www.youtube.com/BenettonRugby

very very brief but "highlights" nonetheless.

On the full back debate I would like to see Gav come in more and play at 13 with TOH slotting in at FB, free up a wing berth for Fets or McCrea.

Did anyone attend this game and happen to take any video footage? Wouldn't mind getting a look at our try - god knows we're not scoring many these days, so it's frustrating not being able to see the ones we do score!

There are areas of Gavin's game that are first class, like his fielding. But he is no Christian Sullen returning the ball, he's more about power and blasting through the initial contact. Gavin rarely comes into the line to make the extra man or just to run a late angle. But he's not alone, our back three are guilty also. How many times have we seen our wingers make a run between flyhalf and inside centre, or between the centres in the last season?

Our backplay is manufactured on the training field, and to me anyway it has the heavy hand of Eric about it. Eric as a player was very much about drilled play, percentage balls. He was a kicking flyhalf, good distributor and solid defender but not a runner in broken play...

Maybe this is why we're seeing less of McCrea & Vainikolo, because they are more likely to come off their stations on the wings ibm search of action. There's got to be some reason anyway, and it's not because our other options are consistently better players or attackers that's for sure...

Greendragon wrote:

its_phil wrote:

Greendragon wrote: Dare I say it but our Captain has even been found wanting in quite a few of this seasons games thus far..

Are you having a laugh or something?if your calling into question him being captain fair enough, if your questioning how well he has played your opinions are foolish and unfounded

It's no laughing matter, opinions are like backsides we all have one.It is only my opinion. In attack granted he does offer a great deal but we do not attack for eighty minutes a game. Being a great fullback is not just as an attacking option your bread and butter is to be able to catch high balls tackle and turn defence into attack.

He's probably the best fullback in the country for being solid under the highball!I wasnt at last nights match because I'm studying in Dublin,so I cant comment on that game but when did he miss a catch?I really cant recall a game where hes dropped ball after ball, I remember one against Toulouse where he knocked it on but his fielding has been impeccable this season.

If your referring to tackling then you must be referring to the tackle he missed when coming across the pitch to get Morgan and he stepped in, but any fullback will tell you it is near impossible when the runner is going at full speed and your coming across.

Defence into attack if I recall he was the only one who got anything going into the Toulouse and Osprey 22's from his returns.They were all going up the left hand side of the pitch going towards the Bohermore end, but I cant recall them perfectly. I just remembered Duffy started them.

If you'd like to back up these 3 areas in your opinion of Duffy, I'd love to take them on board

its_phil wrote:

Greendragon wrote: Dare I say it but our Captain has even been found wanting in quite a few of this seasons games thus far..

Are you having a laugh or something?if your calling into question him being captain fair enough, if your questioning how well he has played your opinions are foolish and unfounded

It's no laughing matter, opinions are like backsides we all have one.It is only my opinion. In attack granted he does offer a great deal but we do not attack for eighty minutes a game. Being a great fullback is not just as an attacking option your bread and butter is to be able to catch high balls tackle and turn defence into attack. Nobody is questioning his commitment to the cause and if you read my post I said that a few players who were giving everything for the team Gavin is one of those players,if seeing an experienced Captain/Fullback under high balls and not even remotely getting near them makes me foolish then so be it I am a fool !!!
I reiterate it is my opinion, you have yours so let's leave it at that.

The IMF wrote: If people with depression think they have problems they should try being a Connacht fan!

That joke is pathetic after the week of Gary Speeds death and the article in last weeks irish times about depression.Depression is a serious issue and not something to be made fun of.

Grow up and cop yourself on.

Greendragon wrote: Dare I say it but our Captain has even been found wanting in quite a few of this seasons games thus far..

Are you having a laugh or something?if your calling into question him being captain fair enough, if your questioning how well he has played your opinions are foolish and unfounded

Nothing but a win will do next week.

Gloucester an avearage enough side, I've watched them a bit this season, if we can get at Sapolu in midfield and stop their strike runners like Sharples we can beat them. Their forward pack aren't great.

If we don't win next week we're staring at 12 defeats in a row given Gloucester away in Kingsholm, Munster in Thomond and Leinster at home to come after that.

If we are to win next week and play without fear and without constant mistakes then we can have a go at Kingsholm with nothing to lose and head into the interpros with a bit of confidence. As it is though,that looks very unlikely

But on the positive side "we won the second half"... :pinch:

What pisses me off the most about this result is that we did so well winning away against Treviso, and we just let them cancel it out. They'll probably finish the season ahead of us now.

Obviously players needed some rest and we need to have some rotation in the squad, but we shouldn't be selecting such a mashed up, everyone out of position, team as we did.

George isn't the player he was two years ago, and that kills me to admit it. And he's heavy. If he's being stuck in the second row for that reason then he shouldn't be selected, full stop. Get fit, George. Please get fit!

I can't see what is going to stop this rot.

McSharry couldn't have put it better "We've too many lads waiting for things to happen instead of making them happen"

I got to the game late and we were 15 nil down, but I had been listening to it on the radio en route - it didn't look any better than it sounded. It was a miserable night, so a certain number of handling errors are to be expected, but we seemed to knock it on at every opportunity. My main annoyance was during the period in the second half where their pack was down to 7 and we had their scrum under real pressure. We had one scrum about 10 meters out, and it appeared as though they had agreed to keep the ball at the base and look for a penalty, when Ray (I think) decided to pluck it up and flake it at Frank who didn't know what was going on - knock on. Then, a few minutes later, we won a penalty in the scrum in an even better position - we were 5 points down practically under the posts, so for me, the obvious decision was to go for another scrum and look to capitalise - we took 3 and went on to lose by 2. I know it was only his first game, but I felt Tonnetti was completely anonymous. McSharry and Mul were the two stand out performers for me and I thought Locks did reasonably well considering he was played out of position. We need Macca and Swifty fit big time.

An unlikely win next week and the confidence might return, but I'm extremely fearful for the rest of the season at this point.

Last thing - I haven't seen an attendance figure, but I felt there was another decent crowd there last night considering the weather. As many have pointed out already, that won't continue if performances don't improve.

Guys I'm getting a bit fed up with the posts relating to the new players at Connacht this season, I think some soul seaching must go to the established players also. There are players that have been at Connacht for quite a few seasons and these players are not stepping up to the mark. Their lack of leadership and commitment leaves a lot to be desired.
Dare I say it but our Captain has even been found wanting in quite a few of this seasons games thus far.If these players are not performing then why blame the new squad members most of which have had very little or no game time, we cannot criticise new players when the elder statesmen of the squad are not performing !! there are a few exeptions and we all know who they are, they put their bodies on the line for the cause week in and week out but they are few and far between.

I think when the team was announced most people held there heads in there hands, we had a number 8 at number 5, a number 6 at number 7 , a 7 at 8 and a 5 at 6. At that point I knew we were going to lose. I did not go to the clan Forum in the bar as I would have asked repeated questions that Mr Forwards coach would not have liked. We have played this season so far 40 minutes of good rugby and that is it. Again last night in the first half we had a scrum 5 yards out and ten yards in again there was not one blind side defender, I say it again not one, now any team anywhere else in the world be it a junior team or a professional team would have spotted this, wheeled the scrum and had a number 8 break off and score or off load back to the scrum half to score but we decide time and time again to go where the defenders are and we bollocks it up. so what the heck do Connor and Dan do Monday to Friday, scratch there arses because that is what it looks like.
I am been hard but we do all the basics wrong, the simple things. As mentioned about the bench, Muldoon made a fantastic break right at the end and passed to Murphy who knocked on, two things about this Muldoon was shattered his legs were gone totally gone or he would have ran all the way he could'nt he more or less had his legs seize from under him so his pass was laboured and it was not Murphys fault. But you could see from ten minutes prior to this he was knackered and he was left on the pitch Why oh Why would a professional coach not see this.

There is a very real chance that the Connacht supporters will be out numbered next week at our own ground and that says it all really. A shout went up last night to bring back Bradley, at this stage you would nearly wish he would come back. Anyone got Eddie O Sullivans phone number...

What I'm finding difficult to understand is how few of our replacements were used? Sure Rodney on for Ronan who was taking a beasting, and the young Kearney on for Swifty who's stillprobably not 100% fit.

But in a game we were losing from so early on and never in a lead at any point was there no argument for freshing up the troops heading into the last 1/3 of the match?

Why not even a minute of game time for Flavin, Grace, O'Donohoe, Jarvis or Vainikolo...????

It's been a funny season this year with all the hulabaloo of the HEC and all the attended distractions/media attention, never mind the fact that 14 new players have come in and are still really trying to find their feet. Maybe it's time the whole playing squad sits down and decides to close ranks and just focus on their rugby for the next couple of months, screw media requests just get on with the Rugby and sorting out the onfield issues that are stopping us deliver.

I'm sorry but if the wheels haven't fallen completely off this wagon, they're on the last thread. Going to take a lot more than words to turn this around, and it's critical that they do.

Yes there is pressure on them to deliver, but they are supposedley professionals and that goes with the job. Hell most of us have to deal with more pressure doing jobs we don't even like...

did murphy actually throw a ball between his legs?i couldnt believe it when rob said it on the radio.