What the Papers Say 2014/2015

Talk about the men in white, and everything Ulster!!

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Re: What the Papers Say 2014/2015

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Friday 6th June

PART II


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Kingspan Stadium roar? Ravenhill's new name sparks row
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It's the latest sports stadium to be renamed after a sponsor.

But it seems Ulster Rugby fans will continue to call the home ground Ravenhill, rather than the new name – Kingspan Stadium.

The renaming comes after Ulster Rugby's new 10-year sponsorship deal with the Kingspan Group, a building materials company with headquarters in Kingscourt, Co Cavan, which has been a sponsor of the team since 1999.

It follows a growing trend among English Premier League teams of changing the title of their home grounds to that of their sponsors.

Holywood man Shane Todd, the comedian and actor behind an Ulster Rugby character named Mike McGoldrick, said the change from Ravenhill to Kingspan Stadium was a "necessary evil" as it will "generate funds for the province", but he does not thinks fans will use the new moniker.

"I don't think people will call it that," he said. "I can't imagine people saying 'Do you fancy a wee night out at Kingspan?' People will continue to call it Ravenhill."

On Twitter, Ulster Rugby fans said they understood the financial reasons for the move, but many were unhappy their beloved Ravenhill was to be the latest victim of "commercialisation".

Steven Orr from Belfast said: "New stadium equals a need for money, but I still think it's a bit crass. I can't see Kingspan Stadium sticking. Sadly, money talks."

Tim McCullagh from Bangor said: "Fiscally it makes sense, outside income, savings on match tickets. Fans will still call it Ravenhill irrespective."

Jacqueline Lees said: "Another victim of commercialism. It will always be Ravenhill to fans."

Stuart Bailie from Newtownabbey said: "Great for them to get this deal, but I can't see anyone calling it anything other than Ravenhill! The Kingspan roar?"

One Twitter user said: "Definitely NOT! What happens in 10 years, do we call it the Sugar Puff Stadium if they sponsor?"

Another added: "No way. Stupid idea. Will always be Ravenhill."

Ulster Rugby chief executive Shane Logan said: "This is a landmark deal and one that will have considerable benefits for all of rugby in Ulster."
http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/sport ... 33449.html


Money is the name of the game in Ulster stadium name-change
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Pointing the way: Managing Director of Kingspan Pat Freeman (left) and
CEO of Ulster Rugby Shane Logan (right) announce the deal yesterday
First the good news: Ulster Rugby have signed up to a home stadium name-change believed to be worth £4m over the next 10 seasons. Now the bad news: if social media is anything to go by, the Ulster fans aren't exactly enamoured by the sudden revelation that from now on they'll be visiting "the Kingspan Stadium" and not their beloved, simple, historic and traditional Ravenhill.

Moreover, the money won't be poured directly into strengthening the first-team squad, as is what usually happens at Premier League football clubs.

Supporters will, however, welcome the cash injection which Ulster Rugby Chief Executive Officer Shane Logan stressed will be used to benefit the game at every level.

Yesterday the famous south Belfast ground was emblazoned with Kingspan Stadium signs. Asked if he felt supporters might be upset at the name-change, Logan told the Belfast Telegraph: "When my daughter gets married her name will change, but I hope it is for the good.

"Yes of course people are attached to the name but to me what is important is that we've got a cracking new partner.

"We can't grow the game the way we want to without considerable sponsorship and government funding and our fans supporting us in increasing numbers. So I think people will get used to the name and grow fond of it.

"The important thing for us is that we build what people have come to value at this stadium which is cracking rugby, winning rugby ideally – but unfortunately it can't always be – where if we lose, we lose with good grace, where behaviour is good and where we respect the opposition and the referee.

"This stadium is for all of rugby in Ulster. It's the pinnacle of players' careers, whether they are playing ladies rugby, disabled rugby, Schools' Cup, Medallion Shield or for the senior Ulster side. This is their stadium, a stadium for all 35,000 players.

"The fact that it is now the Kingspan Stadium allows us to continue to invest in the game right across all those different levels."

Confirming that there had been other suitors, the CEO said: "There were three or four others who were interested."

When asked if that level of interest proved the desirability of a high-profile link with Ulster Rugby, he replied: "It's not just about our brand, which I hope continues to grow, although it has a long way to go; it's about getting the right fit.

"With Kingspan I think we have a company that fits well. It's an Ulster company with a very significant presence in Portadown but is headquartered in Cavan. It's a company that produces ethical environmental products, which was important, too.

"I think getting the right fit was key. It's not simply about money; it's got to be money plus the right fit. We hope both we and Kingspan get an excellent return from this.

"That's what good business is about – both parties benefiting and winning and doing it in the right way."

Ongoing print media and television exposure of the stadium's name clearly made this an attractive proposition and Pat Freeman, managing director of Kingspan Environmental, was upbeat at yesterday's announcement.

He said: "We are delighted to significantly extend our already-strong association with Ulster Rugby by putting our name to such a wonderful sporting venue."

And underlining just how lucrative a deal with Ulster Rugby could now prove to be, Logan told the Belfast Telegraph: "Our television viewing figures are now, on a pro rata, in the PRO12 higher than any of our competitors.

"And with the league now moving to a combination of both BBC NI and Sky – and therefore a greater worldwide audience – that will benefit Kingspan and ourselves."

As for the lengthy nature of the undertaking he agreed: "It's a 10-year deal and that's a long time in business. We've got to mutually earn the right to do business with each other for another 10, 15, 20 years beyond that."

Earlier the CEO had told fellow Ulster Rugby officers and Kingspan representatives: "We have been seeking to find the right naming-rights partner and now as we come to the conclusion of its £22m redevelopment we believe this is the right time and partner.

"Rugby in Ulster is not simply the professional team. It is currently 55 clubs, several hundred schools and 35,000 players.

"And in the same way in which we are deeply indebted to the Northern Ireland Executive and DCAL for funding this magnificent stadium, we cannot do it unless there is partnership across all parts of the nine counties of Ulster.

"We have sought the correct sponsor to pair with, one with an outstanding international reputation, one which is an Ulster-based company, one which shares our ambition to be the very best.

"I don't know if people are aware of it but in the £22m (it cost to rebuild the stadium) are many hundreds of thousands of pounds of Kingspan products, so they are also now in our fabric and in our DNA.

"We have been proud to be associated with Kingspan for the past 15 years. We look forward to growing this relationship, helping to grow the success of the Kingspan brand and using the investment to grow the game at all levels."

What the deal means for Ulster

With £4m coming Ulster's way as a result of the stadium re-naming deal confirmed yesterday, that looks like a windfall.

But that Kingspan money — which is spread over 10 seasons — has to go a very long way, with rugby at every level in the province having needs which must be met.

John Robinson, President of the IRFU's Ulster Branch, alluded to this when he said: “Rugby has never been stronger in Ulster and partnerships such as this will enable us to continue to grow the game at club and schools level and to remain competitive both in Europe and the PRO12.”

And just who are Kingspan?

Although they have their global headquarters in County Cavan, Kingspan have bases in 45 countries across the world, including one in Portadown.

A leader in timber-frame construction, the company specialise in insulation panels and boards for roofs, walls and floors of many different types of buildings from schools, libraries, residential properties and offices blocks.

Last year they recorded a profit of some €123m and Kingspan sit securely as one of the top 20 companies listed on Irish Stock Exchange. (2013 Group turnover €1.79b)

What does £4m buy them?

Kingspan Stadium is owned by the IRFU and is the home of rugby in Ulster.

Formerly a camogie ground, it first staged a rugby match on January 12, 1924 when Ulster hosted Leinster.

In 2012, Ulster Rugby secured £16.5m from the Northern Ireland Executive for redevelopment. Three new stands were built, raising capacity from 11,400 to 18,000.

The new stadium is Ulster’s professional training base, consisting of a 7,000 square foot gym, meeting rooms and medical facilities.

Kingspan Stadium hosts at least 15 Ulster matches a season.
http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/sport ... 33128.html
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Re: What the Papers Say 2014/2015

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Friday 6th June

PART III


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Byrne, O’Donoghue, Ringrose and Taggart stand out for Ireland U20s
With Ireland now set up to compete for a JWC semi-final spot, we look at those who excelled against Wales.
MIKE RUDDOCK’S IRELAND U20s secured an excellent 35-21 Pool B victory over Wales this morning to spark their Junior World Championship campaign back into life.

New Zealand’s defeat to South Africa in Pool C means that if Ireland can claim a bonus point win over Fiji on Tuesday, they will advance to the semi-finals of the competition, even if France beat Wales in the other remaining Pool B tie.

While the win over the Welsh was certainly all about the collective performance – something Ruddock has stressed at this level – the U20s remain a development pathway into professional rugby.

With that in mind, and while congratulating all those involved, we have picked out four players who stood out in Pukekohe.

Ross Byrne
Jack O’Donoghue
Garry Ringrose
...........see article for full version.

:fleg: Frankie Taggart

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Ulster's Taggart was a notable presence throughout for Ireland.
While O’Donoghue was perhaps more notable in open play, Taggart played a vital role in Ireland’s attacking structure. The Ulsterman, who wore the seven shirt but can also play at No. 8, was used as a carrier closer to rucks, coming around the corner.

The Belfast Harlequins back row is strong in contact and made valuable yards throughout, as Ireland used their possession effectively. At 103kg, Taggart is the joint-heaviest back row in the Ireland squad, and his bulk was important.

While O’Donoghue’s strength is perhaps more elastic, Taggart showed an ability to wrestle through the collisions, similarly to how Chris Henry does at senior level. That same physical advantage was evident in defence too, where Taggart worked extremely hard.
http://www.thescore.ie/ireland-u20s-fou ... 2-Jun2014/


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Cave's face finally fits for Schmidt
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YOU have to suspect centre Darren Cave regrets the outburst last December that could have threatened his international career.

The frustration at always playing second or even third fiddle to Brian O’Driscoll finally became too much after the November internationals when his company man’ image finally cracked.

“I still wonder sometimes does the face not fit,” he said.

Cave was in a dark place at the time and he even dragged fellow Ulsterman Roger Wilson into his gripe about non-selection for Ireland, earning just five caps since making his debut against Canada in the summer of 2009.

“If you don't know what I mean by that I suppose you should ask Roger Wilson how he has one cap for Ireland and Jamie Heaslip has 60 and two Lions tours behind him".

This storm had been one that was brewing for years. It was not necessarily focussed in on Schmidt’s November preference for Connacht’s Robbie Henshaw, more as the straw that broke the camel’s back.

"I'm actually a big fan of Joe Schmidt even though I don't know if he's a big fan of me," he added.

"He's an incredibly likeable person and he really knows his rugby, which means that my non-selection is a bit harder (to take). But he's given me a couple of things to work on.

"One of the things Joe said to me was that Brian O'Driscoll was going to be Robbie's guide for November and I was left out initially because he thought Robbie could learn a lot more off him during the November series.

"That's probably fair enough. At the end of the day, I've played over 100 games for Ulster and I don't need my hand held through it. If that's the way Joe wants to take things it's disappointing for me

“I'll try and make it hard for him anyway".

There was a quick phone call between Cave and Ireland coach Joe Schmidt which the latter typically passed off as comments “taken out of context”.

Six months is a long time in rugby. O’Driscoll is gone forever now. Henshaw is injured. Payne has not yet eligible for Ireland. Suddenly, Cave’s is the only face that fits.

The Ulsterman will be the first man to wear the number thirteen jersey after O’Driscoll concluded his international business in the Six Nations.

The odds are still stacked in favour of Henshaw and Payne for November unless Cave can do what Andrew Trimble and Chris Henry have done.

Henry and Trimble were way down the list of likely prospectors for the green jersey when Joe Schmidt came into his new role last summer. Now, they are the incumbents, the men others have to chase.

They have taken unexpected opportunities and made themselves undroppable’. They have shown the way. It is up to others to follow their lead.

There should also be the comfort blanket of a large number of Ulstermen around Cave. Luke Marshall is likely to be at inside centre. The aforementioned Trimble should be on the wing.

In the forward pack, the leadership of Rory Best and the nuisance value of Henry should not be under-estimated, while South African-born back rower Robbie Diack is in line for his international debut from the start or off the wood.

Meanwhile, Ulster Rugby has leased the naming rights for redeveloped Ravenhill to Kingspan, the building company.

It will be known as Kingspan Stadium in what is a 10-year agreement.
http://www.herald.ie/sport/rugby/caves- ... 32655.html
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Re: What the Papers Say 2014/2015

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Saturday 7th June


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Ulster Rugby's Rory Best has belief again as he travels road to redemption
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Lining out: Rory Best reflects on his mixed fortunes at Resistancia, Argentina
There is often a machine-like quality about the modern rugby player, but sometime the facade breaks and the veil slips to reveal the person beneath the athlete.

Take Rory Best, the man we know mostly as Ireland and Ulster's hooker. Consummate professional, leader of men, lineout thrower.

It is easy to define him by what he does, but there are more strands to these men.

Best is the son of farmer John, who is coming to Argentina to watch his son take on the Pumas, but also is dragging Pat around four or five farms on the Pampas to have a look at the livestock and the methods, something of a busman's holiday. Pat is from Middlesbrough, her father used to bring young Rory to Ayresome Park before he dallied with Blackburn Rovers because of an affiliation to Kenny Dalglish and dragged the whole lot of the family by car to a game against Leeds United only for the pitch at Ewood Park to freeze and the game to be called off.

Best would love to join his parents on the Argentinean farm, but the schedule won't allow it. He would also like to get down to Brazil for a World Cup game but the demands of a young family require his presence back on the family farm.

This is the man we will watch on a sideline in Resistencia tonight (7.40pm), with ball in his hands and, to some extent, a team's fate in them too.

He throws, Paul O'Connell catches and life goes on. But, if something malfunctions in the process, a lifter slips or his hand leaves the ball too early it is the No2 who takes the fall.

We sometimes forget how human these international rugby players are, but no one watching Best in Canberra last June was left in any doubt.

"Humiliation" is the word he uses now, not bitterly but matter-of-factly. This man who now has 75 caps for his country, a former captain of his province and a calm and knowledgeable presence around both set-ups had one of those days to forget on a night he was supposed to cherish and remember forever.

Having been initially left out of the squad, Best was called up after Dylan Hartley's Premiership final meltdown, but his tour didn't go to plan.

"I would like to think that I'm reasonably mentally strong but looking back a year out it was mentally a bridge too far for me," he says. "The disappointment of the 2009 tour, I hadn't expected to go but then the injury to Jerry Flannery and still not getting a call-up, then this time round, everyone expecting you to go and playing reasonably well, certainly in the earlier part of the season, and feeling that I was one of the faces of the four nations that had been there starting for his country all the way through the previous four years, that pressure and expectation that I would go, I didn't go and then to be going again.

"It was just, in hindsight, it was too much for me.

"I had beaten myself up about not being good enough to go. You know everyone assumed I wasn't picked because of my throwing and even (Graham) Rowntree was fairly open about the fact it was my throwing that let me down."

Specifically, it was the Heineken Cup semi-final against Saracens that was pinpointed as, in Best's words, "the final nail in his coffin".

The nadir came against the Brumbies, when he was asked to captain the midweek side on a wet night, with a thrown-together team where Jake White's locals managed the only provincial win over the tourists.

"That especially was a fairly public humiliation, a public event to lose so many lineouts as captain of the team that night, it was very hard to take. It just felt like one mental beating after another I took on that tour," he concluded.

The road back began in Ravenhill, against Treviso, where a try and a functioning lineout set Best back on the righteous path. Behind the scenes, he put in 300-400 throws a week at Ulster and Ireland training and in his converted barn at the farm on the Down and Armagh border. The work paid off with redemption in Paris.

"We had the best scrum and the best lineout, but I don't think we're doing anything overly different," Best says of Ireland's Six Nations performance.

"For me, the big source of pride with Ulster and Ireland is that the lineout stats have been so good this season.

"To come back in that Treviso game I was really, really nervous and it is just good to have the stats we've had with Ulster and Ireland; it's encouraging and it's down to hard work with my throwing but also from the callers I've had."

Trimble wary of running into Argentina brick wall

Ireland have expressed concerns about the facilities at the Estadio Centenario in Resistencia where they kick off their summer tour against Argentina tonight.

Having trained yesterday on the patchwork surface at the first-time Test venue, normally a fourth division football stadium, coach Richie Murphy said the surface on the smaller-than-usual pitch was below par in places, while winger Andrew Trimble is wary of a brick perimeter wall close to one of the sidelines.

Still, Ireland are refusing to use the stadium as an excuse for anything less than a win in their first game since claiming the Six Nations crown in March.

“We'd had reports about the stadium, the pitch is quite bumpy. There is plenty of grass on it but in certain parts it is not as good as you would like it to be,” skills and kicking coach Murphy admitted, echoing Joe Schmidt's assertion the ground would be “challenging”.

“We've a job to do, this is the pitch we're playing on and we have to get on with it. They are all little tests and it will be more testing when they see the stands full of Argentinians screaming at them. I think at that stage they will have forgotten about the pitch.”
http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/sport ... 35494.html


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Joe Schmidt right to cast net wide to bring on board players such as Ah You and Diack GERRY T
The Irish coach argues Regulation 8 is an issue for the game’s lawmakers, not him
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Rodney Ah You relaxs in Resistancia ahead of today’s Test against Argentina. It would
be a dereliction of duty on Joe Schmidt’s part not to avail of Irish-qualified players
Something sucks about IRB Regulation 8. Governing international eligibility, it stipulates a player may represent a country in three ways, namely by dint of birth, lineage through a parent or grandparent, and residency for a minimum of three years.

The second route has been abused in the past but latterly the three-year ruling has been freely tapped into as a form of a delayed international “signing” from abroad and, like it or loath it, Irish rugby is now merrily leading the charge.

This has come sharply into focus this week by Joe Schmidt’s inclusion of South African-born and reared Robbie Diack and New Zealand-born and reared Rodney Ah You in the Irish match-day squad to face Argentina, making it entirely likely for the first time Ireland will blood two residency-qualified internationals on the same day.

Following on from Richardt Strauss, there will also be more where they come from, with the New Zealand pair of Nathan White and Jared Payne set to qualify for Ireland next season and the South African-born CJ Stander to do so after the 2015 World Cup, while Connacht’s latest project signing, Waikato Chiefs centre Bundee Aki, has declared his intention to play for Ireland.

Of course there is the risk of the Irish team’s Irish-ness being diluted and on foot of his retirement, Ronan O’Gara wasforthright in his book, Unguarded, when stating: “Three years is way too little. Even five is too little. Seven isn’t enough. It has to be 10 Non-negotiable. Deal or no deal.”

Schmidt, totally within reason, argues Regulation 8 is an issue for the game’s lawmakers, not him. Indeed, it would be something of a dereliction of duty on his part not to avail of Irish-qualified players. Nor would it make sense for the IRFU and the provinces to ignore the possibilities. As the song says, everyone else is doing it so why can’t we? Paul O’Connell has also said he has no issue with players qualifying by residency provided they add to the quality and strength in depth of the Irish squad.

What sticks in the craw is that exploitation of the regulation favours the wealthy over the poor. Clermont have an academy in Fiji while France has also increasingly begun to dip into its old colonial outposts, and no less than Ireland, Wales, Scotland, England, France and Italy also target players in the Southern Hemisphere, mostly South Africans or from the Pacific Islands.

Outcry
The signing of Aki has led to an outcry in New Zealand, whose union chief executive Steve Tew apparently regularly berates his Irish counterpart, Philip Browne, for poaching their players. Aki’s departure also prompted All Blacks coach Steve Hansen to remark: “It is frustrating and it is disappointing. Players here have a dream of playing for the All Blacks and then they suddenly give it up when an easier option comes along. It’s not their dream but they decide to go for it and I think we need players with a bit more mental fortitude: a bit more of a constitution to dig in harder and fight for the dream they really want.”

Admittedly Hansen’s critique was directed more at the players, but even so the New Zealand Herald accused the Celtic unions of “hypocrisy” for being opposed to any alteration of Regulation 8, which the IRB chief executive Brett Gosper has said is here to stay.

The New Zealand outcry is especially rich given how All Blacks draw freely from Tonga, Samoa and Fiji. Ironically, when he was coach of Wales from 1998 to 2002, Graham Henry caused outrage when he proposed importing South African schoolboys by offering scholarships at Welsh schools as a recruitment strategy.

Furthermore, it was under Henry’s watch Wales first capped the New Zealand duo of Shane Howarth and Brett Sinkinson, whilst ineligible. Both were subsequently barred, but Sinkinson returned after qualifying through residency. Colin Charvis had also been ineligible, but by the time the scandal broke he had completed the required three-year residency.

It’s also worth noting with the possible exception of Aki and Payne, the likelihood is none of Strauss, White, Diack, Ah You or Stander were lost to their respective national teams. Indeed, all have probably become better players through the Irish system.

Hostility
As with Aki, one senses part of the hostility or dislike of Diack’s and particularly Ah You’s selection is the name. Were they named, for example, Jack Mitchell, John Smith or Jim Dean, there mightn’t be the same outcry. Ah You, like Aki, qualifies for Samoa, through his parents, yet ironically his surname is of Chinese origin as his great grandfather emigrated with his family to Samoa.

Laidback to the point of being prostrate, the innately good-humoured and immensely likeable Ah You is a little sketchy about the details. Born in Lower Hutt outside Wellington before his parents Kelope and Faaia moved him and his two sisters Diana and Pepe to the Hoon Hay suburb (“not the flashest of places” he says) in Christchurch when he was about nine, Ah You was more interested in emulating his dad’s amateur boxing until taking up rugby when he was 16.

Converted from a backrower to a prop a year later, in a swift rise through the Canterbury age grades, he was invited to an under-19 trial in New Plymouth. “The whole time I was thinking ‘why the hell am I going here?’ And then Wayne Smith read out the under-19s squad I couldn’t believe my name being called out.”

Ah You was part of the Baby Blacks team which won the Junior World Cup in Belfast in 2008, and the following year in Cardiff. “Every kid in New Zealand wants to wear the black jersey,” he admits of his ambitions then, but he played little rugby for the Canterbury ITM Cup team in the ensuing two years. “To be honest I was taking it for granted really and slacking off,” he admits, and so was ripe for an 18-month contract when Eric Elwood, coach of the Irish Under-20s at those World Cups, made enquiries about him.

Ah You admits the first year was very tough but he had “a serious chat with Pat Lam at the end of last season and something clicked in my head. He just made me want to work hard for him. Scrummaging has come a long way for me. I’ve adapted pretty well to the new laws. I feel it suits me. Off field my lifestyle has improved. I’d had a bad diet and wasn’t working hard enough.”

He played in all of Connacht’s 28 games this season.

Ah You and his wife Bella, a big driving force for him, have two young children, three-year-old Zephaniah (a biblical name meaning gift from God) and one-year-old Xavier, a warrior, with another due in September. “I wanted strong names for our Galway-born boys.”

“Ireland is starting to feel like home now,” he adds, “especially staying on for another two years. God willing, hopefully we’ll stay on for more. The World Cup is my goal and I don’t want this to be just a one-off.”

Prank call
With White, Stephen Archer and Declan Fitzpatrick all sidelined, when Marty Moore was ruled out last Saturday, Schmidt turned to Ah You, who admits when phoned by the Irish coach at around midnight last Saturday, he thought it was a prank call. Ah You was at the Irish squad’s airport hotel by 1.00 and quickly set about learning the lineout calls, and Schmidt admits: “It’s a massive ask for Rodney, and it probably requires a little bit of patience to see how he goes, but he’s very keen, he’s a very nice fellah. I hope he’s not too nice when it comes to coming on off the bench on Saturday if that’s what transpires.”

Ah You says his mum had tears of joy when he skyped home this week. “I was stoked to be involved with Emerging Ireland and just being involved in this tour has boosted my confidence. It’s nice to get a taste of it and see what level to get to in order to crack the Irish squad.”

As an aside, an extension of the residency ruling from three to, say, five years, might well stem the exploitation of Regulation 8. The IRFU should adopt that as a policy in the interests of fairness across the game. But until such time as Regulation 8 is changed, that’s not an issue for the players or Schmidt. And as with Strauss before them and those to follow, the best of Irish luck to Diack and Ah You.
http://www.irishtimes.com/sport/rugby/i ... -1.1823821


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Restructured Thomond payments ‘huge boost’, says Munster CEO
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Munster Rugby announced a deficit of €0.8m at the Branch’s AGM last night, but delegates heard some encouraging news for the province in the form of a restructured repayment plan of its loan from the IRFU for the redevelopment of Thomond Park.

Munster’s financial controller, Philip Quinn, revealed the cash-flow deficit for the year ending June 30, 2013, a reduction from last year’s shortfall for the 12 months of just over €1m as Branch delegates gathered in the UL Bohemian’s clubhouse at Thomond Park for the AGM.

Quinn’s objective is to achieve a financial break even position in 2015-16 and the forecast for the year ending June 30, 2014 continues the slow march to that target with a projected deficit of €0.6m.

Quinn said the Branch has given itself some wiggle room by re-negotiating the remaining balance of just over €9.8m of the €11.7m loan it borrowed from the IRFU for the 2008 redevelopment of its 26,500-seater stadium and there was further hope that more assistance from the governing body was in the pipeline.

“We have been in negotiations with the IRFU for some years on our loan commitments to Thomond Park,” Quinn told the Irish Examiner. “We were in an agreement to pay €1m a year at the moment. That has been restructured now to mean Munster only pay €100,000 a year. The deal was originally until 2017, but has now been extended to 2027.

“This has given us a lot more freedom. We are also looking for a grant similar to Connacht. The extra million Connacht got this year from the IRFU is something we have been in discussions with the IRFU about. I am not at liberty to say what the exact details are on that at present, but it will make a big difference in our deficit.”

Munster chief executive Garrett Fitzgerald described the restructured repayments as a “huge boost” for the province.

“I think the IRFU has a very practical approach to the whole financial structure,” Fitzgerald said. “They were in quite a similar situation themselves having paid off the Aviva (Stadium redevelopment) and all the money they would have had on deposits themselves and available was all used up. So it was easy for them to understand our situation, given it was quite similar to where we were, albeit on a much smaller scale.

“I think they took a very practical, rugby-orientated decision towards it.

“It’s a huge boost for our cashflow situation and we very much appreciate the assistance the IRFU have offered.”

On the day Ulster revealed a naming rights deal with long-term sponsor Kingspan for its Ravenhill ground in Belfast, Fitzgerald said Munster were still reviewing whether to chase a similar deal for Thomond Park.

“It’s one of the areas that we’re looking at and no decision whatsoever has been taken in any area on that.”

Meanwhile, Munster stalwart James Coughlan was officially unveiled as a Pau player having left for France’s D2. Also heading to Pau from Munster is assistant performance analyst Elliott Corcoran, who will be Head Performance Analyst at the club.
http://www.irishexaminer.com/sport/rugb ... 71197.html
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Re: What the Papers Say 2014/2015

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Saturday 7th June

FOR THE RECORD ONLY.......


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David Humphreys to leave Ulster Rugby
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David Humphreys has today confirmed that he is to leave Ulster Rugby to become Director of Rugby for English Premiership side Gloucester.

The move ends a 22-year association between Humphreys and the Province. He made 162 appearances for Ulster as a player and won the European Cup, the Celtic Cup and the Celtic League. He retired from playing in 2008 and took up a role as Operations Director before becoming Director of Rugby four years ago.

Commenting, Humphreys said: "This was a really difficult decision for me personally but having received a direct approach from Gloucester, I have now chosen to accept an offer to become their Director of Rugby. It is, I believe, the right move for me at this stage of my career.

"I would like to thank the supporters and all those involved in Ulster Rugby over more than two decades who have lent me support, encouragement and wisdom.

"There is no doubt that the Province will continue to move forward. It has a fantastic stadium, the best supporters and a wealth of great talent coming through. Ulster Rugby will be a force within rugby for many years to come."

Chief Executive of Ulster Rugby, Shane Logan, said: "I would like to wish David every success with Gloucester and to thank him for the outstanding contribution that he has made to Ulster Rugby.

"As Director of Rugby, David has helped to grow the game at all levels - there are more people playing rugby in the Province than ever before, we have successful age-grade sides, we have a strong Academy and we now have a senior squad that can beat the best in Europe.

"We are disappointed with the decision but respect David's decision to leave Ulster. We do know we already have the structures in place to ensure we have success in the long term.

"Ulster Rugby will now begin the process of recruiting a new Director of Rugby and we look forward to building on the progress that the Province has made in recent years."
http://www.ulsterrugby.com/News/LatestN ... Rugby.aspx


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David Humphreys becomes Gloucester director of rugby
Ulster's director of rugby David Humphreys is to quit his position to take up a similar role at Gloucester.

The 42-year-old's surprise move sees him replace Nigel Davies, who was dismissed by Gloucester last month.

The Cherry and Whites endured a disappointing season, finishing ninth in the Premiership table.

"David's a very impressive character and I'm really excited about the appointment," chief executive Stephen Vaughan told BBC Radio Gloucestershire.

"We put in place a really thorough search process and we had dozens and dozens of conversations with very credible candidates, but David really stood out.

His recruitment and retention of players at Ulster was second to none in Europe.

"He's always been very successful and has great morals and humility. I think his skill set will fit perfectly well with the people we've got at the club."

But while Gloucester are delighted at capturing Humphreys, Ulster have been left stunned by the speed of the former Ireland fly-half's departure from Ravenhill.

Ulster chief executive Shane Logan said he always knew that a day would come when Humphreys would move from the club for career reasons.

But he was left "taken aback" when Humphreys told him two days ago that he would be moving to the Premiership club.

Asked whether any attempts had been made to make Humphreys change his mind, Logan replied:"I don't think we tried to do anything.

"I think David has been consistent over the years that he wants his career to advance," added the Ulster chief executive.

"We've had a joint career plan. Part of that has been to advance excellent levels of success and a really good legacy here.

"We wouldn't stand in David's way. We've always been clear that David wanted to move his career on.

The surprising part at the end, and possibly the disappointing part, is the speed at which it happened."

Despite his disappointment, Logan wishes Humphreys well for the future and said that his good personal relationship with his former director of rugby would remain.

Ex-Ireland fly-half Humphreys was appointed to the Ulster position after retiring as a player in 2008.

His roles included player recruitment and Ulster made a number of major signings during his stint.

Humphreys was instrumental in convincing World Cup winners Johann Muller, Ruan Pienaar and John Afoa to join the Belfast-based club.

The arrival of international stars helped revive Ulster's European fortunes and they reached the knockout stages of the last four Heineken Cup competitions, including the final in 2012, where they were well beaten by Leinster at Twickenham.

Humphreys' departure ends an eventful week for Ulster.

Ireland international forward Stephen Ferris announced his retirement because of injury on Tuesday and the club announced on Thursday that their redeveloped Ravenhill ground was going to be officially known as Kingspan Stadium from now on, following the signing of a 10-year naming rights deal.

Ironically, Humphreys' brother Ian is returning to Ulster this summer after a two-year stint with London Irish.

David Humphreys Factfile
•Born September 1971
•Capped 72 times for Ireland 1996-2006
•Captained Ulster to European Cup in January 1999
•Scored 37 points against Wasps in 2002, a Heineken Cup record
•Won Celtic Cup in December 2003
•Won Celtic League in May 2006
•After retiring in May 2008, took over as Ulster's Director of Operations
http://www.bbc.com/sport/0/rugby-union/27748254


David Humphreys' sudden exit shocks Ulster chief Shane Logan
Ulster Rugby chief executive officer Shane Logan has spoken of his surprise at the speed of David Humphreys' switch to Gloucester to take up the role of director of rugby at Kingsholm.

Logan told BBC Sport NI's Stephen Watson that the swiftness of the move had "taken us aback" but that the club had not stood in the former Ireland international's way of leaving Ravenhill after almost 20 years service as a player and then director of rugby.

He explained that Humphreys "feels the need to test himself in a different environment" and insisted he wished him well on his move.
Full Interview..... http://www.bbc.com/sport/0/rugby-union/27749686


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Gloucester complete director of rugby search with capture of David Humphreys
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GLOUCESTER have completed their hunt for a new director of rugby with the breathtaking capture of Ulster legend David Humphreys.

The Cherry and Whites launched a worldwide search for a successor to Nigel Davies following the Welshman’s shock sacking in May.

CEO Stephen Vaughan spearheaded the search and he is delighted to have completed the signing of the former Ireland fly-half who has turned Ulster into European heavyweights.

Vaughan said: “We’re very pleased to have got our man. It’s been a thorough search, we wanted a quick turnaround but finding the right person was so much more important.

“He’s a very engaging character, a trained lawyer, Oxford educated and knows what it takes to achieve success.

“He’s done a fantastic job at Ulster, he has turned things around and put in a lot of hard work to make Ravenhill what it is today. They are regulars in the knockout stages of Europe and reached the final in 2012.

“He’s a strategic thinker, he sees the bigger picture and his recruitment and retention is second to none – bringing in the likes of John Afoa, Johann Muller and Ruan Pienaar was previously unheard of for Ulster.

“He’s also very astute commercially and is a leader. Knowing his character and the personnel at the club he is exactly the leader we were looking for, he ticks all of the boxes.”

The appointment of the 72 times capped international will see Gloucester move away from the head coach, with director of rugby responsibilities, model previously employed.

Humphreys will head up the entire rugby department but with a more strategic brief and a new head coach set to be brought in below him.

The Heineken Cup winner has worked to the same system at Ravenhill with Mark Anscombe the current head coach.

His move to Kingsholm brings a 22-year association with Ulster to an end and negotiations over his start date are continuing.

But he has already held discussions with Vaughan over potential candidates for the head coach position and there will be constant dialogue this week.

The club received widespread interest into the director of rugby candidates and some of those will now be considered for the coaching role.

Vaughan added: “David is coming in as director of rugby and will be responsible for everything on the rugby side of the business; he will be heading up the playing department, the academy, strength and conditioning and medical staff, the environment and culture.

“He will look at the whole department and if he wants to appoint a head coach so be it, it has worked very well for him at Ulster.

“We’ve already had those conversations. He’s comfortable with that kind of structure and we have to play to David’s strengths.

“We have had a lot of interest, CVs and calls from agents all over the world, I have kept my powder dry and our cards very close to my chest when talking to these candidates.

“Myself and David will sit down and look through the CVs and work out what is the right coaching set-up for Gloucester, taking account of what is out there and what we already have.”

Gloucester have not disclosed the length of Humphreys’ contract but it is understood to be a long-term appointment to ensure stability at the club.

Chairman Ryan Walkinshaw added: “It was absolutely crucial that we made the right appointment. It’s an exciting new era for Gloucester Rugby and I’m delighted that David will be part of it.

“Having interviewed a number of candidates with Stephen, David was very impressive and without doubt the calibre of individual the Club needs. Gloucester Rugby commissioned a piece of research on the most effective models for success, and felt that moving away from our previous model of a head coach with DOR responsibilities was important going forward.

“We believe having David in place with a more strategic skill set will get the best out of our playing department going forward.

“Gloucester Rugby is in great shape. The business has just made a profit for the fourth year in succession, World Cup Rugby will be here in 15 months and the years ahead promise to be memorable ones for everybody associated with the club. I’ve never been more excited about the club.”
http://www.gloucestercitizen.co.uk/Glou ... story.html


http://www.newsletter.co.uk/sport/rugby ... -1-6106030
http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/sport ... 36920.html
http://www.independent.ie/sport/david-h ... 36932.html
http://www.irishtimes.com/sport/rugby/p ... -1.1824805
http://www.espn.co.uk/scrum/rugby/story ... MP=OTC-RSS
http://www.u.tv/Sport/Humphreys-to-leav ... f6ee7f1e91
http://www.gloucestercitizen.co.uk/Glou ... story.html
http://www1.skysports.com/rugby-union/n ... 21/9341326
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/rugbyu ... rugby.html

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Re: What the Papers Say 2014/2015

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Saturday 7th June

Moving swift along...........


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Cave and Sexton star as Ireland survive early scare in Argentina
Joe Schmidt’s men looked in trouble after Manuel Montero’s first-half try but they battled back with fine tries before and after the break.
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Argentina 17 Ireland 29

IRELAND GOT THEIR summer tour underway with a 29-17 win over Argentina in Resistencia. A Manuel Montero try had the home side 10-6 ahead after half an hour but tries from Chris Henry, Jonny Sexton and Andrew Trimble sealed the tie.

Ireland should have crossed the whitewash in the opening stages, following a superb Darren Cave line break, but debutant flanker Robbie Diack opted to cut inside rather than pass to Simon Zebo or Felix Jones on the overlap. Two Sexton penalties had the Six Nations champions 6-0 up. Ireland were soon to have a man advantage — Benjamin Macone was sin-binned for taking Trimble out in the air, but Argentina had the next two scores.

Nicolas Sanchez’ penalty cut Ireland’s lead in half after 26 minutes before Montero scorched in a superb try. Joaquín Tuculet sparked the score with a great take before Nicolas Sanchez left Luke Marshall trailing. He found Montero in support and the winger dumbfounded Sexton and Trimble to score in the corner.

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Ireland regrouped and took advantage of the extra man in the pack, with Chris Henry mauling over. Sexton missed the conversion and Ireland led 11-10 at the break. Sexton punctured the Argentine defence two minutes after the re-start and powered over after a wrap-around give and go with Marshall.

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The game was effectively over after 57 minutes when Trimble raced in a try from 50 metres out after a smart intercept in midfield. Sexton missed the conversion and a leg injury saw him withdrawn for Ian Madigan five minutes later. The Leinster out-half added two penalties in the closing stages as Ireland closed out the game.

Cave looked to have scored the try his performance merited but his legs were dragged out of touch before he could touch down. It mattered little but Schmidt will be pleased that his players were still looking for scores after a straining first hour.

He will be less pleased, however, with his team allowing Tomas de la Vega to force his way over for a converted try with two minutes remaining. The victory was only Ireland’s second official away win over Argentina.

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http://www.thescore.ie/argentina-irelan ... 1-Jun2014/


Jackman’s Grenoble confirm Irish centre Farrell among new recruits
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GRENOBLE HAVE CONFIRMED their new recruits ahead of the 2014/15 season, including 21-year-old Irish centre Chris Farrell.

The former Ireland U20 international joins from Ulster, having made just two starts for the province this season. The 6ft 5ins, 105kg midfielder saw his 2012/13 campaign written off after rupturing an ACL, and has failed to establish himself in Ulster’s first team since.

With the likes of Luke Marshall, Darren Cave, Stuart McCloskey and Stuart Olding offering serious competition in the centre positions at Ulster, Farrell will take his physical game to Grenoble, where Bernard Jackman has been installed as head coach.

South African international Gio Aplon is perhaps the most high-profile new signing for FCG, with the 31-year-old fullback/wing’s counter-attacking brilliance sure to be a strength when he joins from the Stormers.

Jackson Willison signs from the Auckland Blues, having represented New Zealand at U20 and Maori levels. The 25-year-old centre has six seasons of Super Rugby experience and mixes defensive solidity and creative attacking play with an intelligent kicking game.

Having been pushed behind Jonathan Sexton and Juan Martín Hernández in Racing Métro’s out-half pecking order, Jonathan Wisniewski joins Jackman’s squad. The 28-year-old is a superb place-kicker and racked up over 700 points in seven seasons in Paris.

Scrum-half Charl McLeod is a further addition, offering competition to Irishman James Hart for the number nine shirt. The 30-year-old moves from the Sharks, where he has been involved in the last six Super Rugby campaigns, while he won a Springbok cap against New Zealand in 2011.

Another South African on his way to Grenoble is Ross Skeate, who joins from Agen in the Pro D2. The 31-year-old lock has previously had spells with Toulon, the Stormers and the Sharks.

In the front row, tighthead Jono Owen has signed from the Reds in Australia, loosehead Rémy Hugues arrives from Dax, and France international hooker Arnaud Héguy joins from relegated Biarritz.

Back row Rory Grice, who helped New Zealand to the Junior World Championship in 2010, is an interesting new face. The 21-year-old moves from Waikato, and is an international at sevens level for New Zealand.

Completing the recruitment are back row Mahamadou Diaby from Oyonnax and highly-rated 20-year-old centre Xavier Mignot from Bourgoin.

After an 11th-place finish in the 2013/14 campaign of the Top 14, Jackman, backs coach Mike Prendergast and team manager Andrew Farley will be hoping that the new additions can propel Grenoble up the table next season.

FCG president Marc Chéreque has also indicated the the club’s recruitment “is not finished” and hinted that a young Kiwi back row will join the club on trial from next week.
http://www.thescore.ie/grenoble-rugby-c ... 7-Jun2014/
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Re: What the Papers Say 2014/2015

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Sunday 8th June


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Ravenhill rocked by Humphreys' shock departure Brendan Fanning
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Ulster and Irish rugby were shocked yesterday by the news that David Humphreys is leaving Ravenhill to become Gloucester's Director of Rugby.

Humphreys had been the heartbeat of Ulster first as a player and then as Director of Operations – a role that was created for him in 2008. While his original appointment to Ravenhill was seen as a coup at the time, it is the English Premiership club who are being credited now with the most spectacular bit of business conducted in European rugby this season.

In an interestingly worded statement from Ravenhill yesterday, chief executive Shane Logan conceded that Ulster were taken aback by the news.

"We are disappointed with the decision but respect David's decision to leave Ulster," Logan said. "We know we already have the structures in place to ensure we have success in the long term. Ulster Rugby will now begin the process of recruiting a new Director of Rugby and we look forward to building on the progress that the province has made in recent years."

Coming hard on the heels of the announcement last week that Ulster had concluded a naming rights deal with Kingspan for Ravenhill, it will have a sobering effect in that part of the world. One minute they were looking forward to a treasure chest to further their ambitions to be a force in European rugby, the next they have to replace their favourite son just three weeks before players are due back for pre-season training.

An Ulster source said yesterday that he didn't believe there was any falling out between Humphreys and other management in Ravenhill. "I think he was made an offer he couldn't refuse and that was that," he said. "But he will be very difficult to replace now because he was at the heart of everything here."
More than that, it will force Ulster to remodel the way they do business. Humphreys enjoyed a unique position in Irish rugby – and certainly unusual beyond these shores – in that he filled a space between the chief executive and the head coach, yet had an extraordinary influence over everything to do with the rugby side of the operation.

Ulster now have an interesting dilemma: either they replace coach Mark Anscombe when his contract ends next summer with someone happy to report to a new rugby director who controls the A-Z of the squad, or else they forget about a rugby director altogether and instead invest the power in a new head coach.

For some time, the local money was on backs coach Neil Doak to succeed Anscombe but it remains to be seen what odds are on that now after this shock.

Either way, Humphreys will be an enormous loss to the operation. He was seen inside and outside Ulster as the go-to man for everything from liaising with the IRFU to getting big-name signings over the line. His departure for Kingsholm will create a vacuum in Ravenhill, and Ulster don't have long to fill it.

"This was a really difficult decision for me personally but having received a direct approach from Gloucester, I have now chosen to accept an offer to become their Director of Rugby," said Humphreys yesterday. "It is, I believe, the right move for me at this stage of my career.

"I would like to thank the supporters and all those involved in Ulster Rugby over more than two decades who have lent me support, encouragement and wisdom.

"There is no doubt that the Province will continue to move forward. It has a fantastic stadium, the best supporters and a wealth of great talent coming through. Ulster Rugby will be a force within rugby for many years to come."
http://www.independent.ie/sport/rugby/r ... 37488.html


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Things we learned from today’s international rugby
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Darren Cave’s face does fit

BEFORE KICK-OFF in Resistencia, Joe Schmidt batted away the Brian O’Driscoll questions by saying; ‘it’s Darren’s jersey now’.

The Ulster centre may have been fortunate to have no competition for the role on this particular tour, but when the chance was offered to him today, he took it with both hands.

Right from the off, Cave dutifully set about his bread-and-butter duties around the ruck and his reward for those efforts came in the metres gained column after he made one of the few note-worthy line-breaks in the game.

As the game wore on, he even appeared to grow in stature. He didn’t manage to keep his feet in play after Simon Zebo’s sublime offload, but in the way he was willing to truck the ball into contact and take aim at a gap, he looked every inch a senior international.

The more time he is given in that role at this level can only help him excel further.

Henderson and Zebo the only men to give Schmidt a real headache

By selecting Iain Henderson at second row, Schmidt seems to have determined a future for the young Ulster man and, like Cave, he lapped up the chance.

Henderson’s handling and footwork in the tackle gives Schmidt a viable alternative in the second row and the lock must now be valued for his that skill and athleticism over his positional flexibility.
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The other men looking to shake up the perceived order of things in Chaco were Robbie Diack, Jack McGrath, Jordi Murphy, Luke Marshall, Felix Jones and Simon Zebo.

As well as the Leinster duo in that list played (particularly Murphy) they are unfortunate to have central totems of Schmidt’s grand plan blocking their way at both club and country.

The Ulster pair of Diack and Marshall had their moments, but in many cases they were counter-weighed by errors. Diack was in the heart of the action early on and added a useful dimension in the line-out, but blowing the three-on-one overlap that immediately followed Cave’s big break will be the first thing Schmidt asks him to watch during the analysis session tomorrow. Marshall looked most comfortable when in possession and delivered some fine passes long before assisting Sexton’s score; but no matter how sharp Nicolas Sanchez’ step inside was, an inside centre must be disappointed with allowing that gap to open.

The other men looking to shake up the perceived order of things in Chaco were Robbie Diack, Jack McGrath, Jordi Murphy, Luke Marshall, Felix Jones and Simon Zebo.

As well as the Leinster duo in that list played (particularly Murphy) they are unfortunate to have central totems of Schmidt’s grand plan blocking their way at both club and country.

The Ulster pair of Diack and Marshall had their moments, but in many cases they were counter-weighed by errors. Diack was in the heart of the action early on and added a useful dimension in the line-out, but blowing the three-on-one overlap that immediately followed Cave’s big break will be the first thing Schmidt asks him to watch during the analysis session tomorrow. Marshall looked most comfortable when in possession and delivered some fine passes long before assisting Sexton’s score; but no matter how sharp Nicolas Sanchez’ step inside was, an inside centre must be disappointed with allowing that gap to open.
http://www.thescore.ie/talking-points-j ... 6-Jun2014/
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Re: What the Papers Say 2014/2015

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Sunday 8th June

PART II


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Ireland’s Darren Cave buzzing after stepping into the limelight Gerry T
‘To get my first cap, to get 80 minutes and the win it’s a day I’ll never forget and I just want to cherish it,’ says debutant Robbie Diack
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Darren Cave was positively buzzing. This was his sixth Irish cap, and his fifth start, but unlike the previous four on North American tours while Ireland’s front-liners were on Lions duty, this felt more like the real deal and, having tasted it, within half an hour of the full-time whistle he desperately wants more of the same next weekend.

“It’s pretty special for me, particularly those four games against the North American teams missing a few players. So it’s nice to play, and it’s nice to be in the changing room when Paul O’Connell is speaking. It’s nice to be outside Johnny Sexton. You saw that wraparound play that he runs so well, and it’s brilliant. I really enjoyed it and I think I learned a lot and I’d love the opportunity to do it again.”

A searing early break through the middle, which should have led to Conor Murray being awarded a try, and some strong carrying generally, left a good impression.

“I’m pretty chuffed with how it went to be honest with you. I got my hands on the ball . . It’s left me wanting more. I made a couple of small mistakes, as did everyone, and it just leaves me wanting to play next week and have another rattle at it.”

Hymn sheet
The Ulster centre sang from the same hymn sheet when lamenting the missed first-up tackles in the backline.

“It’s a sense of congratulate yourself on the result and already start thinking of how we’re going to improve our performance for next week. You can’t be annoyed. We won the game. They scored a try at the end. You could argue that they could have scored earlier in the game, but that last score always makes a difference to the scoreline. If they hadn’t got that try, you’d be saying it’s a pretty sound victory. But I think we’ve got a few things to work on. I think we’ll be better next week.”

This was only Jack McGrath’s second start and his first since last November.

“Absolutely delighted, especially against these guys. Scrum, maul and pack-wise in general they really want to go after you and for a prop it’s how you rate yourself as well. I really enjoyed it. It’s a long wait to get your second start but it’s just one of those things, you can keep working away and try to impress the coaches when you get your opportunity and hopefully we did that.”

“It’s just getting the confidence to be able to start, getting to 60 minutes, being able to have your second wind in the first half rather than coming in with 20 minutes to go and catching up with the game. Yeah, it’s definitely given me confidence coming into next week.”

For the previously uncapped Robbie Diack it had, he admitted, been a long week.

First cap
“Since I knew I was starting I have been preparing mentally and learning the calls, the structures and it’s been a long week and I’m just glad the afternoon came. I was happy with aspects of my game, but there are definitely things I’ll have to work on. But, to get my first cap, to get 80 minutes and the win, it’s a day I’ll never forget and I just want to cherish it.”

Johnny Sexton’s influence on this Irish team as its chief playmaker and points accumulator as well as leader, seems to become even more pronounced, and this extends to beyond the pitch or the training ground.

After winning his seventh cap, in what was an accomplished fourth start, Felix Jones revealed: “Johnny said before the game that it was massive for a lot of us who were still on single-capped figures and a couple of guys getting their first caps. . . not to let the standards drop from what was going on before and for everyone else to help us perform well. . . ”

“I thought a lot of guys were excellent. Zeebs was excellent, Robbie Diack was excellent in‘his first game, Jack McGrath obviously excellent. But having said there was area that we weren’t excellent in. . .”
http://www.irishtimes.com/sport/rugby/i ... -1.1825086


Some rustiness inevitable but Ireland have plenty of room for improvement Gerry T
Despite victory, Paul O’Connell not overly impressed by visitors’ performance
The occasion verged more on quaint than hostile, and even the Estadio Centenario pitch in Resistencia held up better than expected as the forecast rains never materialised. Admittedly this meant for warm, clammy conditions against a typically motivated and bruising Pumas side. The impact of the hits could be heard from the sidelines and by the end Ireland knew they had been in a game.

After his 100th Test, including seven for the Lions, Paul O’Connell noted that even the super-fit Felix Jones was sucking diesel before the finish.

“When you see the likes of Felix Jones struggling with five minutes to go from a fitness point of view- he is one of the fittest guys I’ve ever played with – it just shows how physical a game it was and how draining it was fitness-wise. So for a few of the young guys and a few of the guys who got their first cap and who maybe aren’t regulars in the side it is good to come down to a place like this and get a real tough test and come through it.”

Admittedly, O’Connell’s reflections came after he also noted: “You would love to have done similar to what England have done in New Zealand and followed the Six Nations up with a really big performance which they seem to have done down there. We didn’t do that but at the same time it was a really tough game.”

Nagging knowledge
The Irish captain was evidently disappointed by aspects of the performance, but also the nagging knowledge that England took a bigger step forward over the weekend in altogether more testing circumstances.

“We probably were expecting their physicality, we probably didn’t deal with it as good as we would like to have,” admitted O’Connell. “I think the result was good, the performance was disappointing. I think we started quite well and I suppose left them back into the game. It was a real slog throughout, a real tough physical game.”

O’Connell agreed in large measure with Joe Schmidt’s summation of the game and Ireland’s performance. The set-piece was strong, with Robbie Diack’s agility and hands providing a crisp supply of attacking ball from the tail of the line from which Ireland launched some good starter plays.

However, once they began going through the phases they had less joy, and didn’t convert telling breaks by Darren Cave and Luke Marshall into tries before defensive frailties saw them fall behind. That said, Conor Murray was adamant that he had scored following Cave’s searing early break and O’Connell was imploring Glen Jackson to check the TMO when instead he penalised the skipper for going off his feet and Argentina countered with a quick tap off their own line.

“That kind of thing is probably something we’ve spoken about every day since we came together, and that was frustrating,” said O’Connell.

“I’m disappointed and Les will be disappointed as well, with the missed tackles. I think they’ve a lot of very talented footballers with excellent footwork, and size as well. We missed tackles, tackles that I think we should have made, and it conceded momentum to Argentina. . .We need to defend better if we’re going to put in a better performance against them next week.”

“For as long as I am playing against Argentina that’s what they do against teams. It was something we had spoken about, we tried to get ready, prepared to defend, but unfortunately we didn’t and that is the most unfortunate aspect of the display.”

With the core of the Leinster contingent who had helped their province retain their Pro12 crown only a week before, and the resulting eight changes, this encounter was always likely to have more relevance in the context of individual performances. Viewed in that light it was a significant encounter, not least for the coaches, and invariably there were always going to be winners and losers.

Diack was highly involved, and as Schmidt noted Iain Henderson continues to grow, while the coach also noted the work-rate of Iain Henderson and Jordi Murphy, neither of whom will perhaps feel they made quite the impact they would have liked.

As an aside it would have encouraged the coaching staff no end to witness such a fine all-round performance by Jack McGrath, who augmented his strong scrummaging with an effective, skilful and mobile performance in the loose.

With Conor Murray, who should have been awarded a try, Johnny Sexton, who scored his eighth try in 44Tests with a trademark wraparound in tandem with Luke Marshall, remained the key hub of the team.

Marshall showed up well in attack at times, and really has talent for this position, but there was one poor pass to Simon Zebo and a number of missed one-on-one tackles by the Ulster centre before he was hauled off prior to the hour mark. Marshall now looks set to miss out on the second Test, and will possibly have the most regrets about last Saturday.

Good game
Outside him, Darren Cave had a good game and deserves another crack at the number 13 jersey, and then there was Simon Zebo. Whereas Schmidt exonerated Cave and Andrew Trimble, whose game-clinching intercept try was his fourth in six successive games for Ireland, not so Zebo.

The Munster winger did many things well, not least his winning of Sexton’s restart in the build-up to Chris Henry’s try off a maul, and provided the O’Driscoll Moment of the day from Ian Madigan’s typically sharp flat pass with a stunning round-the-corner offload out of a double tackle to find Cave for what would have been a brilliant try but for the centre brushing the touchline.

Yet Zebo also missed a couple of tackles and one had the distinct impression he didn’t show enough work-rate and defensive strength for Schmidt’s liking. Behind him, Jones had a strong, secure game and did virtually nothing wrong.
In addition to some clever, dangerous runners at half-back in Martin Landajo and Nicolás Sánchez, the Pumas back three Joaquá¬n Tuculet, Santiago Cordero and the forceful Manuel Montero, made it a particularly searching test for the Irish outside backs.
All in all, a degree of rustiness was inevitable given 11of this starting XV hadn’t played in either three or four weeks, and Ireland will assuredly improve for the run-out.
http://www.irishtimes.com/sport/rugby/i ... -1.1825045
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Re: What the Papers Say 2014/2015

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Monday 9th June


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Ulster not charging in to find immediate replacement for Humphreys
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Chief executive officer, Shane Logan, says Ulster Rugby will not be rushing out to find an immediate replacement for departing director of rugby, David Humphreys.

The club dropped a bombshell on Saturday when they confirmed the Ireland and Ulster legend, who has had a 22-year association with Ulster, would be leaving the club to take up a position with Gloucester.

The 42-year-old retired from playing in 2008 and took up a position of operations director before becoming director of rugby, a post he has held for the last four years.

Humphreys was regarded as the backbone of the Ulster team, and his role included building and retaining a team in the past four years which challenged for top honours in both Europe and the domestic PRO12 League.

The shock news ended what had already been an eventful week at the club.

Ulster confirmed Stephen Ferris would be retiring due to injury on Tuesday and on Thursday Logan announced a landmark 10-year deal worth in the region of £5 million with Kingspan Environmental, which saw the newly redeveloped Ravenhill renamed ‘The Kingspan Stadium’.

Logan admitted at a press conference on Saturday that he was “taken back” at Humphreys’ decision to quit his post at Ulster when the popular figure told him two days earlier.

“I think David has been consistent over the years that he wants his career to advance,” added the Ulster chief executive.

“We’ve had a joint career plan. Part of that has been to advance excellent levels of success and a really good legacy here.

“We wouldn’t stand in David’s way. We’ve always been clear that David wanted to move his career on.

“The surprising part at the end, and possibly the disappointing part, is the speed at which it happened.”

The search now begins to find a successor, with Logan confirming the club would look to recruit.

“The first thing to do is identify the qualities and functions that we want,” said Logan.

“The second thing is to conduct a search and the search will be what is best in the world.

“There is a lot of very good talent emerging in coaching and leadership.

“There is very good talent in one or two players who have retired recently and there is good talent out there in the world so we will take our time and get the right fit and the best person.

“The important thing is to do this right, rather than quickly, because we have a settled situation with a good production line of players of coaches. We’re not in a desperate place or close to it, we’ll take our time to make the right decision.”
http://www.newsletter.co.uk/sport/rugby ... -1-6106721


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Diack cherishes the moment and now wants more of the same
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Robbie Diack said his first appearance is an Irish jersey is a moment in time he will never forget and now the South African, who has been with Ulster for six seasons, just wants more of it.

The flanker turned in an impressive performance where his ability in the lineout was clear throughout Saturday’s win.

“It’s been a moment I’ve been looking forward to for my whole rugby career, I’ve always wanted to play professional rugby and to get there and get a cap under the belt is special for me, especially because it is with such a special team,” he said.

“Standing and singing the anthems was a moment I’ll never forget. It’s been a long week, I’m now glad it’s over and that we got the win. I was happy with aspects of my game, but there are definitely things I’ll have to work on. There were certain aspects where I did, I’m happy with that but there were others, like in defence, where I could have worked harder at times. I’m still very happy. But, to get my first cap, to get 80 minutes and the win it’s a day I’ll never forget and I just want to cherish it,” he said.

His Ulster team-mate Darren Cave was also delighted with his performance, not least as he was the first to be handed Brian O’Driscoll’s 13 shirt.

“I’m pretty chuffed with how it went. I got my hands on the ball early, which was good. To be honest it’s left me wanting more. I made a couple of small mistakes, as did everyone, and it just leaves me wanting to play next week. When I first saw the list of Argentinian players on the plane I didn’t know a lot of them. Joe has hammered us with the individual player profiles all week and I’ve been very impressed, particularly with club rugby in Argentina, which I would have known absolutely nothing about. I’ve been very impressed with the standard. I think, having not played in a couple of weeks, and it being a bit humid and a bit warm, I was sucking diesel a wee bit if I’m honest. But as I said it’s just left me wanting more,” added Cave.
http://www.irishexaminer.com/sport/rugb ... 71428.html


Ulster ‘taken aback’ by Humpreys’ exit
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Ulster director of rugby David Humphreys’ decision to quit his position and take up a similar role at Gloucester was a surprise to his Irish chief executive.

“His recruitment and retention of players at Ulster was second to none in Europe,” said Ulster chief executive Shane Logan.

“He’s always been very successful and has great morals and humility. I think his skill set fitted perfectly well with the people we’ve got at the club.”

Logan said he always knew that a day would come when Humphreys would move from the club for career reasons.

But he was left “taken aback” when Humphreys told him two days ago that he would be moving to the Premiership club. Asked whether any attempts had been made to make Humphreys change his mind, Logan replied: “I don’t think we tried to do anything.

“I think David has been consistent over the years that he wants his career to advance,” added the Ulster chief executive. “We’ve had a joint career plan. Part of that has been to advance excellent levels of success and a really good legacy here.

“We wouldn’t stand in David’s way.”

The 42-year-old will replace Nigel Davies who was dismissed by Gloucester last month.
http://www.irishexaminer.com/sport/rugb ... 71417.html


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O'Connell envious of England's Kiwi Tests
Captain feels Ireland should have been facing 'big three' opposition ahead of world Cup
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Ireland arrived in Resistencia not knowing what to expect and returned to Buenos Aires last night not sure what to make of it all.

A first Test win in Argentina came with caveats and not just because the opposition provided in the northern city were more of a Pumas development squad, who caused Joe Schmidt's side more problems than even the local aficionados expected.

There was much to admire about the way the Six Nations champions went about their task, but there was also plenty to work on.

With some of the season's stalwarts rested and others injured, there were opportunities available to make a mark and though Jack McGrath grasped the chance with both hands, Luke Marshall added more doubt to his credentials after a defensively shaky day at the office.
Ireland's line-out was good and their scrum better, while, when they attacked off both, they looked dangerous. However, they weren't able to sustain it through the phases.

DANGEROUS

Their defence let them down against an unheralded, but dangerous Argentinian team, who possessed some real fizz behind the scrum.

There were impressive debuts for Robbie Diack and Kieran Marmion, stand-out moments from Simon Zebo and Johnny Sexton was excellent, but it all happened so far off the beaten track that it was difficult to discern whether it had been a good, bad or indifferent day at the office.

Schmidt appears to feel that Ireland would have been better off – like Wales, England and France – facing one of the big three 14 months out from the World Cup and this was also voiced by captain Paul O'Connell, who certainly seemed a bit jealous of Chris Robshaw and his side having three cracks at the All Blacks to test themselves after their Six Nations exploits.

"You would love to have what England have in New Zealand. they followed the Six Nations up with a really big performance down there," O'Connell lamented.

"We didn't do that, but at the same time, it was a really tough game. For a few of the young guys and a few of the guys who got their first cap, it is good to come down to a place like this and get a real tough test and come through it.

"I think the result was good, the performance was disappointing. I think we started quite well and I suppose let them back into the game. It was a real slog throughout, a real tough physical game.

"It didn't look like being that tough at the start when Ireland started like a train, holding on to the ball and finding plenty of gaps in the home defence.

They should have been ahead by far more than 6-3 by the time Argentina struck for a stunning first try when down to 14 men after No 8 Benjamin Macome took Andrew Trimble out in the air on the half-hour mark.

Defence coach Les Kiss will be neither happy with the concession of this try nor the missed first-up tackles that plagued the performance, while Schmidt will also be demanding improvement from his players when in possession.

Darren Cave and Marshall made stunning line breaks, only to find no support on their shoulders; the otherwise excellent Diack ignored an overlap and Conor Murray went close, and thought he'd scored, only for the referee to think otherwise.

Instead, they had to make do with two Sexton penalties, while Nicolas Sanchez drew one back for Argentina before beating Marshall all ends up and feeding Manuel Montero, who handed Sexton off to score.

It lifted the locals, but Ireland responded like the champions they are. Zebo caught Sexton's restart brilliantly before the Pumas pulled him back into a ruck at the next phase. O'Connell pointed to the corner, caught the line-out and the maul marched over, with Chris Henry touching down.

Sexton missed the conversion as Ireland led 11-10 at the break, but he capitalised on a brilliant Diack line-out steal to score the all-important second try two minutes after the interval following some excellent work from Marshall.

Still Argentina came, but Sanchez got overly ambitious and Trimble read his mind, picking off his pass to run in the intercept from halfway and putting the contest beyond doubt.

Ian Madigan, on for the injured Sexton, closed it out, while debutant Marmion went close to a fourth try and Cave put a foot in touch finishing off an outrageous piece of Zebo skill, before Tomás de la Vega pulled back a try in the closing stages for the hosts.

For Schmidt, there is work to be done in the review room as he assesses a mixed display on his side's first post-Six Nations outing.

"I'll look more forensically at the video and we'll be able to see a little bit more of the individual efforts," he said.

"You get a little bit encompassed by the team delivery during the match, then you try and divide that into seeing what the individual delivery was like.

"There were a few guys who, at first glance, appeared to do a good job and other guys who did bits and pieces well, but will have things to work on.

"I'm always hoping there's a lot of room for improvement and I think this Argentinian side can get better as well.

"Ireland returned to Buenos Aires yesterday for a break before moving tomorrow to Tucuman, where they'll expect more in the second Test, both from themselves and their opponents.

However, with the Leinster starters ready to return to bolster the ranks and another week in camp there is far more Schmidt can get out of his squad, who should be more cohesive and, as a result, more comfortable in the north-west.
http://www.independent.ie/sport/rugby/o ... 38832.html


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Schmidt set to ring changes for second Argentina Test
Rob Kearney likely to return at fullback, Fergus McFadden may replace Simon Zebo Gerry T
Despite emerging with an apparently clean bill of health from a bruising and sapping first test win in Residencia, true to Joe Schmidt’s word in giving every member of the 29-man squad game time, Ireland are set to make up to seven changes for next Saturday’s seasonal finale in Tucuman.

Conor Murray could be seen leaving the Estadio Centenario on crutches but this was a precautionary measure for a dead leg, and by the time the squad flew to Buenos Aires yesterday the scrum-half was walking without bother. There appeared to be more concern on the sidelines about Luke Marshall even before he was withdrawn in the 57th minute.

The Ulster centre looked fairly banged up after bravely saving a try in a decidedly mixed bag of a performance, and this raises the distinct possibility that Leinster centre Noel Reid, a late addition to the squad last week, could be brought in to make his debut alongside Darren Cave, who went well enough to deserve another run in the number 13 jersey.

Outhalf Johnny Sexton was replaced in the second half suffering with tightness in his quad, but is expected to recover on time.

Changes

“We’d expect that there will be changes,” said Schmidt on Saturday night. “We’ll have a little bit of a look at who came through today over the next 48 hours. We won’t do a lot tomorrow, a little recovery and back to Buenos Aires and we’ll see how we go from there.

“We’ll try and make some decisions on Wednesday and try and set that up for a really positive training on Thursday. The changes we made were fatigue or cramp based or just giving guys an opportunity.”

Asked what he learned about the new faces, Schmidt said: “It’s hard to say right now, because I’ll look more forensically at the video and we’ll be able to see a little bit more of the individual efforts. You get a little bit encompassed by the team delivery during the match, then you try and divide that into seeing what the individual delivery was like.

Good job

“There was a few guys who, at first glance, appeared to do a good job and other guys who did bits and pieces well and will have things to work on as well.”

Rob Kearney is sure to return at full-back and the likelihood is that Fergus McFadden will start, most probably on the wing and quite possibly at the expense of Simon Zebo.

Schmidt gave favourable mentions to the debutant Robbie Diack and Jordi Murphy up front, as well as Rory Best and Paul O’Connell, and also Darren Cave and Andrew Trimble while exonerating them from missed tackles. Marshall and Zebo were not mentioned by name.

Zebo won one key restart in the build-up to Ireland’s first-half try off a maul after falling behind, and made a wondrous offload to Cave which almost led to a try, but missed a couple of tackles too.

In any event, when specifically asked about Zebo, Schmidt rather pointedly remarked: “Yeah, Simon was alright.”

Eoin Reddan could return at scrum-half, with three more Leinster players recalled up front, namely Devin Toner, Rhys Ruddock and Jamie Heaslip. Furthermore, after giving debuts to Diack, Kieran Marmion and Rodney Ah You last Saturday, the likelihood is the uncapped pair of James Cronin and Rob Herring will at least make the bench.
http://www.irishtimes.com/sport/rugby/i ... -1.1825128


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Henderson and Diack make strong case for Second Test inclusion
The Ulster forwards both did their chances of featuring in Tucuman next weekend no harm.
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IRELAND COACH JOE SCHMIDT gave a couple of the Leinster players some extra time to recuperate after the RaboDirect Pro12 final by either benching them or leaving them out for the First Test squad.

Few Irish players can claim to have truly had their best game in the green jersey, during the 29-17 win at Estadio Centenario. However, Leinster’s Devin Toner and Rhys Ruddock may have to prove themselves in Tuesday’s final full contact session to force Joe Schmidt’s hand when it comes to selection for Saturday’s Second Test.

Iain Henderson was impressive in the second row, alongside Paul O’Connell, while Robbie Diack, at blindside, looked at home in the international arena. Henderson started as lock for the first time in his 11-match Test career. He has primarily been used as a back row but proved to be a physical, ball-carrying presence against a physical Argentinean side. The 22-year-old made seven carries and connected with each of his 11 tackle attempts. He also plucked three line-outs and was the fulcrum of a two driving mauls.

South Africa-born Diack, who travelled with Emerging Ireland to Georgia last summer, racked up good numbers too. He made 12 carries, second only to Simon Zebo [14], claimed five line-outs, beat three defenders with ball in hand and landed 10 tackles. His only blemish was opting to go it alone, and cut inside, after Darren Cave’s break inside the opening 10 minutes. The 28-year-old should have passed to either Simon Zebo or Felix Jones off his left shoulder.

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Schmidt is expected to keep the bulk of the XV that pulled clear of their hosts in the closing stages but freshen up his team by bringing in the likes of Ruddock, Toner and Rob Kearney. Jamie Heaslip should reclaim the No.8 jersey from Jordi Murphy despite a lacklustre 23 minutes off the bench.

Damien Varley will be hoping to get a start ahead of Rory Best but the Ulster hooker may have turned his coach’s head with a late turnover for his side in the game. Ireland finished the game with Kieran Marmion and Ian Madigan as the half-back pairing. With Jonny Sexton and Conor Murray both leaving the game early with leg injuries, the Connacht scrum-half and Leinster out-half may get the No.9 and 10 jerseys for the series decider.

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http://www.thescore.ie/ireland-argentin ... 2-Jun2014/


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Humphreys will start his new role shortly, at a date to be mutually agreed between Gloucester and Ulster Rugby.
More.....should you want.......
http://www.westerndailypress.co.uk/Glou ... story.html
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Re: What the Papers Say 2014/2015

Post by Mac »

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Monday 9th June

PART II


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Ulster Rugby shock: David Humphreys was not pushed
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Eyeing new challenge: David Humphreys’ move to Gloucester signals Ulster power shift
Ulster had known there was always a possibility that Director of Rugby David Humphreys might be tempted to leave.

But by their own admission, the timing of his decision to move on caught them unawares, having learned of the development last Monday.

"The speed at the end was certainly a surprise," Ulster Rugby Chief Executive Officer Shane Logan revealed to a hand-picked band of rugby journalists, themselves astonished to be summoned to the newly renamed Kingspan stadium on a close season Saturday afternoon.

News of Humphreys' departure to Glouchester was the last thing they expected to hear.

Was Logan equally taken aback, he was asked?

"Yes and no," he replied. "The speed at the end was certainly a surprise. However, we have been discussing David's options and his career plan ever since he and I started working together four and a half years ago.

"What we set out to do was move Ulster forward on all fronts – that we win much more, that we're highly competitive at the top end, that we create a legacy, that we have players coming through, that we have world-class facilities, coaches, strength and conditioning and medical.

"Now we're quite a way on to achieving that plan and what that means is like with any organisation that is being successful your people will be attractive to other organisations; it's the same in any business, any organisation.

"I certainly know that David has been approached by others in the past, so we knew this time would come. It's maybe come a little bit more quickly than we thought."

Humphreys did not attend Saturday's media briefing as to his exit. Instead he issued a brief 114-word statement which began: "This was a really difficult decision for me personally but having received a direct approach from Gloucester, I have now chosen to accept an offer to become their Director of Rugby.

"It is, I believe, the right move for me at this stage of my career."

Having thanked the fans and those at Ulster Rugby for their "support, encouragement and wisdom" for more than two decades, Humphreys' parting words were: "There is no doubt that the Province will continue to move forward.

"It has a fantastic stadium, the best supporters and a wealth of great talent coming through. Ulster Rugby will be a force within rugby for many years to come."

Now the search is on for a man capable of delivering what Humphreys never quite managed in his time at the helm – silverware. Given his publicity-shy nature, could the timing of the announcement, in the middle of a busy sporting Saturday afternoon, have been orchestrated to minimise the airtime and column inches given to the story? If so, it was an under estimation of the magnitude of the story and the way in which Humphreys is viewed by fans, media and rugby insiders as the power behind the throne at Ulster

He most certainly wasn't pushed, having clearly been head-hunted by Gloucester. But a distinct impression has been left of no great effort being made to change his mind.

There is also the question of how this affects current coach Mark Anscombe, a Humphreys appointee. The New Zealander has a year of his present contract to run and will now require a major trophy win to secure another renewal and maybe not even then in an era of change and new thinking at the old Ravenhill.

Although Ulster will replace Humphreys as director of rugby, they are in no rush to appoint his successor.

Shane Logan made it plain that before deciding on a replacement, Ulster want to have a clearly defined plan and role for the newcomer. It is not imperative that he is in place when the new season gets underway.

"We're going to take our three-to-five-years strategic plan, we're going to look and see where maybe there are some gaps and use this as an opportunity to do our plan better," Logan said.

"So we will go into the market as soon as we have a well-defined, clear idea of what it's going to take to deliver the plan."

Asked if Ulster might look within for a replacement, Logan replied: "The first thing is to identify the qualities and the functions that we want. The second thing then is to conduct a search and the search will be (for) whatever is best in the world.

"Now, there is a lot of very good talent locally – emerging quality of talent in coaching and leadership – there's very good talent in one or two players who have retired recently and there's good talent out there in the world. So we will take our time and get the right fit and the best person."

What Ulster supporters certainly will want to know is if the in-coming DoR's role will be the same as when Humphreys had the job – in overall control of rugby but in a much more off-stage capacity than is the case at other clubs.

When it was put to him that Humphreys' role as Ulster's director of rugby had been very different to that of Mark McCall or Geordan Murphy who have the same job title with Saracens and Harlequins respectively, Logan replied: "It has."

When asked if that may now change, the CEO's response was: "I can't answer that. We will certainly look at what's best going forward. You're quite right – David has been a bit more back of house rather than front of house, but that was because we needed – between all of us – to get some of the back of house foundations in place.

"So we needed to get our production line of players – 250 boys now between 15 and 19 on really good quality programmes whereas three years ago, four years ago we had fewer than 30. So that's been in place.

"The recruitment of players has been part of it, the development of coaches, the development of a world-class gym and other medical and S&C facilities. So now that we've got those things moving and in many cases in place, we need to look and see what it is we want for the next three to five years to allow us to keep moving forward."

Logan hinted that the situation between the director of rugby and head coach Anscombe may well be re-defined before a new DoR is appointed.
"I think it's the model (DoR and head coach) that has been used in many clubs. Where the line lies we have to look at and decide if we're perhaps going to change it in some way," Logan said.
http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/sport ... 38362.html


David Humphreys: In a ruthless business always sensed the crucial need to stay one step ahead
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As a player he was largely renowned for his attention-grabbing abilities, as well as having a penchant for staying one step ahead of marauding tacklers, and now, as a director of rugby, David Humphreys has shown those same deft touches to break his ties with Ulster.

Saturday afternoon's announcement that the 42 year-old is to be the new director of rugby at Gloucester was seismic in its impact and for shock value was out there on its own at the end of a week which had already seen the expected retirement of Stephen Ferris and the also previously flagged intention of rebranding the iconic Ravenhill into what has become the Kingspan Stadium.

Indeed, it was left to Ulster Rugby's Chief Executive Shane Logan to host a hastily assembled media briefing at the freshly named stadium to provide some soundbites in a damage limitation exercise that had an unmistakable undercurrent of dismay at Humphreys's decision to leave home province after 22 years of involvement as player and key administrator.

Logan made it known that the widely held assumption that Humphreys was as close to a permanent fixture as Ulster's director of rugby was never exactly cast in stone and that the man who played 162 times for Ulster and won 72 Ireland caps was always an attractive prospect out in the fevered professional marketplace.

Still, his departure is a bitter blow for Ulster Rugby no matter how it is dressed up as Humphreys, more than anyone in the organisation, is rightly associated with overseeing the club's rise from serial underachievers to a side capable of challenging for, if not actually winning, top honours.

The fact that this transformation has taken place over the six years that he has been involved as an administrator – he unexpectedly became operations director in 2008 not long after retiring from playing – is not coincidental. Ulster needed Humphreys to bring them structure and direction and he has made his mark.

However, for all the progress made in the key competitions and in the signing of top quality overseas playing personnel there was an unavoidable feeling that this season marked the end of one phase and the starting point of what needed to be a new evolution in the club's direction.

Pivotal players have either retired or moved on while Kiwi coach Mark Anscombe was only granted a one year extension on his contract which has more than hinted at his exit next June.

Somewhere within the mix, Humphreys also made his mind up that now is the time to try his hand at Gloucester, another club eager to regain form and competitiveness in the English Premiership in a situation not too dissimilar from that which prevailed at Ulster six years ago.

With Ulster facing into the beginnings of a substantial restructure and the always possible accompanying dip in form, after four years of making the Heineken Cup knockout stages, Humphreys seems to have judged that he has journeyed far enough with his home province and that yet another season without silverware – Ulster have lost two successive PRO12 finals and a Heineken Cup final in 2012 and all to southern rivals Leinster – would therefore prove damaging to his reputation and obvious ambitions.

And there was also the possibility that the next move in Ulster's oft-quoted plan to be globally recognised force just might involve the notion that the next coach –who now surely must be a high profile figure with accompanying pedigree – just might also be anointed as the director of rugby without the current two-tier structure that has Mark Anscombe working as a pure coach but under Humphreys.

On the field, Humphreys's talent while a player was clear to see and even though some inconsistency in the green shirt of Ireland ultimately cost him a regular starting place to Ronan O'Gara, his performances for Ulster were rarely anything but top drawer.

After a sojourn at London Irish, with former Ulster coach and now Saracens director Mark McCall, Humphreys returned to Ulster in the late 90s along with close friend McCall and the out-half played a central role in the march towards lifting the European Cup in January 1999.

He also enjoyed success with the province in winning the Celtic Cup 2003 before dramatically kicking the late drop goal to secure the Celtic League in 2006 which, incidentally, was the last time Ulster won a trophy.

He limped out of rugby in May 2008 when his already injured ankle gave way early on in the game against Cardiff Blues at Ravenhill and despite the intended pursuit of a legal career he was back at Ulster shortly afterwards in a newly created post as operations director – coaching was never really an intention.

Humphreys brought in Brian McLaughlin as the new head coach after the sudden departure of Australian Matt Williams in summer 2009, and began the process of rebuilding Ulster's damaged reputation as a side worthy of attention with the full backing from the IRFU.

He became director of rugby in another off-field restructure in 2010 and clocked up the air miles to make two of Ulster's most notable signings in persuading Springboks Johann Muller and Ruan Pienaar to relocate to Belfast.

Progress was quickly made, particularly in the key battleground of Europe, and with Logan on board as a CEO with a big vision, Ulster seemed to be going places.

Humphreys kept a low profile as the man pulling the strings regarding the squad's make-up and rapidly forged a reputation as a skilful operator though not necessarily a person who could comfortably operate in the media's glare.

The infamous Press conference he so awkwardly hosted in early 2012 regarding the shock removal of McLaughlin as Ulster coach showed a rare naivete on his part but was not repeated.

He was, though, always aware of his fallibility and that the ruthless nature shown to McLaughlin – who got Ulster to a Heineken Cup final for his last game in charge – could just as easily rebound on himself and particularly so now that Europe is increasingly being dominated by the big spending French clubs.

Ultimately, though, Humphreys had still not masterminded the next crucial step in Ulster's story; the winning of a competition.

With Leinster still dominating the PRO12 and the vast resources at Toulon's disposal effectively closing the door on sides with substantially smaller budgets such as Ulster, Humphreys presumably sensed that the timing was right for him to go.

Ulster's loss looks like it could well be Gloucester's gain. As ever, though, he's intent on trying to stay that one step ahead.
http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/sport ... 38142.html


Ulster stars have given boss Schmidt food for thought
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Iain Henderson produced a stand-out performance for Ireland in Saturday's 29-17 Test victory over Argentina.

One of seven Ulster players in Joe Schmidt's starting XV, he packed down alongside Paul O'Connell in the second row, from where he served up a display which confirmed club coach Mark Anscombe's opinion that, at this stage of his international career, 22-year-old Henderson offers more playing at lock than at blind-side.

By virtue of his immense line-out contribution, mauling and tackling, he ran Jonathan Sexton close for the man of the match prize. Henderson worked tirelessly in the heat and humidity of north-east Argentina, underlining his mental strength and physical stamina.

Rory Best's line-out throwing was exemplary, with Henderson, O'Connell and Robbie Diack all benefiting from his service. He contributed all over the park, repeatedly offering support.

Diack's debut went well, despite failing to use Felix Jones and Simon Zebo when Ireland had a two-man overlap following a great eighth minute break by Darren Cave. For reasons best known to himself, Diack came back inside.

That said, Diack shone in the loose and at the back of the line-out with five first-half takes. With Stephen Ferris now retired, the Irish-qualified South African has turned up at what for him – and Schmidt – is an opportune moment.

Cave did himself no harm, either, for while that early break was the most easily spotted of a number of good moments, there were others – and not only in attack. The Irish number 13 jersey has been worn by a defensive genius for the past 14 seasons so that's a hard act to follow. Cave made a very good fist of it at the first time of asking, though a 30th minute fumble when Ireland were attacking in the hosts' 22 was a bad moment.

Andrew Trimble continued his international redemption with another of those interception tries in which he specialises. But he won't have been happy with his defence on a couple of occasions against Manuel Montero, who also scored. Luke Marshall's defence was breached more than once, too, though on the plus side he linked beautifully with Sexton for the latter's touchdown.

Chris Henry will feel sore at the manner in which he was fobbed off leading to Montero's score, but will have enjoyed his 34th minute try off a line-out maul to restore the lead Ireland had lost moments earlier.
http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/sport ... 38048.html

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Future Now
So in the longer term, the day of Ireland’s first test win on Argentinian soil will probably be remembered less than Humph leaving Ulster for Gloucester (!) – we’ll get back to that later this week. The game, if it was memorable for anything, will be remembered as 1 CE, the first of the post-BOD era. Given we’re already on RWC15 countdown, its damn important we get someone comfortable in the jersey pronto.

First up was Darren Cave. How did he do? Fine actually – the defensive system looked good, he did the simple things well (except that Rivelino-style banana kick), he brought those around him into play, he threatened the line and he didn’t look out of place in the shirt. There is no point judging him by O’Driscoll standards, or even by Manu or Smuddy standards, as some seem so keen to do - he’s clearly not at that level. What he is is competent and solid – and that’s what he showed. Cave himself doesn’t seem to expect to last beyond this tour in the shirt, but, right now, he’s the best option there – Henshaw is injured and has little experience, Luke Roysh has that worrying perma-injury thing going on that often precedes retirement, the Kildare Lewis Moody hasn’t started a game of note at 13 in years and Jared Payne is both still Kiwi and a rare starter at 13. Keith Earls is the likeliest possible challenger, if he starts there for Munster next year. Time, perhaps, to start dialing down our expectations, begin appreciating what Cave can do, rather that point out who he isn’t.

One of the other winners was Robbie Diack, who, one awful piece of butchery aside, had a good day at the office, and certainly outshone Jordi Murphy – that is significant, as, the 2007 Blindside Army aside, Ireland have taken 5 backrow forwards to the last few tournaments. You would think Heaslip, POM, SOB and Chris Henry are inked in, which leaves 1, and 2 at most, places left. Murphy and Diack are battling it out with Rhys Ruddock for those slots (save for a bolter) – and, given Murphy might struggle for starts in big games next season, Diack might have stolen a march on him.

Aside from that – Simon Zebo looked eager but occasionally naive, Iain Henderson to the manor born :cheers: , Mike Ross flogged and Johnny Sexton imperious – what’s new. While its great to see Zebo back, other wingers were more prominent - Andy Trimble looked (unsurprisingly) better versed in what Schmidt wingers do, and Miguel Montero simply looked monstrous - Zebo has more work to do to get himself in the RWC15 frame. Hendy was so awesome that Big Dev, possibly Ireland’s find of the season, might find himself back on the bench – his soft hands to set Jack McGrath piling into some Puma forwards at high velocity were gorgeous. The future has arrived.

The jury is split between whether we’ll see wholesale changes or a similar lineup, but assuredly the Milky Bar Kid won’t be impressed with the error count – too many missed tackles and a bit passive at times – end of season mental fatigue maybe. Ho hum, and maybe we’re just trying to read a little too much into these games at the fag end of a wondrous season.
http://whiffofcordite.com/2014/06/09/future-now/
Last edited by Mac on Mon Jun 09, 2014 11:31 am, edited 2 times in total.
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Re: What the Papers Say 2014/2015

Post by rumncoke »

Personally I see the DoR as a facilitator /administrator / second opinion or maybe 3rd opinion strategist/ selector but definitely not a coach

So who to appoint depends on his networking skills and admin experience the unfortunate thing is its a post without a deputy


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Re: What the Papers Say 2014/2015

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Monday 9th June

PART III


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David Humphreys' shock move is big risk, warns Willie Anderson
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Irish rugby icon Willie Anderson has expressed his amazement at Ulster supremo David Humphreys' decision to leave Ulster for English Aviva Premiership club, Gloucester.

The man who brought Humphreys to Dungannon and together winning the All-Ireland League title in 2001, said he is still coming to terms with the totally unexpected news.

"Surprised, really surprised," the 59-year-old former Ulster and Ireland lock said. "The whole Ulster thing – the new stadium, the players he signed – all seemed to have been built up around him so I don't think anybody saw this coming. I certainly didn't."

But he warned that Humphreys may find it difficult to adapt in England. "It's going to be very interesting to see how this pans out because David is not a coach and never has been," said Anderson.

Anderson’s own CV includes spells in charge of London Irish and as assistant to former Ulster coach, Matt Williams, with Leinster and then Scotland.

Assessing Humphreys' credentials, Anderson said: “I think his role as Ulster's Director of Rugby was one that people maybe used to wonder about, given that he never did any coaching.

“He always had a coach working under him rather that being in that role himself – Brian McLaughlin and now Mark Anscombe. Of course, it's coaches and players who take the flak if things aren't going well so depending on what his role at Gloucester is, he may find that different to what he has been used to here.

“To some extent it's a case of him going into the unknown to do something he hasn't done before, so I suppose we'll just have to see how he gets on.

“But the Premiership is a tough league so I'd imagine there's going to be a fair bit of pressure on him. He's the guy they've entrusted with getting them back up to where they want to be. They're spending big money so they'll expect to see results.

“If it's a matter of him recruiting others to do parts of the job for him, that won't be easy either. If you're bringing in coaching staff you need to know you can trust them.”

With Ulster failing to win silverware in Humphreys' reign despite having invested heavily in world-class players like Springboks pair Ruan Pienaar and Johann Muller, plus former All Black John Afoa with whom Humphreys will be teaming up at Kingsholm, some of the Ravenhill faithful had begun to ask questions as to where it was going wrong.

“It may be that he himself feels he has taken Ulster as far as he can,” Anderson suggested.

“The bottom line is that he's a professional and in professional sport, opportunities come along. When they do, then you have to make a decision. That's what he has done.

“But I think people here are going to be more concerned with what happens at Ulster than with what happens at Gloucester. There are's a big decision to be made here now.”
http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/sport ... 38561.html
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Re: What the Papers Say 2014/2015

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Tuesday 10th June

Early edition...........


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Rory Best: David Humphreys' Ulster exit 'bitterly disappointing'
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The departure of David Humphreys to become director of rugby at Gloucester is “bitterly disappointing” for Ulster, says Rory Best.

Speaking on Ireland’s summer tour to Argentina, Best conceded that Humphreys’ exit was a blow for Ulster, but acknowledged that the Gloucester role was a great opportunity for his former team-mate.

“It’s a great new challenge for him and his family to experience to something different,” Best said. “You wish him all the best.”

Best said that it was a feature of the modern, professional game that players and managers moved on, “and unfortunately directors of rugby move also”, but said that “life goes on”.

He described Humphreys as an “iconic” figure for Ulster, and described the void his departure will leaves as “a massive hole to fill”.

Best backed Humphreys to thrive in his new role in the Premiership, saying: “we know he’ll do a great job at Gloucester because we’ve seen first-hand what he can do”.

Looking ahead to Ireland’s second Test, Best said there was a lot of room of improvement.

“There were a lot of aspects of [the first team] that we weren’t 100% happy with,” he said. “The set-piece was good, and at times we kept the ball very well in attack.

“But I think defensively we were very soft in the tackles. We either missed tackles or soaked tackles.

“We’re a great defensive team when we get off the line and we make big hits and I think we get to get to doing a bit of that.”

Best singled out for praise his Ulster team-mate, Robbie Diack, who made his debut in the first Test.

“It was fantastic for him,” he said. “It was great for me to have him in the line-out, because I throw to him so regularly at Ulster and I know how good he is there.

“But I think some of his play around the pitch as well was outstanding. He carried a lot of ball – I think he was our biggest ball-carrier – he made some good tackles and he smashed some rucks.

“From a back-row that’s all you want and that’s all you can ask.”
http://www.rte.ie/sport/rugby/rabo-dire ... ppointing/

Audio of above......... http://www.rte.ie/sport/player/816/622676/
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Re: What the Papers Say 2014/2015

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Tuesday 10th June

PART II


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Rory Best 'concerned' by David Humphreys' shock Ulster exit
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Rory Best is still digesting the news of David Humphreys' departure from his role as Ulster's director of rugby
Belfast may be almost 7,000 miles away, but a little part of the minds of the Ulster contingent in Argentina are back in Ravenhill at the minute.

The shockwaves caused by the surprise departure of David Humphreys didn't take long to reverberate around Chaco province on Saturday, where news broke a couple of hours before kick-off.

Rory Best heard it via text from Stephen Ferris that morning and got a message from the departing director of rugby after the win over Argentina.

He is still digesting it and will have a proper chat later this week with the former fly-half who is departing for Gloucester after a 22-year association with his native province, but the hooker is both "shocked" and "concerned" by the news and its implications.

In Best's own words, the departing director of rugby "has not just been a part of Ulster rugby, he has been Ulster rugby" who dragged standards in the province up by the bootstraps.

"When you look at what's David's done for us over the last number of years. I remember when he first came in as operations director, we were a bit of a shambles really," Best recalled."We didn't have good players, we weren't signing good players, we didn't have good structures. He came in and changed all of that. He didn't just sign good players, he signed good people."

He is out of the loop, but Best is a major part of the Ulster operation; a key on-field presence and an ambassador off it. "It's bitterly disappointing for us but you have got to wish him all the best, like you do with every player that leaves," he said.

"He runs a lot of the meetings, a lot of the admin stuff around the team as well as sponsorship and signings, so from that side of things the management are coming in over the next week or two and, I suppose, the thing that concerns us is who is making the decisions when you sit down in meetings, who is saying yes or no.

"So, from that side of things it's concerning. There was no good time to do it, but certainly we have a bit of time now.

"There's no signings to be made in the immediate so it will be interesting to see how it plays out. Certainly, I'd be a little bit concerned.

"Finding out before Saturday's Test wasn't, Best admitted, ideal preparation but you wouldn't have known it from the hooker's display.

He nailed 14 throws out of 14 in a line-out that disrupted the opposition ball to boot; while the scrum was dominant.

That pack effort was a major positive in a mixed performance and the 31-year-old expects improvement this week.

"I think defensively we will need to be a lot better. I think in terms of attack we went through the phases really, really well. I think we would like to be more clinical in that green zone, in their 22. We were really, really good at getting there but we just weren't as efficient, something we were really good at in the Six Nations."
http://www.independent.ie/sport/rugby/r ... 41028.html


Marshall facing sideline spell as precaution after head injury
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Luke Marshall is being assessed daily by the Ireland medical team, having passed the
tests carried out in the aftermath of the game
Luke Marshall's prior history with concussion means he is being treated as a special case by the Irish medical team as they look to protect the Ulster centre from further injury.

The 23-year-old came off 16 minutes into the second-half of Saturday's first Test win over Argentina with a suspected head injury but tests carried out since revealed he was not concussed.

He is being assessed daily, having passed the tests carried out in the aftermath of the game and further neurocognitive tests on Sunday.

Marshall was stood down from the end of last season after suffering three concussions in a short space of time and he suffered another in March.

"That's why we'd be very careful with Luke," Ireland manager Mick Kearney said yesterday. "He did suffer a number of concussions in a relatively short period of time and got one earlier this year as well, so that's why we are taking every precaution."Indications are that all 29 players who travelled to Argentina will get some involvement in the Test series, so coach Joe Schmidt is likely to give Marshall the week off.

That could mean a first cap for Noel Reid at inside centre, while the Kiwi could also shift Darren Cave to No 12 and play Fergus McFadden outside him, with Ian Madigan also an option.

A dead leg will rule Conor Murray out of training today which could see Eoin Reddan step into the scrum-half slot, although Kieran Marmion impressed last week.

James Cronin and Robbie Diack will hope to start, although it is hard to see Jack McGrath and Rory Best losing out so Dave Kilcoyne and Damien Varley may give way.Rob Kearney, Jamie Heaslip and Devin Toner are likely to come into the team ahead of Felix Jones, Jordi Murphy and Iain Henderson, while Rhys Ruddock will be hoping to displace Diack.

The Irish squad make their way to the city of Tucuman tonight ahead of Saturday's second Test.

And they are in for something of a rude awakening at the Estadio José Fierro."The changing area in Tucuman is like something out of a badly run down club from the 1970s," Kearney said. "It will be a little bit of a challenge, but Tucuman is in the heartland of Argentinian rugby so I'd expect a good crowd, very passionate."
http://www.independent.ie/sport/rugby/m ... 41030.html


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Ulster driving force Humphreys will be difficult to replace, cautions Best
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Ireland hooker Rory Best was shocked when told David Humphreys was leaving Ulster to become director of rugby with Gloucester.

Best confirmed he only heard the surprise announcement on Saturday when preparing for the opening test against the Pumas and said Humphreys will be difficult to replace at Ravenhill.

“I was very surprised. Obviously he’s had a big association with Ulster rugby, not just for the last few years as director of rugby but since the late 1990s. He’s not just been a part of Ulster rugby, he has been Ulster rugby.

“So, obviously it is a big shock but I suppose he has to do what’s right for him and his family, to experience something new.

“It’s no different from us as players, when opportunities like this come along. You want to finish with no regrets, it’s just something he had to do.

“Obviously, it’s bitterly disappointing but you have got to wish him all the best like you do with every player that leaves,” said Best, adding it ‘wasn’t ideal’ news to find out on the morning of a test match.

Best said Humphreys had been the driving force for the changes in Ulster and they had made huge strides since he took charge.

“We were a bit of a shambles really. We didn’t have good players, we weren’t signing good players, we didn’t have good structures. He really came in and changed all of that. He didn’t just sign good players, he signed good people.

“Gloucester are a little bit further down that road than we were when David came in, but I think if you are Gloucester looking at it, you’d look at the way he’s transformed us, you’d go ‘I wouldn’t mind a piece of that’ and you’d take your chances.”

Best said they have time to find a replacement as most things are in place for next season but they need to find the right man.

“Certainly, I’d be a little bit concerned. You’d like to think the wheels would be in motion to get somebody and it’s important that it’s somebody suitable rather than jumping in and pulling the first fish out of the sea.”
http://www.irishexaminer.com/sport/rugb ... 71596.html


Marshall doubtful for second Pumas test
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Luke Marshall is unlikely to play in the second test against Argentina after the Ulster man picked up another head injury in the opening 29-17 win over the Pumas on Saturday.

Ireland team manager Mick Kearney said there was no evidence of concussion, but that the 23-year old would be monitored closely given his history of such injuries.

The centre, who won his sixth cap in Saturday’s win in Resistencia, suffered a bang to the head when making a tackle and he was taken off before the hour mark.

Kearney, indicating doubts also about the half-backs Conor Murray and Jonathan Sexton, said Marshall, who has suffered several head injuries in recent years would be closely monitored.

No formal evidence of concussion :thumleft: , but given his history we will take every precaution necessary and will be assessed on a daily basis.

“He will be assessed day by day and we’ll just have to wait and see. But there was no concussion, all of the tests are clear post-game.

“He did suffer a number of concussions in a relatively short period of time and that’s why we need to be careful.

“He got one earlier this year as well, so there would be a concern and that’s why we are taking every precaution possible.

“It is good that his testing was normal, both post-match and afterwards,” he said.

Conor Murray suffered a dead leg and may not be risked given that the experienced Eoin Reddan and Saturday’s debutant Kieran Marmion are both available.

Jonathan Sexton suffered from cramp to the back of one his knees but is recovering well and is expected to train fully this week.

“It’s great at this stage that we effectively have everyone available apart from Conor who would be the main doubt so we’ll just see as the week goes on ,” added Kearney at the team hotel in Buenos Aires yesterday.

The squad will move north again this evening for Saturday’s clash in Tucuman and it will be another step back in time in terms of facilities for the Six Nations champions.

“The changing area in Tucuman is like something out of a badly rundown club from the 1970s, there are 11 or 12 shower heads and barely enough room to put everyone into the changing room. It’s very, very poor.

“It will be a little bit of a challenge, but the pitch is a lot better than Saturday’s. Tucuman is in the heartland of Argentinian rugby so I’d expect a good crowd, very passionate.

“Argentina had seven new caps at the weekend, a lot of local players and that would bring them on massively but I’d expect that we’ll be better come next weekend as well,” added the Ireland team manager.
http://www.irishexaminer.com/sport/rugb ... 71595.html


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Luke Marshall a major doubt for Ireland’s second Test against Argentina
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Ireland's Luke Marshall is tackled by Joaquin Tuculet of Argentina last weekend
Ireland will be taking no chances with Ulster centre, Luke Marshall after he took another blow to the head during the first Test against Argentina.

Although there is no evidence of concussion, given Marshall’s past history of similar injuries, he is likely to miss this weekend’s second Test as Ireland look to complete 2-0 series win.

Tries from Chris Henry and Andrew Trimble helped Ireland to a 29-17 win over the Pumas.

But it also came at a heavy prices with halfbacks, Conor Murray and Jonathan Sexton, joining Marshall on the doubtful list for Saturday’s second Test in Tucuman.

Team manager Mick Kearney said there was no evidence of concussion in Marshall but that he would be monitored closely given his history of suffering similar injuries.

The 23-year old Ulsterman was clattered in a tackle while winning his sixth cap on Saturday and had to go off after 57 minutes.

Kearney said: “Luke Marshall was removed as a precaution as he may have taken a blow to the head during the game. Testing came back as normal and his computerised neurocognitive testing was normal as well.

“As such there is no formal evidence of concussion but given his history we’ll be taking every precaution necessary and he will be reassessed on a daily basis.

“Conor Murray suffered a dead leg but is responding well. He will be assessed as the week goes on and is unlikely to train in the early part of the week.

“Jonny Sexton suffered a cramp at the back of his knee and has recovered well and is expected to train fully.

“We came through the game very well. Most of the players actually hadn’t played for three weeks. So we probably went in just a little bit undercooked in terms of game time and that.

“But they came through it really well, from an injury profile point of view it was actually a good outcome as well.”

The Irish squad returned to Buenos Aires from Resistencia on Sunday and will spend two nights in the capital before heading back north for the concluding test in Tucuman.

Kearney said they were pleased with Saturday’s first-ever win on Argentinian soil but feels there is still room for improvement.

“The set-piece was very strong,” he added. “The scrum was good, 14 line-outs won out of 14 and we pinched a few of theirs as well.

“We were a little bit sloppy in defence and they made a few line-breaks. A few handling errors as well.

“I think it was probably a little bit of a mixed bag”
http://www.newsletter.co.uk/sport/rugby ... -1-6108942


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David Humphreys’ departure came as major shock to Ulster players Gerry T
‘It’s bitterly disappointing for us but you have got to wish him all the best’ says Rory Best
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The Ulster players only heard the seismic news of David Humphreys ending his 22-year association with the province as a legendary out
half and latterly as director of rugby on Saturday morning in Corrientes before the first test against Argentina.

It must assuredly have prompted huge discussion among the Ulster players, but in any event, days later, they are evidently still struggling to come to terms with his departure to Gloucester.

“Ach, I was very surprised,” admitted Rory Best yesterday. “Obviously he’s had a big association with Ulster rugby, not just for the last few years as director of rugby but since the late 1990s. He’s not just been a part of Ulster rugby, he has been Ulster rugby.

“So, obviously it is a big shock when something like this happens, but I suppose he has to do what’s right for him and his family if he felt he needed a change, to experience something new.

“ It’s no different from us as players, when opportunities like this come along. Obviously, it’s bitterly disappointing for us but you have got to wish him all the best like you do with every player that leaves.”

Humphreys had not wanted the news to break before the game, and texted Best and co afterwards, but it inevitably broke beforehand, with the recently retired Stephen Ferris texting his former team-mates.

Instrumental figure
Normally the head coach is the key figure in any Irish professional set-up, but Ulster’s module is more akin to premiership clubs, and Humphreys had been Ulster’s most instrumental figure, not least with his recruitment of quality players.

His departure leaves a huge void and coming on top of Johann Muller’s retirement and the departures of John Afoa and Tom Court, creates a highly uncertain future for the province.

Best corrected himself when admitting it was different from a player leaving.

“He runs a lot of the meetings, a lot of the admin stuff around the team, as well as sponsorship and signings. I suppose the thing that concerns us is who is making the decisions when you sit down in meetings, who is saying yes or no.”

“But we have a good group of people there,” he added, in reference to the coaching staff and chief executive Shane Long. “You’d like to think the wheels would be in motion to get somebody and it’s important that it’s somebody suitable rather than jumping in and pulling the first fish out of the sea that we can.

“There was no good time to do it, but certainly we have a bit of time now. There’s no signings to be made in the immediate future so it will be interesting to see how it plays out. Certainly, I’d be a little bit concerned.”

The performance of the Ulster players was all the more creditable, with Best’s darts and the aerial ability and hands of Robbie Diack, Iain Henderson and Chris Henry contributing to a 14 out of 14 return from line-outs.

“His hands are exceptional,” Best said of Diack. “You know if you put it somewhere near him he’s going to catch it; whether it’s one hand or two, he will get enough to it to catch it.”

Best was also quick to highlight the roles of the departing John Plumtree and Paul O’Connell. “Last season he wasn’t playing and we suffered a little bit from it as a result. I think as much as anything it’s the experience he brings and the calm head.”

Fears that Luke Marshall may have suffered concussion appear to have been dispelled but given the 23-year-old’s history he will be assessed on a daily basis.

The Irish manager Mick Kearney said: “Luke Marshall was removed as a precaution as he may have taken a blow to the head during the game.

Precaution
“All testing post-game was normal and his computerised neurocognitive testing yesterday [Sunday] was normal as well. As such there is no formal evidence of concussion, but given his history we’ll be taking every precaution necessary and he will be reassessed on a daily basis.”

Before the squad’s flight to Tucuman today for Saturday’s second test, Conor Murray’s dead leg is a bigger concern than the cramp Johnny Sexton suffered in the back of his knee, Kearney admitting: “Conor is the biggest doubt.”
http://www.irishtimes.com/sport/rugby/d ... -1.1826413


OTHER


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All eyes on Switzerland as new Euro tournament drawn
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Ulster will know their fate in Europe on Tuesday when the draw for the inaugural European Rugby Champions Cup takes place in Switzerland.

The competition marks a new chapter in the history of European rugby and sees a reduction in teams taking part from 24 to 20.

PRO12 champions Leinster, French Top 14 champions and Heineken Cup winners, Toulon and Saracens are three of the top seeds.

They will be joined by two other teams from English champions, Northampton Saints, PRO12 runners-up, Glasgow Warriors and French side, Castres Olympique.

The remainder of the tiers will then be established and it appears Ulster, who finished fourth in the PRO12, will be in tier Three.

While the PRO12 and French Top 14 rankings were determined by final league placing and qualification for knockout stages, the Aviva Premiership clubs are ranked according to their positions at the end of the regular season.

It means Northampton Saints, who defeated league toppers Saracens in the final, could find themselves in Tier Two.

The comeptition is made up this season of seven Premiership and PRO12 clubs and six from France.

Five groups of four clubs each will be drawn and play home and away games as was the format of the former Heineken Cup.

The five group winners plus three best runners-up will advance to the quarter-finals.

The format will see a draw at the start to establish which two clubs ranked number two from each competing league join Saracens, Toulon and Leinster in Tier 1 .

The other tiers will then be established, based on rankings.

The key principles for the draw are:

Each of the five pools will have at least one club from each of the three Leagues.

Each of the five pools will have one club from each of the four tiers.

There will be no more than two clubs from the same League in a pool.

No pool will contain two PRO12 clubs from the same country.

Clubs from the same League will be kept apart until the allocation of the Tier 4 clubs.

In Tier 4, Sales Sharks and London Wasps will be drawn into pools which contain one other Premiership club while Toulouse will be drawn into a pool which contains one other Top 14 club.

The European Rugby Champions Cup replaced the Heineken Cup which ran for 19 seasons and ended in Cardiff at the end of May when Toulon defeated Saracens in the final.

After almost two years of negotiations, a new competition was forged in April comprising nine stakeholders - the six unions of competing teams, plus Premiership Rugby, France’s Ligue Nationale de Rugby and Regional Rugby Wales - in addition to the Challenge Cup and a third qualifiying tournament.

European Rugby Champions Cup teams: Saracens, Toulon, Leinster, Northampton, Castres, Glasgow, Leicester, Montpellier, Munster, Harlequins, Racing Metro, Ulster, Bath, Clermont Auvergne, Ospreys, Sale Sharks, Toulouse, Scarlets, Wasps, Treviso.

European Rugby Challenge Cup teams: Stade Francais, Exeter, Cardiff Blues, Bordeaux-Begles, Gloucester, Edinburgh, Brive, London Irish, Newport Gwent Dragons, Bayonne, Newcastle, Connacht, Grenoble, London Welsh, Zebre, Oyonnax, Lyon, La Rochelle, plus two qualifiers to emerge from competition in September.
http://www.newsletter.co.uk/sport/rugby ... -1-6108944
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Re: What the Papers Say 2014/2015

Post by Mac »

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Tuesday 10th June

PART III


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Influential Humphreys will be a tough act to follow
He had power to draw top names... but fans question if David needs replacing
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With David Humphreys on his way to the Aviva Premiership as Gloucester's director of rugby, undoubtedly the biggest gap he leaves will be with regard to Ulster's ability to attract players.

Not only do names like Johann Muller, Ruan Pienaar, John Afoa and Jared Payne spring to mind; when he was weighing up the appointment of Mark Anscombe as Ulster's head coach, Humphreys was able to phone Richie McCaw – on his mobile. The New Zealand captain picked up straight away. Impressive.

Undoubtedly Humphreys is a much-respected figure globally, witness him having brought World Cup winners Pienaar, Muller and Afoa to Belfast, as well as bringing Tommy Bowe back home from Ospreys.

That said, his most recent signings were rather more modest. Next season's replacements for Tom Court, Afoa and Muller are Zebre loose-head Dave Ryan, Natal Sharks third-choice tight-head Wiehahn Herbst and Golden Lions lock Franco Van der Merwe.

Those are are hardly household names.

Ryan was released by Munster having made 10 appearances in two seasons following which he joined Lazio Roma, Wiehahn Herbst was behind Jannie du Plessis and Lourens Adriaanse in the pecking order for the Sharks' number three shirt and at the age of 31, Van der Merwe has a solitary Springboks cap to his credit.

In contrast, Muller had 23 – one of them as captain against the All Blacks – when he enlisted for Ulster.

With Humphreys on his way, some Ulster supporters have begun to wonder whether the vacancy needs to be filled at all?

They point out that he played no part in coaching. In addition, Ulster maintain that the head coach, not the DoR, is solely responsible for selection.

But it is examination of the situation elsewhere that is doing most to fuel the debate.

Of the top four in the 2013-14 RaboDirect PRO12, only Ulster had a triumvirate of chief executive officer (Shane Logan), director of rugby (Humphreys) and head coach (Mark Anscombe).


Munster, who were third in the table, were served by chief executive Garrett Fitzgerald and head coach Rob Penney. Glasgow Warriors, who were second, had managing director Nathan Bombrys and head coach Gregor Townsend.

Champions Leinster, who topped the pile at the end of the regular season before accounting for Ulster and Glasgow in the semi-final and final respectively, had Michael Dawson as chief executive and Matt O'Connor as head coach.

The same is true of Welsh pair Ospreys and Scarlets, the two clubs immediately beneath Ulster last term.

They, too, were happy with a chief executive plus head coach duo. Nor did any of Ulster's Pool 5 fellow-runners in the 2013-14 Heineken Cup have a three-tier system.

Leicester Tigers were served by chief executive Simon Cohen in tandem with Richard Cockerill as director of rugby/forwards coach. Note Cockerill's two roles and, as a result, his daily training ground involvement.

Montpellier's decision-makers and flak-takers were chief executive Denis Navizet and head coach Fabien Galthié. Again two roles, not three. Benetton Treviso's Vittorio Munari's title was chief executive/director of rugby, with Franco Smith his head coach.

And neither of the 2014 Heineken Cup finalists had a chief executive, director of rugby, head coach trinity.

Toulon – the winners – felt their case was well enough served by chief executive Patrick Bouguet and director of rugby Bernard Laporte, a belief buoyed up by their capture of the Top 14 a week later. Runners-up, Saracens, have Edward Griffiths and Mark McCall in the roles of chief executive and director of rugby respectively.

It's true of the newly-crowned English champions, too; Northampton Saints also found a two-tier strategy – Allan Robinson as chief executive, Jim Mallinder as director of rugby – more than efficient.

The difference between the situation at Ulster and with Northampton, Saracens or Toulon is that in England and France, director of rugby MEANS head coach.

So again, that begs the question as to why Ulster have a hugely expensive three-man CEO-DoR-head coach formula?

When asked if the director of rugby role might be one Ulster could dispense with, the response from CEO Logan response was: "No, we're going to recruit. We're going to take our three-to-five-years strategic plan, we're going to look and see where there are some gaps and use this as an opportunity to plan better.

"So we will go into the market as soon as we have a well-defined, clear idea of what it's going to take to deliver the plan."

However, it appears that Humphreys has managed to land himself a job comparable to the one he is leaving – that is, primarily as the overall organiser of a coaching regime rather than a head coach-type director of rugby as is the case elsewhere in the Aviva Premiership, Saracens' McCall and Harlequins' Conor O'Shea being examples.

Ryan Walkinshaw, chairman of Humphreys' new club, said: "Gloucester Rugby commissioned a piece of research on the most effective models for success and felt that moving away from our previous model of a head coach with director of rugby responsibilities was important going forward.

"We believe having David in place with a more strategic skill-set will get the best out of our playing department."
http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/sport ... 40380.html


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Enforced transition for Ulster
When the news came through on Saturday, it was greeted with perceptible dismay and disbelief within the Ulster rugby fraternity.

The shock announcement that Director of Rugby David Humphreys is leaving the club to take up a prestigious position with Premiership aspirants Gloucester has sent profound shockwaves throughout an incredulous Ravenhill fan base.

Following hot on the heels of last week's equally momentous news that their iconic Ravenhill fortress has been renamed Kingspan Stadium, a palpable sense of transition is currently pervading Ulster rugby followers.

We have witnessed two massive developments, therefore, for fans to assimilate in less than a week. As the surprise and disappointment dissipates, Ulster rugby is left to contemplate exactly where recent developments leave them in their quest to become a dominant force in European rugby.

While assessing his side's current predicament, Shane Logan, the Chief Executive of Ulster Rugby, must surely appreciate that rugby in the Province is in a considerably better state than when Humphreys joined the backroom staff six years ago.

Indeed when the former Irish fly-half ended his stellar playing career in 2008 to assume the position of Operations Director, Ulster Rugby was in definite need of renewal. The club had not made it out of the pool stages of the Heineken Cup since their solitary victory in 1999 (when a side captained by Humphreys overcame Colomiers in the final), and had only secured one piece of silverware since that occasion; namely the Celtic League victory of 2006.

When Australian coach Matt Williams departed Ravenhill six years ago, the Belfast-based side certainly weren't the contenders they are today. Most worryingly of all from an Ulster perspective, a succession of excellent indigenous players like Neil Best, Tommy Bowe, and Roger Wilson, had left the Province for the green pastures of the English Premiership.

While another trophy may still elude the Ravenhill cabinet, the upturn in playing fortunes can be traced directly to the magnificent work subsequently undertaken by their Director of Rugby; in terms of both performance and recruitment.

Once appointed, the erstwhile Irish pivot made wasted no time in beginning his quiet revolution. Brian McLaughlin replaced Williams as head coach and, and Humphreys (in tandem with his chief executive) started putting in place the playing structures, and support facilities that persist to this day.

The Academy and under-age systems were transformed, with the Ravenhill franchise placing a massive emphasis on nurturing and developing native, home-grown talent.

This overhaul was significant enough in itself, but it was in the areas of talent identification and recruitment that Humphreys unquestionably excelled. The Ulster hero used his vast network of international rugby contacts to bring global names to Ravenhill, world-class operators like Ruan Pienaar, Johann Muller, and John Afoa.

But just as significantly, Humphreys reversed the unwelcome trend for player defections, bringing prodigal sons Wilson and Bowe back into the fold.

And on-field success invariably followed, the undoubted high point being Ulster's Heineken Cup Final appearance in 2012 where they were outclassed by an experienced and wily Leinster side.

While they may not have yet accumulated more silverware, the transformation of Ulster Rugby under Humphreys' command has been quite pronounced.

The Irish club has reached the knock-out stages of the Heineken Cup four years in succession, and last season topped the Pro12 regular season table.

Combined with the multi-million pound redevelopment and upgrade of Ravenhill, the progress on the pitch attests to a team going places.

What a pity then that the chief architect of this renaissance will not now see his grand plans come to fruition, with the attainment of tangible silverware.

With the departure of key players like Muller, Afoa, and Tom Court at the end of this season, it already felt like the end of a chapter at Ravenhill. The departure of Ulster's venerated Director of Rugby merely reinforces the impression of flux.

But the mild-mannered and self-effacing Humphreys can take immense pride in the fact that he leaves his beloved Ulster in an immeasurably better condition than existed when he initially moved upstairs.

The cherry and whites of Kingsholm are indeed getting an accomplished operator: erudite, and intelligent; yet tough and decisive when the situation requires.

If there is one consolation for Ulster supporters in a mood of palpable disappointment, it is that the club has managed to retain the services of talisman, Pienaar.

This masterstroke, and so much else besides, will be the enduring legacy of David Humphreys' time at the helm. How ironic that one of his most important interventions as Ulster Director of Rugby was also one of his last.
http://www.planetrugby.com/story/0,2588 ... 28,00.html
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Mac
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Re: What the Papers Say 2014/2015

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Tuesday 10th June

PART IV


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Ulster Drawn in Pool 3 of European Rugby Champions Cup
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Ulster Rugby has been drawn in Pool 3 of the new European Rugby Champions Cup alongside reigning champions Toulon and familiar foes Leicester and Scarlets.

The draw has thrown up a first ever meeting between Ulster and Toulon, who won the Heineken Cup for a second successive time last month with a 23-6 defeat of Saracens. The fixture will provide local fans with the opportunity to see some of the world's best players such as Matt Giteau, Bakkies Botha and European Player of the Year Steffon Amitage. The French side have also recruited James O'Connor, Leigh Halfpenny and Mamuka Gorgodze for the 2014/15 campaign.

The Province have faced Leicester in two of the past three years in European competition, and will be hoping to repeat last season's results by registering both home and way wins.

Ulster's fellow PRO12 side Scarlets are the fourth team in the group and with a squad littered with Welsh internationals, they will ensure all fixtures are competitive.

2014/15 European Rugby Champions Cup
Pool 1: Saracens, Munster Rugby, ASM Clermont Auvergne, Sale Sharks
Pool 2: Leinster Rugby, Castres Olympique, Harlequins, London Wasps
Pool 3: RC Toulon, Leicester Tigers, Ulster Rugby, Scarlets
Pool 4: Glasgow Warriors, Montpellier, Bath Rugby, Toulouse
Pool 5: Northampton Saints, Racing Metro 92, Ospreys, Benetton Treviso

Ulster Rugby's Chief Executive, Shane Logan, described the draw as 'tough, achievable and very exciting'. He said:

"We knew it was going to be tough - with now only 20 teams in the competition it makes it harder all round. We want to play at the top level and we certainly will. I don't think we have anything to fear - I'm not underestimating the task but we're getting better at winning away from home in the big games. Last year we won away to Leicester and Montpellier."

Logan was particularly looking forward to welcoming French side Toulon to Kingspan Stadium next season.

"It's a magnificent fixture - it's mouth watering. We believe we have, perhaps, Europe's best stadium and we want to have Europe's best teams playing at it. That's the beauty of this competition and that's the beauty of what we're trying to create here in Ulster. Toulon have a team that is star studded with some of the world's best players and I know they'll bring a big crowd over and I know that our crowd will more than rival them. It's great for Ulster Rugby and it will be a pleasure to welcome them to Kingspan Stadium," he said.

Ulster will face familiar opposition in the form of Leicester and Scarlets, something Logan is also relishing:

"We're well used to playing Leicester, having met them in two of the past three seasons and interestingly, when we've had them in our pool we've managed to go through to the quarter finals. I think we are the only team in Europe to have gone through to the last eight in each of the last four years. It will be tough, enjoyable, but we'll do our best to make it five years in a row.

"You can't underestimate Scarlets. They beat us well away from home last season although we beat them well in Belfast. It's always a tough battle - they play attractive rugby and have a fine coach in Simon Easterby."

Finally, the Chief Executive believes the Province is continuing the strengthen it's position as a major force in Europe.

"We've lost some magnificent servants but I think it's fair to say that several of them were towards the end of their careers. So what we've done is bring in younger, but experienced players, as it's important to build for the future. We also have a very strong crop of local players. We had the largest contingent of any province starting for Ireland on Saturday and we are investing heavily in our succession. We also have players like Stuart Olding who is a fantastic prospect but missed all of last season through injury. We have depth throughout the squad and world class quality in nearly every position."
http://www.ulsterrugby.com/News/LatestN ... s-Cup.aspx


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Ulster in pool of death as Munster face trips to Sarries and Clermont
Mark Anscombe and Anthony Foley have been handed excitingly tough groups for next season.
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IT WAS FITTING that the prelude to the draw for next season’s inaugural Rugby Champions including a montage of the various winners and heroes of the Heineken Cup, before we moved swiftly and abruptly on.

Ulster have landed in what appears to be the group of death, containing as it does French behemoths Toulon, as well as English powerhouses Leicester and Ulster’s fellow Pro12 side Scarlets.

Mark Anscombe loses key men in Johann Muller, John Afoa and Director of Rugby David Humphreys this summer, but the Kiwi has a highly-skilled group of younger players such as Luke Marshall, Paddy Jackson, Craig Gilroy and Iain Henderson ready to take the reins alongside more experienced heads like Jared Payne and Ruan Pienaar.

Toulon are still celebrating their recent Heineken Cup and Top 14 double, with new signings James O’Connor, Leigh Halfpenny, Mamuka Gorgodze, Romain Taofifenua and Gerhard Vosloo softening the blow of losing Jonny Wilkinson to retirement.

Richard Cockerill’s Leicester finished third in the Premiership this season, before losing a pulsating semi-final against Northampton Saints. England internationals like Manu Tuilagi, Geoff Parling and the Youngs brothers, Tom and Ben, will lead their charge.

The Scarlets make up a testing pool, with Simon Easterby still at the helm and hoping that talented players such as Liam Williams, Jordan Williams, and Rhys Preistland can begin to regularly impose themselves on European club rugby.

Over in Pool 1, Munster have been handed an equally tough test in being drawn alongside Saracens, Clermont and Sale Sharks.

Anthony Foley takes over with his own rich understanding of what is required to win high-profile European ties, but Mark McCall’s ever-improving Saracens will back themselves to emerge.

Clermont have a new management team in Franck Azéma and Jono Gibbes – who joins from Leinster as forwards coach – while the likes of Sébastien Vahaamahina, Jonathan Davies, Zac Guildford, Nick Abendanon, and Camille Lopez add a fresh energy the playing squad.

With Morgan Parra remaining at scrum-half, the Auvergne-based club have a cool head to oversee what is likely to be a season of changes.

Sale have been something of a surprise package under Director of Rugby Steve Diamond and head coach Bryan Redpath. Danny Cipriani has been re-invigorated at out-half by the northern club, while Nathan Hines joins from Clermont this summer.

In Pool 2, Leinster’s position alongside Castres, Harlequins and Wasps will perhaps draw less immediate attention, but there are dangers in those opponents too.

Matt O’Connor will have to find a way to halt ‘Quins free-flowing, ambitious attacking rugby under Conor O’Shea, while Castres were Top 14 finalists for the second year running recently.

The Tarn-based side have added Sitiveni Sivivatu, Johnnie Beattie and centre Thomas Combezou to their squad ahead of next season, while Rory Kockott is arguably the most accomplished scrum-half in Europe.

Pools 4 and 5 look weaker in comparison, although that impression may be based upon the lack of Heineken Cup history among those sides involved. Montpellier, Racing Métro, Glasgow and Premiership champions Northampton are all on major curves of improvement and are potential forces in the near future.

Toulouse, qualified as a Tier 4 side, will believe in their ability to advance from Pool 4 despite a weak 2013/14 season. There are potentially brilliant games littered across the five pools, while picking a winner at this stage is hugely demanding.

The Heineken Cup is gone, but the Rugby Champions Cup already looks like it may match the legendary European tournament’s thrill factor.
http://www.thescore.ie/rugby-champions- ... 6-Jun2014/


:compress: THE FLIP SIDE :compress:


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Scarlets face group of death versus Toulon, Leicester and Ulster while Ospreys face Northampton, Racing Metro and Treviso
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The Scarlets and Ospreys will face European rugby's big guns in the first year of the inaugural Rugby Champions Cup after the draw for the newly-formatted competition was made on Tuesday lunchtime.

Simon Easterby's men were handed a familiar tough-looking draw against double Heineken Cup champions Toulon, Owen Williams' Leicester Tigers and Ulster in pool 3.

“I don’t think our former Scarlet Scott Quinnell could have picked us out to be in a more difficult pool to be honest so there’s a certain irony in that!" said Easterby.

“But the Scarlets are a proud West Wales region and we all love a challenge in Europe and will certainly have that again this season.

“Along with pool one, which is another pretty impressive group, we’ve got ourselves into one of the two toughest pools in the competition, which to our rugby group is really exciting.

“For our players to be up against the reigning champions in Europe and pit themselves against a side packed with so many of the top players in world rugby is something we will all look forward to.

“I can remember the atmosphere in Toulon for the Amlin quarter-final out in France.

“It was a huge occasion to be a part of and with the array of talent and depth they have in their squad now it will be another big trip for us as Scarlets and one to relish.

“We’ll also relish the challenge of facing Leicester.

“We haven’t played them for a while, there’s been some great games in our past against the big English clubs and they are entertaining, high impact games with plenty for both sets of supporters to get behind.

“I’m sure there will be lots of excitement amongst our supporters to go up to Welford Road, the Anglo-Welsh contests always generate a lot of emotion and great support.”

Meanwhile, the Ospreys will take on Aviva Premiership champions Northampton Saints, Racing Metro - including Welsh contingent Jamie Roberts, Mike Phillips, Dan Lydiate and Luke Charteris - and Italian side Treviso.

“The words that come to mind looking at the draw are super excited," said Ospreys head coach Steve Tandy.

“With the changes to European rugby everybody knew that what was already a very tough competition would get even tougher this season, but when you look at that draw you have to be genuinely excited.

“I’d say that players, the rest of the coaches and, particularly our supporters, will share that sentiment. It’s going to be a fantastic, roller coaster of a competition but we won’t be overawed in any way.

“It’s an awesome prospect and I can’t wait to get started. The next key stage will be getting the fixture dates through, but whoever we play in the opening rounds, wherever we are playing, it’s important that we get off to a flying start.

“Northampton have just had a pretty remarkable season and won two trophies so they are bound to be confident whoever they play.

“Having them coming back to the Liberty is a pretty mouthwatering prospect and gives us the opportunity to put the record straight because I thought that at home in particular, we didn’t do ourselves justice against them.

“When you have the English champions coming to town you know it’s going to be tough, but you also know it’ll be a pretty special occasion and that’s something to look forward to.

“Racing Metro are new for us, we’ve never played them before.

“I think that’s something that everybody looks for in European competition, new opponents and new venues.

“Their squad depth speaks for itself, they are star studded, so we’ll be looking forward to testing ourselves against them. I think the supporters in particular will enjoy those two games.

“We know all about Treviso and how dangerous they can be. They had a disappointing season by their standards in 2013/14 but they’ve beaten us in Europe, and beaten some good teams, and I think they will be stronger this season. We can’t and won’t take them lightly.”
http://www.walesonline.co.uk/sport/rugb ... ce-7244998


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Leicester Tigers have been drawn in a pool with Toulon, Ulster and Scarlets in the new European Rugby Champions Cup for 2014/15.

The draw for the inaugural year of the elite tournament was held today in Neuchatel, Switzerland, the base for organisers European Professional Club Rugby (EPCR), and performed by former international forwards Scott Quinnell and Simon Shaw.

The new European Champions Cup features 20 clubs who have qualified on merit from Europe's three major leagues. The clubs were divided into four tiers based on their qualification position from their leagues, with at least one club from each of the three leagues in each of the five pools.

Tigers, two-time European champions and finalists on three other occasions, are the only club to have played in Europe's elite tournament in each year of English rugby's participation and reached the knockout stages for a 12th time in 2013/14.

In the opening year of the new competition they will face reigning French and European champions Toulon for the first time since the 2013 quarter-final.

Ulster and Tigers were paired in the same pool last season, with the Irish province claiming wins home and away. Tigers last faced the Scarlets in Europe during 2010/11, winning both games.

After hearing the draw, Tigers director of rugby Richard Cockerill said: "At Leicester we always want to be competing against the best of the best and that is what the new European Rugby Champions Cup is all about.

"I'm sure the supporters are already looking forward to some big European occasions at Welford Road and some exciting trips away with the team too."
http://www.leicestertigers.com/news/195 ... 5cQTl5OOP8
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