green13 wrote: I'd be more worried about loosing Pat Lam and Dan McFarland.

I don't think pat lam can risk leaving connacht yet. He hasn't achieved anything yet. (Top6 would be something).
With his coaching reputation in a mess before coming here, if he leaves and goes to leinster and fails after two years, he'll have a hard time finding another job

'Robbie Henshaw shrugs off Leinster transfer talk as he praises Lam' article in todays Independent.
(sorry can't do link).

No doubt he will move it's just a case of when. Not seeing out his contract would be a sickener but I'd be more worried about loosing Pat Lam and Dan McFarland.

rossie wrote: Top players want to play for the top teams, maximise their earning potential and win trophies during what is a short career full of danger. It can end at any time. Whether he goes or not this summer there is clearly huge pressure on him to go to leinster. They are using their friends in the media to keep the pressure on and robbie isn't confirming or denying it atm.
Connacht have improved but not enough to satisfy a players desire to win trophies and maximise earnings. I don't think sexton could have earned what he will be reportedly on when he returns anywhere outside of France other than leinster. That's where the money is and it's everyone's reality unfortunately.

That's exactly it. He's in training with the likes of Sexton in the international camp and then he's coming back to train with very inexperienced 10's. He looks a much better player for ireland then he does for us because he plays with a pack who go forward at international level. With us he gets the ball 10 yards behind the gain-line.

My take is on it that Aki was sent to Connacht because this move was inevitable and that we have been compensated to some degree .already.

I don't begrudge it to him. Its a short career and he's got to look after himself because nobody else will. He'll always be from Connacht.

There is no chance of us establishing ourselves with any real prescence in the Champions Cup for about 5 years. He can't afford to wait that long.

Hard to believe that munster with 2 centres on 1 year contracts didn't really try.

rossie wrote: Top players want to play for the top teams, maximise their earning potential and win trophies during what is a short career full of danger. It can end at any time. Whether he goes or not this summer there is clearly huge pressure on him to go to leinster. They are using their friends in the media to keep the pressure on and robbie isn't confirming or denying it atm.
Connacht have improved but not enough to satisfy a players desire to win trophies and maximise earnings. I don't think sexton could have earned what he will be reportedly on when he returns anywhere outside of France other than leinster. That's where the money is and it's everyone's reality unfortunately.

Fair enough and I have no argument with players wanting to move on to bigger sides, its a fact of professional sport. I wished Mike McCarthy and the other lads who have left Connacht for the bigger sides well because they had the integrity to see out their contract. I couldn't really understand the big deal about them moving on as their contract was up and its a free market. However, if Henshaw fails to see out his contract it will reflect very badly on him and those around him. In all honesty you could see the writing on the wall by what his father didn't say in the Peter O'Reilly (whose blue colours really showed up) article in the Sunday Times a few weeks ago.

Top players want to play for the top teams, maximise their earning potential and win trophies during what is a short career full of danger. It can end at any time. Whether he goes or not this summer there is clearly huge pressure on him to go to leinster. They are using their friends in the media to keep the pressure on and robbie isn't confirming or denying it atm.
Connacht have improved but not enough to satisfy a players desire to win trophies and maximise earnings. I don't think sexton could have earned what he will be reportedly on when he returns anywhere outside of France other than leinster. That's where the money is and it's everyone's reality unfortunately.

GTTC wrote: I would be pretty fuming if Robbie goes. I have no problem if he wants to leave after the contract is up but leaving early. That is a totally different story and as has been said already, sends a terrible message about the IRFU and their opinion of Connacht.

This.
As much as I'd be disappointed him leaving when the contract is up, it's his choice.
Him leaving in the summer, well that would be 10 times worse than what Jamie Hagan did.
All the talk is that he would have game time with irish internationals at leinster but world cup is in October, and Ireland play a few international games in September so he'd have max 2games in leinster.
God I'd love a connacht player starting games in the world cup.
If the deal is done, he should leave now and I'll help him pack the bags

Well with the dwindling options of coaches out there, I would start to worry about a Pat Lam move to Leinster!

I would be pretty fuming if Robbie goes. I have no problem if he wants to leave after the contract is up but leaving early. That is a totally different story and as has been said already, sends a terrible message about the IRFU and their opinion of Connacht.

100% agree. It makes you wonder why the IRFU are pumping more money into Connacht only to strip them as soon as they get somewhere. It doesn't strike me as a smart policy especially not long term.

P.S. IF he does go I hope Pat gets on the phone to Eoin Griffin asking him to come back sooner rather than later.

phatguerilla wrote: it would just set Connacht back years into the development province mindset.

This. The attitude exists that you can't play for Connacht (long term) and expect to be first choice for Ireland, this is what we need to break if we really want to be on an equal footing with the other provinces. Losing Robbie would reaffirm this mindset and be a huge step back for us, especially given this years results and the fact that he's from Athlone and has come through the Connacht system.

I would be pretty fuming if Robbie goes. I have no problem if he wants to leave after the contract is up but leaving early. That is a totally different story and as has been said already, sends a terrible message about the IRFU and their opinion of Connacht.

I'd be really disappointed to see that happen. On the one hand it's probably a position we can take a loss but it would just set Connacht back years into the development province mindset. Unless we're getting enough money for a quality 10 NOT MADIGAN, someone who can take charge of a game and play different tactics required, (a Gareth Anscombe or gopperth or player of that level, we'd never get a capped international) then it wouldn't be worth it. But for a first transfer between Irish provinces it is unlikely to even be a good deal.

It seems to be pretty much everywhere that he is gone there at end of season. Hopefully connacht get the best possible deal for him. They need to keep roux and get an 8 and 10 who can run a back line and consistently kick his goals. Leinster have plenty of good 8s and have 2 highly rated 10s in their academy plus noel Reid. Madigan is going nowhere and gopperth is out of connachts price range unless irfu cough up.

connachtexile wrote: Babbling Brook wrote:

Henshaw move is rumoured as done deal but doubt Dom Ryan will be happy

Everyone over at Babbling Brook is convinced that Robbie Henshaw is going to break his contract and go to Leinster next season with Dominic Ryan as part of the cash deal to let him go. Anyone hear anything?

From what I've heard Henshaw going to Leinster is a done deal. Everyone in leinster says the same thing so there has to be something in it.
And the reality is if offered the choice of playing with a world class outhalf and one starting out his career. It isn't a contest.

It suits the international coach as well to have one of his centres playing regularly with his international outhalf.

I've heard nothing about Ryan coming this way and I'd suspect that's bullshit. He's be pitching himself up against Heenan. With Jennings knocking on and O Brien very injury prone it makes no sense to me. The academy graduates have been nothing stellar of late.

I don't know whether Leinster is the right move for Henshaw. I'd prefer him to go South- I think being away from all that's associated with Leinster rugby isn't a bad thing. Still very much a schools rugby club whereby good performances against really poor teams are treated as being next in line to be nominated for World Player of the Year.

I doubt very much Henshaw will be in green for 2015/2016 season and if he is - it definitely will be his last.

Robbie also has another year in college ahead of him

salmson wrote:

connachtexile wrote: Babbling Brook wrote:

Henshaw move is rumoured as done deal but doubt Dom Ryan will be happy

Everyone over at Babbling Brook is convinced that Robbie Henshaw is going to break his contract and go to Leinster next season with Dominic Ryan as part of the cash deal to let him go. Anyone hear anything?

Haven't heard anything but:
Noone has ever broken contract in this manner in the history of the Irish pro game.
He can walk in 18 months' time when his contract and degree are both finished.
The Leinster coaches' responses have been far more circumspect than misreported in the media. But that won't sell the Rag or the Heddald.
There's no benefit for the national team in moving him in the summer as he wouldn't play til after the world cup anyway.
Finally: Ben T'eo?

From my admittedly limited knowledge of Babbling Brook it makes the Munster fan forums look like exemplars of reasoned unbiased debate, I wouldn't worry.*

* for 12 months anyway

The main and obvious barriers to Robbie move (apart from the sh*tstorm that will befall the IRFU and Leinster) are that he's intelligent enough to realise that apart from the coaching ticket (which may not survive too long anyway, with no guarantee as to who a replacement may be) his move in itself won't turn around Leinster, even Sexton's return won't correct their limitations in the pack. They have some talented players, but this incarnation of the Leinster side is not the one that won three HEC's. Even if they get Sexton back,and the likes Cian Healey, Sean O'Brien, McLaughlin and Luke Fitz can stay fit for a half dozen games in a row there are question marks over leadership and the mental toughness missing that they had with leaders like Leo Cullen and BO'D in the squad and they Necewa's loss hasn't been filled by Kirchner (not even close)...

History also hasn't been kind to players who have moved from Connacht to other provinces, can't think of one (probably Fla, as the only exception really) in the Pro era who went on to become a markedly better player by moving to Leinster/Munster or Ulster after leaving Connacht. Macca, Cronin, Fionn, Keatley, going back a bit further to the likes of John O'Sullivan, Rowan Frost or Ronan McCormack.

Sure Seanie and Macca can probably point to a couple of winners medals, but both were capped out of Connacht and in playing terms neither has pushed on significantly. Of the two Cronin is the biggest disappointment, I truly believe that if he had stayed here he could have played enough rugby to lock down the Ireland shirt. He's been basically Richardt Strauss's back up at Leinster...

connachtexile wrote: Babbling Brook wrote:

Henshaw move is rumoured as done deal but doubt Dom Ryan will be happy

Everyone over at Babbling Brook is convinced that Robbie Henshaw is going to break his contract and go to Leinster next season with Dominic Ryan as part of the cash deal to let him go. Anyone hear anything?

Haven't heard anything but:
Noone has ever broken contract in this manner in the history of the Irish pro game.
He can walk in 18 months' time when his contract and degree are both finished.
The Leinster coaches' responses have been far more circumspect than misreported in the media. But that won't sell the Rag or the Heddald.
There's no benefit for the national team in moving him in the summer as he wouldn't play til after the world cup anyway.
Finally: Ben T'eo?

From my admittedly limited knowledge of Babbling Brook it makes the Munster fan forums look like exemplars of reasoned unbiased debate, I wouldn't worry.*

* for 12 months anyway