Leinster 13-5 down at half time away to Cardiff but they'll have a strong wind in the 2nd half and are up a man after a red card for Hoeata for a reckless high tackle on Kearney.

rossie wrote: With connacht and scarlets losing last night I expect the gap between 5th and 6th to stretch out to 6 and probably 7 pts by end of weekend creating two mini leagues in the competition. The top five will have Europe pretty much in bag and will slog it out for the play off positions with a home semi the goal as always.
Connacht, scarlets and Edinburgh will battle it out for 6th with the runner up getting the consolation prize of a playoff spot for top tier. This will no doubt impact significantly on the top 4 come end of season. Exciting times ahead.

I think the Top 4 will stay as it is with only the order to be decided. Ulster look in poor shape to me. I wouldn't rule out Treviso causing a surprise tomorrow. The order of the table will be influenced by who progresses in Europe and who is most affected by 6 nations call ups. Because of that Munster probably look best placed to top the league as they are likely to be the least affected during the 6 nations and progression in Europe looks unlikely even if you wouldn't rule them out.

Scarlets have to be favourites for 6th after last night and Edinburgh look like a side that could have a decent run in the 2nd half of the season. Big game today, hopefully Leinster won't turn this into an even worse weekend by losing at Cardiff.

With connacht and scarlets losing last night I expect the gap between 5th and 6th to stretch out to 6 and probably 7 pts by end of weekend creating two mini leagues in the competition. The top five will have Europe pretty much in bag and will slog it out for the play off positions with a home semi the goal as always.
Connacht, scarlets and Edinburgh will battle it out for 6th with the runner up getting the consolation prize of a playoff spot for top tier. This will no doubt impact significantly on the top 4 come end of season. Exciting times ahead.

Week 12 Round Up

2015 began with another round of derby games and there were a number of surprises as none of the Top 4 teams at the start of the Round picked up a single point in their 4 games.

Ospreys remain top despite a poor showing in a 22-10 defeat away to Scarlets who remain unbeaten in the league and Europe at home this season. Liam Williams and John Barclay scored the tries for the home side with Rhys Priestland winning the battle of the Welsh number 10's on the night with a 12 point haul in a man of the match display.

Glasgow surrendered the league points and the 1872 Cup to Edinburgh in a 20-8 defeat against the home side at Murrayfield. Two tries from Tim Visser handed the home side a 20-3 half time advantage and despite not adding to their total after the break they won on the night by 12 and won the Cup on aggregate by 2 points. This was Edinburgh's first success in the Cup since 2009.

Munster also failed to make inroads at the top of the table as they fell to a 24-16 defeat to Connacht at the Sportsground. Leading 13-0 early on albeit with a strong wind to their back it looked like Munster would yet again depart Galway with a win but a try from Kieran Marmion sparked the revival and further tries from Craig Ronaldson and Aly Muldowney helped the home side secure a famous win and remain unbeaten at home this season.

Leinster were this weekend's big winners in the chase for the Top 4. 19 points from Ian Madigan and a late try from man of the match Jack Conan secured a 24-11 win over an Ulster side which resulted in them moving into 4th in the table and now just 4 off the pacesetters, Ospreys. Ulster have now lost their last 6 on the road in all competitions with their win at Cardiff on September 19th being their only away win of the season.

Cardiff gained revenge for their defeat at home to Dragons on St. Stephen's Day by defeating their local rivals 11-9 at Rodney Parade. Gareth Anscombe kicked a penalty and a drop goal to help secure him the man of the match award in a low scoring game.

Benetton Treviso took pole position in the race for the Italian European Champions Cup slot for 2015/16 as they completed the double over Italian rivals Zebre at Stadio Monigo. Leading 10-3 at the break the home side, the home side had to withstand 3 players being sent to the sin-bin in the 2nd half to secure their first home win of the season.

Round 12 Results
Dragons 9-11 Cardiff Blues
Connacht 24-16 Munster
Edinburgh 20-8 Glasgow
Leinster 24-11 Ulster
Benetton Treviso 17-15 Zebre
Scarlets 22-10 Ospreys

Table after Round 12
Ospreys 40
Glasgow 39
Munster 37
Leinster 36
Ulster 35
Connacht 32
Scarlets 28
Edinburgh 24
Cardiff 22
Dragons 17
Treviso 12
Zebre 10

Round 13 Fixtures

Friday 9th January: Connacht v Edinburgh
Connacht will look to maintain their unbeaten home record and complete the double over an Edinburgh side who will travel full of confidence having secured the 1872 Cup against Glasgow in Round 12. Connacht won the corresponding fixture 11-7 in February 2014.

Friday 9th January: Glasgow v Scarlets
Glasgow will hope to put some indifferent recent form behind them and extend their unbeaten home league record which stretches back to November 2013. Glasgow won the corresponding fixture 14-6 in March 2014 while Scarlets will hope to build on their win at home to Ospreys and secure their first away victory since February 2014.

Saturday 10th January: Cardiff Blues v Leinster
Cardiff will look to record their first victory over an Irish province this season as they host a Leinster side who will be determined to remain in touch with the leaders following a significant weekend for them in Round 12. Leinster won the corresponding fixture 34-22 in February 2014.

Saturday 10th January: Zebre v Munster
Munster will expect to maintain it 6 wins from their 6 meetings against the Italian side and bounce back from their disappointing away defeats to Glasgow and Connacht. However, they are likely to have more than one eye on a make or break European fixture against Saracens the following weekend. Munster won the corresponding fixture 43-21 in September 2013

Sunday 11th January: Benetton Treviso v Ulster
Ulster will hope to put their away day woes behind them when they visit Treviso in Round 13. Ulster lost on their last visit to Italy when they faced Zebre and will want to avoid losing further ground on the Top 4 against a Treviso side pushing for 3 wins in a row following a pair of morale boosting wins over Italians rivals Zebre. Ulster edged the corresponding fixture 14-12 in February 2014.

Sunday 11th January: Ospreys v Dragons
Ospreys will hope to cement their position at the top of the table and continue their unbeaten record at the Liberty Stadium this season when they host regional rivals Dragons on Sunday. Dragons will hope to claim a 2nd successive away win over Welsh opposition having beaten Cardiff at the Arms Park on December 26th. Ospreys won the corresponding fixture 40-17 in October 2013.

Hasn't been a good weekend for the league leaders in general, looks like the Top 3 will pick up 0 points allowing Leinster to close right in and also making the race for Top 6 fascinating along with the battle between the two Italians at the bottom. Good weekend for the league with so much at stake and big crowds but results not going as we'd like them bar our own obviously.

Scarletts 14-3 up at half time. And all over Ospreys

GTTC wrote:

Borders no.2 wrote: Scarlets pick up a losing bonus point at Ospreys, could so easily have been the win but they face Ospreys next up at home and you'd have to fancy them in that one on today's evidence given the front row issues at Ospreys.

Edinburgh picked up nothing away to Glasgow. The reverse of that fixture is next weekend also.

Interesting couple of weeks coming up for us. A win over Edinburgh is essential, however 8 points from the next two games would leave us in a great position heading into the 6 nations and that vital game away to Scarlets.

Glasgow a class team. Reckon they will win the league this year

The Ospreys Scarletts game was a cracker. With, thankfully, the Sacarletts being unlucky not to win. They are a far far better team with all their players. Am I right to say that we play them away during the 6 Nations wondow so they will be missing the frontliners again?

Glasgow are a top team but imo will struggle to keep in top position or even top 2 to the end of season. They lose nearly an entire team during the 6 nations and they return exhausted which prolongs the loss. It happened them in Europe after the AIs. You really do need home advantage to win this league so that could cost them.

Borders no.2 wrote: Scarlets pick up a losing bonus point at Ospreys, could so easily have been the win but they face Ospreys next up at home and you'd have to fancy them in that one on today's evidence given the front row issues at Ospreys.

Edinburgh picked up nothing away to Glasgow. The reverse of that fixture is next weekend also.

Interesting couple of weeks coming up for us. A win over Edinburgh is essential, however 8 points from the next two games would leave us in a great position heading into the 6 nations and that vital game away to Scarlets.

Glasgow a class team. Reckon they will win the league this year

The Ospreys Scarletts game was a cracker. With, thankfully, the Sacarletts being unlucky not to win. They are a far far better team with all their players. Am I right to say that we play them away during the 6 Nations wondow so they will be missing the frontliners again?

Week 11 Round Up

2014 ended with 6 derby matches to bring the regular league season to its half way point.

Ospreys, Glasgow and Munster maintained their top 3 positions, recording wins over Scarlets, Edinburgh and Leinster respectively.

Ospreys were made fight all the way by the Scarlets to pick up their 9th win in 11 games. Despite leading 17-6 on the stroke of half time through tries from Natoga and Lydiate, Scarlets used their scrum dominance to work their way back into the game. The boot of Steve Shingler brought the gap back to 2 points late on but Ospreys hung on for victory.

Glasgow picked up another 4 points and will take a 10 point lead into the 2nd match of the 1872 Cup derby with Edinburgh next Friday night. A try from Josh Strauss late in the first half proved to be a crucial score as they remain unbeaten in the league at Scotstoun.

Munster kept the pressure on the top 2 with a comfortable 28-13 victory over rivals Leinster. CJ Stander once again won the man of the match award as he got over for the first of Munster's 3 tries. Andrew Conway and Dave O'Callaghan also got over the whitewash for the home side.

Leinster's defeat opened the door for Ulster to retake 4th spot in the table. Craig Gilroy's try enabled Ulster to establish a first half advantage, a late try off a rolling maul for Aly Muldowney ensured Connacht didn't go home empty handed as they picked up their first losing bonus point of the season.

Dragons made it four wins on the bounce in all competitions as they enjoyed a 23-17 win away to local rivals Cardiff Blues at the Arms Park. Dragons had led 20-3 early in the 2nd half but tries from Jarad Hoeta and Tavis Knoyle saw the home side move into contention late on. However, a late penalty from Tom Prydie ensured Dragons moved to within 2 points of their rivals with a return fixture to take place on Thursday.

Benetton Treviso gave their Champions Cup qualification hopes a shot in the arm as they won 26-16 at Italian rivals Zebre. Man of the match Jayden Hayward kicked 16 points for the visitors who recorded their first win of the season. The victory was their first since a 45 - 27 win over Dragons on April 12th and moves them to within 1 point of Zebre with the return game to come on Saturday.

Round 11 Results
Cardiff 17-23 Dragons
Munster 28-13 Leinster
Ulster 13-10 Connacht
Glasgow 16-6 Edinburgh
Ospreys 17-15 Scarlets
Zebre 16-26 Benetton Treviso

Table after Round 11
Ospreys 40
Glasgow 39
Munster 37
Ulster 35
Leinster 32
Connacht 28
Scarlets 24
Edinburgh 20
Cardiff 18
Dragons 16
Zebre 9
Treviso 8

Round 12 Fixtures

Thursday 1st January: Dragons v Cardiff
After enjoying away day success against their Welsh neighbours, Dragons will hope to continue their climb up the table at home to Cardiff. Dragons won the corresponding fixture 22-16 in December 2013.

Thursday 1st January: Connacht v Munster
Connacht will hope to avoid 3 defeats on the spin when they host provincial rivals Munster. However, Connacht's only recent victory over Munster was a 12-6 success in December 2008. Munster won the corresponding fixture 32-23 in April.

Friday 2nd January: Edinburgh v Glasgow
Glasgow will hope to at least temporarily move top of the table by defeating Scottish rivals Edinburgh at Murrayfield. In addition to the league points on offer, Glasgow will hope to claim the 1872 after building up a 10 point lead in the first leg. Glasgow won the corresponding fixture 20-16 in December 2013.

Saturday 3rd January: Leinster v Ulster
Leinster and Ulster will hope to put some indifferent recent form behind them when they meet at the RDS. A win for either side could prove important in the race for a top 4 spot. Leinster won the corresponding fixture 19-6 in December 2013

Saturday 3rd January: Benetton Treviso v Zebre
After Treviso recorded their first win of the season away to Zebre, the race for the Italian European Champions Cup spot has heated up. A win for either side in this fixture could prove decisive later in the season. Treviso won the corresponding fixture 20-15 in December 2013

Saturday 3rd January: Scarlets v Ospreys
Scarlets will seek to maintain their unbeaten home record at home to their West Wales rivals Ospreys. Having narrowly overcome their rivals at the Liberty Stadium on Saturday, Ospreys will hope to remain top of the table by completing the double over their rivals. Ospreys won the corresponding fixture 10-6 in December 2013.

Scarlets pick up a losing bonus point at Ospreys, could so easily have been the win but they face Ospreys next up at home and you'd have to fancy them in that one on today's evidence given the front row issues at Ospreys.

Edinburgh picked up nothing away to Glasgow. The reverse of that fixture is next weekend also.

Interesting couple of weeks coming up for us. A win over Edinburgh is essential, however 8 points from the next two games would leave us in a great position heading into the 6 nations and that vital game away to Scarlets.

The greatest Christmas gift from Cardiff and Newport. At the Arm's Park, the latter just has won by 17 to 23

Week 10 Round Up

In week 10 all 6 home sides enjoyed victories.

Ospreys moved back to the top of the table courtesy of a 31-20 bonus point victory over Ulster at the Liberty Stadium. Ospreys sealed the bonus point with 25 minutes left on the clock to lead 31-6. Late tries from Rob Herring and Tommy Bowe put some respectability on the scoreboard but it was too little too late. Once again Rhys Webb impressed at scrum half for the home side scoring two tries and picking up the man of the match award.

Munster surrendered a 18-9 half time advantage away to Glasgow to fall from 1st to 3rd ahead of their home match with rivals Leinster. Tries from JJ Hanrahan and Robin Copeland put Munster in a strong position at the break. However, Nakarawa got over for Glasgow to help close the gap to 2 points. JJ Hanrahan missed two crucial kicks at this stage and they paid the price as man of the match Jonny Gray went over to clinch the win for the home side which moved them back into the Top 2. Munster have now lost 3 in a row. However, they were the only away side to pick up any points this weekend and remain just 3 points off the top of the table.

Leinster moved back into the Top 4 and eased some of the pressure on coach Matt O'Connor by beating Connacht 21-11 at the RDS. An early try from Shane Jennings helped the home side into an 8-0 lead. However, Connacht kept in touch and following George Naoupu's try late on had moved to within 3 points. However, a mix up in the Connacht defence from a Leinster penalty kick to touch allowed Zane Kirchner in to seal the win and deny Connacht a losing bonus point.

Cardiff narrowed the gap up to 6th place by recording their 2nd league win in a row on Friday against Welsh rivals Scarlets. Two tries from man of the match Josh Navidi helped the home side into a 21-6 half time lead. Cardiff failed to score in the 2nd half but Scarlets could only add 3 more points which ensured they left the Arms Park empty handed as their away day blues continue to persist.

Edinburgh made it 3 wins on the bounce in all competitions and moved to within 3 points of 7th place Scarlets as they recorded a 6 try 48-0 win at home to hapless Benetton Treviso.

Dragons moved back up to 10th place in the table with a 25-11 win over Zebre. A yellow card on the stroke of half time for Mauro Bergamasco proved costly as Dragons scored 15 points in his absence to stretch their lead from 10-6 to 25-6 after 50 minutes. However, they were unable to secure the 4 try bonus and remain well adrift of European Cup rugby for next season.

Round 10 Results
Cardiff Blues 21-9 Scarlets
Edinburgh 48-0 Benetton Treviso
Leinster 21-11 Connacht
Glasgow 21-18 Munster
Ospreys 31-20 Ulster
Dragons 25-11 Zebre

Table after Round 10
Ospreys 36
Glasgow 35
Munster 33
Leinster 32
Ulster 31
Connacht 27
Scarlets 23
Edinburgh 20
Cardiff 17
Dragons 12
Zebre 9
Treviso 4


Round 11 Fixtures

Friday 26th December: Cardiff v Dragons
After recording back to back successes at home in the league, Cardiff will hope to narrow the gap even further to the Top 6 when they host Dragons. Cardiff won the corresponding fixture 21-13 last January

Friday 26th December: Munster v Leinster
After losing top spot following a narrow defeat away to Glasgow, Munster will be anxious to make it a double over provincial rivals Leinster and avoid a 4th defeat on the spin in all competitions. Munster won the corresponding fixture 19-15 in October 2013

Friday 26th December: Ulster v Connacht
5th meets 6th at Ravenhill. Ulster will be keen to pick up the pieces after a couple of disappointing performances in Wales. Ulster won the corresponding fixture 58-12 in April.

Saturday 27th December: Glasgow v Edinburgh
Glasgow will hope to secure another league win and take the first step towards retaining the two legged 1872 Cup against Scottish rivals Edinburgh. The sides meet again on January 2nd. Glasgow won the corresponding fixture 37-34 in April.

Saturday 27th December: Ospreys v Scarlets
Ospreys will expect to strengthen their stranglehold on top spot at home to Welsh rivals Scarlets. Ospreys won the corresponding fixture 17-12 in January.

Sunday 28th December: Zebre v Treviso
With both sides struggling for points down the bottom of the table, the two meeting between these sides assume extra importance in determining who will represent Italy in the European Cup next season. Zebre won the corresponding fixture 14-12 in January.

In pro12 round 10, top6 teams play eachother.If we beat leinster, & ulster fail to get losing bonus point in Swansea, we're in top4 Xmas day

Week 9 Round Up

In week 9 Munster moved to the top of the table with a 21-20 win over provincial rivals Ulster. Ulster took an early 12-0 lead through the boot of Ian Humphreys but tries from man of the match Robin Copeland and scrum half Duncan Williams saw Munster move 21-12 clear late on. A missed penalty from Ian Keatley kept Ulster in the game and a sin binning for Stephen Archer saw Ulster work their way back into contention late on. A try from Nick Williams gave Ian Humphreys the chance to steal the win but his conversion drifted wide to hand Munster a 1 point victory.

Ospreys couldn't regain top spot as they lost their 2nd game against the Irish provinces in 8 days after losing 18-12 at Leinster. The kicking of Ian Madigan and Jimmy Gopperth with 3 penalties each saw Leinster home in a game which failed to deliver a try. 4 penalties from the boot of Sam Davies ensured Ospreys didn't go home empty handed.

Glasgow moved above Ulster into 3rd in the table after a hard fought 19-15 victory over the Dragons on Sunday. Trailing 9-6 at the break, a penalty try after the break allowed Glasgow to take the lead and despite Rhys Jones keeping Dragons in touch and some late pressure from the Welsh region, Glasgow hung on to move to within 1 point of the summit.

Connacht cemented their 6th place in the table with a 14-8 victory over Scarlets in Galway. An early penalty from Steve Shingler followed by a soft try for winger Harry Robinson gave Scarlets an excellent start but 2 penalties from Jack Carty kept Connacht in touch, before Matt Healy showed his pace to score a superb individual try. A further penalty for Carty edged Connacht 6 clear and although they couldn't push the advantage out past 7 they moved 4 points clear of Scarlets in the battle for 6th place.

Elsewhere Cardiff picked up their first win in the league since the opening day as they overcame Treviso 36-25 at the Cardiff Arms Park. Trailing 13-12 at the break, Cardiff scored 3 second half tries to secure a 4 try bonus point and turn the deficit into an 11 point victory.

Zebre moved up to 10th place in the table with a 18-10 victory over Edinburgh in Parma. Despite trailing 10-3 early in the 2nd half and being down to 13 players for a spell, Zebre finished the contest with 15 unanswered points to ensure that Edinburgh returned to Scotland with no return for their efforts.

Round 9 Results
Cardiff Blues 36-25 Benetton Treviso
Munster 21-20 Ulster
Zebre 18-10 Edinburgh
Leinster 18-12 Ospreys
Connacht 14-8 Scarlets
Glasgow 19-15 Dragons

Table after Round 9
Munster 32
Ospreys 31
Glasgow 31
Ulster 31
Leinster 28
Connacht 27
Scarlets 23
Edinburgh 15
Cardiff 13
Zebre 9
Dragons 8
Treviso 4

The league takes a break for European action and will return on the 19th of December.

Round 10 Fixtures

Friday 19th December: Cardiff v Scarlets
After recording their first win in 8 league fixtures, Cardiff will look to close the gap further on Scarlets in the race for European Cup rugby for 2015/16. Cardiff won the corresponding fixture 17-13 in April at the Millenium Stadium

Friday 19th December: Edinburgh v Benetton Treviso
Treviso will go to Edinburgh in search of their first Pro 12 victory since April 12th. Edinburgh are unbeaten in their last 4 matches at Murrayfield and will hope to get back to winning ways after a disappointing defeat away to Zebre. Edinburgh won the corresponding fixture 20-13 in October 2013

Friday 19th December: Leinster v Connacht
5th meets 6th at the RDS as Leinster look to gain revenge for their 10-9 defeat to Connacht in Galway in September. Leinster won the corresponding fixture 16-13 in October 2013

Saturday 20th December: Glasgow v Munster
In the meeting of 3rd v 1st, Glasgow will hope to prove their league credentials by defeating one of their main rivals. Munster won the corresponding fixture 13-6 in October 2013

Saturday 20th December: Ospreys v Ulster
2nd meets 4th at the Liberty Stadium with Ospreys looking to get back on track after their 7 game winning start ended with 2 successive league defeats including one against the same opposition at Ravenhill. Ulster won the corresponding fixture 18-12 in October 2013

Saturday 20th December: Dragons v Zebre
Dragons will seek to pick up their first league win since September 28th against a Zebre side looking for only their 2nd ever win away from home in the league. Dragons won the corresponding fixture 30-7 in October 2013.

Same amount of wins and draw as for the entire of last season in pro12 clocked up after 9 games and unbeaten at home. Credit where it's due!

Connachta, why aren't you in the pub preparing for tonight?!!!