LOOKING FOR A LIFT
Munster, Connacht and Leinster all in need of rapid improvement
THIS morning’s video sessions are going to be uncomfortable viewing for Leinster, Munster and Connacht. All three squads will not be pleased with their efforts on the opening weekend of the new season.
Leinster got the job done in Parma, but only after a late scare from the freewheeling Zebre side, who crossed for five tries during a pulsating encounter. Munster, meanwhile, put in a stuttering display in Cardiff, going down 2013. The Graham Rowntree project is clearly still in the early stages. Worryingly, many of their old failings were on display again.
The Connacht coaching team will be the most concerned, however. The Westerners were beaten comprehensively in Belfast, suffering a 36-10 hammering at the hands of Ulster.
These are early days in the URC and all the provinces will improve in the weeks and months ahead. Saying that, this is a condensed competition. It’s a World Cup year and the usual 21-round format has been shortened to just 18 games in the regular season.
A sluggish start is going to cost you. A few defeats, some stalled momentum, and a stumbling side could find themselves out of the play-off race by Christmas. The presence of the South African teams, the ever-improving Italians, and the Welsh sides, buoyed by some big-name players returning home to ply their trade, has made this league a lot more competitive.
It’s not just the title at stake either — qualifying for the Heineken Champions Cup is paramount. It’s a bit premature to be pressing the panic button after week one, but Leo Cullen, Rowntree and Andy Friend know that they can’t afford too many slipups before the autumn international window in November.
At least Cullen can take comfort by the fact that a truckload of internationals will be back in the selection reckoning in the coming weeks. No operation is going to feel the effects of the Emerging Ireland tour more than Leinster, but they have the resources to cope. Having the likes of Tadhg Furlong, James Ryan, Caelan Doris and Robbie Henshaw back on board will sharpen things up. Treviso are next up at the RDS on Friday and Cullen will be expecting a big response on their home turf, especially with some big names back on board.
‘We have plenty to work on, as you’d probably expect early season. We’ve only played one preseason game, some lads are only coming in for their first action of the season. It’s nice to get a bonus-point win away from home but plenty to work on,’ the Leinster head coach said.
‘We’ve a number of players still being managed back, they will come into the frame next week.’
Munster will be back in Wales to take on the Dragons and Rowntree is set to ring the changes for the visit to Rodney Parade. The Munster boss is set to lose 10 players to the looming Ireland tour of South Africa, a sizeable chunk of his brightest young talents. Having the likes of Conor Murray, Joey Carbery, Peter O’Mahony and Tadhg Beirne back in action will be crucial. The issue for Rowntree and his management team will be the high rate of unforced errors in the opening loss at Cardiff Arms Park. Of course, there are going to be mistakes and indecision as a new coaching team bed down their new ideas and tactical plan, but some of the basic mistakes and poor decision making were worryingly familiar. It’s too early to pass judgement on this latest Munster rebuild, but this wasn’t the most promising of starts.
Connacht came into this season with high hopes after a savvy summer of recruitment but, again, some of their old vulnerabilities resurfaced. They simply won’t be able to compete against the heavyweight sides in this competition if they can’t gain some parity up front. Ulster’s lineout maul caused carnage at the weekend. Connacht need to shore up the set piece or this could be another grind. For all their attacking invention, stellar backs, and the soon-to-be-completed 4G pitch on the Sportsground, they won’t win many games without a solid platform up front.
Dan McFarland will be the most content of the provincial coaches this morning. Ulster made a storming start to the new campaign. There was plenty to admire about the home side’s display, from the busy performance of young hooker Tom Stewart to the endeavour of Jacob Stockdale, back on the beat after almost a year out with an ankle injury.
Of all the promising young players in this squad, two of the most senior personnel made big statements. Stuart McCloskey has found himself way down the international pecking order for quite some time. In another era, the giant Ulster centre would have at least a half century of Test caps by now, but the Bangor native has just six. The presence of Henshaw, Garry Ringrose and Bundee Aki ahead in the midfield queue has hindered his international progress, while James Hume — his Ulster team-mate — was grabbing all the attention last season. McCloskey continues to put in huge shifts for his home province, however. His sublime offload to
‘Some lads are only coming in for their first action’
put Luke Marshall away for a fine try was undoubtedly the highlight of the weekend.
Marty Moore is another stalwart who has found himself on the periphery of international selection for a stretch as well. Surely Andy Farrell is going to rethink his views on the former Leinster tighthead? Moore is a lot more than a solid scrummager these days. He is making plenty of impact around the field. Farrell is more than keen on his understudy, Tom O’Toole, but Moore is due an international recall. Ireland are desperate for international-quality tightheads and they could do worse than take another look at Moore. Like the rest of his Ulster team-mates, he did his cause no harm after round one.
Leinster, Munster and Connacht have plenty of ground to make up this week. This season could get away from them quick.