Darcy???

[Bellyups]

What does Gordon Darcy have to do to get dropped? He's been consistently awful over the last 5 or 6 years but they still keep churning him out. If Kidney was brave to choose Cave who deserves a run which Ulster player would he drop to compensate for another Ulster player being in the team???

[Harold7]

What does Gordon Darcy have to do to get dropped? He's been consistently awful over the last 5 or 6 years but they still keep churning him out. If Kidney was brave to choose Cave who deserves a run which Ulster player would he drop to compensate for another Ulster player being in the team???

Well your problem there is that D'Arcy is a 12 and Cave is a 13.

[Shan]

What does Gordon Darcy have to do to get dropped? He's been consistently awful over the last 5 or 6 years but they still keep churning him out. If Kidney was brave to choose Cave who deserves a run which Ulster player would he drop to compensate for another Ulster player being in the team???

Think you may need to consider changing sports. FFS.

[Jackie Brown]

He played well on Saturday,

next

[Shan]

(1) D'Arcy, despite what people say has been playing well.
(2) Is still the best 12 option in Ireland.
(3) Has benefitted from a central contract to the extent where no one else has even been tried.

You should have stopped after number 2 mate. You were doing so well.

Paddy Wallace has a central contract. Sometimes the better player is selected simply for that reason. Wallace has always been a good player, was treated poorly by EOS in particularly existing in a darkened waiting room for Ireland as a "just in case emergency prop" but is not and never was a better international option than Darcy.....he was a valiant and able replacement as we saw in 2009.

[Neil F]

In some respects, I agree with the assertion that D'Arcy's central contract has aided his selection. I don't know the view LK has on the "inside the black box" part between central contract and selection, of course. Mine is that central contracts keep players at provinces, which limits the playing time for potential alternates. By not having to directly pay for the services of a (comparatively) expensive player like D'Arcy, Leinster have a huge incentive to keep him on the books. D'Arcy is the best option Leinster have, they don't pay for him, he starts when fit; the next best alternative then has restricted game time, preventing the alternative ever stringing together enough performances to become an international option.

If D'Arcy were not centrally contracted, Leinster may look at this trade-off differently; having to fork out more provincial resources on a player who is better (but not hugely better) than the next best alternative may seem like a less good deal if that also means that Leinster can't hold onto, say, Isa Nacewa. Accordingly, D'Arcy goes off somewhere else and plays his rugby; McFadden or A.N. Other comes into the Leinster team, plays regularly, significantly improves his game and so on... In this process, McFadden could become the international option that he is not, currently, because he's playing more regularly and his game would be expected to improve, as a result. This then puts the pressure back on D'Arcy to deliver, or to face being dropped from the national side.

I would never suggest D'Arcy is selected, only, because he has a central contract - those conspiracy theories disturb me more than the ones about chemtrails from airplanes - but I can see a mechanism by which centrally contracted players remain the incumbent at provincial and national level longer than they otherwise may have.

[Shan]

Oops you are correct. Number 4 is indeed accurate and thankfully so IMO.

If Darcy is out it is a real pain in the balls. There's no other expression which sums it up. Ahhhhhhhhh but if this happens and I am afraid it does look a real possibility there's only one option v England and that is McFadden. England are too physical to expose Wallace and who else is there really.

I wish Marshall was fit and had another year in him but he isn't and doesn't so there you go.

My one major fear is that DK will just go ahead and select Earls with BOD. This has not worked and will not work and it will probably cost us the game.

If he won't play McFadden then the only option is Cave with BOD. At least that way you'd stay tight on the defensive side in a similar way to McFadden with BOD.....the advantage of McFadden over Cave is that BOD stays in his correct position where he is most effective. This should be the crucial aspect of selection such is his impact and importance.

[Shan]

If D'Arcy were not centrally contracted, Leinster may look at this trade-off differently; having to fork out more provincial resources on a player who is better (but not hugely better) than the next best alternative may seem like a less good deal if that also means that Leinster can't hold onto, say, Isa Nacewa. Accordingly, D'Arcy goes off somewhere else and plays his rugby; McFadden or A.N. Other comes into the Leinster team, plays regularly, significantly improves his game and so on... In this process, McFadden could become the international option that he is not, currently, because he's playing more regularly and his game would be expected to improve, as a result. This then puts the pressure back on D'Arcy to deliver, or to face being dropped from the national side.

Neil, you are going to have folk blaming Paddy Wallace for holding up Luke Marshall's development. I hope the Ravenhill faithful don't turn on this Ulster legend.

[Neil F]

Neil, you are going to have folk blaming Paddy Wallace for holding up Luke Marshall's development. I hope the Ravenhill faithful don't turn on this Ulster legend.

As an Ulster fan; I would be glad to have Wallace on Ulster's books for as long as he can go at this level. He's a smart, classy operator with fantastic feet and great hands. As an Ireland fan, I accept that, except in the most pressed of situations, he'll never pull on a green shirt again. In that situation, it would be better for Ireland for Marshall to be starting at Ulster. Although in this particular case, I don't think we need worry - Marshall was well on his way to incumbency before his recent injury, so Ulster should be able to hold onto both players, guilt free

[breakdown]

With D'arcy out I'd really like to see BOD at 12 with Cave outside him, but we all know that wont happen

[Shan]

You see Shan, when you run through it (3) stacks up as well. C. 20 international matches post RWC and how many 12s have we tried? Now, D'Arcy was carried off and we are all wondering who now?

Damn you LK. Sometimes I forget just how smart you are. I should have known that original post would come back to haunt me. Jumped in too quickly and concentrated on a narrow point I was making without considering the entirety of what you were saying and have now suffered the consequences of such short-sightedness.......please please please don't let DK do this if the legend isn't fit v England.

[Tevez]

Last knight is correct, no Cave while Deccie in charge.

[Shan]

Neil, you are going to have folk blaming Paddy Wallace for holding up Luke Marshall's development. I hope the Ravenhill faithful don't turn on this Ulster legend.

As an Ulster fan; I would be glad to have Wallace on Ulster's books for as long as he can go at this level. He's a smart, classy operator with fantastic feet and great hands. As an Ireland fan, I accept that, except in the most pressed of situations, he'll never pull on a green shirt again. In that situation, it would be better for Ireland for Marshall to be starting at Ulster. Although in this particular case, I don't think we need worry - Marshall was well on his way to incumbency before his recent injury, so Ulster should be able to hold onto both players, guilt free

This is a very fair point Neil. I would say that IMO Marshall will be better. I think he may have all the subtlety and smarts of Wallace together with the physical ability to prosper at modern international level....or maybe I am seeing things which aren't there. I guess I can be a touch guilty of being a little blinkered when it comes to players I like and I have really rated young Marshall since the first time I saw him play.

[Shan]

Last knight is correct, no Cave while Deccie in charge.

Well he did play a few minutes in NZ. But I would say it is no Cave while BOD is available. I'm not sure why people would want to move the best outside centre out of position although as I said if it was a choice between Earls and Cave to partner BOD I would only select Cave.

[ruckover]

I said it on the other thread - D'Arcy and BOD together are the best Irish partnership. While both are fit, both will play.