[2013/14 Pro12] Round 3

[Draggs]

Round 3 Fixtures

Rodney Parade, Newport (Friday, 18:05 GMT)

Stadio Comunale, Treviso (Friday, 18:30 GMT)

Cardiff Arms Park, Cardiff (Friday, 18:30 GMT)

Scotstoun Stadium, Glasgow (Friday, 18:35 GMT)

Murrayfield, Edinburgh (Saturday, 17:30 GMT)

Sportsground, Galway (Saturday, 17:45 GMT)
​

 

[Feicarsinn]

Tough, tough game for us this week. We'll be doing very well to come out of Glasgow with anything more than a point. My predictions for the week:

Scarlets
Treviso
Cardiff
Glasgow
Ospreys
Ulster

 

[Amiga500]

Big, big game for us this week.

Lose and we are staring down the barrel of our season being over before the middle of October. (Leicester roll into town in 4 weeks... that gives us 3 games to get up and running prior to them coming.)

One more loss at this stage and even getting a home semi out of the league play-offs starts to resemble an uphill battle. Lose to Leicester and a HEC run will be a goner too.

 

[Feicarsinn]

Yeah, going 0 in 3 would be a catastrophic start for Ulster. Is it an indication that Ulster don't have the strength in depth of Leinster and Munster (although their starting side would be right up there of course) or just that they've been arsing about?


Glasgow are selling out for the Leinster game. This is good news. I believe Scotstoun has a capacity of around 9,500 or something? Not too shabby, in particular when compared to what Edinburgh are bringing through the gate.

 

[Amiga500]

Is it an indication that Ulster don't have the strength in depth of Leinster and Munster (although their starting side would be right up there of course) or just that they've been arsing about?

Both.

We've a serious problem at 9-10 when Pienaar is away and Paddy Wallace is injured. I'm not going to sugar coat it.

Jackson isn't ready to lead the half-backs*, but unfortunately is being forced to because Paul Marshall simply cannot exert control on a game, Luke Marshall is in chronic form (and as Peat pointed out has over-rated hands) and Ian Porter (albeit older than Jackson) is even more inexperienced.


*I'm becoming less convinced he is even ready to be the starting 10 in a team with supposedly serious ambitions of winning trophies. Too often, he retreats into his shell and becomes a conduit to the backs rather than a conductor of the backs. Against the Dragons, Payne had to act as first receiver late in the game as Jackson had effectively bottled it and been taken off for McKinney.

I was expecting a step up in his maturity and dealing with pressure with another season under him. Instead so far, we've got the Dragons 'mare and missing the pressure kick on Friday night that I would have got 9 times out of 10. Doesn't bode well for the next season or 2.

Glasgow are selling out for the Leinster game. This is good news. I believe Scotstoun has a capacity of around 9,500 or something? Not too shabby, in particular when compared to what Edinburgh are bringing through the gate.

Excellent news. Long may it continue.

The SRU always were up against it with the traditional rugby heartland being quite sparse in population, but those that were there were nuggety bstarts.


What is more problematic (and a bit embarrassing) is the attendances in areas where rugby is supposedly the 'national' sport*...

*I expect plenty of excuses at this point.

 

[Peat]

Gotta say, I thought Jackson was pretty good against Glasgow, and he was pretty good against Leinster. Yeah, I wish he'd take more responsibility as well, and would agree maybe he isn't what we need right now in terms of winning trophies - although he performed in his last final - but then, what we need right now isn't available, so it's make do and mend. I think he's one of the lesser of our problems at the moment.

I dunno. Dragons was an awful performance. Glasgow was a far better one and, with better hands, would be good enough to beat most teams in this league. I thought the difference was the pack - in particular Williams and a properly fit Wilson - and Jackson. If the pack has another good game, and the backs hit their lines - in fairness to Marshall, he picked his lines and carried well - then things are a lot easier for 9-10 and they should look good. But only 'should' - they're too inexperienced to have the consistency we want.

As Amiga says, it's a mix. It still feels all pre-season'esque, and there's no questioning our depth isn't great. Plenty of players who can do a job, but they need some of the totems to guide them. Without them, our depth is too immature or too ordinary. We don't have the depth of experienced international we'd like.

Finally, would just like to add Rob Herring looked a real player against Glasgow.

 

[DuncTheDoodle]

Ospreys-Edinburgh is in the Liberty Stadium, not Murrayfield.

I'd fancy a continuation of the unbeaten run for us and Glasgow, Munster'll be close, think they might just edge it, but I wouldn't put anything past Treviso at home. Dragons to beat the Scarlets and I'd love to see Ulster lose again. Sorry, but I would.

 

[Feicarsinn]

Teams for the Glasgow - Leinster game:

Leinster:

15: Ian Madigan
14: Dave Kearney
13: Brendan Macken
12: Gordon D'Arcy
11: Darragh Fanning
10: Jimmy Gopperth
9: Isaac Boss


1: Jack McGrath
2: Richardt Strauss
3: Mike Ross
4: Mike McCarthy
5: Tom Denton
6: Kevin McLaughlin
7: Shane Jennings CAPTAIN
8: Jordi Murphy

Replacements: Aaron Dundon, Cian Healy, Martin Moore, Devin Toner, Dominic Ryan, Eoin Reddan, Noel Reid, Rob Kearney

Glasgow:

15: Stuart Hogg
14: Sean Lamont
13: Mark Bennett
12: Alex Dunbar
11: DTH van der Merwe
10: Ruaridh Jackson
9: Chris Cusiter CAPTAIN


1: Ryan Grant
2: Pat MacArthur
3: Jon Welsh
4: Jonny Gray
5: Tim Swinson
6: Rob Harley
7: Chris Fusaro
8: Richie Vernon


Replacements: Dougie Hall, Jerry Yanuyanutawa, Ed Kalman, James Eddie, Josh Strauss, Henry Pyrgos, Scott Wight, Byron McGuigan

Our side is pretty similar to the one we've put out in the first two games of the season, whether that's a good thing or not I have yet to make my mind up on. Injuries in the back three mean that we're back to seeing Ian Madigan in at 15, less than ideal but hey ho. One would wonder why Fitzgerald and McFadden aren't included this week seeing that they were apparently pretty close to starting against Ospreys and I'd question playing Tom Dention, especially in one of our toughest fixtures of the seasons. Our bench looks good though. Kearney, Healy, Ryan, Toner and Reddan will bring a nice change of tempo if needed in the final half hour.

I must say that I'm looking forward to this one no end. Glasgow have been one of the real success stories of Celtic rugby over the past few seasons with increased league position and the numbers they're getting at the gate. They've sold out this one, with 9,500 heading through the gate - almost three times the crowd they got for this fixture last year.

If we can come away with more than a point I'll be delirah. This has been a bloody tough start to the season.

 

[SelimNiai]

Dragons well up for this. Played some superb rugby and lead 17-3 after 23 mins. Scarlets have hardly had the ball in the Dragons half let alone 22

 

[big ginger 8]

I've been thinking every weekend when will Sky actually start showing matches? Then I realised 2014/15 season. D'oh!

 

[Feicarsinn]

Messy old scrums tonight. Would like to see Leinster look a bit more threatening with ball in hand.

 

[jcahill1]

Or look capable in defence

 

[snoopy snoopy dog dog]

Congrats Cardiff Blues on being a part of history and becoming the first team to lose to Zebre!

 

[Draggs]

Awesome results for us I suppose.

 

[snoopy snoopy dog dog]

Terrible performance by Leinster. Glasgow win by 6 but it should have been closer to 20.

 

[ZeFrenchy]

Congrats Cardiff Blues on being a part of history and becoming the first team to lose to Zebre!

What's with that? Did Orquera play his one-good-match-in-the-year? Or were the Blues just terrible? Or maybe both?

 

[big ginger 8]

That performance tonight was absolutely woeful. Well done Glasgow but wow just terrible from us.

 

[psychic duck]

Which is the ****ter pack?

Taufa'ao Filise, Marc Breeze, Scott Andrews, Lou Reed, Filo Paulo, Macauley Cook, Josh Navidi, Andries Pretorius (capt).

or

Phil Price, Rhys Thomas, Francisco Chaparro, Andrew Coombs (capt), Matthew Screech, Jevon Groves, Lewis Evans, Toby Faletau.

I hope people realise the value of the pack watching the Blues. Halfpenny and Cuthbert are like a fancy candle on a cake of **** with the Blues. If you had a **** team and were given the choice between Adam Jones and Alun-Wyn Jones in your team or Halfpenny and Cuthbert. If you would opt for the latter two it's proof you know nothing about rugby.

The Blues pack looks nearly as bad as the Dragons. Which is quite an achievement. Shame Faletau wastes there as he is head and shoulders above every other player there is in Gwent, his talent deserves better than the Amlin.

 

[dullonien]

Which is the ****ter pack?

Taufa'ao Filise, Marc Breeze, Scott Andrews, Lou Reed, Filo Paulo, Macauley Cook, Josh Navidi, Andries Pretorius (capt).

or

Phil Price, Rhys Thomas, Francisco Chaparro, Andrew Coombs (capt), Matthew Screech, Jevon Groves, Lewis Evans, Toby Faletau.

I hope people realise the value of the pack watching the Blues. Halfpenny and Cuthbert are like a fancy candle on a cake of **** with the Blues. If you had a **** team and were given the choice between Adam Jones and Alun-Wyn Jones in your team or Halfpenny and Cuthbert. If you would opt for the latter two it's proof you know nothing about rugby.

The Blues pack looks nearly as bad as the Dragons. Which is quite an achievement. Shame Faletau wastes there as he is head and shoulders above every other player there is in Gwent, his talent deserves better than the Amlin.

I actually thought the Dragons pack went well in general tonight. They're still poor scrum time, but I thought the back five of the pack were very competitive in all aspects of the game. Coombs and Screech make a good combo, and Lewis Evans had one of his best games for a while. Faletau was probably the worst of them tonight, he looked a little rusty.

That Blues pack is poor though.

When will the Scarlets learn that McCusker is both rubbish and really, really not an 8. He cost them a draw tonight with his inability to control the ball at the base of the scrum.

Great game tonight between the Dragons and Scarlets, thoroughly enjoyed it. Shows what a half decent set of coaches can do to a team, the Dragons look organised in defense and attack, and they are playing with purpose and confidence.

 

[Draggs]

Faletau is in a winning team...