Glasgow Vs Ulster Fri 17th Feb @ 7.45pm Viaplay Sports 1

[Bobbievee]

"Atmosphere at Ravenhill is terrible, fiasco with the La Rochelle game especially letting their fans in"

" anybody know what happened to the UR investigation and the separate ECPR investigation into the La Rochelle shambles?

[jean valjean]

We were playing much better stuff last year with the same personnel, so the signings aren't the problem. Remember those nice tip on passes our front 5 used to do to give guys a chance to get over the gain line? Remember those strike moves in midfield with hard running centres or wingers coming in-field? All but non-existent this year.
Without Hendo and McCloskey our go forward is stymied hugely.

Disagree - how can we have squad depth when our new signings can’t get anywhere near the team?

Reffell has been unlucky with injuries, admittedly, and can clearly tackle, if (quite conceivably) nothing else.

Our squad wasn't any stronger last year but we played better is my point. We can't blame the signings for how fragile we are now. we all thought mccann, izzy, postlewaite were the future with hume, lowry, doak all stepping up a level again but injury aside none of them have. The absence of rea jnr is a major question mark over Dan's management. The guy won the most turnovers of any player last season yet has barely featured for 2 months.

[CIMANFOREVER]

Apart from JTA, Reffell is the only one we should retain. Unlucky with injury and rated at Sarries.
The rest? Meh filler.

JTA has been great. Any sign of a contract extension?

None Reffell IQ?

[CIMANFOREVER]

We were playing much better stuff last year with the same personnel, so the signings aren't the problem. Remember those nice tip on passes our front 5 used to do to give guys a chance to get over the gain line? Remember those strike moves in midfield with hard running centres or wingers coming in-field? All but non-existent this year.
Without Hendo and McCloskey our go forward is stymied hugely.

Disagree - how can we have squad depth when our new signings can’t get anywhere near the team?

Reffell has been unlucky with injuries, admittedly, and can clearly tackle, if (quite conceivably) nothing else.

Our squad wasn't any stronger last year but we played better is my point. We can't blame the signings for how fragile we are now. we all thought mccann, izzy, postlewaite were the future with hume, lowry, doak all stepping up a level again but injury aside none of them have. The absence of rea jnr is a major question mark over Dan's management. The guy won the most turnovers of any player last season yet has barely featured for 2 months.

Many of us have been consistently questioning selections and " favourites " like Jones, non selection of Luke etc for a long time , or playing the likes of Moore on the wing at one stage. Starting EOS over a test Lion Sutherland in a huge game? Bizarre selections and favourites/ extended exiles (albeit we don't know why and I assume WhatsApp isn't involved ) make me question whether the end of the road is in sight for D McF and the management team. Of them I'd only keep Soper who was rated by IRFU.

The marked stalling of many of the younger players in the squad, plus seeming drifting/ lack of influence by the so called senior players/ leadership team indicates that the end of the road may be in sight for Dan et al, if we don't have what would be termed an acceptable end of season position.

We scraped last 16 EPCR, and will go no further- being worse than last season in terms of qualifying results- embarrassing we got through with 1 win.

If we don't qualify for play offs- at the minute I have serious doubts as we have no momentum unlike Weegies etc, then we've went backwards with a squad/ management team therefore in decline after a 5 year term, and some obvious weak,links in attack / defensive skills coaching/ strategies.
Minimum steady state is play offs- home advantage gone and most likely Ladybois away again.
The fact that an asset we've very luckily stumbled on like JTA hasn't been gift wrapped with a contract speaks volumes. Without him we' re relying on Andy W moving across in TOTs abence, and a tighthead who isn't capable or trusted by the management. Wheres the academy talent comjng through? Is that the sucession planning of a wannabe top European club? Scandalous

[Dharper]

The game was that dire I fast forwarded parts of the 2nd half.

A few general pts:

The conditions were absolutely filthy, not fully conveyed on the tv pictures. That for me is when we get really found out, both as a playing squad, and specifically in my opinion tactically.

“Box kick, pick and go, box kick, pick and go”. We are bar stewart without a consistent gainline carrier in that pack (timoney is ok) that just isn’t acceptable if your gonna play that style game.

Box kicking in those conditions are a complete lottery. I’d have said kick the corners pin them in the 22, get their hooker under pressure and compete on throw. Smother them with linespeed and Get them to kick back possession to us against the wind or they play from very deep targeting their breakdown when we had the wind, trying to save the packs energy for when we don’t have the wind.

We had little carrying threat…made worse by carrying from a standstill, unlike Glasgow forwards who generally ran with venom. Little breakdown threat. It was insipid stuff.

The playing by numbers stuff is poor: not running onto the ball, literally standing 1 out for the next carry watching an uneesourced ruck about to be turned over and not react. That squad isn’t prepared to go off script, which is worrying.

Stewart overplayed at times but he was exposed by older pros not covering him.

Doak is clearly being invested in, because for me cooney should currently be starting….would he have got more out of that pack?….yes, for me.

Assessing a backline in those Conditions and behind that pack is not ideal.

[StandUp]

We were playing much better stuff last year with the same personnel, so the signings aren't the problem. Remember those nice tip on passes our front 5 used to do to give guys a chance to get over the gain line? Remember those strike moves in midfield with hard running centres or wingers coming in-field? All but non-existent this year.
Without Hendo and McCloskey our go forward is stymied hugely.

Disagree - how can we have squad depth when our new signings can’t get anywhere near the team?

Reffell has been unlucky with injuries, admittedly, and can clearly tackle, if (quite conceivably) nothing else.

Our squad wasn't any stronger last year but we played better is my point. We can't blame the signings for how fragile we are now. we all thought mccann, izzy, postlewaite were the future with hume, lowry, doak all stepping up a level again but injury aside none of them have. The absence of rea jnr is a major question mark over Dan's management. The guy won the most turnovers of any player last season yet has barely featured for 2 months.

Many of us have been consistently questioning selections and " favourites " like Jones, non selection of Luke etc for a long time , or playing the likes of Moore on the wing at one stage. Starting EOS over a test Lion Sutherland in a huge game? Bizarre selections and favourites/ extended exiles (albeit we don't know why and I assume WhatsApp isn't involved ) make me question whether the end of the road is in sight for D McF and the management team. Of them I'd only keep Soper who was rated by IRFU.

The marked stalling of many of the younger players in the squad, plus seeming drifting/ lack of influence by the so called senior players/ leadership team indicates that the end of the road may be in sight for Dan et al, if we don't have what would be termed an acceptable end of season position.

We scraped last 16 EPCR, and will go no further- being worse than last season in terms of qualifying results- embarrassing we got through with 1 win.

If we don't qualify for play offs- at the minute I have serious doubts as we have no momentum unlike Weegies etc, then we've went backwards with a squad/ management team therefore in decline after a 5 year term, and some obvious weak,links in attack / defensive skills coaching/ strategies.
Minimum steady state is play offs- home advantage gone and most likely Ladybois away again.
The fact that an asset we've very luckily stumbled on like JTA hasn't been gift wrapped with a contract speaks volumes. Without him we' re relying on Andy W moving across in TOTs abence, and a tighthead who isn't capable or trusted by the management. Wheres the academy talent comjng through? Is that the sucession planning of a wannabe top European club? Scandalous

Is Soper not our current attack coach? Our attack is non existent.

[Big-al]

The attack is the weakest part of our game. Soper has serious questions to answer, the attack has been regressing ever since Peel left for the Scarlets. If it wasn't for the attacking maul, Ulster would be struggling to finish basic scores.

I think Scott Wilson needs a look at, even if Milo can somehow get by in the scrum without giving penalties away, he is an utter liability in open play.

[Dave]

Defending is pretty ropey, too. If we didn't have to defend or attack, we would be doing better.

[CIMANFOREVER]

The attack is the weakest part of our game. Soper has serious questions to answer, the attack has been regressing ever since Peel left for the Scarlets. If it wasn't for the attacking maul, Ulster would be struggling to finish basic scores.

I think Scott Wilson needs a look at, even if Milo can somehow get by in the scrum without giving penalties away, he is an utter liability in open play.

Milo can't. I thought Soper was skills so my mistake I must admit, and disappointing then as he had a decent start with UR and IRFU.

[Columbo]

The attack is the weakest part of our game. Soper has serious questions to answer, the attack has been regressing ever since Peel left for the Scarlets. If it wasn't for the attacking maul, Ulster would be struggling to finish basic scores.

I think Scott Wilson needs a look at, even if Milo can somehow get by in the scrum without giving penalties away, he is an utter liability in open play.

Milo can't. I thought Soper was skills so my mistake I must admit, and disappointing then as he had a decent start with UR and IRFU.

I’ve heard he’s very strong as skills coach, but that doesn’t seem to translate to running the attack.

It’s frustrating because we’ve seen recently that we’ve still got a good squad of players and are capable of producing performances - but it seems to me we just don’t have the sound foundations to keep it up and reproduce, especially when any kind of heat comes on.

[CIMANFOREVER]

Just shows extent of Payne's and Peels influence in absentia

[jean valjean]

Can someone clarify if the following was correct:

1 - Peel offered chance to head up the scarlets, 2- Payne wanted to replace him as assistant coach, 3 - Soper given job instead of Payne, 4 - Payne leaves for clermont, 5 - bell brought in to replace Payne, 6 - newby brought in to replace Soper.

It seems we have lost more than we gained to he honest. Did Dan see Payne as a possible threat to replace him with Soper more of a yes man?

[CIMANFOREVER]

We're being unfair to Soper. If true, foot and shot comes to mind. All speculation tbf, but team is diminished and Payne and Peel rightly had greater ambitions and ceilings

[TheUlsterTruth]

Jean Valjean 100% correct

[Dave]

Can someone clarify if the following was correct:

1 - Peel offered chance to head up the scarlets, 2- Payne wanted to replace him as assistant coach, 3 - Soper given job instead of Payne, 4 - Payne leaves for clermont, 5 - bell brought in to replace Payne, 6 - newby brought in to replace Soper.

It seems we have lost more than we gained to he honest. Did Dan see Payne as a possible threat to replace him with Soper more of a yes man?

Who disasterminded this thunderfuckup? Dan/Petrie/Bryn - the axis of binweavel brains.