London Irish v Munster

[munstermuffin]

Yes and well O Leary now likely to be in a race to make AIs. Stringer will be in and well his pass will be an asset and well he will believe he can get back into Irish team now the jersey up for grabs.

 

[coonor]

I feel sorry for O'leary he really needed a good AI as the no.9 jersey is really competetive now there are lots of players that could take the scrum half jersey.

 

[munstermuffin]

Coonor I disagree as I think Kidney prefers Tomas no matter what but think this might be the best thing as well Stringer is playing well and will be determined to keep the shirt and that will make O'Leary have to try up his form.

 

[munstermuffin]

Paul Warwick dropped so Johne Murphy at 15. Hurley on Wing. No Quinny in team and Wallace on bench

 

[Gavin]

You got in just before me munstermuffin.

Munster: J Murphy; D Howlett, K Earls, S Tuitupou, D Hurley, R O'Gara, P Stringer; W du Preez, D Varley, T Buckley; D O'Callaghan, D Ryan; D Leamy capt, N Ronan J Coughlan.Replacements: M Sherry, M Horan, J Hayes, M O'Driscoll, D Wallace, D Williams, P Warwick, S Deasy.

Really not sure about that team. Warwick on the bench, no Quinlan. Do you think the Munster coaches have an eye on the home matches, and easier away matches seeing as London Irish are in such great form?

 

[Gavin]

London Irish: 15. Delon Armitage*; 14. Topsy Ojo*; 13. Elvis Seveali'i*; 12. Seilala Mapusua *; 11; Sailosi Tagicakibau; 10. Ryan Lamb; 9. Paul Hodgson*; 1. Clarke Dermody* (captain); 2. James Buckland; 3. Faan Rautenbach; 4. Nick Kennedy*; 5. Bob Casey*; 6. Kieran Roche; 7. Declan Danaher; 8. George Stowers*.
Replacements: 16. David Paice*; 17. Max Lahiff; 18. Alex Corbisiero; 19. Matt Garvey; 20. Chris Hala'ufia; 21. Jonathan Joseph; 22. Daniel Bowden; 23. Darren Allinson.

Compare the Munster team to the London Irish team. Munster could be in for a pounding.

 

[munstermuffin]

If I'm honest and well seen them in training I thought it was just a kick up the backside because players dropped except Quinlan haven't been great but Tony has carried them out in the selection.
1 thing I'd say about Coughlan though is he always does a solid job but it Niall Ronan who I'd be slightly more worried about. I think we wouldve went with a 5-2 split in the backs if O'Leary was available but Quinny is unlucky in my eyes and seen Felix Jones yesterday all I could think is of what might have been for him.

 

[snoopy snoopy dog dog]

Munster: J Murphy; D Howlett, K Earls, S Tuitupou, D Hurley, R O'Gara, P Stringer; W du Preez, D Varley, T Buckley; D O'Callaghan, D Ryan; D Leamy capt, N Ronan J Coughlan.Replacements: M Sherry, M Horan, J Hayes, M O'Driscoll, D Wallace, D Williams, P Warwick, S Deasy.

That signals a real changing of the guard for Munster.Horan, Flannery, Hayes, O'Connell, Quinlan and Wallace would have undoubtedly been first choice this time last year- now those 6 are out for a variety of reasons. Horan and Hayes deserve to be dropped and Varley is the equal of Flannery but O'Connell is a huge loss and I feel Ronan and Coughlan are far inferior to Wallace and Quinlan. That said, I shipped a good bit of criticism a few months ago for suggesting Wallace is no longer capable of churning out 80 minute displays week after week and now it seems that Tony McGahan agrees. He'll be a hell of an impact sub though.

Sticking Murphy at 15 is a kick in the arse for Warwick but Murphy has been in terrific form- good enough to earn an international call up. Hurley improved hugely last season once he switched to the wing so the Munster back three looks reasonable. If Earls is fully fit he could be the key to unlocking London [strike]Irish[/strike]'s defence.

I think Reading's finest will be too good for the visitors. A 7-10 point winning margin for Clarke Dermody's team.

 

[munstermuffin]

Snoop I think Coughlan deserves shot as he has never left us down and Wallace came back and just can't get going but I shocked to see Quinny out of 22. As I said earlier Warwick got bit too comfy and well his form is poor and well I have said this for past few weeks I think Johne Murphy has real shot at Irish 22 as he is in super form and has versatility.

Also I think Varley is our best hooker and well if I'm honest Paul O'Connell is a loss but reality is he has played something like 6/7 games for us in last 2 years so we are used to him being unavailable.

 

[Feicarsinn]

Snoop I think Coughlan deserves shot as he has never left us down and Wallace came back and just can't get going but I shocked to see Quinny out of 22. As I said earlier Warwick got bit too comfy and well his form is poor and well I have said this for past few weeks I think Johne Murphy has real shot at Irish 22 as he is in super form and has versatility.

Also I think Varley is our best hooker and well if I'm honest Paul O'Connell is a loss but reality is he has played something like 6/7 games for us in last 2 years so we are used to him being unavailable.

 

[munstermuffin]

And well

I don't even notice saying it ha

 

[snoopy snoopy dog dog]

Snoop I think Coughlan deserves shot as he has never left us down

Munster aspire to winning this competition right? "Never let us down" doesn't cut it if that's the case.

Coughlan is a solid option in a run of the mill away Magners League game. He's not a good enough option in a pressure cooker environment like the Heineken Cup. He'll put in his tackles, carry a bit of ball and not be found wanting for effort but he lacks the required class to he a top player. I find it peculiar that Munster have gone for him and not stuck with Leamy at 8 (he's in terrific form) with Wallace and Quinlan getting 40 minutes each at 6. Even giving Peter O'Mahoney a chance to show his worth may have been worth a gamble. Selecting Coughlan doesn't improve Munster's chances in either the short or long term.

He'll win the Man of the Match award and score a hat-trick now that I've said that!

 

[munstermuffin]

No I agree he is only a fill-the-gap choice while players rediscover form. I personally wouldve had Quinny at 6 and Leamy at 8. Simply because Quinny is playing well and Leamy has been terrific. Heaslip and Leamy were argubally the 2 of the best players on the turf in the Aviva so why remove Leamy from 8 when he on form there.

I ok with our pack to a certain extent I just worry that our backs have just been pieced together in a way and will take long to gel

 

[Feicarsinn]

No I agree he is only a fill-the-gap choice while players rediscover form. I personally wouldve had Quinny at 6 and Leamy at 8. Simply because Quinny is playing well and Leamy has been terrific. Heaslip and Leamy were argubally the 2 of the best players on the turf in the Aviva so why remove Leamy from 8 when he on form there.

I ok with our pack to a certain extent I just worry that our backs have just been pieced together in a way and will take long to gel

The backrow does look at bit lightweight alright. I wouldn't worry too much about the backs though. They're a fairly talented bunch so they should perform. If it had been up to me though I would have stuck Earls on the wing and played Warwick in the centre. As is they're kinda throwing him at the deep end.

 

[munstermuffin]

Earls will be ok although I just worry because they all have individual talent but can they all gel immediately like Johne Murphy at 15. He's on form but will he adjust his lines etc immediately

 

[munstermuffin]

Also Feic you are right we are a bit lightweight in backrow but more noticeably we don't have any "crafty" player like a Quinlan who knows how to slightly bend the rules and get away with it

 

[MunsterMan]

Coughlan didn't look out of place in the QF or Semi last year. I am more worried about Ronan than him, who is a fantastic player who can dissapear in big games. Coughlan never dissapears.

History suggests London Irish will win tomorrow but Munster will get out of the pool, which is what usually happens when we play the top GP team in the pool stages. (Northampton, Sale, Wasps, etc. )

 

[profitius]

Coughlan didn't look out of place in the QF or Semi last year. I am more worried about Ronan than him, who is a fantastic player who can dissapear in big games. Coughlan never dissapears.

History suggests London Irish will win tomorrow but Munster will get out of the pool, which is what usually happens when we play the top GP team in the pool stages. (Northampton, Sale, Wasps, etc. )

Agreed. Ronan is a bit of a powerpuff player. He lacks physicality.

 

[coonor]

Munster: J Murphy; D Howlett, K Earls, S Tuitupou, D Hurley, R O'Gara, P Stringer; W du Preez, D Varley, T Buckley; D O'Callaghan, D Ryan; D Leamy capt, N Ronan J Coughlan.
Replacements: M Sherry, M Horan, J Hayes, M O'Driscoll, D Wallace, D Williams, P Warwick, S Deasy.

OH DEAR. what are the Munster coaches thinking. This is going to be a really physical game so why is quinlan and wallace not starting. This team would have been a good if they had tested it last week but they have basically changed there whole game plan because they narrowly lost to Leinster. first 5 great. Backrow will get get destroyed. Backs are very talented but completely untested in these positions.

London Irish by 10-15

 

[munstermuffin]

Lads Im telling ye even Wallace himself felt he didn't deserve a spot.
Quinny is a strange decision.
Warwick dropped due to poor form and doubt about his defense.
O'Leary wouldve been on bench if fit due to form.

Not speculation but fact and well as said before I've no fears about Coughlan and well we can get the win today