Dan’s Not the Man.
Moderator: Moderators
Re: Dan’s Not the Man.
Irish Indo saying the 20s coach Richie Murphy will be the interim coach.
-
DodgyEverything
- Novice
- Posts: 106
- Joined: Mon Mar 28, 2022 8:33 am
Re: Dan’s Not the Man.
Sensible pick IMO.
Like a long job interview for him really.
NUCIFORA IS A BELLEND
-
DodgyEverything
- Novice
- Posts: 106
- Joined: Mon Mar 28, 2022 8:33 am
Re: Dan’s Not the Man.
Indo's piece on that speculation
Ireland Under-20s coach Richie Murphy is set to be appointed as Ulster head coach on an interim basis when Dan McFarland's departure is confirmed by the province.
The former out-half has guided the underage stars to back-to-back Grand Slams and is on course for a third successive Championship, but the Irish Independent understands the lure of a senior professional job will prove too strong.
Murphy was a skills coach at Leinster and with the senior men's international team before striking out on his own with the U-20s in 2021.
It remains to be seen whether Ulster will cast their net further when seeking a long-term replacement, but Murphy has a chance to audition for the role in the coming weeks with Ulster looking to get their campaign back on track against the Dragons on Saturday week.
Murphy is likely to remain in charge of the U-20s for their clash with Wales on Friday night.
McFarland is set to step down with immediate effect after almost six seasons in charge. The Ulster squad was due to be informed of McFarland’s decision in a meeting today. The 51-year-old has been under pressure for some time, and the defeats by Harlequins and Ospreys in European and URC competitions respectively added to the pressure.
Assistant coach Dan Soper has been mentioned as a possible interim. Ulster – currently in eighth place in the URC table – are due to host the Dragons in Ravenhill on Saturday week.
They will be away to Montpellier in April in the round of 16 of the Challenge Cup, having failed to get out of the pool in the Champions Cup.
Oxfordshire-born McFarland was top of Ulster’s shopping list when they appointed him in 2018, but despite a positive opening couple of seasons – leading to a contract extension – he couldn’t deliver the silverware the province desperately need.
There is a clear out of the playing staff coming at the end of this season, including Billy Burns moving to Munster. It is understood there are no plans to recruit a replacement for him.
Two weeks ago, a senior IRFU source told the Irish Independent that the High Performance Unit in Lansdowne Road were working to try and find a solution to the sustained slump in mood and results in Ulster.
The strained financial situation in the province was seen as a key to whether or not McFarland would be kept on.
Re: Dan’s Not the Man.
I admire Dan if it is true he bit the bullet before being fired — it is only about 2 bad results away from the boo boys and abuse during the game and that’s the last thing the players need .
To some extent he suffered from staying to long and a failure in player development and backing some players who lacked the necessary aggressive will to die before failure .
Ulster were to nice on the pitch soft with refs and appeared to lack the will to complain
Leinster get to refs more often in away that Ulster never could .
For example the ref on Sunday complained about frequent fouling by Ulster four penalties in a row except the offences ? were unrelated and in different areas of the pitch and in some instances dubious in that the flow of the game was being broken more by the style of refereeing rather than offences alleged ie not rolling away when the ball was actual available and had been played .
Ie the referee was being petty
I’m not saying the referee was the reason Ulster lost but he didn’t help the players to settle .
To some extent he suffered from staying to long and a failure in player development and backing some players who lacked the necessary aggressive will to die before failure .
Ulster were to nice on the pitch soft with refs and appeared to lack the will to complain
Leinster get to refs more often in away that Ulster never could .
For example the ref on Sunday complained about frequent fouling by Ulster four penalties in a row except the offences ? were unrelated and in different areas of the pitch and in some instances dubious in that the flow of the game was being broken more by the style of refereeing rather than offences alleged ie not rolling away when the ball was actual available and had been played .
Ie the referee was being petty
I’m not saying the referee was the reason Ulster lost but he didn’t help the players to settle .
Within this carapace of skepticism there lives an optimist
Re: Dan’s Not the Man.
Yes, although 15 years of success may not have adequately prepared him for the role!
Paying someone they’re already paying fits in with the financial narrative in the article.
Maybe two Murphy Jnrs and a few more U20s to follow him….?
Last edited by justinr73 on Wed Feb 21, 2024 2:01 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Re: Dan’s Not the Man.
Quality on field leadership would solve that problem, an area where Ulster have been lacking since Rory and Muller.rumncoke wrote: ↑Wed Feb 21, 2024 1:48 pm I admire Dan if it is true he bit the bullet before being fired — it is only about 2 bad results away from the boo boys and abuse during the game and that’s the last thing the players need .
To some extent he suffered from staying to long and a failure in player development and backing some players who lacked the necessary aggressive will to die before failure .
Ulster were to nice on the pitch soft with refs and appeared to lack the will to complain
Leinster get to refs more often in away that Ulster never could .
For example the ref on Sunday complained about frequent fouling by Ulster four penalties in a row except the offences ? were unrelated and in different areas of the pitch and in some instances dubious in that the flow of the game was being broken more by the style of refereeing rather than offences alleged ie not rolling away when the ball was actual available and had been played .
Ie the referee was being petty
I’m not saying the referee was the reason Ulster lost but he didn’t help the players to settle .
POM is the best in the world at it. He must go down with an "injury" 3 or 4 times a game, which takes the sting out of the opposition's momentum and allows the side to regroup.
Its cyncial play, but the man has led and been a part of sides that have done great things. Hume did not look like a cool, calm and collected leader. Hendy ain't the ideal leader either (on the off chance he is playing). AOC won't/shouldn't be a starter.
The on-field leadership deficit needs addressed, amongst a host of other issues. But it should be near the top of the pile imo.
Re: Dan’s Not the Man.
We’ve got a URC winning captain at the club.
-
Cockatrice
- Lord Chancellor
- Posts: 8240
- Joined: Sat Jun 11, 2005 11:06 am
Re: Dan’s Not the Man.
Did he go for the Leicester job? Wasted years but strangely until the likes of Cummingham and others fall on sword it will be more the same.. Cunningham is the man responsible for recruitment and all operational side … so how can he constantly escape the knifeGerald the Mole wrote: ↑Wed Feb 21, 2024 10:33 amMore than a two year lossCIMANFOREVER wrote: ↑Wed Feb 21, 2024 10:31 am For clarity on this, there's no gloating- relief all round and the knowledge that the real work begins for 2 years lost. It's going to get worse before it gets better, but that's the collateral for this mess. We haven't bottomed out
Currently studying Stage 5 (level3) at IRFU
Re: Dan’s Not the Man.
Whoever comes in I just hope they have a pair and are prepared to do what is necessary to move the club forward.
Too many fringe players, hangers on who play a blinder for a few matches when contract is due then slip back into mediocrity afterwards.
Conditioning of some players is brutal. Who the feck is responsible for putting Marty Moore on the pitch is his state. Is there a S&C coach and is he stealing a living?
I get that issues with coach can impair performance but forgeting about pride in the Club/Team/Province what about personal pride? Do Ulster players get such an easy time they know they get away with sub par performances and it doesn't really matter? Do we need someone who isn't afraid to knock heads or ruffle a few feathers?
If only Petrie would come out and state the fecking obvious - we are a shadow of what we were and it will be a long road ahead. Instead we will probably get the usual platitudes and spin...
Too many fringe players, hangers on who play a blinder for a few matches when contract is due then slip back into mediocrity afterwards.
Conditioning of some players is brutal. Who the feck is responsible for putting Marty Moore on the pitch is his state. Is there a S&C coach and is he stealing a living?
I get that issues with coach can impair performance but forgeting about pride in the Club/Team/Province what about personal pride? Do Ulster players get such an easy time they know they get away with sub par performances and it doesn't really matter? Do we need someone who isn't afraid to knock heads or ruffle a few feathers?
If only Petrie would come out and state the fecking obvious - we are a shadow of what we were and it will be a long road ahead. Instead we will probably get the usual platitudes and spin...
Nevin Spence - Forever an Ulsterman
Re: Dan’s Not the Man.
I get it that when the likes of DV and Kitshoff come in they don't want to start throwing their weight around in terms of leadership etc straightaway but in the case of Kitshoff this is a club in crisis and if he believes he can play a bigger part in turning things around then he should step up now.
I recall DV was made captain for one game in SA (last season or year before). Might have been a coincidence or wanting to impress Rassie/Jacques but really led from the front and had a huge game. Was never made captain again I think.
Re: Dan’s Not the Man.
Under 20 Irish coach, Richie Murphy, tipped to take over at the Kingspan .
I hope he finishes the 6N as he would ge a big loss.
I hope he finishes the 6N as he would ge a big loss.
Re: Dan’s Not the Man.
Brendan Fanning.
If Ireland succeed in breaking new ground with back-to-back Grand Slams, it will spark another tour by students who marvel at the system here.
In the way the Ajax football academy became a virtual tourist attraction for that city, Ireland’s contented blend between province and country has become one of the wonders of the sporting world.
Sometimes, size isn’t everything. In Ireland’s case, being small means not much escapes the eye of head office, so the IRFU get early warning on a crisis developing in one of the provinces. Not for the first time in recent history, they were drawn to the sound of an alarm ringing in Ravenhill.
It was inconceivable that coach Dan McFarland could survive in a job where, evidently, he was so unhappy. His demeanour at the TV interview after the defeat by Ospreys on Sunday was not that of a man with the hump over a bad refereeing call, but instead, a camel with twin humps: one with the ref and the other with the interviewer for suggesting Ulster shouldn’t have allowed themselves be in that position in the endgame. It was a perfectly reasonable position for the interviewer to adopt. Sadly, however, the self-awareness button was no longer on the McFarland console.
The timing of this is interesting and important. You’d imagine it crossed the mind of David Humphreys when he was chatting to IRFU CEO Kevin Potts that if the former outhalf was to succeed David Nucifora as the union’s High Performance Director, then Ulster likely would be the first item on his agenda.
It was clear from way back McFarland’s abrasive style was not working with a group that needed something, or someone, different to get the quality from the team sheet onto the playing pitch. It’s not just the head coach in the frame here, for there are fundamental problems with the culture of an organisation that has whingeing as its default.
This was best seen when, a few months after McFarland was given a contract extension in 2022, they failed to present the Ravenhill pitch in working order for their European tie with the holders, La Rochelle.
Their CEO Jonny Petrie reckoned the lost gate took £700k out of their budget. Between the pair of them, McFarland and Petrie kicked off a pity party, blaming EPCR for a calamity clearly caused by Ulster’s failure to do the basics of housekeeping. It was pathetic. The damage done to the Ulster brand has been compounded ever since by failure on the pitch, McFarland’s excuses in explaining that failure, and the steady stream of troubled waters flowing from Ravenhill.
So where does Humphreys start? Ulster have URC and Challenge Cup fixtures around the corner. so somebody needs to climb into the cab and drive the truck. Ideally. someone local.
The bigger issue is direction. Who is the best fit to lead the organisation as head coach, the man who engages with the public more than any individual player or member of the board? Will that man be happy that his CEO is on the same page, that the Ulster Rugby machine is covering all the bases across schools and clubs in its nine counties to generate quality players who want to wear the jersey? Is there any cash in the bank to spend on improving the squad?
You might run through that list and decide this is not a bus you want to catch. The Ulster job is a whopper. If you were drawing a map for pro sport on this island, Ulster would be an anchor tenant. They have a solid fan base, a decent stadium and good support facilities. But their demand is different to the other three provinces. This has less to do with the one-off European Cup win in 1999 – and that’s exactly what it was – and more to do with their need for recognition. You have to reward the unique position they enjoy in Irish rugby with success.
In the current circumstances, Ulster need a frontman with rock-solid credentials and a bit of personality. Ian Foster would fit the bill. He has been catching his breath post-World Cup, where defeat in the final was his last act as New Zealand coach. Time for change, so why not haul ass to Europe and a northern outpost desperately looking for leadership? Foster has a huge bank of rugby experience and would enhance the landscape across the game here.
There will be support up north, too, for Jared Payne, who the players sorely missed when he didn’t get the attack coach job two years ago after Dwayne Peel headed back to the Scarlets. You might think Payne would be an even better fit for Leinster, who need to fill the gap once their attack coach, Andrew Goodman, moves up to Ireland at the end of the season. Leinster could afford to pick up the tab for getting Payne out of Llanelli, whereas cash-strapped Ulster would rather a free agent – such as Foster.
This is all on the desk of Humphreys, who will have some scar tissue from his own time running the show in Ravenhill. And he thought he had left it all behind.
Ulster have to shave the guts of £1m off their wage bill next season, pay off McFarland for the remainder of his contract, which extended to next year, and get a new man installed.
The likelihood is they will turn to Richie Murphy to scoot up the M1 in time for work on Monday morning. Murphy has achieved great things with the Ireland under-20s but will be aiming no higher than to calm the Ulster natives until the end of the season.
Depending on how that goes, either he will pitch for the job longer term or reassess where he should go next.
That will give Humphreys some breathing space and maybe time to figure out how to raise some extra cash. Ireland Inc. can’t afford to have dysfunction in its much-admired system. That’s not the way it’s supposed to be. The rehab starts now
If Ireland succeed in breaking new ground with back-to-back Grand Slams, it will spark another tour by students who marvel at the system here.
In the way the Ajax football academy became a virtual tourist attraction for that city, Ireland’s contented blend between province and country has become one of the wonders of the sporting world.
Sometimes, size isn’t everything. In Ireland’s case, being small means not much escapes the eye of head office, so the IRFU get early warning on a crisis developing in one of the provinces. Not for the first time in recent history, they were drawn to the sound of an alarm ringing in Ravenhill.
It was inconceivable that coach Dan McFarland could survive in a job where, evidently, he was so unhappy. His demeanour at the TV interview after the defeat by Ospreys on Sunday was not that of a man with the hump over a bad refereeing call, but instead, a camel with twin humps: one with the ref and the other with the interviewer for suggesting Ulster shouldn’t have allowed themselves be in that position in the endgame. It was a perfectly reasonable position for the interviewer to adopt. Sadly, however, the self-awareness button was no longer on the McFarland console.
The timing of this is interesting and important. You’d imagine it crossed the mind of David Humphreys when he was chatting to IRFU CEO Kevin Potts that if the former outhalf was to succeed David Nucifora as the union’s High Performance Director, then Ulster likely would be the first item on his agenda.
It was clear from way back McFarland’s abrasive style was not working with a group that needed something, or someone, different to get the quality from the team sheet onto the playing pitch. It’s not just the head coach in the frame here, for there are fundamental problems with the culture of an organisation that has whingeing as its default.
This was best seen when, a few months after McFarland was given a contract extension in 2022, they failed to present the Ravenhill pitch in working order for their European tie with the holders, La Rochelle.
Their CEO Jonny Petrie reckoned the lost gate took £700k out of their budget. Between the pair of them, McFarland and Petrie kicked off a pity party, blaming EPCR for a calamity clearly caused by Ulster’s failure to do the basics of housekeeping. It was pathetic. The damage done to the Ulster brand has been compounded ever since by failure on the pitch, McFarland’s excuses in explaining that failure, and the steady stream of troubled waters flowing from Ravenhill.
So where does Humphreys start? Ulster have URC and Challenge Cup fixtures around the corner. so somebody needs to climb into the cab and drive the truck. Ideally. someone local.
The bigger issue is direction. Who is the best fit to lead the organisation as head coach, the man who engages with the public more than any individual player or member of the board? Will that man be happy that his CEO is on the same page, that the Ulster Rugby machine is covering all the bases across schools and clubs in its nine counties to generate quality players who want to wear the jersey? Is there any cash in the bank to spend on improving the squad?
You might run through that list and decide this is not a bus you want to catch. The Ulster job is a whopper. If you were drawing a map for pro sport on this island, Ulster would be an anchor tenant. They have a solid fan base, a decent stadium and good support facilities. But their demand is different to the other three provinces. This has less to do with the one-off European Cup win in 1999 – and that’s exactly what it was – and more to do with their need for recognition. You have to reward the unique position they enjoy in Irish rugby with success.
In the current circumstances, Ulster need a frontman with rock-solid credentials and a bit of personality. Ian Foster would fit the bill. He has been catching his breath post-World Cup, where defeat in the final was his last act as New Zealand coach. Time for change, so why not haul ass to Europe and a northern outpost desperately looking for leadership? Foster has a huge bank of rugby experience and would enhance the landscape across the game here.
There will be support up north, too, for Jared Payne, who the players sorely missed when he didn’t get the attack coach job two years ago after Dwayne Peel headed back to the Scarlets. You might think Payne would be an even better fit for Leinster, who need to fill the gap once their attack coach, Andrew Goodman, moves up to Ireland at the end of the season. Leinster could afford to pick up the tab for getting Payne out of Llanelli, whereas cash-strapped Ulster would rather a free agent – such as Foster.
This is all on the desk of Humphreys, who will have some scar tissue from his own time running the show in Ravenhill. And he thought he had left it all behind.
Ulster have to shave the guts of £1m off their wage bill next season, pay off McFarland for the remainder of his contract, which extended to next year, and get a new man installed.
The likelihood is they will turn to Richie Murphy to scoot up the M1 in time for work on Monday morning. Murphy has achieved great things with the Ireland under-20s but will be aiming no higher than to calm the Ulster natives until the end of the season.
Depending on how that goes, either he will pitch for the job longer term or reassess where he should go next.
That will give Humphreys some breathing space and maybe time to figure out how to raise some extra cash. Ireland Inc. can’t afford to have dysfunction in its much-admired system. That’s not the way it’s supposed to be. The rehab starts now
Re: Dan’s Not the Man.
Is he gone yet?