End of the Year
The Archipelago was spending a few nice days lazing around London when Fermain suggested I should write an end of season review. I agreed, and set about planning what I’d write, whilst wandering those dark streets. In keeping with my generally upbeat ramblings throughout what has been a bit of a dog of a season for Ulster, the intention was to keep with the relatively positive line I’ve toed, even in those dark early days of the season. Some stats that showed progress throughout the season, a bit about 36 month plans and something on the effects and benefits of the new signings were all in order…
Then I flicked onto the BBC Sport site upon my return to Auld Reekie... I was faced with immediate disappointment when it told me that Ross Ford had been selected for the Lions tour. Perhaps it’s those red handed specs that sit firmly on my nose, but I found it difficult to believe that Rory Best wasn’t ranked in the top three hookers in these isles when the initial squad was announced. Don’t get me wrong; it would take a fool to suggest that Best has maintained his form throughout the season – he hasn’t and it has dipped as the season has drawn to a close – but I find it almost impossible to accept the implication that he has been the fifth best hooker in England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales this season.
The second disappointment… Well, it allowed the whole Best incident to fade into an unimportant memory. Matt Williams, I was told, had resigned as Ulster coach, by mutual agreement, due to family issues. Suddenly, all of this planned talk about 36 month plans and sustained improvement over the next couple of seasons would be neither here nor there. Without the man supposed to be implementing the plan, the whole thing is pie in the sky and it left me, momentarily, struggling to find real optimism to take from this season.
The “mutual consent” line has set the tongues wagging and the dogs barking. It’s true that the situation in which Matt Williams found himself was never ideal for himself, nor optimal for Ulster. With a family left in Australia, the permanence of his tenure at Ravenhill was always open to doubt and scrutiny but regardless of Williams’ motives in his resignation, or the movement behind the scenes at Ulster Rugby, it’s difficult to see the immediate positives from his departure. Yes, he may well have achieved the immediate goals set out upon his arrival – to remove the rogue elements within the dressing room, to develop young Ulster talent and to shore up indigenous resources with a few choice imports – but there should be no doubt that his departure will unsettle a ship that, after a season in turbulent seas, was just beginning to steady.
The Williams era hasn’t been the debacle that some would have it. The arrivals of Robbie Diack and Ed O’Donoghue are to the long-term benefit of Ulster, as will be the emergence of the likes of Darren Cave, David Pollock and Ian Whitten. More importantly, Williams has instilled the belief that Ulster can win, and win well, in difficult places, even if they haven’t managed to do so on any kind of consistent basis. And all of this is not to mention that it has been under Williams’ watch that Stephen Ferris has turned from a talented club backrower into a British and Irish Lion.
Just as important as player development are the coaches that Williams has brought into the Ulster set-up – continuity and skills are important areas of the modern game but defence is the backbone of any successful team. It’s difficult to look beyond the contribution made by Peter Sharp this season. During Sharp’s tenure as head coach Hull F.C., in the Super League, the attack spectacularly failed to function, yet the men from Humberside maintained one of the best defences in the league.
Ulster’s fortunes this season have been similar – the problems have mostly stemmed from an attacking inability, rather than serious defensive problems. Only the top four sides in the Magners League this season have had a better defence than Ulster this season, both in terms of points and tries conceded. Indeed, with the exception of the Cardiff Blues, the other defences conceded at least sixty points more than Ulster. More to the point, last season, Ulster conceded over 400 points and conceded more tries than even Connacht; this season, that total has been reduced to 331 points, 35% of which were conceded in three away games. Attack was also better this season, although by an average of just over one point. The major trouble is that only Connacht scored fewer points than Ulster this season.
As it is, in the final league standings this season, Ulster managed seven wins and 36 points, compared to six wins and 29 points last season. That is not to mention the structural differences in the final league standings between the two seasons – last season, one extra win wouldn’t have changed Ulster’s league position, this season, those extra four points could have propelled Ulster to fifth. The mid-table of the league this season proved more competitive than it has in recent times and the fact that Ulster were able to compete with those mid-league teams is a marked sign of improvement – a league double over Glasgow, a home win against Edinburgh and five losing bonus points in ten games against the mid-table opposition is a reasonable level of competitiveness, even if it doesn’t quite meet the high expectations some Ulster fans have set for the men in white.
But, given the developments throughout this week, one must ask what all of this really means? Is this season proof enough that, even with someone else at the helm, Ulster can continue to improve? There should be no doubt that the raw talent is there – especially with age on its side, the current front five are capable of turning into a formidable unit and the backrow of Ferris, Pollock and Diack, bolstered by the emergence of Henry and Faloon and the arrival of Horua, already has a fearsome look about it. The backs have plenty of inchoate attacking talent – seven tries apiece for Cave and Danielli, four for Wallace and Nagusa and three from Trimble this season suggest that the ability to score tries is there – especially given the raft of injuries suffered by Danielli, Nagusa and Wallace – even if it hasn’t been as consistent as is required to succeed over the course of a season.
The trouble is that this is a very young Ulster side and it now finds itself at a turning point; be content with mid-table banality or push forward and become a real rugby force. Matt Williams achieved his immediate goals at the start of this season and has set Ulster up well for the coming seasons, but his absence may well be conspicuous unless a suitable replacement can be found. David Humphreys and Jeremy Davidson are not the solution to Ulster’s current problem – another ‘old boys’ appointment could consign a whole new generation of Ulster talent to the category of international also rans. Davidson, no doubt, has the ability and willingness to win that is required to drive Ulster onwards, but as a forwards coach only. Humphreys is the perfect figurehead for the Ulster Rugby brand but, like McCall before him, lacks experience and is just too close to the current squad. The time has come for outside answers and for Ulster Rugby to carry out the worldwide search that was mooted before Matt Williams was snapped up. There are available candidates out there and Mike Reid needs to turn to them, rather than trying to forge away ahead by not looking beyond his own four walls.
There is plenty to be cheerful about but it’s a long and rocky road ahead. So much now relies not just on the players in the squad but on what happens behind the scenes and to whom Ulster Rugby and Mike Reid turn to, in order to fill the gap left by Matt Williams. There should be no doubts as to the positive impact Williams made in his short time at Ulster, even if many fans are unwilling or unable to see it at this time, but his departure could well leave a vacuum that, if not suitably filled, could drag the budding promise out of another generation of talented Ulster players.
The Archipelago
