Champions Cup
Ulster reach Champions Cup quarter finals
Featuring James Nesbitt.
A strong second half showing saw Ulster reach their first European quarter final since 2014, beating Leicester 14-13 this afternoon
It was a scrappy opening half at Welford Road, both sides getting turned over multiple times, and handling errors and misplaced passes the order of the day. Both sides had 5 handling errors after half an hour. Ulster struggles out of touch, several lineout throws going amiss for Rory Best.
Leicester came close to the Ulster line after around 25 minutes, after a rare break from Dan Cole, but a dropped ball saw to that chance. First points of the game went to Leicester, George Ford slotted a penalty kick after 31 minutes.
Ulster had their first sniff of the Leicester 22 shortly before half time. Stuart McCloskey smashed through the Leicester defensive line, but nobody was there to support Dave Shanahan after he took the offload, and the chance was lost, much to the dismay of some of the famous faces in the crowd.
The games first try came with the clock in the red. Quick ball from the Leicester forwards fed George Ford, who stuck a nicely weighted grubber kick through the Ulster defence, for Matt Toomua to touch down. There was a hint of Toomua being in front of the kicker but the ref awarded the try without consulting the TMO. Ford converted from the
The second half started with more of the same. Ulster again letting themselves down with the basics, leaving the ball unprotected at the breakdown a number of times. Leicester went 13-0 ahead after 50 mins, another kick from George Ford.
Ulster squandered a great chance not long later. A penalty well in
The introduction of John Cooney made a huge difference, his direction finally allowed Ulster to string a few phases together in attack, and look threatening. A strong lineout maul saw Marty Moore finally get some points on the board for Ulster, after 58 minutes. Cooney nailed the kick to make it 13-7.
The try put the wind in Ulster’s sails, and they began playing with real confidence. A beautiful chip from Billy Burns bounced into the hands of Robert Baloucoune who touched down under the sticks to put Ulster in front.
While Ulster got the job done today, there is cause for concern. No points until the 55th minute, and 4 lineouts lost on their own throw, they will have much to work on between now and the end of March, when they will have an away
Challenge Cup
European Player of the Year Nominees Announced
Following the conclusion of the pool stages of the Champions Cup and Challenge Cup a 15-man strong shortlist for 2020’s Player of the Year has been confirmed
The EPCR European Player of the Year nominations for 2020 have been announced, with 15 players being shortlisted from the Champions Cup and Challenge Cup.
Among the 15 players three teams have three nominations each with last season’s Champions Cup runners-up Leinster seeing Garry Ringrose, Jordan Larmour and Tadhg Furlong nominated. While Exeter Chiefs have Luke Cowan-Dickie, Sam Simmonds and Stuart Hogg among the shortlist.
Racing 92 are the only other team to have three nominees being represented by Finn Russell, Virimi Vakatawa and Teddy Thomas.
Ulster and Toulouse have picked up two nominations each with the Irish province having John Cooney and Marcell Coetzee on list, while Jerome Kaino and Romain Ntamack are included from the French giants.
Clermont Auvergne centre George Moala is the final player on the list from the Champions Cup, while the only player from the Challenge Cup to be considered is Bordeaux-Begles Flying-Fijian Semi Radradra.
Last season’s Champions Cup winners Saracens have had no players nominated, however, there is still a chance that players could be drafted into the nominations should they make a significant impact during the knockout-stages of the competition.
The initial list of 15-players will be reduced to just five come the conclusion of the semi-final stage of the tournaments, with public voting and a judges vote combining to determine the results.
Among the panel of judges this year are former Ireland stars Brian O’Driscoll and Alan Quinlan, along with the likes of Dimitri Yachvili, Bryan Habana and Erik Bonneval.
The overall winner of the Anthony Foley Memorial Trophy will be announced following the conclusion of this year’s Champions Cup final at the Stade Velodrome in Marseille on Saturday the 23rd of May.
Check Out the Full 15-Man Shortlist Below.
Marcell COETZEE (Ulster Rugby)
John COONEY (Ulster Rugby)
Luke COWAN-DICKIE (Exeter Chiefs)
Tadhg FURLONG (Leinster Rugby)
Stuart HOGG (Exeter Chiefs)
Jerome KAINO (Toulouse)
Jordan LARMOUR (Leinster Rugby)
George MOALA (ASM Clermont Auvergne)
Romain NTAMACK (Toulouse)
Semi RADRADRA (Bordeaux-Bègles)
Garry RINGROSE (Leinster Rugby)
Finn RUSSELL (Racing 92)
Sam SIMMONDS (Exeter Chiefs)
Teddy THOMAS (Racing 92)
Virimi VAKATAWA (Racing 92)
Champions Cup
Ulster Change One for Bath Decider
Ulster have made only one change to their starting line-up for their Champions Cup pool decider against Bath tomorrow
Ulster head coach Dan McFarland has confirmed that he has made a single change to his starting XV for tomorrow’s crucial Champions Cup game against Bath at the Kingspan Stadium at 15 15.
That change comes in the form of Tom O’Toole, who was selected in Andy Farrell’s 35-man strong Ireland squad this week, but the team is otherwise unchanged from last weekend’s loss to Clermont.
That means Jack McGrath and Rob Herring join O’Toole in the front-row, with Alan O’Connor joining-up once more with captain Iain Henderson in the engine-room.
Sean Reidy continues at blindside-flanker, with Jordi Murphy looking to put his Ireland snub behind him when he takes his spot on the openside, while Marcell Coetzee finishes up the pack from No 8.
Possible Ireland starter John Cooney has another chance to impress from scrum-half, with Billy Burns his half-back partner, while Stuart McCloskey and Luke Marshall link-up in the midfield, with the former in a similar boat to Murphy following a snub from Ireland despite being in a rich vein of form.
Jacob Stockdale remains on the left-wing, with youngster Robert Baloucoune on the right and Will Addison completes the XV from full-back.
There is plenty for McFarland to call on from the bench too with the likes of Eric O’Sullivan, Nick Timoney, Bill Johnston and Craig Gilroy among the replacements.
Speaking ahead of the game Herring is aware of the task at hand is expecting a tough challenge from Bath despite the English side being out of the competition already.
“Bath are going to come fully-loaded and full of players who can attack, so we need to keep it tight and capitalise on any opportunities,” he said.
Ulster know a win coupled with a slip up from Clermont would see them seal top spot in the pool, but either way they will want to finish on a high as they prepare for the knock-out stages.
Check Out the Full 23-Man Squad Below.
Starting XV:
Will Addison, Robert Baloucoune, Luke Marshall, Stuart McCloskey, Jacob Stockdale, Billy Burns, John Cooney; Jack McGrath, Rob Herring, Tom O’Toole, Alan O’Connor, Iain Henderson (c), Sean Reidy, Jordi Murphy, Marcell Coetzee
Replacements:
Adam McBurney, Eric O’Sullivan, Ross Kane, Kieran Treadwell, Nick Timoney, David Shanahan, Bill Johnston, Craig Gilroy
Champions Cup
Leinster Go Strong for Benetton Trip
Leinster have decided not to rest their stars for their final Champions Cup pool game as they seek the top seed spot
Leinster head coach Leo Cullen has announced his 23-man squad for tomorrow’s Champions Cup game against Benetton at the Stadio Monigo at 13 00.
Despite already being assured of top spot in the pool Cullen has named an experienced side full of stars in order to try and claim a win which will see them go into the knock-out stages as the top seeded side.
The only surprises in the team are that both Max Deegan and Caelan Doris have been handed a chance to start the game, while in the backs Luke McGrath has been handed the role of captain.
Elsewhere, Cian Healy and Andrew Porter are either side of hooker Sean Cronin in the front-row. Cronin will hope to put in a good shift after being snubbed in Ireland’s Six Nations squad announcement this week, while Devin Toner and James Ryan slot in behind them in second-row.
Deegan shifts from No 8 to take up a place as blindside-flanker, with Josh van der Flier remaining on the openside and Doris comes in as the No 8 this time around in what is an exciting back-row.
McGrath is joined in the half-backs by Ross Byrne, and they have Robbie Henshaw and Garry Ringrose outside them in the centre.
James Lowe continues on the left-wing, with Dave Kearney hoping to continue his fine form on the right, while Jordan Larmour is once again at full-back to complete the XV.
There is a huge amount of experience on the bench too for Cullen to call upon if needed with the likes of Tadhg Furlong, Rhys Ruddock, Jamison Gibson-Park and Rob Kearney among the replacements.
Speaking ahead of the game Lowe is wary of the threat that the Italian outfit have and believes that the results aren’t a fair showing for their performances so far this season.
“Their results probably don’t reflect the season they’ve had. They’ve been so, so close on so many occasions in the PRO14 and the Champions Cup. We’re under no illusion the threats that they do pose. It’s, for a lot of them the last chance to put their hand up before the Six Nations as well. So there’s a lot of individuals in that environment who will want to prove a point,” he said.
Leinster head into the game as clear favourites to make it 16 wins on the bounce and know that a win will seal them the top seeding heading into the quarter-finals. However, they will need to overcome a Benetton side that will be hoping to end their European campaign on a high.
Check Out the Full 23-Man Squad Below.
Starting XV:
15. Jordan Larmour (45)
14. Dave Kearney (145)
13. Garry Ringrose (71)
12. Robbie Henshaw (43)
11. James Lowe (40)
10. Ross Byrne (83)
9. Luke McGrath (120) (c)
1. Cian Healy (215)
2. Seán Cronin (177)
3. Andrew Porter (61)
4. Devin Toner (243)
5. James Ryan (36)
6. Max Deegan (59)
7. Josh van der Flier (79)
8. Caelan Doris (28)
Replacements:
16. James Tracy (105)
17. Peter Dooley (72)
18. Tadhg Furlong (107)
19. Ross Molony (92)
20. Rhys Ruddock (168)
21. Jamison Gibson-Park (84)
22. Ciarán Frawley (21)
23. Rob Kearney (216)
Ireland Announce Team to Play Scotland
Mitchell Set to Come Out of Retirement
Lyon Confirm Two New Signings
-
6 Nations1 week agoJones Drops 10 for Six Nations Squad
-
Rugby5 days agoCheika Lands Surprise New Job
-
International1 week agoEngland Coach Set for Departure
-
Premiership1 week agoRugby Australia Confirm Skelton Stance
-
6 Nations6 days agoScotland Suffer Major Six Nations Blow
-
6 Nations6 days agoSmith Defends Parisse “Send-Off” Decision
-
6 Nations7 days agoFitzgerald Stunned by One Players Ireland Omission
-
Top 141 week agoMontpellier’s New Director of Rugby Announced