Views on the Cardiff defeat from fans tuning in from around the province.


The first away trip of the season proved a frustrating one, with early dominance and a half-time lead counting for nothing, as Connacht slumped to a 21-10 defeat after failing to score after the break.
The Clan faithful, whether gathered in provincial watering holes or in the armchair in front of TG4, shared a collective sense of mounting annoyance as the game wore on and a winnable fixture slipped away.

While many fans disagreed with some of the decisions by referee Claudio Blessano, in just his fourth top-level assignment, there was agreement that Connacht were the architects of their own demise, with indiscipline, allied with poor kicking and handling, allowing the promising Rhys Patchell to kick Cardiff back into the contest and ultimately deny Connacht even a losing bonus point.

The scrum proved a real weakness, with Brett Wilkinson penalised twice for losing his bind and Rodney Ah You's 56th minute introduction doing nothing to stabilise matters, with Rodders eventually seeing yellow late on and in the process snuffing out Connacht's hopes for a late revival. However, some eagle eyed observers of the scrum argued that many of the penalties were down to street-wise scrummaging from Cardiff tightheads Scott Andrews and his replacement Benoit Bourrust, illegally binding on the arm and forcing our props to lose the bind.

George Naoupu seemed to perform below his usual high standards, conceding a couple of penalties, and while there were a few raised eyebrows at the amount of time allowed to present the ball at the breakdown, there can be no argument against one particular offside call, where George may be in line for an end-of season award for farthest ahead of the kicker without being in the car park.

There were positives to be taken with Matt Healy having a good game, Eoin Griffin being solid at inside centre and while it is difficult to judge Robbie Henshaw's potential at thirteen from just one outing since his school days, he was felt by many to have put in a decent defensive performance.

And so we roll on to the season's first interpro, as Ulster come to the Sportsground on Saturday night looking for their first win of the season, having been denied at the death in Ravenhill by Glasgow. With Craig Clarke, Denis Buckley and Dave McSharry back in training and Jake Heenan having impressed against Zebre, along with Fionn Carr's omission in the Arms Park, many are hoping for some changes in personnel along with an adjustment to the game plan.
One team will leave the pitch having experienced a decidedly poor start to the season, the other a measure of redemption and rejuvenation. Those packed into the sold-out Clan Terrace will be hoping that the latter team are resplendent in green.