Top14 2013/2014 squads

[profitius]

I didn't mention at all about Welsh team struggling in my post, so I don't know why you've brought that up.

Also there is some right ******** in your post. How are Zebre, Dragons, Connacht, Edinburgh, Cardiff Blues quality opposition? How are Ospreys, Scarlets, Leinster, Munster quality opposition when they are weakened heavily by player welfare schemes and call ups weeks before internationals? They're not.

I don't see where the point was made that the Ospreys never had a good team either. Nobody is questioning the fact Leinster, Munster, Ospreys have had good squads and reached Heineken Cup knockout stages. It's just the prize is weakened in credibility and the fact the Ospreys barely care or are given credit for their 4 league ***les is evidence of this.

If a random person from Ireland, Wales or Scotland said the league is crap the chances are its a Welsh person. I've seen it for years now and it always surprises me how negative the Welsh are towards the league. So its not super rugby but a league has to start from somewhere! Great work has been done over the years and there are new deals coming down the line too like the sky deal and new sponsors etc. Theres more to be positive about than negative.


Zebre, Dragons, Connacht, Edinburgh and Cardiff might not be great but what is your solution? Going back to a Welsh league would mean all the internationals would have to leave an it wouldn't be a high standard. Joining the English league has been tried but its not going to happen. The top Pro 12 teams are not always at their strongest but either are the French or English top teams. Teams have big squads nowadays, with a view of rotation.


Watching the 2012 Rabo final showed the Ospreys really cared about winning the league. In fact there was plenty of drama in that match and they were more than happy to win it. Maybe their first league or two they were not too overjoyed to win but as I said earlier, things have changed.

 

[psychic duck]

If a random person from Ireland, Wales or Scotland said the league is crap the chances are its a Welsh person. I've seen it for years now and it always surprises me how negative the Welsh are towards the league. So its not super rugby but a league has to start from somewhere! Great work has been done over the years and there are new deals coming down the line too like the sky deal and new sponsors etc. Theres more to be positive about than negative.

Yes, the Scots and the Italians are really packing their stadiums to the rafters to watch the Pro12 aren't they? The Irish were similar until they had success, and even then the Rabo crowds are comfortably down on the Heineken Cup ones.

Zebre, Dragons, Connacht, Edinburgh and Cardiff might not be great but what is your solution? Going back to a Welsh league would mean all the internationals would have to leave an it wouldn't be a high standard. Joining the English league has been tried but its not going to happen. The top Pro 12 teams are not always at their strongest but either are the French or English top teams. Teams have big squads nowadays, with a view of rotation.

The solution for the league to get better if the unions treat it as a proper competitive league throughout the season. Especially as the player pool in the nations are condensed into less teams as opposed to France or England meaning more internationals in the top teams. Ospreys or Leinster could lose an entire team to an international training camp, which results in periods where Connacht can thump Leinster like they did last season, and the Dragons can beat the Ospreys.

Otherwise, the unions can keep treating it they way they do and pull players out at will, which is good for the national teams, but comes at the price that the league suffers as a product as a result.

Also since when was joining the English league tried? It hasn't, and if it was a feasible option then I would take it in a heartbeat over the RaboPro12.

Watching the 2012 Rabo final showed the Ospreys really cared about winning the league. In fact there was plenty of drama in that match and they were more than happy to win it. Maybe their first league or two they were not too overjoyed to win but as I said earlier, things have changed.

The playoffs mean something, but the regular season is pretty dire with many low standard games with sides like Dragons and the good sides when they have a load of internationals away in camp. The old format before the playoffs made the league even worse. Having said that though, even with the playoffs it comes a mile behind the Heineken Cup, and behind the Top 14 and Premiership. The Premiership final and Top 14 final is played in front of 80,000 in the national stadiums, whilst the Pro12 final is played in a regular club stadium with 19,000. There is no better indication as to the inferiority of the league as a product than that, it's not seen as worthy of being moved to one of the four main national stadiums.

 

[BasqueBete]

Are we still masturbating this subject?

The rattle is ****....

Either follow the top14 and and the English path or be left well behind...

Simple step forward , swallow the facts, either have a proper competition which will attract bums on seats, or spend the future dreaming of qualifying for the knock out stages of the World Cup...

 

[Tony Manx]

Munster

15 Denis Hurley
14 Ronan O'Mahony
13 Casey Laulala
12 Ivan Dineen
11 Johne Murphy
10 Ian Keatley
9 Duncan Williams

1 James Cronin
2 Mike Sherry
3 Stephen Archer
4 Dave Foley
5 Donncha O’Callaghan
6 Dave O'Callaghan
7 Sean Dougall
8 James Coughlan (C)

Replacements:
Damien Varley,
Dave Kilcoyne,
John Ryan,
Billy Holland,
Tommy O’Donnell,
Cathal Sheridan,
JJ Hanrahan,
Cian Bohane.

Munsters team for the first match of the season............................sums up the Pro 12 league really!!

 

[Feicarsinn]

Munsters team for the first match of the season............................sums up the Pro 12 league really!!

Dare I post the side Biarritz put out against Stade?

 

[BasqueBete]

Yeah , post it, it was pretty much the best team they could put out, god knows how many times the same thing needs to be said..don't worry , when u start falling to hit qtrs of world cups etc, I will repeat my joy in equal amount..

Ha ha ha...it's written cos you refuse to see the facts....

The rattle is a bag of ****e....

Thomond park will obnoxiously be full t the rafters, but they do say a fool Is easily parted from his cash, which means the welsh are the savviest of the lot, as they will clearly not be parted with their cash to sit and watch a load of ****e..

 

[BasqueBete]

Obviously , not obnoxiously....Freudian....perhaps..

 

[Feicarsinn]

Yeah , post it, it was pretty much the best team they could put out, god knows how many times the same thing needs to be said..don't worry , when u start falling to hit qtrs of world cups etc, I will repeat my joy in equal amount..

Ha ha ha...it's written cos you refuse to see the facts....

The rattle is a bag of ****e....

Thomond park will obnoxiously be full t the rafters, but they do say a fool Is easily parted from his cash, which means the welsh are the savviest of the lot, as they will clearly not be parted with their cash to sit and watch a load of ****e..

While I'll debate all day with Tony as he's a sensible fellow, I have little time for your hyperbole and moronic ramblings. What's a good way to put it? Ah yes, wolves care little of the option of sheep.

 

[BasqueBete]

Oh look at you....self proclaimed jonny big balls of the wind up game, now playing the sensible one....

Have a giraffe...

We got a saying...he who thinks he's lemon...invariably is a lemon...

 

[gaston le gaff]

Is this a forum for wind ups only, or something remotely connected to rugby, while everyone has their own opinions, which most people respect, but sometimes do not agree, it always good to see respect and politeness in the posts, the way some of you are carring on it will not be long before we hear " My Dad is bigger than your Dad" syndrome, come on guys if you really need to go back to playground banter go to the playground or grow up!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[TRF_stormer2010]

Is this a forum for wind ups only, or something remotely connected to rugby, while everyone has their own opinions, which most people respect, but sometimes do not agree, it always good to see respect and politeness in the posts, the way some of you are carring on it will not be long before we hear " My Dad is bigger than your Dad" syndrome, come on guys if you really need to go back to playground banter go to the playground or grow up!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Your dad is probably a small guy?

 

[gaston le gaff]

Quite the oposite young man he is no longer with us, but was a semi pro 2nd row rugby league player ; and those guys dont come small, so i will accept your apoligies and move on!!!!!!!!!!

 

[Tony Manx]

While I'll debate all day with Tony as he's a sensible fellow, I have little time for your hyperbole and moronic ramblings. What's a good way to put it? Ah yes, wolves care little of the option of sheep.

Actually it was!


They rested only Fono, Yach and Waenga.

Yach had had a shocker the week before and I would have dropped him anyway. Once that decision taken they had to drop Waenga to allow Perylongue to play for his kicking and Fono is about the same as his replacement!

Wrong team to argue your valid point as BO are thinner than Munster as squads go!!

 

[TRF_stormer2010]

Quite the oposite young man he is no longer with us, but was a semi pro 2nd row rugby league player ; and those guys dont come small, so i will accept your apoligies and move on!!!!!!!!!!

I do apologize if you took offense; was meant in good humor.

 

[gaston le gaff]

I do apologize if you took offense; was meant in good humor.

Apoligies accepted and thank you.