Connacht Abú wrote:


For anyone suffering withdrawal symptoms.

Too mainstream. I preferred their earlier stuff.

For anyone suffering withdrawal symptoms.

www.joe.ie/sport/pic-connacht-fans-will-...ikipedia-page/548097

Make it so.

Interesting piece from IRFU re underage staffing for the provinces.

www.irishrugby.ie/news/37559.php#.V1IH6sso_qA

I'm relistening to the Craggy Island podcasts. I went back to the epilogue episode recorded after the Gloucester playoff and I'm as far as Cardiff away now. I'm kind of sorry I didn't go all the way back to the start of the 2014 season.

It's got it all, chips on shoulders, derision of national journalists who haven't a clue, resignation to never getting the rub of the green, hope tinged with pessimism (or pessimism tinged with hope); but not even an inkling of what was about to happen. It's nearly Christmas and we'd still take your hand off for sixth place. The injury list is terrifying and we have Ulster and Scarlets up next. Murray Kinsella hasn't gotten around to explaining to us what precisely is going on yet.

It's a fantastic record of the season. It's as good as any documentary or book that might come out.

I don't have an Iphone so I can't leave a review on itunes, but apparently these ratings are important so those of you who can should consider leaving one.

I agree that ideally loughs should be pushing straight but and experienced lh will be doing their best to upset the th including doing what loughs is doing imo.

Loughs was epic last weekend and played way above himself as he is probably a bit of a weak link against international class th's even I'd he is well capable scrumming down v the next level down th's.

Our scrum has been excellent all season but we've had buckley or finlay at lh most of that time which makes a massive difference. The one fear I had going in to last weekend was if the front row would hold up. I said that if it did I was confident we would win and it just about did so fair play to loughs.

EvoGeo wrote: Interesting take on the scrums here.

Not sure I agree fully on the wheel around (the two photo's he uses for proof are from different angles but I do think that Connacht could have been penalised under a weaker ref) and as far as I know every loosehead tries to force the tighthead down with his bind so I don't think Loughs is doing anything abnormal in this game?

www.the42.ie/leinster-connacht-scrum-ana...s-2-2798122-Jun2016/

I think ideally Loughs should be pushing up into Ross' chest and trying to win the engagement that way (or at least driving straight), Ross splitting the LH and hooker is fairly uncommon I believe its normally the TH that is isolated and attacked by the LH and hooker (but you could ask Peter Bracken on twitter!).

I couldn't really make out his point about wheeling and like you think a different ref or different angle would tell a different story. I also think Leinster have done a fair amount of cheating in the scrum to gain the advantage at times, Ruddock seems to join the front row quite often for instance, but I haven't seen the game back on tv yet and I was up in the higher stands so I couldn't see as clearly when/if that was happening.

Finally I wonder how much Lougney's shoulder injury against Glasgow factored into this situation as Connacht's scrum (albeit with Buckley) has been excellent all season.

Interesting take on the scrums here.

Not sure I agree fully on the wheel around (the two photo's he uses for proof are from different angles but I do think that Connacht could have been penalised under a weaker ref) and as far as I know every loosehead tries to force the tighthead down with his bind so I don't think Loughs is doing anything abnormal in this game?

www.the42.ie/leinster-connacht-scrum-ana...s-2-2798122-Jun2016/

m.independent.ie/sport/rugby/leinster-ru...eavour-34766140.html

Neil Francis very complementary about Tom and Ali. In fact, brace yourselves, nothing negative about Connacht at all.

salmson wrote: I was (mostly) kidding. Thought the try they did score shouldn't have stood (play should have been stopped) so immaterial to the result.

It was shockingly disgraceful that play wasn't stopped at that point. What bit of "player welfare" did The Best Referee In The World® miss?!

He missed Rob Kearney throwing the ball forward in the first half, and who's to say that the Connacht defenders didn't slow down when they heard the whistle? Looked like they did to me, not that I'd be biased or anything. :whistle:

Tiernan and Connacht can also take the important lesson that if you can't get up and the ref asks if you're OK, you say no.

I was (mostly) kidding. Thought the try they did score shouldn't have stood (play should have been stopped) so immaterial to the result.

salmson wrote:

Darragh wrote: IF Leinster were awarded that forward pass try.

I thought that pass was fine. But the big teams get the big decisions. :S :pinch: :whistle:

Over the years Connacht have had many blatantly incorrect refereeing decisions go against them which have cost us dearly in advancing in the challenge cup or vital points in the Pro 12. If Nigel Owens made a mistake tough; we've had to take on the chin far too many over the years. One serious refereeing error involved Pat Lam speaking out after a match to the media and ended up with him meeting the Men In Blazers at a disciplinary hearing and cost him €3,000 2 years ago.So I, like many more Connacht men, won't be staying awake at night thinking about it !

Great piece by Murray Kinsella, will take a while to read but worth the effort.

www.the42.ie/connacht-analysis-attack-ir...gby-2799291-Jun2016/

Darragh wrote: IF Leinster were awarded that forward pass try.

I thought that pass was fine. But the big teams get the big decisions. :S :pinch: :whistle:

Well there was a bit of 'IF' from D'arcy.

IF Leinster were awarded that forward pass try.
IF Connacht lost momentum.
IF....God knows what else might have happened.

IF, IF, IF , then Leinster might have won he suggests.

I found that bit atypical of ex players turned media. Quinlan is guilty of IF scenarios also.

But generally most of the media stuff has been positive, because to be honest, how can it not be.

Bar the scrums, Leinster were wiped. Men against boys out there.

All Blacks indeed.