Wales Vs Ireland Review

Ireland and Wales played out an entertaining draw at the Aviva yesterday that finished 16-16. Both camps will take positives and negatives from the game that saw Ireland attacking wider than they have before under Joe Schmidt. Although it wasn’t all positive as the scrum and Line out came under pressure. Nathan White was selected at tight head after injuries ruled out both Mike Ross and Martin Moore. Rob Evans was selected at loose head for Wales and Ireland had said they were hoping to target the Welsh scrum. While the scrum was struggling through a mixture of calls from referee Jerome Garces and also Rob Evans was not being penalised for some illegal scrummaging.

The line out struggled from the start where new Irish skipper Rory Best had a tough day trying to find his jumpers. In attack Ireland pulled Wales apart using Johnny Sexton and his famed wrap around plays , he also used some clever runners from deep with Robbie Henshaw and Simon Zebo both coming onto the ball at speed and causing the Welsh defence trouble every time.

 Ireland were forced into a number of changes since the World Cup due to injuries to several  key players and also the well-publicised retirement of Paul O Connell. Peter O Mahony missed out through injury and was replaced in the squad by Munster team mate CJ Stander who many felt deserved his shot at a green shirt in the test arena.

He qualified to play for Ireland under residency rules after moving here from South Africa in 2012 to join Munster. He made it quite clear a few months into his time here that he wanted to play for Ireland and yesterday that dream came through and also watching him belt out the National Anthem was a special moment. His performance was really strong and it certainly put all doubters in their place.

All 15 players on the field bought into the game plan and for the most part it worked well, Ireland led 13-0 after 30 minutes and then Toby Faletau crashed over for a try that saw them come from 13-0 down to 13-10 and that is how the 1^st half finished.

Into the 2^nd half and Ireland created a great chance off of a line out that saw Jack Mc Grath act as the link man and his pass created space on the outside that Johnny Sexton exploited and he put Andrew Trimble into space although Tom James tracked back and put him into touch. Wales lost Dan Biggar to an ankle injury and his replacement Rhys Priestland set the Welsh back division moving although it was really slow moving with Jamie Roberts and Jonathan Davies doing well in defence they didn’t really do very much in attack other than crash straight up the middle which for the most part Ireland were able to cope with.

Both sides will feel they had chances to win the game but considering how tight things were in the second half both teams most still feel they are well in the title race that also includes France and England with Italy and Scotland already looking towards the trap door. Let’s see what unfolds next weekend in round 2….

By

Cian Mc Gibney

08/02/2016

Diarmy

Last August  I was at a GAA fixture where Beale were facing Tarbert/Moyvane  and I met Mary Lavery Carrig where she mentioned to me  that she was hoping to try and set up a Theatre Group to see what might happen as she had a play in mind. After initial meetings with a number of interested parties , the Tarbert Theatre Players was born. Rehearsals began back in September in the back section of Coolahans where Mary assembled the people she felt most encapsulated the characters she had written about.

“ Diarmy” is based on true events surrounding the controversial moves to ban the cutting of turf in raised bogs. It is a story of love , loss and a real love of the land. Mary put lots of time and effort into finding the right people to bring her vision to life , enter a cast full of life , comic timing and a real passion to make this play work. She also assembled a back stage team that would also help bring this play to life.

Looking at the cast she put together , you had a mix of youth and experience , the experienced heads of John Dowling , Yvonne O Keeffe Fox and Helen Enright showed the ropes to the young bucks like Cormac Wall and Jimmy Sweeney. The rest of the cast was expertly put in place with each part given to people who had the correct qualities to bring each character to life.

Maura Mc Dermott in the role of Babe Mc Morrow , PJ Normile  was given the task of bringing life to Phillip Mc Morrow , John Dowling took the role of Diarmy Mc Morrow , Cormac Wall played long lost son Diarmuid Mc Morrow , Thomas Mulvihill played family friend Ned Mc Kee , Shane Wall played Simon O Neill , the shifty Inspector from the council , Tom Stack played Fr Dan Mullins , the Priest who should have joined the Army instead of taking holy orders. , Guard Atkinson was expertly portrayed by Jimmy Sweeney, Dr Farrell  , the golf loving GP was played by Helen Enright , Delores Van Der Vere , The vegetarian Dutch photographer was played by Yvonne O Keeffe Fox. Guards Bernadette and Vince were brought to life by Kevin Enright and Maureen Considine with  Danielle Considine , Eoin Diggins, Laura Lavery and Trish Griffin playing paramedics Jane , Paula and Frances and Ben.

These cast members were hand-picked by Mary alongside her assistant director Jerry O Connell. She chose correctly in each case which took time and effort. She as I already mentioned also put together a strong back stage crew that included , Alison Lavery , Laura Lavery , Breda Lavery , Noelle Mc Gibney , Eithne Griffin , Niamh Wall and this author also played a small part as an usher , Trish Healy and Johnny Block Mulvihill were brought on board to construct the set that looked impeccable.

The three nights in Tarbert were fantastic and each audience brought something different to the table , they were full of praise for the work that has been put in since last September which this author must also commend.

 To Mary, well done for bringing this dream to life, many people say they would love to do things like this but not many go ahead and do it so congratulations for having the drive to succeed and here’s hoping the crowd in St Johns Listowel have the same appreciation for this play as was seen in the three nights in Tarbert.

To anyone who hasn’t booked and would like to see this Play, please contact St Johns theatre Listowel ASAP as tckets are like goldust.

By

Cian Mc Gibney

01/02/2016

 The Player Drain

The player drain from the Irish Provinces continued earlier this week with the confirmation that Marty Moore would be joining Wasps from Leinster. This news came swiftly on the back of news that Ian Madigan has signed for Bordeaux Begles. This started as a drip with Madigan leaving and then it was rumoured that James Cronin was on his way to London Irish but he later signed a 3 year extension to his current deal.

 A number of other players have been linked with moves away from each of the four Irish Provinces to foreign fields including Conor Murray, Simon Zebo and Keith Earls to name just three. Both Earls and Zebo have been rumoured to be on the move to the Top 14 in France and the Aviva Premiership in England. Now while neither move has been confirmed there have been really strong suggestions that both moves aren’t too far off completion. Now while at this moment these moves are just speculation, they have gathered pace in recent days.

What this sort of thing has proven is that the IRFU is facing its biggest challenge since the early days of professionalism. They are competing against extremely well-funded French and English clubs. Couple that with the fact that the Salary cap is higher in both England and France than it is for the Pro 12 clubs. This can’t be used as an excuse because it can then trotted out as an excuse every time things get tough.

The Pro 12 sides need to come up new revenue streams to help supplement their incomes. From an Irish point of view, I doubt that they will let the Provinces into private hands that might just redress the financial balance that is not just a gap in the market it is now a huge hole. The players that each Province are producing are of a top quality standard, with Leinster being the leading Province in letting young talent take their chance.

 Connacht have done the same with players like Caolan Blade , Shane Delahunt and Ultan Dillane making the most of game time earlier in the season during the World Cup. Connacht and Leinster have also shown a way out of the current situation by trusting the young talent they have in there academy systems. Munster have done likewise with Jack O Donoghue pushing his way into the Munster squad with other academy graduates like Dave Foley , John Ryan and winger Ronan O Mahoney.

All of the Provinces have to face up to the current reality that times are tough and they may just have dig a little bit deeper and come to trust the young talent within each squad because as sides like Clermont Auvergne and Bath have proven money doesn’t buy you success although Mourad Boudjellal might disagree. 

His fortune has been the backbone that has seen Toulon rise from Pro 2 in France to the top of the Top 14 and three time champions of Europe. Players like George Smith , Tana Umaga and Sonny Bill Williams were early signings of the Boudjellal era , this heralded the dawn of a new era in European club rugby where money is king well that is certainly the case in France and England where owners from the top flight clubs have carved up the best club competition in rugby.

To sum up , the Irish Provinces have had tough times before and will rise again but it may take time and patience from supporters and pundits alike…

By

Cian Mc Gibney

27/01/2016

European Champions Cup Quarter Finals – France Vs England !!

So it’s France vs England in the Champions Cup Quarter Finals with an even spread of 4 teams from each country and no team from the Pro 12 on this rare occasion. This occurrence will of course throw up the usual questions of financial muscle and the strength of each league.

The Pro 12 will have many questions asked of it given the fact that not one team made the last 8 in the Champions Cup although some Pro 12 sides made the last 8 in the Challenge Cup. Of course it will straight away have people questioning the strength of the Pro 12. Ulster did extremely well to put themselves in a position to fight for a last 8 spot. There can count themselves extremely unfortunate not to be heading for the Quarter Finals in April. They along with the Ospreys flew the flag for the Pro 12 into yesterday’s vital round 6 fixtures.

Rather than this being a disaster of epic proportions, the Pro 12 will just have to come up with solutions to the problems that have surfaced off the back of results over the weekend. Now in saying all of this, all is not rosy in the Top 14 and the much talked about Aviva Premiership.

Teams like Bath and Clermont Auvergne have fallen through the trap door which goes to prove that money doesn’t mean you will automatically win the Big prize, just ask Clermont who despite bringing in talent like Nick Abendanon and Jonathan Davies are still waiting to lift Europe’s big prize. They will have to wait until next season at the earliest to win that much sought after European Title.

The lack of a side from the Pro 12 will also have people asking would it be better to have the Irish teams in particular in private hands and not in the hands of the Union but as I have shown by stating that both Bath and Clermont have spent heavily and haven’t crossed the European threshold and picked up Europe’s big prize. Bath did win it back in 1998 but that was along time ago and loads of water has passed under the bridge since that win over Brive.

Munster could easily have made the last 8 if they had won at least one game against Leicester and picked up a losing point or try bonus point in more than just the two fixtures against Treviso. This instance will show everybody how important it is to come away from each fixture with something. You don’t need to win all your games but come away with a try bonus or losing bonus point and you’ll never know how crucial that could be in the final standings.

Leinster will be hugely disappointed with their performances in their Pool and will want to put this year behind them although they have unearthed a few gems within their squad, with guys like Josh Van Der Flier and Gary Ringrose stepping up to the mark and taking the chance that has presented itself with the World Cup being on over the early weeks of the season. Josh Van Der Flier has made the most of Sean O Brien being away with Ireland and has performed so well he will be involved with Ireland during this year’s Six Nations.

Coming back to the European Quarter Finals it isn’t all doom and gloom with Connacht making it through to the last 8 in the Challenge Cup and continuing what has been a very impressive season in the Pro 12 and in Europe , where they had to travel to Russia to take on Ensei STM. So what Connacht have proven to the other three teams in Ireland is that it can be done and you just have to persevere.

By

Cian Mc Gibney

25/01/2016

Looking at the Ireland squad that will contest the opening two rounds of this year’s 6 Nations there are some winners and losers, both Cian Healy and Mike Ross have been replaced by James Cronin and Tadgh Furlong, Joe Schmidt is moving away from the old hands although Cian Healy has struggled with injury and suspension since coming back from the World Cup. Mike Ross will be disappointed to have been left out but with the emergence of Tadgh Furlong coupled with the already well established Martin Moore, Mike Ross may finally have to admit defeat and feel that his International career could be coming to a close.

Elsewhere in the forwards, Josh Van Der Flier, Ultan Dillane and CJ Stander have earned first time call ups after strong performances over the last few months. Into the backs and there has been minimal change with only Stewart Mc Closkey being rewarded for his fine early season performances. Joe Schmidt hasn’t gone too far away from the squad that he picked for the World Cup.

The clamour for Gary Ringrose to be included will have to die down for another while even though the squad has only been announced for the 1^st two rounds of the 6 Nations. Injuries may open the door for all players currently on the outside of the squad.  Players like Gary Ringrose, Jordi Murphy and Cian Healy will have to wait until at least round 3 to break into the squad.

Looking to the tournament itself both Ireland and Wales want to start the campaign with a win but both sides will be the final two teams into action on the opening weekend.  Already we have seen Warren Gatland heap the pressure on Schmidt and Ireland by saying that they are favourites to win a third consecutive Championship. After winning in 2014 and 2015 it would probably be natural to think that Ireland would have a real chance to win a 3^rd title.

With both England and France under new coaches Guy Noves and Eddie Jones, both of those sides will fancy their chances to turn their team’s fortunes around. England will want to perform in this campaign after being knocked out of the World Cup at the group phase and France will want to bounce back after being dismantled by New Zealand in Cardiff in the Quarter Final. Ireland of course will want banish the demons of that defeat.

Italy and Scotland are not to be forgotten after Scotland came within a score of beating Australia to reach the Semi Final. They along with their coach Vern Cotter will be hell bent on improving on that Quarter Final performance and I am sure they will cause all the other teams many problems.

Looking to Italy they will want to send Coach Jacques Brunel away with some positive performances and maybe one or two wins to give the incoming coach the opportunity to build on some good results. The results have not been the best for Italy since Brunel took over from Nick Mallett. Whoever does take on the job will have to work with a team that has to depend on two underperforming club teams in the Pro 12. Some of their better players are plying their trade away from Italy and also they need to blood more players from there Under 20s side to give the team a well needed shot in the arm. Here’s hoping we have a good tournament to give Northern Hemisphere Rugby a well needed boost.

By

Cian Mc Gibney

21/01/2016