The 'problem' of Leinster 'dominance'

[Tooting Carmen]

This being said, the Welsh rugby media tend to overrate Glasgow, when in truth even nowadays they are pretty much Ospreys/Scarlets standards and have never made it beyond the QFs in either European competition.

 

[Whore of Shame]

I also don't think it'd stop our dominance, just push a few young homegrown guys out. Which isn't what you want the effect of a cap to be.

 

[Tooting Carmen]

I also don't think it'd stop our dominance, just push a few young homegrown guys out. Which isn't what you want the effect of a cap to be.

What about your imports, such as JGP and James Lowe?

 

[Reiser99]

This definitely has lost some momentum after losing the champions cup. However, they will very likely win a 5th ***le in a row domestically and quite comfortably. Their depth is huge compared to the rest of the league. Possibility the South African teams might upset this, but we'll see. On top they have been won 8 ***les and been second 5 times out of 20 years.

The issue is how can you punish a side who have developed this strength internally. If they had bought their way up fine, but it's their academy which is dominant. On top, other clubs are been mis-managed.

Having said that I still maintain that such dominance, even if fairly earned is bad for the league as it will probably cost the league spectators. Neutral or casual followers won't want to watch and that will hurt Leinster too. Changes are happening again next year so let's see, but certainly regular score lines like this aren't great for anyone other than Leinster fans (the douchebags)

 

[LeinsterMan (NotTigsMan)]

Honestly Leinster having to play more 1st team players during the season will only hurt the Scottish and welsh teams more imo.

 

[Whore of Shame]

What about your imports, such as JGP and James Lowe?

I don't think it'd be those guys who'd go. Look at the players leaving this season, Adam Byrne, Rory O'Loughlin, Peter Dooley etc... they all got contracts in the hope they'd step up in their mid 20s after injuries early in their career, they'd be the contracts lost under a cap rather than starters.

 

[TRF_Olyy]

Aren't JGP and Lowe on central contract so wouldn't count much towards Leinsters theoretical cap anyway?

 

[Tooting Carmen]

Honestly Leinster having to play more 1st team players during the season will only hurt the Scottish and welsh teams more imo.

(1) It depends on when the matches are scheduled. If the other two countries can put out their strongest sides well away from the international periods, they would be more competitive themselves. (2) Furthermore, Leinster bringing along more well-known players would at the very least attract more spectators to the other teams' matches.

 

[big ginger 8]

What about your imports, such as JGP and James Lowe?

JGP was the second choice 9 for the Hurricanes when we signed him I doubt he was in the top 10 highest paid 9s in the league at that stage.

 

[LeinsterMan (NotTigsMan)]

(1) It depends on when the matches are scheduled. If the other two countries can put out their strongest sides well away from the international periods, they would be more competitive themselves. (2) Furthermore, Leinster bringing along more well-known players would at the very least attract more spectators to the other teams' matches.

1) Well wasn’t this pretty much Glasgows full strength team that got Robles why would it be any different
2) Welsh and Scottish fans won’t come to see Sexton play.

Glasgow looked good with a good head coach in charge with some star dust, no one else to blame for that lack of talent but the SRU

 

[die_mole]

It needs a roster cap more than it needs a salary cap. Leinster are taking the **** with having two professional teams under one banner.

 

[Tooting Carmen]

1) Well wasn’t this pretty much Glasgows full strength team that got Robles why would it be any different
2) Welsh and Scottish fans won’t come to see Sexton play.

Glasgow looked good with a good head coach in charge with some star dust, no one else to blame for that lack of talent but the SRU

Again, let us not overrate Glasgow. They have only won the league once, never gone beyond the QFs in either European competition (a distinction they share with the Ospreys - by contrast, even Dragons have reached a few SFs in the Challenge Cup), and above all are one of the two feeder teams for a Test side that hasn't ever won the Six Nations since Italy was added.

 

[die_mole]

Aren't JGP and Lowe on central contract so wouldn't count much towards Leinsters theoretical cap anyway?

I’m sure there would be a way to account for that

 

[jcahill1]

It needs a roster cap more than it needs a salary cap. Leinster are taking the **** with having two professional teams under one banner.

This seems silly, why shouldn't more guys get a chance? Especially with the amount of injuries and head collisions in modern rugby. Rotation seems like the best way to ensure player welfare

 

[die_mole]

This seems silly, why shouldn't more guys get a chance? Especially with the amount of injuries and head collisions in modern rugby. Rotation seems like the best way to ensure player welfare

Because teams don’t need 60 players. Roster limits are in effect in every American sport and a lot of major soccer leagues. You can make hardship waivers for injuries.

A salary cap would also act as a de facto roster limit.

 

[Whore of Shame]

Any cap just seems like a way to injure Irish and Leinster rugby long term and make development more difficult. If we use 50 players rather than 60 this season it wouldn't be any less dominant. But it'd soon hurt development.

We'd need to establish a decent A or u23 league.

Until the Scottish and Welsh get their houses in order caps won't help them either, they beat Joe Schmidt's Leinster at their best and Cullen's a year out from European wins. They've regressed far more than Leinster have pulled away. Same with Munster.

 

[Tooting Carmen]

Any cap just seems like a way to injure Irish and Leinster rugby long term and make development more difficult. If we use 50 players rather than 60 this season it wouldn't be any less dominant. But it'd soon hurt development.

We'd need to establish a decent A or u23 league.

Until the Scottish and Welsh get their houses in order caps won't help them either, they beat Joe Schmidt's Leinster at their best and Cullen's a year out from European wins. They've regressed far more than Leinster have pulled away. Same with Munster.

That's the point though - as that final round Leinster v Munster match showed, it is not an 'Irish problem', it is a Leinster problem, as even the other Irish provinces can no longer properly compete against them.

 

[Whore of Shame]

That's the point though - as that final round Leinster v Munster match showed, it is not an 'Irish problem', it is a Leinster problem, as even the other Irish provinces can no longer properly compete against them.

Because they've gotten worse. Munster today don't beat Munster 5, 10 or 15 years ago. Ulster beat us twice this season and look strong.

 

[Tooting Carmen]

Ulster beat us twice this season and look strong.

Yet still I don't expect them to win their first trophy for sixteen years. (For all their failings, all the Welsh regions except Dragons have won more trophies in that period than Ulster have).

 

[Whore of Shame]

Yet still I don't expect them to win their first trophy for sixteen years. (For all their failings, all the Welsh regions except Dragons have won more trophies in that period than Ulster have).

So? They've a young team, have only just started to back their academy like Leinster and are beginning to reap the rewards of this process. They're well established as a top 3 team in the league and need to take the next step. But they're still not as good as the Scarlets or Glasgow winning sides.

Leinster have a population advantage over most teams but its the well established recruitment and academy system that has reaped rewards, when O'Connor was our coach and ignored youth we suffered.

I could understand a roster cap if a development competition was introduced but salary caps only hurts the quality of rugby in the league and doesn't protect anyone financially like it does in England. If you made a cap at the amount needed for Welsh teams to survive you'd soon kill the competition, we need teams to catch up and challeng not drag the competent outfits down to the mean.