must again. Once more I agree it’s not ideal, but I do wonder if the flaws people keep finding in it are necessarily solved by going back to the way the tournament used to be run?
Like I said in the previous segment about Ulster, even though they have lost all three of their matches, the fact that they picked up some BPs along the way means that with a win over Sale at the Kingspan on Saturday they can move into the top 8 and reach the last 16. Pretty much everyone giving out about the format says this “one win to qualify” thing is a negative, yet without it, this match against the Sharks could be a dead rubber so I’d argue it can at least be looked at from both directions.
When you compare this format to the previous one, the round of 16 is effectively replacing pool rounds 5 and 6 so I really don’t think it’s all that ridiculous for it to be easier to qualify. And even if you do scrape through with one win, it means you probably have to travel to the home of a team that has won all four, which means you’re either going to go no further OR you have to produce one of the all time great results in the competition.
Also, while I presume all the competing clubs knew the rules from the outset, one or two are just coming to light this week when it comes to the general public.
First we have a stipulation that if a South African team reaches the semifinals, they must give up home advantage even if they have earned it through the seeding from the pool stages. Again this is far from ideal from a fairness perspective, but right from the moment I first heard they were joining the competition I wondered what the organisers were going to do to limit the amount of travel, and this appears to be it.
Clearly that does put the SA teams at a disadvantage, but I should also point out something about this season’s competition that does work in their favour. With the Springboks not being involved in the Six Nations (yet?), this means that from the end of the pool stage to the knockouts they know none of their players are going to be involved in any test matches. Sure, there may be a few URC rounds in that time, but at least there they have control. The European clubs have none.
Just to be clear, I’m not pointing out the “no 6N thing” because I think it somehow cancels out the “no home SF” thing; on the contrary I reckon they are two wrongs which do not make a right. Still, I don’t see anyone else making the point about the 6N so I felt I’d do it here.
I will always contend that the one format tweak that would come closest to a “silver bullet” to fix all the problems we keep pointing out would be to play the tournament from start to finish in successive weeks. Or to put it another way, “It’s the calendar, stupid”.
YOU THOUGHT I WAS DONE WITH THE HCC FORMAT DIDN’T YOU…
…well, I’m not!
Caolan Scully, who has appeared on the pod a few times, pointed out on Twitter a little quirk in the method the HCC uses to rank teams in the pool stages. If two or more teams are tied on match points, points difference AND tries scored, the next thing to be looked at is apparently the amount of suspensions incurred by the clubs.
Granted, it’s HIGHLY unlikely this will ever actually need to be used, but it’s still a very curious thing to have as a possibility – imagine if two clubs vying for top 2/4/8 spots ended up tied on everything else while one of them was waiting on a citing during the week, meaning effectively the ruling from the commission would determine the final standings?
Unlikely or not, I would NOT want that to be even possible. In fact, I’m not too wild about the next criterion down on the list either, namely the tossing of a coin. My suggestion would be come up with a ranking system for all European clubs based on previous performance (similar to UEFA’s coefficient) and this ranking will force a separation between ALL clubs which means you can get a result no matter what the eventuality.
Apologies for the nerdery here, but I guess overthinking comes with the territory when you run a rugby website/podcast!!!
AWAY FANS
I see there’s a debate on the twitter machine about the possibility of ensuring all the away fans are together in a ground on match days.
Personally, I think it’s a good idea overall, since in many cases they would have travelled quite a way to get there and also it gives the visiting team’s players somewhere to aim at after the final whistle to show their appreciation. But that said, mixing isn’t the worst thing either and I’ve often had great chats during the match whether I’m for the hosts or the visitors.
What I want to point out here isn’t so much about the debate itself, rather the attitudes of some in the tweets on the topic. “We don’t want this in our sport, it’s too much like football”. You have no idea how much I dislike that narrative and I will always call it out when it rears its ugly head, and for this topic it was always going to.
The way I see it, if there’s anything that’s going to “ruin the values” of “our sport”, it’s outright snobbery.
JAMIE OSBORNE TIK TOK
For once I actually agreed with the TV broadcaster’s choice of Player (or ‘Star’ in HCC matches) of the Match, even it is was a previous holder of the Leinster 12 shirt who awarded it, there’s no doubt Jamie stood out as Conor explains in the TikTok below.
OWEN FARRELL
This is another point that’s more about Twitter opinion than the topic itself. Owen Farrell was cited for a tackle, although given both his history and his profile there was chatter and GIFs all over social media minutes after it actually happened.
All of which meant there was always going to be scrutiny over the decision, and what do you know, it turns out he was banned in such a way as to make him eligible for England’s Six Nations opener.
Which leads me to a simple question…are we REALLY that surprised? And while he’s hardly a big hit with Irish fans (despite his aul fella doing so well with our test team) I reckon we have to remind ourselves of the biggest factor behind this particular decision, namely the fact that the top rugby unions all retain a great deal of control over their own affairs.
So maybe when we see the RFU orchestrating an advantage out of some adversity, we should ask ourselves if there are other areas of the game’s administration where the IRFU does as well? Not to mention all the other unions? If we’re not going to have a central administrative body that regulates the majority of systems in an attempt to create a level playing field, then these stories will continue to happen, it’s as simple as that.
EDDIE JONES
To be honest, nothing that happens with this guy surprises me anymore, and if anything his taking over of the Wallabies ahead of RWC2023 makes that side of the draw even more interesting. Remember – we have NZL, FRA & RSA to contend with on our side, while it’s likely one from ENG WAL & AUS will reach the final, so to watch them go at it with new coaches plus a lot of recent history will make it worth getting some extra popcorn for sure.
WOMEN’S INTERPROS
Unfortunately Leinster fell short in what was always likely to be a decider in the Women’s interpros at the weekend, but it has to be said that Tania Rosser’s remit as coach was more about giving the squad game time at this level than it was results and she seems to be doing a bang up job so far by all accounts.
It may have taken them a while to get on the scoreboard in the opener against Connacht last week but given she has included so many different clubs in the wider squad there was bound to be a bedding in period and again I say this will benefit them in the long run. Best wishes to them against Ulster in the final round this weekend.
As I said in the preview pod it was a real shame that their big match in Musgrave Park had to clash with the men’s Heineken Cup match on Saturday, I certainly don’t want to quibble about which was “more important”, simply because we really shouldn’t be forced into making a decision like that. To be a little fair, given all four Irish men’s provinces were playing that day, some allowances had to be made – with the women not being full professionals (yet, hopefully) I’d say Saturday would be the best day over the weekend for everyone to be available. Still, I’d hope the overlaps can be avoided in future.
THE SEVENS ARE BACK!
Sometimes I don’t need to add much to the headline to get my message across, apart from the fact that both men and women are in action for the next two weekends in New Zealand and Australia respectively. Also it’s great to see Billy Dardis & Terry Kennedy back in the men’s squad. Below you see the schedule for their pool matches in NZ, if possible be sure to watch them for free via the World Rugby site and tweet your full support to show we’re ready to host a leg here asap.
Friday, January 20 –
Saturday, January 21 –
Saturday, January 21 –
INJURY REPORT
Always good to see no new injuries after a weekend, also the five returnees will all benefit the wider squad in many ways. I’m particularly pleased to see Will Connors is close to a return and I really hope he gets a good healthy run he certainly deserves it.
Still, that’s a lot of quality languishing in the “no further report” column although reports are coming through as I type that Sexton took part in training on Monday and hopefully he’ll at least be recovered in time for the Six Nations.
Here’s a possible matchday squad for the Aviva next weekend, would like to see Tadhg F get a few minutes in his boots if possible…
15 Keenan 14 Larmour 13 Ringrose (c) 12 Osborne 11 O’Brien 10 R Byrne 9 Gibson-Park
1 Porter 2 Sheehan 3 Ala’alatoa 4 Molony 5 Ryan 6 Baird 7 van der Flier 8 Doris
16 Kelleher 17 Healy 18 Furlong 19 J McCarthy 20 Conan 21 McGrath 22 H Byrne 23 Turner
INJURY UPDATE: AVAILABLE FOR SELECTION:
Will Connors: is expected to train fully this week after recovering from a bicep injury
Thomas Clarkson: is expected to train fully this week after recovering from an arm injury
Max Deegan: is expected to train fully this week after recovering from an ankle injury
Luke McGrath: is expected to train fully this week after recovering from an ankle injury
Joe McCarthy: is expected to train fully this week after recovering from an ankle injury
INJURY UPDATE – UNAVAILABLE FOR SELECTION:
There was no new injury news from the game against Gloucester at the weekend
There are no further updates on:
Johnny Sexton (cheek bone), Tadhg Furlong (calf), Charlie Ngatai (hamstring), Ed Byrne (knee), Jason Jenkins (hamstring), Robbie Henshaw (wrist), Martin Moloney (knee), Ciarán Frawley (knee), Charlie Ryan (knee) and Tommy O’Brien (knee)
AIL UPDATE
The AIL has moved into the second half of its regular season, with some interesting results in Round 10.
Nure & Tarf both got wins over Munster opposition to keep themselves in the top 2, while Cork Con got the better of Trinity to move ahead of them into 3rd. Meanwhile at the bottom Charlie Tector guided Lansdowne to a crucial win over Shannon which allowed them hop two places with Ballynahinch’s whitewash of the Students at “the Bowl” actually putting them into the playoff picture.
There are some big matches in Round 11 with the top four playing each other plus there’s bound to be a lot of Leinster involvement on the back pitch at the Aviva as Lansdowne face UCD in a relegation battle.
Men’s AIL
Garryowen 13-19 Clontarf
Cork Con 32-27 Dublin University
Shannon 24-34 Lansdowne
Terenure 21-11 Young Munster
UCD 0-24 Ballynahinch
Fri Jan 20
Lansdowne v UCD
Sat Jan 21
Ballynahinch v Garryowen
Clontarf v Cork Con
Dublin University v Terenure
Young Munster v Shannon
THE NEXT BATCH OF HARPIN’
Next up it’s Racing at the Aviva; we will of course be giving it the full Harpin treatment with a preview featuring Keego on Friday, a wrap with Tom Coleman & Nathan Johns on Sunday as well as all the usual features in between. Follow us and/or subscribe to all our social media channels to keep in touch and get involved in the conversation when the mood takes you.
In the meantime, be sure to enjoy your rugby wherever you are. JLP
THIS WEEK’S GUESTS
FULL TIME TAKES
Andrew Potts The scrum is a concern, probably just needs a little collective focus. Nice to see them using short penalty moves in the red zone, it’s a good variation then going to a line out, plus suits Leinster tempo.
Some of the Leinster play was excellent and Ross has developed into quite the facilitator
Richard Collumb Says it all about current European competition when URC is providing more challenges.
Great to see Osborne step up & some game time to replacements.
Chris McDonnell Too good just too good.
MASTODON
Brian Nisbet @natural20 14-49 A match with a couple of lessons for Leinster (discipline, line-outs), but ultimately another emphatic victory in Europe and the match goes on.
Colin Mehigan @colinmehigan@mas.to @vnvobit @HarpinOnRugby @rugby Lots of impressive performances in Kingsholm today – Jamie Osborne really standing out
Adam Ashby (Gloucester fan) @adamashby@mas.to Well. That was worse than I expected.
FRONT FIVE ARTICLES
HCC ROUND 3 WRAP
ROUND 3
CLE 29-44 LEIC
SAL 5-27 TLS
GLO 14-49 LEIN
MUN 27-23 NOR
SHA 32-3 BOR
LAR 7-3 ULS
BUL 39-28 EXE
OSP 35-29 MON
SAR 48-28 LYN
CAS 21-34 EDI
LIR 14-28 STO
R92 30-29 HAR
ROUND 4
FRI JAN 20
LYN V BUL
LEI V OSP
SAT JAN 21
HAR V SHA
NOR V LAR
BOR V GLO
LEI V R92
STO V CLE
EXE V CAS
ULS V SAL
SUN JAN 22
MON V LIR
TLS V MUN
EDI V SAR
HARPIN’ MATCH WRAPS
ARE BROUGHT TO YOU BY
THE IRISH RUGBY STORE
Leinster: 15. Hugo Keenan 14. Jordan Larmour 13. Garry Ringrose > CAPTAIN 12. Jamie Osborne 11. Jimmy O’Brien 10. Ross Byrne 9. Jamison Gibson-Park
1. Andrew Porter 2. Dan Sheehan 3. Michael Ala’alatoa 4. Ross Molony 5. James Ryan 6. Ryan Baird 7. Josh van der Flier 8. Caelan Doris
16. Rónan Kelleher 17. Michael Milne 18. Cian Healy 19. Brian Deeny 20. Jack Conan 21. Nick McCarthy 22. Harry Byrne 23. Liam Turner
Gloucester: 15 G Barton 14 J May 13 C Harris 12 S Atkinson 11 O Thorley 10 S Carreras 9 B Meehan
1 V Rapava-Ruskin 2 G McGuigan 3 K Gotovtsev 4 F Clark 5 M Alemanno 6 R Ackermann 7 L Ludlow (c) 8 B Morgan
16 S Blake 17 H Elrington 18 C Knight 19 C Jordan 20 J Clement 21 S Varney 22 B Twelvetrees 23 T Seabrook
Heineken Champions Cup 22/23
Round 3
Sat Jan 14 KO 1pm
Kingsholm Stadium
Ref: Pierre Brousset (France)
AR1: Vincent Blasco Baqué (France)
AR2: Flavien Hourquet (France)
TMO: Denis Grenouillet (France)
Live on: ITV1, BT Sport 2
WOMEN’S RUGBY TWITTER ACCOUNTS MENTIONED
HARPIN' ON RUGBY 
