PRO12 Preview: Ulster vs. Edinburgh

Ulster and Edinburgh in action at Murrayfield last season. (c) Alex Sanz.

Friday 2nd March, 19.05 (BBCNI)

Ravenhill is the venue tomorrow evening as Ulster host an Edinburgh side who have lost their last three games in the PRO12. The home side are looking to complete the double over their visitors this season. A hand injury has ruled Nevin Spence out, meaning Adam D’Arcy comes into the side. D’Arcy’s inclusion at fullback means a re-jig of the backline, with Stefan Terblanche moving onto the left wing and Ian Whitten relocating to outside centre.

Paul Marshall and Ruan Pienaar form the half-back partnership for the second week running. With Chris Henry travelling to Paris to provide cover for the Ireland squad, Pedrie Wannenburg moves to the openside, meaning a return to the starting 15 for Robbie Diack at No.8. Luke Marshall and Chris Cochrane are two exciting young players to watch off the bench for Ulster.

Edinburgh boss Michael Bradley has made four changes to the side which lost to Connacht last weekend. Sep Visser comes onto the right wing, opposite his prolific brother Tim. John Houston is included at inside centre while Phil Godman returns at flyhalf. The only change up front is the inclusion of recent signing Ulises Gamboa at tighthead.

As mentioned above, Edinburgh are on a bad run without their international contingent. A home loss to the Ospreys was followed up with away defeats to the Dragons and Connacht. That has resulted in Bradley’s men dropping to 11th in the league. Meanwhile, Ulster come into this weekend sitting 5th and hoping for another win to boost their play-off chances. Verdict: Ulster by 6-10 points.

Ulster: 15 Adam D’Arcy, 14 Craig Gilroy, 13 Ian Whitten, 12 Paddy Wallace (capt.), 11 Stefan Terblanche, 10 Ruan Pienaar, 9 Paul Marshall, 8 Robbie Diack, 7 Willie Faloon, 6 Pedrie Wannenburg, 5 Dan Tuohy, 4 Lewis Stevenson, 3 John Afoa, 2 Andi Kyriacou, 1 Paddy McAllister.
Subs: 16 Nigel Brady, 17 Callum Black, 18 Adam Macklin, 19 Neil McComb, 20 Mike McComish, 21 Ian Humphreys, 22 Luke Marshall, 23 Chris Cochrane.

Edinburgh: 15 Tom Brown, 14 Sep Visser ,13 Matt Scott, 12 John Houston, 11 Tim Visser, 10 Phil Godman, 9 Chris Leck, 8 Netani Talei, 7 Roddy Grant (capt.), 6 Stuart McInally, 5 Sean Cox, 4 Grant Gilchrist, 3 Ulises Gamboa, 2 Andrew Kelly, 1 Kyle Traynor.
Subs: 16 Alun Walker, 17 Robin Hislop, 18 Jack Gilding, 19 Robert McAlpine, 20 Hamish Watson, 21 Alex Black, 22 Harry Leonard, 23 Chris Paterson.

Referee: Nigel Owens (Wales).

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Photo courtesy:  Alex Sanz.

RaboDirect Round-Up

Blues 21-14 Ulster

Friday 17th February @ Cardiff Arms Park

Ulster failed to open up the Blues defence in the second half. (c) Simon Williams.

Despite leading at the break following a dominant first half, Ulster collected their 7th loss of the PRO12 season in Cardiff. A Robbie Diack try and two penalties from Ruan Pienaar gave Ulster an 11-6 half-time advantage. But second half tries from Dan Parks and Tom James plus a total of 11 points from Parks’ boot gave the home side a win that sees them jump above Ulster in the table. Brian McLaughlin will be disappointed with his side’s second-half effort.

That said, Ulster are still in contention for a play-off spot. Their losing bonus point leaves them 4 points off Glasgow Warriors in 4th. The Blues sit in 5th, 2 points ahead of Ulster, but crucially with a game in hand. That fixture will see them as favourites away to the Newport Gwent-Dragons. All Ulster can do is get back to winning ways, starting with a huge game on Friday when the Ospreys visit Ravenhill. That looks like a must-win if Ulster are to stay in the hunt.

Here’s Diack’s score from the Blues game. Decent turn of pace for his 3rd try in 4 games:

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Leinster 16-13 Scarlets

Friday 17th February @ The RDS

McFadden on his way to scoring Leinster's only try. (c) Ken Bohane.

Fergus McFadden was the hero for Leinster as he slotted a penalty with the last kick of the game to earn his side a win.  It looked like ending all square at the RDS until Nigel Owens pinged Scarlets’ replacement prop Phil John for stupidly playing the ball in a ruck. McFadden confidently slotted the kick from over 40 metres out. The inside centre scored all of Leinster’s points on the night, converting his own try as well as adding three penalties.

The Scarlets were impressive, particularly with their aggressive defence. They limited the amount of chances Leinster created and held a 10-3 half-time lead. Dan Newton scored a try and a penalty for the Welsh side, while Stephen Jones converted the try and added a penalty of his own. The wet conditions contributed to a less sparkling Leinster showing than we have become used to. However, Joe Schmidt will surely be pleased that his side still ground out the victory. Leinster remain 10 points clear of the Ospreys after this narrow win. Next up, Schmidt’s men face a trip to Firhill to take on the Warriors this Saturday.

Here’s the highlights of the Scarlets game:

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Treviso 14-35 Munster 

Saturday 18th February @ Stadio di Monigo

Zebo scored two tries as well as spending 10 minutes in the sin-bin. (c) Ivan O'Riordan.

A late Simon Zebo try ensured a crucial bonus point win for Munster despite a sluggish performance. The opening thirty minutes were extremely positive from Munster as they raced into a 24-0 lead thanks to tries from Danny Barnes, Zebo and Johne Murphy as well as the boot of ROG. But from that point, Munster relinquished their control of the game and allowed a poor Treviso team back in. The yellow cards to Mick O’Driscoll and Zebo didn’t help Munster. In the end though, Tony McGahan will be content with the five points.

Ronan O’Gara was flawless from the tee while Peter O’Mahony and Dave O’Callaghan showed their potential in the back-row. This win sees Munster up into 3rd, thanks in part to Connacht’s draw with Glasgow. The Ospreys in 2nd are just 4 points ahead, and Munster have a game in hand as well as a better points difference. Thomond Park is the venue for the visit of the Cardiff Blues on Friday as Munster continue to push for a home play-off.

If you missed the Munster vs. Treviso game, watch the whole thing here on the RTE Player!

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Connacht 13-13 Warriors

Saturday 18th February @ The Sportsground

Connacht captain Gavin Duffy couldn't help his side to a win. (c) Andy Scrutton.

Niall O’Connor salvaged a draw for Connacht with a penalty at the death in Galway on Saturday evening. It’s impossible not to be repetitive about Connacht’s performances this season, but once again this was a match they could have won. Handling errors and silly penalties were Connacht’s downfall again. O’Connor’s late score did allow Eric Elwood’s side to end their 10-game losing run in the PRO12, but it could have been more than just 2 points.

Connacht’s only try of the game came from the prolific Tiernan O’Halloran, as he collected O’Connor’s cross-kick to score. O’Conner converted as well as notching two penalties. The Warriors’ try came from prop Jon Welsh, with Ruaridh Jackson kicking 5 points. Duncan Weir came off the bench to slot what looked like the match-winning penalty before a John Muldoon try-saving tackle prevented the Warriors from wrapping things up. O’Connor then took his late chance. Connacht drop back to 11th in the table after the Dragons beat Edinburgh. Elwood and his men welcome the Scottish side to Galway on Friday and will hope to emulate the Dragons’ feat.

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Here’s the latest PRO12 table:

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Photos courtesy:  Simon Williams, Ken Bohane, Ivan O’Riordan, Andy Scrutton.

RaboDirect Round-Up

PRO12 Round 14 Matches

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Leinster 42-8 Treviso 

Thursday 9th February @ The RDS

Shane Jennings and Richardt Strauss helped Leinster to a win over Treviso at the RDS. (c) Ken Bohane.

Leinster lead the PRO12 by ten points after their fourth try-scoring bonus point win of the season. You can read the full match report on the Treviso game here. The Italians gave Leinster a tough battle in the first-half, but in the end tries from Ian Madigan, Richardt Strauss, Isa Nacewa, John Cooney and Fionn Carr allowed Joe Schmidt’s side to pull well clear. Man of the Match Nacewa added 17 points from the tee as part of a truly complete individual performance.

Carr, Madigan and Shane Jennings all had strong showings while the young centre partnership of Collie O’Shea and Brendan Macken, 21 and 20 respectively, gave plenty of promising signs. With eight games left before the PRO12 play-offs, Leinster continue to look good for a home quarter-final. Next up, they welcome the 7th-placed Scarlets to the RDS on Friday .

Here’s the highlights of the Leinster vs. Treviso game:

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Ulster 30-12 Dragons

Friday 10th February @ Ravenhill

Ulster move up to 5th in the table after their fourth consecutive bonus point win at Ravenhill. Crucially, Brian McLaughlin’s men are now only 2 points behind 4th-placed Munster, although the southern province do have a game in hand. Friday night’s win didn’t see Ulster dominate but they still had far too much for a poor Dragons side. Get the full match report here. Tries from Robbie Diack, Ruan Pienaar, Craig Gilroy and Stefan Terblanche did the damage for Ulster. Pienaar added 10 points with the boot.

The second try, started and finished by Pienaar, showed Ulster at their best with the ball flashing through 10 pairs of hands as they attacked from inside their own half. It’s well worth a look below. That passage of play will have been particularly pleasing for Brian McLaughlin in a week that brought the public revelation of Ulster’s long-standing decision not to renew his contract as coach for next season. McLaughlin remains focused on the job though, and Ulster’s play-off push continues away to the Cardiff Blues on Friday.

Here’s the four Ulster tries against the Dragons:

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Cardiff Blues 22-15 Connacht

Friday 10th February @ Cardiff Arms Park

Connacht lost to the Blues in Cardiff. (c) Sum_of_Marc.

In their first match since the historic 9-8 win over Harlequins last month, Connacht reverted to old habits as they failed to take several try-scoring opportunities in Cardiff. Tries from Tiernan O’Halloran and Dave Moore, as well as a conversion and penalty from the boot of Niall O’Connor, weren’t enough to get a win against the Blues. However, the losing bonus point gained through Moore’s late try sees Connacht move up a place in the PRO12 table.

O’Halloran put in another promising display on the wing, scoring one and setting up the other try. Coach Eric Elwood will have felt a familiar frustration though as Connacht failed to finish off some good breaks throughout the game. On Saturday, the western province host Glasgow Warriors at the Sportsground. Elwood will be keen to ensure his side don’t go back on a run of losses. Connacht sit 10th in the table now, with Edinburgh just 5 points ahead in 9th. A few wins in the remainder of the season will be the target.

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Aironi vs. Munster

Postponed

Ireland vs. France wasn't the only fixture disrupted because of the cold weather last weekend. (c) Olivier Pechenet.

Munster’s game in northern Italy was postponed due to the freezing weather in the region. Aironi’s Stadio Zaffanella was heavily covered with snow all week, forcing the game to be rescheduled. This fixture will now take place on the 11th of March.

Glasgow Warriors’ win over the Scarlets on Thursday sees them jump above Munster in the table. Sitting 4th, Munster do have a game in hand. Despite, the disruption to their schedule, Tony McGahan has refocused his side’s attention to Saturday, when Munster travel to Italy to take on Benneton Treviso.

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Here’s the latest PRO12 table:

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Photos courtesy:  Ken Bohane, Olivier Pechenet, Sum_of_Marc.

Dragons Fail to Fire in Ulster Rain

Match Report

Ulster 30-12 Newport-Gwent Dragons

Friday 11th February @ Ravenhill

Ruan Pienaar scored a try as well as kicking 10 points for Ulster. (c) Ken Bohane.

Ulster kept their PRO12 play-off push on course with a bonus point win over an extremely limited Dragons side on Friday night. In what was a week of disorder at the province, with the public revelation of the long-standing decision not to renew Brian McLaughlin’s contract as coach, Ulster will be happy with the five points gained on a wet night at Ravenhill. This Dragons team was blunt in attack and has definite concentration issues. Despite prolonged spells of possession, the Welsh region never looked like manufacturing a try-scoring opportunity.

That said, the Dragons’ start to the game was lively. Ex-Wales U20 international outhalf Jason Tovey gave his side the lead with a long-range penalty after Craig Gilroy failed to release the tackled player. Ruan Pienaar had the chance to draw Ulster level with a penalty of his own soon after but was wide to the right from 40 metres out.

Tovey’s kicking from hand was poor all day, and it was from his kick directly into touch that Ulster scored the opening try. From just outside the Dragons’ 22, hooker Andy Kyriacou hit Robbie Diack coming short at the front of the lineout and after juggling the ball, the South African No.8 went through Jamie Smith’s tackle to touch down. From the right-hand touchline, Pienaar was narrowly off target to the left.

Ulster then scored almost directly from the Dragons’ restart with a try that had McLaughlin’s fingerprints all over it. McLaughlin has always encouraged his charges to play with freedom and that’s exactly what Ulster did. From inside their own half, the ball swept through ten sets of hands, starting and finishing with Ruan Pienaar. In between, Gilroy beat two mean and Willie Faloon offloaded off the deck for one of the best tries in the PRO12 so far this season. Pienaar added the gloss with the conversion from under the posts.

Ulster’s indiscipline allowed the Dragons to stay in touch through two Tovey penalties. First, Lewis Stevenson grabbed the arm of Adam Jones while in the air at a lineout. Gilroy was the culprit several minutes later as he entered a ruck from the side. Needless penalties, as the Dragons attack was completely toothless. A strong scrum from Ulster then resulted in Nathan Williams dropping his bind. From the penalty, Pienaar extended the Ulster lead back out to 15-9 before half-time.

Dan Tuohy (5) was involved in some big collisions. (c) Fabio Beretta.

With the rain starting to sheet down, the opening ten minutes of the second-half became loose and scrappy, ending with another silly penalty against Ulster. Paddy McAllister, just on the pitch, didn’t roll away after tackling, and Tovey knocked over the easy three-pointer. However, the Dragons’ lack of concentration struck again as Ulster scored immediately from their own restart.

The Welsh side failed to get under Ian Humphreys’ hanging drop-off and Ian Whitten pounced on the bouncing ball. The centre offloaded to Mike McComish and swiftly recycled ball allowed Humphreys’ skip pass to send Gilroy over in the right corner. The winger finished the move with a strong fend on Martyn Thomas. Pienaar was wide to the left again from the tee.

The Dragons were given an early opportunity to get themselves back into the game when Faloon was sent to the bin following Ulster’s repeated infringements at the breakdown. However, the Dragons’ subsequent attack was lateral and failed to take advantage of the extra man. Dan Tuohy put in some big hits as Ulster defended strongly.

Faloon’s return didn’t halt the Dragons’ favourable amount of possession, but time and again the Welsh side lost their concentration in good positions. Two promising lineouts in the Ulster 22 both brought knock-ons at the tail of the maul. A yellow card to Whitten for a stupid slap-down at ruck-time gave the Dragons yet another chance out of touch inside the Ulster 22. This time referee Carlo Damasco pinged them for obstruction.

With Ulster looking for the fourth try that would secure a crucial bonus point, a penalty on the halfway line with two minutes remaining looked like the perfect opportunity to kick to the corner. But captain John Afoa made a strange decision to go for goal, and Pienaar duly obliged, banging over the three points from 40 metres out. Ulster got their chance at the death though, and took it well.

After a knock-on by Robert Sidoli, Nevin Spence was first to the loose ball and his offload to Ali Birch on halfway looked to have sent replacement Ali Birch over. However, the substitute back-row was hauled down just 5 metres out. After a few phases close to the breakdown, the ball was sent out to Humphreys and he put Stefan Terblanche through a massive hole in the Dragons’ defence. Pienaar completed the scoring with the last kick of the game. This win means Ulster move up to 5th in the PRO12 table.

Ulster: 15. Adam D’Arcy (Danielli, 57), 14. Craig Gilroy, 13. Ian Whitten, 12. Nevin Spence, 11. Stefan Terblanche, 10. Ian Humphreys (Marshall, 64), 9. Ruan Pienaar, 8. Robbie Diack, 7. Willie Faloon (Birch, 64), 6. Mike McComish, 5. Dan Tuohy, 4. Lewis Stevenson (Barker, 73), 3. John Afoa (capt.), 2. Andy Kyriacou (Brady, 55), 1. Callum Black (McAllister, 48).                                        Subs: 16. Nigel Brady, 17. Paddy McAllister, 18. Adam Macklin, 19. Timothy Barker, 20. Alistair Birch, 21. Paul Marshall, 22. Mike Allen, 23. Simon Danielli.

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Photos courtesy:  Ken Bohane, Fabio Beretta.

Heineken Cup Round 6 Round-Up

Simon Zebo was the hattrick hero as Munster destroyed the Saints on Saturday. (c) Ivan O'Riordan.

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  Connacht 9-8 Harlequins

Friday 20th January @ The Sportsground

A determined, ferocious effort from Connacht earned them their first ever Heineken Cup win at a wet and windy Sportsground on Friday night. Man of the match John Muldoon said afterwards that he and his teammates felt like they had  just won the tournament. While Munster’s huge win against Northampton on Saturday showed us one side of what makes rugby so special, Connacht showed a totally different side with their undying spirit and determination.

So, the awful run of losses is finally over. Connacht’s first win in fifteen games came thanks to what Muldoon called “a lot of ticker”. This heart was expressed through Connacht’s powerful, aggressive defence. ‘Quins failed to adapt to the conditions and the scrappy nature of the game suited Eric Elwood’s men. Niall O’Connor landed the crucial points with three penalties. Sam Smith touched down for Harlequins in the first-half but Nick Evans was off target with the conversion as well as a more straightforward second-half penalty.

Here’s the final table from Pool 6. Toulouse are the only team to advance to the quarter-finals:

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Leinster 25-3 Montpellier

Saturday 21st January @ The RDS

Leinster completed their dominance of Pool 3 with a muscular win at home to Montpellier. Sean O’Brien, Rob Kearney and Cian Healy scored the tries while Fergus McFadden kicked ten points. Leinster did miss out on the try-scoring bonus point to leave Munster as top seeds after the pool stages. However, Joe Schmidt will be unconcerned following a good display from his team. Leinster will now host the Cardiff Blues, most probably at the Aviva, in April’s quarter-final.

Montpellier gave Leinster’s defence a severe testing for a 25 minute spell either side of half-time but the current Heineken Cup champions held firm. Schmidt will be hugely pleased to have only conceded three points, showing that Leinster can defend just as well as they cut teams open in attack. Some strong individual performances from the likes of Rob Kearney, Cian Healy and Gordon D’Arcy will have pleased Ireland coach Declan Kidney.

Here’s how Pool 3 finished up. Leinster are the only team to move on to the knock-out stages:

And here’s the highlights from the Leinster vs. Montpellier game:

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Clermont 19-15 Ulster

Saturday 21st January @ Stade Marcel Michelin

Connacht’s win on Friday night meant that Ulster were already guaranteed a quarter-final spot coming into this game. After the narrow loss to Clermont, Brian McLaughlin stated that he was pleased his side had also secured that qualification on their own merits with a losing bonus point. However, he expressed his dissapointment at their failure to win and ensure a home draw. The Ulster performance was once again top class. This side, after a shaky and inconsistent first third of the season, has morphed into genuine Heineken Cup contenders.

The nature of this defeat will frustrate Ulster. Clermont scored the only try of the game through replacement hooker Ti’i Paulo. While the French side had been battering Ulster’s line at the time, the touchdown came only after an American football-style block by Nathan Hines. The fact that Hines was lucky to still be on the pitch after some highly cynical holding of Pedrie Wannenburg and Stephen Ferris only minutes before exacerbated the sense of frustration. The fact that dan Tuohy had been binned early in the game for a less serious offence topped off a one-sided display from referee Dave Pearson.

Still, Ulster will move on and now have a quarter-final with Munster to look forward to. That will be a momentous occasion in Thomond Park.

Here’s how Pool 4 finished up. Both Clermont and Ulster move on to the quarter-finals:

Here’s the highlights from the game:

And a closer look at the two incidents involving Nathan Hines. The Clermont try is first, followed by the Scottish second-row’s cynical holding:

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Northampton 36-51 Munster

Saturday 21st January @ stadium:mk

Munster saved the best for last as they made it six wins from six to qualify as the top seeds for the quarter-finals. This scintillating performance was a stunning surprise from a Munster side who have, by their own admission, been winning without playing brilliantly up until now. Paul O’Connell had emphasised in recent weeks that his side needed to start converting more of the try-scoring chances they were creating. That finally happened to great effect at stadium:mk as Munster swept the Saints aside in the second-half.

Five tries from Johne Murphy, BJ Botha and Simon Zebo (3) ensured a try-scoring bonus point while Ronan O’Gara kicked 24 points. Munster had a sloppy opening quarter to the game, allowing Northampton pull into a 13-3 lead. At that stage, things weren’t looking good for Tony McGahan’s men, but they pulled back to 19-19 at half-time. After the interval, Munster were unstoppable as they repeatedly cut the Saints apart, despite the English side’s awesome dominance of the scrum. From being written off as a side in transition for most of the season,  Munster have marked themselves out as one of the teams to beat in this competition. The inter-pro quarter-final with Ulster will be fascinating.

Here’s a look at how Pool 1 finished. Munster are the only team into the quarters:

Here’s all five of the Munster tries. Enjoy!

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Photos courtesy:  Ivan O’Riordan.