Ulster v La Rochelle - Saturday (Sunday?) Ravenhill (RDS?)

[Godots bedpan]

Disappointing a pitch inspection couldn't have waited until this morning given the forecast for temperatures to improve. The teams could still have travelled to Dublin later this morning if surface deemed unfit. Someone quoted cullan as saying the rds pitch was touch and go a few hours before kickoff so what is the difference?
Almost feel we should have insisted on it at ravenhill and forfeit the game if it couldn't go ahead.

Assume the difference is that they had an alternative pitch a short distance away at Lansdowne Road, whereas our contingency was a hundred miles away, when it should have been Gibson Park. With a name like that, IRFU/EPCR wouldn't have thought twice about allowing it.

Don't know what the alternate would have been. Was told by someone who claimed to be in the know that the Aviva wasn't a runner as an alternate last night as it had been rented out for a number of Christmas parties & was unavailable. If that's the case suspect the same would hold true today.
Might be why Leinster were so keen to make sure the RDS was playable.

[Cap'n Grumpy]

Ulster rugby have produced a much more successful coach than ROG, someone who actually won a trophy at ulster and we never hear his name mentioned, never mind cheered.

I like Mark McCall. A decent young man who came through some distasteful difficulties and made good.

If he had gone on to such a successful career anywhere but Sorries, we might talk about him more, but it's almost as if we're ashamed to be associated with Sorries in any way.

I wonder why?



(Rhetorical question, btw)

[Deraless]

Somebody go on bakebook and tell all the unwashed that there will be NO REFUNDS

Why do people ask will they get a refund! Half wits!

Why not?

I read my ticket small print.

1) no liability accepted for an unused ticket due to extreme weather. Though this probably covers travel to the ground?

2) no liability for postponed or cancelled matches. Technically this is neither. If the match is replayed later the original ticket applies.

Not sure I remember this happening before?

You weren't in Brussels in 2010 then.

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I wasn't Jackie but I meant the last minute/ behind closed doors thing.

[Cap'n Grumpy]

Disappointing a pitch inspection couldn't have waited until this morning given the forecast for temperatures to improve. The teams could still have travelled to Dublin later this morning if surface deemed unfit. Someone quoted cullan as saying the rds pitch was touch and go a few hours before kickoff so what is the difference?
Almost feel we should have insisted on it at ravenhill and forfeit the game if it couldn't go ahead.

Assume the difference is that they had an alternative pitch a short distance away at Lansdowne Road, whereas our contingency was a hundred miles away, when it should have been Gibson Park. With a name like that, IRFU/EPCR wouldn't have thought twice about allowing it.

Don't know what the alternate would have been. Was told by someone who claimed to be in the know that the Aviva wasn't a runner as an alternate last night as it had been rented out for a number of Christmas parties & was unavailable. If that's the case suspect the same would hold true today.
Might be why Leinster were so keen to make sure the RDS was playable.

Whether true or not, I doubt the playing area and grandstands have been rented out, just the corporate hospitality bits.

I attended a match at Murrayfield many years ago when there was a corporate event going on at the same time as Embra v Ulster. One other esteemed Ulster fan (tok) and myself gained entrance to the corporate event (which was black-tie and long dresses etc) despite the fact that we were in jeans, rugby jackets and neither of us had a skirt let along a long dress. We got in simply by telling the doorman, "We're with them" pointing at the group going in ahead of us. And they think Eventsec aren't the brightest?

We decided we'd have a couple, then leave, but when we found out we could also go out into the stadium and take our drinks with us (drinking inside the stadium was banned at that time), we stayed for the duration and ran a relay of drinks out to the Ulster faithful.

Sadly I don't remember much about the game except we lost and Chops (Matt Mustchin) played a blinder . . . for Embra.

[solidarity]

Is this usually how the guy in charge makes decisions?

Ulster will as always, do as they're told. Don't worry, some new naive fans will come along and buy the Season Tickets once the old ones work out how the game is rigged.received_670103794617211.jpg

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If the last post here pic on p.11 with Petrie saying he heard about cncellation on tv) is true, we really are a shambles, part of a bigger Irish shambles, part of an even bigger European shambles.

[for dog and ulcer]

Montpellier last year and Gloucester this year deliberately sent understrength teams to play Leinster in Dublin. They don't appear to have the sycophantic weakness exhibited by Ulster Rugby towards rugby "authorities".

[UlsterNo9]

Disappointing a pitch inspection couldn't have waited until this morning given the forecast for temperatures to improve. The teams could still have travelled to Dublin later this morning if surface deemed unfit. Someone quoted cullan as saying the rds pitch was touch and go a few hours before kickoff so what is the difference?
Almost feel we should have insisted on it at Ravenhill and forfeit the game if it couldn't go ahead.

Fair question, I'm guessing the difference was that there was no alternative for Leinster, whereas once the pitch was green lighted at RDS that confirmed Ulster had an alternative.

Lansdowne Road has undersoil heating however so ...... it may have been an alternative for Leinster also

Wendyball game still on at Windsor, will the new Casement have undersoil heating?

[solidarity]

Any confirmation where the game will be played? The email from UR last night didn't specify a location. Maybe they're taking this secrecy thing to the limit!

[solidarity]

Front garden perfectly playable here in Bangor btw.

[BR]

Assume the difference is that they had an alternative pitch a short distance away at Lansdowne Road, whereas our contingency was a hundred miles away, when it should have been Gibson Park. With a name like that, IRFU/EPCR wouldn't have thought twice about allowing it.

gibson park does not have the infrastructure.

[BR]

Any confirmation where the game will be played? The email from UR last night didn't specify a location. Maybe they're taking this secrecy thing to the limit!

Lansdowne

[solidarity]

Just to avoid any confusion, that's not a hint about the secret location.

[solidarity]

Aha Lansdowne.

Is that https://www.thelansdownehotel.co.uk/
or, more likely https://www.carehome.co.uk/carehome.cfm ... 007005LANA

In either case, good to know it's staying in Belfast.

[Jackie Brown]

Assume the difference is that they had an alternative pitch a short distance away at Lansdowne Road, whereas our contingency was a hundred miles away, when it should have been Gibson Park. With a name like that, IRFU/EPCR wouldn't have thought twice about allowing it.

gibson park does not have the infrastructure.

If it's behind closed doors they don't need infrastructure

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[BR]

Assume the difference is that they had an alternative pitch a short distance away at Lansdowne Road, whereas our contingency was a hundred miles away, when it should have been Gibson Park. With a name like that, IRFU/EPCR wouldn't have thought twice about allowing it.

gibson park does not have the infrastructure.

If it's behind closed doors they don't need infrastructure

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It's on TV. They do.