The UAFC

Posted: **Sun Jan 21, 2024 11:57 am**

Lurgan Lad wrote: ↑Sun Jan 21, 2024 11:53 am Serious question, can anyone tell me something that Cunningham or Petrie has actually done that they were impressed with? I would prefer to replace both with one competent person.

Stay in a job with no measurable KPIs achieved? We're like the Civil Service or Hotel California ...
Cunningham gets out of jail with the odd big signing to gloss over the sh#tshow...

Posted: **Sun Jan 21, 2024 12:35 pm**

How much is big Steve costing us? Our set piece has deteriorated since his arrival. Dialing it in.

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Posted: **Sun Jan 21, 2024 1:04 pm**

As I recall Alex Ferguson chucked a boot at someone for a lot less.
It is a valid point though, no player should or can be bigger than the club. If some of the current squad are of the mind that they are then its time to reveal this to the fans as well as inviting them to feck away off.
Hammer mentioned Diack in the past but it seems that there are some in the current squad equally guilty today. Who?

Posted: **Sun Jan 21, 2024 1:16 pm**

horslips wrote: ↑Sun Jan 21, 2024 1:04 pm As I recall Alex Ferguson chucked a boot at someone for a lot less.
It is a valid point though, no player should or can be bigger than the club. If some of the current squad are of the mind that they are then its time to reveal this to the fans as well as inviting them to feck away off.
Hammer mentioned Diack in the past but it seems that there are some in the current squad equally guilty today. Who?

Two centres? No idea but Some should be glad to have a job in pro rugby. Put it this way, they either should be ashamed or disabused, preferably by voting with our feet or some sort of fleg protest....

A meet the fans QA would be funny- or would they cherry pick the audience? ST or URFC members only?

Maybe Petrie could do it by X/ TWATTER

Posted: **Sun Jan 21, 2024 2:53 pm**

HammerTime wrote: ↑Sun Jan 21, 2024 10:15 am All need to go but player power at Ulster needs sorted also. I've heard of plenty of stories about cocky players but one that always annoyed me from years ago is hearing about Robbie Diack challenging Brian McLaughlin in front of the whole group that he didn't rate his coaching. Now, all I remember Robbie Diack for is being soft as sh!te and single handedly costing us the 2013 final at the RDS. Who tf is he to come out with something like that, especially after said coach got us to a European Cup final the year before. These boys think they are something, as said on here many times before ... more happy to be strutting about the coffee shops of the Lisburn Road in their tracksuits or picking up their new motor at Bavarian BMW. The guys at Leinster must be p!shing themselves laughing at these losers. In the grand scheme of things (Irish Rugby) they are absolute nobody's. Also rans. A collective joke. Look at the plethora of coaches we've had and not one of them has been able to do anything with this lot. Does that not say something?? In saying that, DMF out. Cunningham out. Petrie out! And take a third of the squad with you.

Do these guys not get to take their nice shiney new cars home with them?

A big complaint seems to be about them always picking them up from Bavarian.

Do they have to take them back there every night and collect them again in the mornings?

Do they get a new one every day?

Just wondering, like.

Posted: **Sun Jan 21, 2024 2:56 pm**

UlsterNo9 wrote: ↑Sun Jan 21, 2024 10:29 am
Cap'n Grumpy wrote: ↑Sun Jan 21, 2024 10:13 am
Bigfacthunt wrote: ↑Sun Jan 21, 2024 9:59 am 800k? With kits off you couldn’t even afford a front row
I thought the £800K was So-It-Is's annual salary to take on the coaching job, not his budget for players.

I'd take the job for £500k, and happily fall on my sword when called upon to resign by the good bergers of this forum after one year of under-achievement.
No chance you're getting out that easy. Five years of under achievement is the minimum before anyone at Ulster Rugby resigns.

If it rrequires me to take £2.5M, then so be it.

Don't say I didn't offer to do it for 1/5th of that.

BTW, how much did Rory win today again?

I.E. How much is he not giving to Ulster Rugby then?

Posted: **Sun Jan 21, 2024 3:41 pm**

You’d imagine Petrie will be sniffing around the SRU job with Dodson leaving.
I can’t see Payne coming back while DMcF is top dog.

For me there is too much recontracting of poor performers, and too much jobs for the boys.
There’s no ruthless edge to any of it, no jeopardy.

I’d hope DH would be looking to rebuild UR, it’s an embarrassing mess. A number of outsiders need to come in and clear house. Everyone appears to be going through the motions, soundbites they don’t believe themselves. Whoever is responsible for contract decisions has to go.

Posted: **Sun Jan 21, 2024 7:04 pm**

Dharper wrote: ↑Sun Jan 21, 2024 3:41 pm For me there is too much recontracting of poor performers, and too much jobs for the boys.

Agree with too many jobs for the boys, your first point in the quoted is interesting though. If we have too many underperforming players, and discounting that it isn't a result of a poor culture for a second (which is obviously going to be a factor), what do you do?

I guess the only options are signing players from the other three provinces, taking on players from the AIL, or sourcing Irish granny qualified players from around the globe. On the assumption that there aren't that many AIL players of the required standard, only a few suitable from a global search, it supports signing more players from Leinster and the other provinces. Not ideal, but if the likes of Timoney bring more to the jersey then it probably is the way to go. Need to get the coaching and culture corrected first though.

Posted: **Sun Jan 21, 2024 8:30 pm**

We've had some good guys from other provinces: including Cooney and Timoney obviously. I guess some, like these two, come with a point to prove and Timoney certainly has done that. Cooney has as well but clearly his face doesn't fit. If we can find some more guys who are angry but not over the hill, we could do worse than sign half a dozen.

Posted: **Sun Jan 21, 2024 8:39 pm**

It’s a shame Timoney’s intensity isn’t infectious.

It’s actually quite hard not to bump into Ulster players around Belfast or at away games but he’s one bloke I’ve never seen.

He probably spends his time doing weird stuff like training or something.

Posted: **Mon Jan 22, 2024 10:10 am**

Not sure about the Payne love in, he’s clearly a very good coach but Scarlets are arguably worse than us at the minute. It would be a risk to take him back at this stage imo. Lots more guys out there who could steady the ship well.

Posted: **Mon Jan 22, 2024 10:23 am**

UlsterAreBrill wrote: ↑Mon Jan 22, 2024 10:10 am Not sure about the Payne love in, he’s clearly a very good coach but Scarlets are arguably worse than us at the minute. It would be a risk to take him back at this stage imo. Lots more guys out there who could steady the ship well.

The word “arguably” is superfluous!

Payne (and Peel) probably don’t have too much to work with but look at the difference in results at Scarlets when Lee Blackett was helping out last season.

And look at the difference Blackett has made at Bath.

He seems a bit uncomfortable under the ‘Head Coach’ spotlight but it looks like he does some great work on the training pitch.

Posted: **Mon Jan 22, 2024 10:54 am**

Can we reset the forum? It's all gone very toxic. Maybe even septic in parts. I'm not pointing fingers. Has Fermain lost the dressing room? Discuss...

Posted: **Mon Jan 22, 2024 1:28 pm**

Questions, as much to myself as anyone else!

Leaving the question of whether we can get access to money to one side for a minute.

Do I want a successful Ulster team, if that requires a minimum of say 10 or more non-Ulster born and bred players? It seems that Newcastle and Man C football supporters are more than happy with the dosh/success (admittedly not just yet for the Geordies but it will come), so maybe i would be, but I don’t think so. It is probably a generational thing, and my generation produced the all conquering team of the 80’s, but a team’s identity to me is important!

next question: do I think we can ever realistically and consistently win leagues and/or be top 4 in Europe with 10 or more Ulster born and bred players? Sadly I doubt it, kids have so many options now, they’d be laughing under their breath if anyone started ranting about bleeding red and white etc etc, changed times, and a lot of that is for the better I admit.

Genuine questions that I don’t have answers to.

Posted: **Mon Jan 22, 2024 1:59 pm**

Marco wrote: ↑Mon Jan 22, 2024 1:28 pm
Do I want a successful Ulster team, if that requires a minimum of say 10 or more non-Ulster born and bred players? It seems that Newcastle and Man C football supporters are more than happy with the dosh/success (admittedly not just yet for the Geordies but it will come), so maybe i would be, but I don’t think so. It is probably a generational thing, and my generation produced the all conquering team of the 80’s, but a team’s identity to me is important!

As an addendum to this, would it influence your thinking depending on how much the non-Ulster players bought into "the Ulster way" however you define it? There are players overs the years who almost view Ulster as home - Pienaar, Cooney, Muller etc - I'd be more than happy with a team of players like this bringing success

The UAFC

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