TRANSFER RUMOURS!!

[therealspratt]

With Callum Black leaving, maybe that's why Tommy O'Hagan is touted to be starting against the Kings next week

Also why Callum was unceremoniously dropped a couple of weeks back

#baggyknew

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Oh you mean the time he took 30 hours to explain he had a bad back ............... the time the press had to ask Kiss repeatedly "WHERE'S CALLUM"

Aye, that would be right. My conclusion is that UR could not give CB the contract he was after, he signed up for his old club and FOLK in a fit of pique dropped him.

Isn't it an amazing thing, how a player is playing the best rugby of his career shortly before disappearing off to pastures new?

Maybe has been playing to put himself in the shop window!

[Snipe Watson]

With Callum Black leaving, maybe that's why Tommy O'Hagan is touted to be starting against the Kings next week

Also why Callum was unceremoniously dropped a couple of weeks back

#baggyknew

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Oh you mean the time he took 30 hours to explain he had a bad back ............... the time the press had to ask Kiss repeatedly "WHERE'S CALLUM"

Aye, that would be right. My conclusion is that UR could not give CB the contract he was after, he signed up for his old club and FOLK in a fit of pique dropped him.

Isn't it an amazing thing, how a player is playing the best rugby of his career shortly before disappearing off to pastures new?

Maybe has been playing to put himself in the shop window!

Yes, that's what I meant. Nothing amazing about it.

[solidarity]

I'd have neither, it's time to stop hiring mercenaries unless they are exceptional, neither Wasp meets that criteria.

Ulster needs players who are invested in the shirt, a bit of the GAA mentality of parish above all, fewer and better NIQs would suit my thoughts, no more dross and with the 5 year project period, no player worth a damn is likely to be pursuing that as a career move.

Feckin' foreigners coming over here stealing our Dave's jobs. Enough I say.

I hope Hond proves to be the tipping point and we stop buying in worse players than are already here. I remember sitting listening to Doc Dave saying that we must only sign top class players who improve the team & demand selection. Deysel & Hond, in particular, do not meet that criterion.

As projects, Robbie & Herbst the lion tamer/killer wouldn't meet it either other than as projects, Louis, on the other hand, was a top-notch project as obviously was Girrid.

Joking aside, I'd go a long way with this. I'd much rather have a home grown team than a stack of mercenaries. The question that still needs answered is, 'If we don't have the home grown players to compete at the highest level at the minute, are we happy to be North Connaught or West Dragons for the next five, ten years or whatever?' Maybe that is the way forward, just accept that we are what we are and, now and again, we'll have a purple patch and maybe win something. You are also right, a wee bit of the GAA about us wouldn't go amiss

[Windeos]

I'd have neither, it's time to stop hiring mercenaries unless they are exceptional, neither Wasp meets that criteria.

Ulster needs players who are invested in the shirt, a bit of the GAA mentality of parish above all, fewer and better NIQs would suit my thoughts, no more dross and with the 5 year project period, no player worth a damn is likely to be pursuing that as a career move.

Feckin' foreigners coming over here stealing our Dave's jobs. Enough I say.

I hope Hond proves to be the tipping point and we stop buying in worse players than are already here. I remember sitting listening to Doc Dave saying that we must only sign top class players who improve the team & demand selection. Deysel & Hond, in particular, do not meet that criterion.

As projects, Robbie & Herbst the lion tamer/killer wouldn't meet it either other than as projects, Louis, on the other hand, was a top-notch project as obviously was Girrid.

Joking aside, I'd go a long way with this. I'd much rather have a home grown team than a stack of mercenaries. The question that still needs answered is, 'If we don't have the home grown players to compete at the highest level at the minute, are we happy to be North Connaught or West Dragons for the next five, ten years or whatever?' Maybe that is the way forward, just accept that we are what we are and, now and again, we'll have a purple patch and maybe win something. You are also right, a wee bit of the GAA about us wouldn't go amiss

I don't think we would ever bottom out as being that bad even if we did get rid of the mercenaries.

I would just prefer we only sign top class players who are near the very top for there position in the world. If we have 4 NIQ spots and 1 project but can only sign 1 top class NIQ player, then so be it. Even if we were light in another area, we could then have the wiggle room to bring in someone to fill a void in the squad. But only sign top class players as NIQ. It's a waste of time and money signing average foreigners. Hell I'd even be willing to only sign 2 world class players and use the money allocated for 4 players on 2 that are at the very top of the game to push our squad.

Point is, we shouldn't just sign any average NIQ to fill NIQ spots that are open. If we can't get top quality then keep the money in the pocket and use it internally to improve development of local kids, maybe through some cash to top academy players in other irish academies to come North instead. But we can't keep signing tom kite NIQ's.

[Snipe Watson]

We have a NIQ in I believe year 1 of 2, who cannot elbow his way past the academy kids to make the bench never mind the XV.
I thought he was pants at Munster and I've seen nothing since to suggest I was wrong.

[breakdown]

We have a NIQ in I believe year 1 of 2, who cannot elbow his way past the academy kids to make the bench never mind the XV.
I thought he was pants at Munster and I've seen nothing since to suggest I was wrong.

The problem with Deysel IMO is that he isn't a primary carrier in the squad, when he played alongside Coetzee, he looked decent because Coetzee shared some of the tight work with him and made most of the big carries, so Deysel was able to make inroads in the defence when it was occupied with dealing with the bigger ball carrier. When he is asked to be the main source of front foot ball, he doesn't quite have the dynamism to be able to cope in that regard

[ColinM]

We have a NIQ in I believe year 1 of 2, who cannot elbow his way past the academy kids to make the bench never mind the XV.
I thought he was pants at Munster and I've seen nothing since to suggest I was wrong.

The problem with Deysel IMO is that he isn't a primary carrier in the squad, when he played alongside Coetzee, he looked decent because Coetzee shared some of the tight work with him and made most of the big carries, so Deysel was able to make inroads in the defence when it was occupied with dealing with the bigger ball carrier. When he is asked to be the main source of front foot ball, he doesn't quite have the dynamism to be able to cope in that regard

ergo he's not good enough

[Snipe Watson]

We have a NIQ in I believe year 1 of 2, who cannot elbow his way past the academy kids to make the bench never mind the XV.
I thought he was pants at Munster and I've seen nothing since to suggest I was wrong.

The problem with Deysel IMO is that he isn't a primary carrier in the squad, when he played alongside Coetzee, he looked decent because Coetzee shared some of the tight work with him and made most of the big carries, so Deysel was able to make inroads in the defence when it was occupied with dealing with the bigger ball carrier. When he is asked to be the main source of front foot ball, he doesn't quite have the dynamism to be able to cope in that regard

ergo he's not good enough

Correct, we needed a ball carrier and got a decent ruck operator/tackler who is as hard as nails, but lacks much of the skill needed.

[BaggyTrousers]

Have to be honest, I thought any man who was capped 4 times in tests for SA had to have enough about him to do a job but if you look at his stats since he went to Japan in 2014, he has played very little rugby for any side.

In retrospect it was a lazy signing, "he's in the country, he's good enough for Munster's bench, he'll do us rightly" seems the thinking.

In the opening 50 minutes of the season as he followed the rampaging Coetzee around, picking up the scraps I had a surge of optimism, but he's no Marcell. He is the rugby equivalent of a wringer out for a one-armed window cleaner. As for his minor eye trauma which kept him out for what - 4/6 weeks? - SHMOG, that was pitiful and another example where Ulster have clearly not been truthful to the great unwashed of late. That, of course, is another story, why are UR determined to bullshit their followers?

[breakdown]

We have a NIQ in I believe year 1 of 2, who cannot elbow his way past the academy kids to make the bench never mind the XV.
I thought he was pants at Munster and I've seen nothing since to suggest I was wrong.

The problem with Deysel IMO is that he isn't a primary carrier in the squad, when he played alongside Coetzee, he looked decent because Coetzee shared some of the tight work with him and made most of the big carries, so Deysel was able to make inroads in the defence when it was occupied with dealing with the bigger ball carrier. When he is asked to be the main source of front foot ball, he doesn't quite have the dynamism to be able to cope in that regard

ergo he's not good enough

Well, not good enough on his own, but good enough when he has some others to help him

[Snipe Watson]

We have a NIQ in I believe year 1 of 2, who cannot elbow his way past the academy kids to make the bench never mind the XV.
I thought he was pants at Munster and I've seen nothing since to suggest I was wrong.

The problem with Deysel IMO is that he isn't a primary carrier in the squad, when he played alongside Coetzee, he looked decent because Coetzee shared some of the tight work with him and made most of the big carries, so Deysel was able to make inroads in the defence when it was occupied with dealing with the bigger ball carrier. When he is asked to be the main source of front foot ball, he doesn't quite have the dynamism to be able to cope in that regard

ergo he's not good enough

Well, not good enough on his own, but good enough when he has some others to help him

Which is not good enough for an NIQ spot.

[Dave]

I'm prepared to give the underperforming NIQs another shot (they will be delighted to know) with Jonno in full control. It's a fresh start.

[Russ]

I'm prepared to give the underperforming NIQs another shot (they will be delighted to know) with Jonno in full control. It's a fresh start.

Hond and Jean have 8 matches to ensure they're still playing next season

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[Jackie Brown]

I'm prepared to give the underperforming NIQs another shot (they will be delighted to know) with Jonno in full control. It's a fresh start.

Hond and Jean have 8 matches to ensure they're still playing next season

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What are they on a year I wonder. I assume we can't just turf them out without paying them off.

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[Dave]

I'm prepared to give the underperforming NIQs another shot (they will be delighted to know) with Jonno in full control. It's a fresh start.

Hond and Jean have 8 matches to ensure they're still playing next season

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What are they on a year I wonder. I assume we can't just turf them out without paying them off.

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The year before the world cup you will get feck all. Better to wait until after.