Saracens V's Ulster HEC

[Mac]

Right, the match itself is a few weeks off yet................ but undoubtedly
is our main focus over the next four weeks.......& hopefully after.
So forget the 6N's, forget the Lions.............only one thing really matters in these parts.....

Three years in a row soooo, .......we must be doing something right.

So to kick it off...........we've mixed news.

Out - Tommy & Fez
In - (hopefully) JM, Chris, Slim Nick.

As it stands currently can anyone fill in the gaps.........in particular Roger, Jared?

BBC

Tommy Bowe likely to miss Ulster's Saracens clash.................

Tommy Bowe is hopeful of returning to action before the end of the season but looks likely to miss Ulster's Heineken Cup quarter-final against Saracens.

Wing Bowe, 29, suffered a serious knee injury in December and has been ruled out of Ireland's Six Nations campaign.

He expects to return to action next month but the Heineken Cup tie on 6 April may come too soon for him.

"The knee is coming along well. Hopefully, I'll be back within the next four or five weeks," said Bowe.

"I'm 12 weeks post operation at this stage and it's meant to be a 16-week recovery period."

Bowe starred in the 2009 Lions Tour to South Africa but he admits his injury woes this season may have put paid to his changes of being named in the Warren Gatland's squad for this summer.

"It would be a dream come true to be picked but unfortunately I've left myself in a very difficult situation," added the Monaghan man.

"To miss out on the Six Nations and to have not been playing for the last couple of months makes it very difficult.

"I'm just aiming to get back on to the pitch and hopefully to play well enough to push myself back into the Ulster team again. With Andrew Trimble and Craig Gilroy playing so well, that isn't going to be easy.

"But if I could get myself back playing well, who knows what could happens."

Bowe is among a number of Ulster players in line to return to action after injury over the coming weeks.

These include the likes of Johann Muller, Nick Williams and Chris Henry and Bowe believes that the Irish province can challenge for this season's major honours, despite the team's recent struggles, if they can get people "out of the gym and on to the pitch again".

"It would be a good position for Ulster with the key fixtures coming up and hopefully we would be in a strong position," added Bowe.

He was speaking on a day when his Ulster and Ireland team-mate Stephen Ferris was being linked with a possible move to Japan with his current Ravenhill deal running out this summer.

The Ulster wing spoke of his hope that Ferris would remain with the Irish province.

"It's a very difficult position to be in," said Bowe. "Contract negotiation is never an easy time and with all the injuries Stephen has had over the last year, you have to feel for him.

"Everybody is Ulster wants him to play on with Ulster and be in an Ulster shirt for the next couple of years."

http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/rugby-union/21776862

BTW..........when it comes to UR, ....only one Tommy matters

[Mac]

The Numbers.jpg (54.54 KiB) Viewed 5386 times

[Mac]

Thursday 14th Mar 2013

Enfield Advert

Saracens’ treble dreams end with semi-final defeat at Sale................

SARACENS’ hopes of becoming the first team ever to win all three major trophies in the same season came to an end on Sunday when they were beaten 21-15 at Sale in the semi-finals of the LV= Cup.

The visitors chose to largely keep faith with the players who had got them through to the knockout stages of the competition as they fielded virtually a second-string team for the match.

For much of the encounter it looked as if this would be enough to see off a full strength Sale side as Sarries, who had the advantage of a strong wind in their favour in the first half, opened up a 12-11 lead at the interval courtesy of four Ben Spencer penalties.

The Aviva Premiership leaders and Heineken Cup quarter-finals went on to dominate much of the second period, and a further Spencer penalty saw them extend their advantage just after the hour but, unlike in recent weeks, they were unable to turn their pressure into tries and were made to pay as Sale grabbed ten unanswered points in the final 13 minutes to secure victory.

“These guys that started got us into the semi-finals, and this was their reward for that achievement,” said forwards coach Paul Gustard. “I think it’s only right that they started the game.

“We didn’t play well in the first half. We didn’t take advantage of the wind, so we put ourselves on the back foot because we didn’t get the lead that we should have.

“We actually played very well in the second half. I don’t think that it was until the last 15 minutes that Sale got into our 22.

“We controlled the game pretty well in the second half and obviously had a strong bench that added to us, but unfortunately we made two or three mistakes and showed a bit of ill-discipline and then they scored a try.”

The hosts made a blistering start to the match and almost scored a try within the first two minutes when a concerted attack ended with them knocking on close to the line, but they were eventually rewarded for their early enterprise as Danny Cipriani slotted over a simple penalty from in front of the posts on four minutes.

However, Sale infringed from the resulting kick-off and Spencer made them pay by levelling the scores almost immediately.

With Saracens taking full advantage of the strong wind at their backs to dominate territorially, two further penalties from Spencer enabled them to move 9-3 ahead after 14 minutes.

Cipriani responded with a second penalty for Sale on 17 minutes, but this was cancelled out by a long-range effort from Spencer eight minutes later as Sarries continued to enjoy the better of the play.

But the visitors suffered a setback four minutes before the interval as Sale scored a bizarre try.

Hooker Tommy Taylor made a complete mess of a throw from a line-out on the Sarries 22, but the ball bounced perfectly into the hands of lock Tom Holmes, and he was able to race clear untouched to score out wide. Cipriani missed the difficult conversion.

Although the hosts had the wind in their favour in the second period, Saracens upped their game considerably and enjoyed almost complete dominance of territory and possession for more than 20 minutes.

One fine break from Ernst Joubert ten minutes after the restart led to a penalty which Spencer missed, but Sarries were unable to make the most of several good attacking positions – despite bolstering their side by bringing on the likes of Charlie Hodgson and Matt Stevens.

Having offered no attacking threat at all in the second period, Sale suddenly came to life and were awarded a penalty in a good position on 64 minutes which they kicked into the corner.

The hosts then opted for a scrum when they won another penalty deep in the 22 soon after, and the decision paid off as they swept the ball out wide and Nathan Fowles forced his way over the line in the corner after good work from James Gaskell.

Cipriani added the touchline conversion, and then slotted over another penalty with three minutes remaining as Sarries’ challenge petered out.

Saracens’ next match is at home to Harlequins in the Premiership on March 31.

Sale: Healy, Brady (Addison 69), Leota, Macleod, Ingall, Cipriani, Willis (Fowles 47), Harrison (Dickinson 50), Taylor (Jones 53), Thomas (Buckley 53), McKenzie, Holmes (Ostrikov 53), Gaskell, Seymour, Andy Powell.
Saracens: Auterac (Saunders 68), George (Brits 69), du Plessis (Stevens 60), Kruis, Botha (Hargreaves 55), Melck (Saull 55), Fenton-Wells, Joubert, Spencer (de Kock 68), Mordt (Hodgson 61), Maddock (Wilson 51), Adam Powell, Wyles, Short, Ransom.
Attendance: 3,129.

http://www.enfield-today.co.uk/Sport.cfm?id=8419

[Russ]

The only stat that matters is the bottom one

Championships 0-1

[Harold7]

Who did we lose 56-3 to? I can't remember that one. Was that back in the pre 1999 days? I seem to have vague recollections of Ulster getting humped in Cardiff one year, maybe about 1997 or 1998.

[Mac]

Who did we lose 56-3 to? I can't remember that one. Was that back in the pre 1999 days? I seem to have vague recollections of Ulster getting humped in Cardiff one year, maybe about 1997 or 1998.

Wasps at Loftus Rd 96-97.

[CIMANFOREVER]

Who did we lose 56-3 to? I can't remember that one. Was that back in the pre 1999 days? I seem to have vague recollections of Ulster getting humped in Cardiff one year, maybe about 1997 or 1998.

Cardiff humped us at Ravers too, 40 odd in the days when we had such giants as Mackey propping for us.......Quins did too, with Carling playing as I remember. We were gash around that time. Some awful players in compariosn to todays young local tyros

[bangorboy]

According to UR website we have sold 7k tickets out of a total sold for the venue of 20k.

If true that is some achievement.

[pip14]

7500...they'll probably hit 8,000

Their mascot gets it easy!

[ruckover]

If over a third of the crowd was ours I would consider that an incredible success, both supporters-wise and PR-wise with the whole #maketwickenhamhome campaign. Fair play to UR.

[big mervyn]

That's excellent really. I know of a couple of Quins fans going along to support Ulster. With a few more like-minded "neutrals", students and expats, we might have upwards of 10K standing up.

[Rooster]

That's excellent really. I know of a couple of Quins fans going along to support Ulster. With a few more like-minded "neutrals", students and expats, we might have upwards of 10K standing up.

I reckon that is about right Merv, know several people who bought from Ticketmaster rather than take the cheap tickets also some Leinster and Munster supporters buying plus exiles and most neutrals will be on our side so probably around half and half.

[Neill_M]

Do you think UR's 7k is included in the 20k sold as stated? Or is it 7k on top of the 20k = 27k? If its the former, Sarries aren't exactly shifting them are they - 13K only? Also 20k in a 80k stadium - no atmosphere?

[bangorboy]

No atmosphere my a%%se!!!

We're not just rugby supporters, we're ULSTER rugby supporters

[Russ]

Problem being, Sarries can now make a big final push for people, where as we have made our push

Unless we now make a push to the rest of the Irish diaspora, the Mexicans and Turnips who might want to see decent rugger that weekend and try and bring in the other major rugby clubs of the region

Hell, why not ask the RFU to get some England fans going, they wear white