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.
IRELAND v Australia : 15. Hugo Keenan 14. Mack Hansen 13. Garry Ringrose 12. Stuart McCloskey 11. Jimmy O’Brien 10. Johnny Sexton > CAPTAIN 9. Jamison Gibson Park
1. Andrew Porter 2. Dan Sheehan 3. Tadhg Furlong 4. Tadhg Beirne 5. James Ryan 6. Peter O’Mahony 7. Josh van der Flier 8. Caelan Doris
16. Rob Herring 17. Cian Healy 18. Finlay Bealham 19. Joe McCarthy 20. Jack Conan 21. Craig Casey 22. Jack Crowley 23. Bundee Aki.
AUSTRALIA : 15 Andrew Kellaway 14 Mark Nawaqanitawase 13 Len Ikitau 12 Hunter Paisami 11 Tom Wright 10 Bernard Foley 9 Nic White
1 James Slipper (c) 2 David Porecki 3 Allan Alaalatoa 4 Nick Frost 5 Cadeyrn Neville 6 Jed Holloway 7 Michael Hooper 8 Rob Valetini
16 Folau Fainga’a 17 Tom Robertson 18 Taniela Tupou 19 Will Skelton 20 Pete Samu 21 Jake Gordon 22 Noah Lolesio 23 Jordan Petaia.
Bank of Ireland Autumn Nations Series
Saturday, November 19, 2022
Aviva Stadium Kickoff 8pm
Referee: Ben O’Keeffe (NZR) AR1: James Doleman (NZR)
AR2: Tual Trainini (FFR) TMO: Stuart Terheege (RFU)
Welcome to my 80+ column, a weekly post featuring final thoughts from the week of rugby just gone.
A WRAP OF A WRAP
With all due respect to Fiji, matches against them and others like Georgia are meant to be the “off” weekend in November but to us rugby nerds in particular they can be just as fascinating as the marquee matches.
Maybe last Saturday’s match wasn’t the best example of this but still on the Sunday pod (can’t believe it’s already the 3th under the new format) I was joined by Rich Mifsud and Caolán Scully to look back over the match as well as a few other bits and pieces from the rugby world, and between us I reckon we did a decent job making some points out of it, why not check it out yourself by clicking this link.
On the pod we follow a rigid enough structure to keep the whole recording under the hour so normally only one of us will get to harp on a particular topic before we move on, but my guests are encouraged to jump in if they want to prolong a conversation because even if it’s cut from the pod I can always release it separately and as you can see below there was one subject in particular we wanted to go into bit more detail on.
Hey, if he can make videos when something pisses him off why can’t we?
MARTIN SCOR-RASSIE
So below you can see the chat we had on the pod surrounding Rassie, and here is a comment I got on our YouTube channel, along with my reply.
Albert Van den berg OK. Help me. The things that he shows on video, that is true. What will you do when it’s your team. And world rugby don’t do anything? What’s the use to play rugby. And the ref does not blow right. Please help me understand.
Harpin’ On Rugby Happy to help.
1) a few selected clips do not reflect the overall context of a rugby match. Does it confirm the same incident didn’t happen the other way?
2) You and I should of course be free to post all the videos we want on social media, that’s what it’s for. But a DoR of a top tier nations who has already been banned for the same thing? Absolutely not. There are mechanisms in place for him to make his concerns known and he should stick to them.
3) Rassie (who I admire as a coach, earned all of his success to date) knows all of the above yet still persists in dealing with what can only be called “referee coercion”.
WORLD POTY
You don’t need me to tell you that I’m a big fan of both Messrs Sexton & van der Flier but even I have to admit I was surprised to see both in the four-man shortlist for World Player of the Year, and naturally there was a flurry of tweets suggesting those who were left out. Some referred to the national imbalance (France had a more successful year) while others put forward individual names they thought were missing.
Now I’m not suggesting this solution would prevent the whinging, because nothing will ever do that, but I do think it’s possible to maybe make that list a little longer.
Whatever about the fans’ opinion, going by the official graphic only the Irish lads are happy about being nominated…
BUNDEE’S BACK
I love Bundee Aki as a player and I do think he should play a part in Ireland’s RWC preparations, so I do get why he’s in the frame for selection this weekend against the Wallabies, plus we’re down a couple of leading centers to injury, but still…given the recent ban was not his first I don’t think it would have been the worst idea to leave him out of the Irish squad for November.
Watch him get the winning try on Saturday after me saying that.
CHIN UP MATE
Lot of talk about bad sportsmanship in rugby this week so how about a view of the other side…right after Ben Donaldson (on his test debut) missed the crucial kick at the end of #ITAvAUS not only did his team mates not hesitate to go console him but so did Italian 10 Tomasso Allan who chose to take the time to do likewise before celebrating. Awesome to see.
ANGRY BIRDS
I recently saw someone describe Twitter as a “cess pit”, ironically in a tweet.
That narrative really, really bugs me because from my experience Twitter has enhanced my experience of rugby by a factor of infinity. Yes, there are those who either have no idea where “the line” is or worse, know full well and happily leap over it, but that’s what the mute, block and report buttons are for. Those muppets are far outnumbered by decent people who know how to have a conversation with dignity and this should never be forgotten.
And yes, I know Elon is there doing whatever it is that he’s doing so the censoring may not always work, but it should never prevent us from keeping the discussion going. A recent exchange on twitter involving someone I have a lot of respect for (without always agreeing, that’s how it’s supposed to work) was particularly annoying.
Not going to share the tweets aimed at @andymcgeady recently but I do want to say that I stand with him. Whether those who hurl abuse have personal issues or are just bad faith actors, we should still call them out and ensure that they do not define the community.
It’s Transgender Awareness Week from Nov 13-19, click here for more information. I have harped on the trans rugby issue before in this column so all I’ll do is repost it below.
You may recall over the summer there was a pretty intense discussion over transgender participation in rugby. My position was, well, let’s just say, complicated, and I struggled to explain it the way I wanted to in the ruggersphere.
What I was trying to say was that as much as we want to leave politics out of sport, in areas like this we have to acknowledge the wider topic because it can often lead to abuse from verbal all the way to physical.
Essentially the argument of needing an outright ban simply because we’re imagining a grown man posing as a woman just to play rugby and the dangers that entails falls way short of the conversation that needs to be had on the matter.
Thankfully John Oliver did a decent job laying out the wider issue IMO so here’s his recent (NSFW) piece on it…
INJURY REPORTS
With the URC returning the weekend after next we got two injury reports and unfortunately there was not a lot of good news, especially for Ciarán Frawley who just can’t string a run of games together at all.
There’s also a lot of concern over the “no further updates” list, that’s usually where my eyes go first.
IRISH REPORT
Joey Carbery will complete the return to play protocols at Munster following his removal on Saturday for a HIA. Robbie Henshaw’s hamstring issue will rule him out of this week’s game against Australia, and he will continue his rehab at Leinster.
Jimmy O’Brien will complete the HIA process today and is expected to be available to train tomorrow.
The players who picked up knocks against South Africa – Johnny Sexton, James Ryan, Andrew Porter, Josh van der Flier and Hugo Keenan – will be monitored across the early part of the week and re-integrated into training according to their individual management plans.
Joe McCarthy returns to the squad having completed his return to play protocols.
Bundee Aki, who has trained with the squad for the past few weeks, is now available for selection having completed his suspension and the coaching intervention programme.
LEINSTER REPORT
INJURY UPDATE – AVAILABLE FOR SELECTION:
Joe McCarthy: will be available to train this week following his return from the Graduated Return to Play Protocols and has joined up with the Ireland squad
INJURY UPDATE – FURTHER ASSESSMENT REQUIRED:
Harry Byrne, Jordan Larmour and Rónan Kelleher: will step up their rehabilitation this week as they return from hamstring, foot and a hamstring injury respectively
INJURY UPDATE – UNAVAILABLE FOR SELECTION:
Martin Moloney: injured his ACL in the game against Scarlets and has had a procedure. He will be unavailable for the rest of the season.
Ciarán Frawley: will have a procedure tomorrow for a knee injury and will be unavailable for a number of months.
Robbie Henshaw: has returned to Leinster Rugby where he will be assessed for a hamstring injury
There are no further updates on:
Ryan Baird (concussion), Will Connors (bicep), James Lowe (calf), James Tracy (neck), Charlie Ryan (knee) and Tommy O’Brien (knee)
AIL UPDATE
The Women’s AIL is nearing its conclusion with just one more round of matches before the top four go into the semifinals. Rock ensured they will be at home with their 19-17 top of the table win at Railway Union ensures both clubs will be at home in the playoffs, with Belvo having already clinched their place. The fourth and final spot is up for grabs this weekend and two of the teams in contention UL Bohs and Galwaegians play each other while Wicklow have a tougher task against RU.
One extra thing about Wicklow RFC, it’s quite something to see them in contention for the final four this season after receiving much ridicule from some quarters (and not just them but the women’s game in general) following a series of heavy defeats.
Meanwhile over on the men’s side of things Terenure’s perfect start continued, with a 38-21 win over Hinch at Lakelands keeping them top, can’t do better than 30 points from 30! They travel to Castle Avenue to play Tarf next in what’s clearly the tie of the round although that’s not until the weekend of the 26th.
Women’s AIL
Suttonians 24-12 Ballincollig
Cooke 12-55 UL Bohemian
Old Belvedere 17-8 Wicklow
Railway Union 17-19 Blackrock College
Sat Nov 19
Ballincollig v Cooke
Blackrock College v Suttonians
UL Bohemian v Galwegians
Wicklow RFC v Railway Union
Men’s AIL
Cork Con 36-25 Lansdowne
Dublin University 34-28 Shannon
Garryowen 22-47 UCD
Terenure 38-21 Ballynahinch
Young Munster 24-19 Clontarf
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’
All about the Wallabies this weekend, with Tom Coleman joining me on Friday evening for a preview pod, while after having Munster representation for the wrap last Sunday, there will be harpin’ from Ulster and Connacht as Ian Frizzell and Stephen Murphy this time around. Plus of course there will be all the regular features to stay tuned to our social media channels, including Mastodon where we having been posting first of late.
In the meantime, be sure to enjoy your rugby wherever you are. JLP
Similarly to the Ireland A game a few guys did themselves no real favours in the long run. You have to worry for Carbury as he now probably has played enough to show hes not the guy to back up Sexton.
Ted Maher
If you haven’t watched it live, well then don’t 😂😂
A 35-17 win what was pretty uninspiring for long periods.
Job done, don't get me wrong.
But I expected more of a clinical performance today from what is usually a very clinical team.
A brilliant win well done you our boys in green.Roll on next week NZ❤️☘️💚👍👏💪🇮🇪
Dave Murray
Emmmmm…..roll on next week.
Odd game. Dynamic forwards but wasteful backs for Ireland, especially in the Fijian 22, yet won it at a canter after a kick up the arse at the start of the game. A win is a win is a win but the only memorable thing from this one will be the video session on Monday 😬 #IREvFIJI
HARPIN' ON RUGBY 