Rumour Mill

[fourthirtythree]

The Hogg to Ulster rumour is getting stronger by the hour. UAFC seem convinced and Payne to Leinster is not being ruled out either.

Grand....long as they don't get McGrath in return

One of our props going the other way is the only way I can see that being accepted by Humphreys. He'd probably be insisting on Healy.

[blockhead]

The Hogg to Ulster rumour is getting stronger by the hour. UAFC seem convinced and Payne to Leinster is not being ruled out either.

Grand....long as they don't get McGrath in return

One of our props going the other way is the only way I can see that being accepted by Humphreys. He'd probably be insisting on Healy.

Ah sure we'll haggle him back down to Bent.

[fourthirtythree]

That's our negotiating position for everything, right?

[Dave Cahill]

The Hogg to Ulster rumour is getting stronger by the hour. UAFC seem convinced and Payne to Leinster is not being ruled out either.

Grand....long as they don't get McGrath in return

One of our props going the other way is the only way I can see that being accepted by Humphreys. He'd probably be insisting on Healy.

I'd say that given he may be signing a current international from a 6 Nations team (the IRFU would nearly rather employ David Knox than a current 6N rival international), he'll be making very few demands.

[fourthirtythree]

That's comforting to hear.

Though to be fair: they'd rather hire Hogg than Knox full stop!

[leinster4life13]

All this talk of Knox is making me sad, Kidney did more harm to Irish rugby then Knox's comments yet he got the Irish job.

[johng]

All this talk of Knox is making me sad, Kidney did more harm to Irish rugby then Knox's comments yet he got the Irish job.

Kidney did more harm to Irish rugby and Knox's comments came afterwards? I'm confused Ted.

[Dave Cahill]

That's comforting to hear.

Though to be fair: they'd rather hire Hogg than Knox full stop!

To be fair, there are very few people in the entirety of human history that couldn't get hired before Knox.

[simonokeeffe]

would Hogg satisfy our Norhtern brethren though? they IQ'd Payne, he missed a year through injury while still being paid by them, then wee stroppy Hogg replaces him

[papachino]

What?? Knox was much better than Gaffney... The years Knox was coaching us we played some of our best and most attractive Rugby. Toulouse Leinster 2006 for example, in fact, the whole of the 05-06 season.

Compare Knox's 05-06 season to the 09-10 when Gaffney was backs coach, the flow of our game in 05 had a serious electricity to it, with Disco Denis and Swerving Girvan, flash and BOD in their prime; something only fans who were around then would remember... we scored hardly any tries in 2010 and we lost to Toulouse in the HC QF and to the Ospreys in the Pro12 Final, that's all I remember from that season...

Although his comments were a bit bad, he wasn't totally off the mark; the IRFU need to allow us to buy better quality players, who aren't 'IQ', to teach the younger guys how to play and defend against other styles of rugby.

[Dave Cahill]

that's all I remember from that season...

...and you don't even remember that properly

[johng]

wish Disco Denis and Swerving Girvan, flash and BOD in their prime;
.

This may have had something to do with our tries. Shaggy is blushing at being left out.. Conters wanting to run everything from his 22 also helped on tries scored.

have a look at our pack that year though.

Toulouse was a semi btw.

[johng]

Losing to Toulouse In 2010 was no great shame either. No Jonny and a mad amount of injuries during the game. Have a look at out back row that finished that game.
Away to the event up winner.
Losing the Ospreys game was worse.

[blockhead]

The victory over Clermont was some night. 10-0 down after 10mins and 20-10 up 15mins later. Mad Ted.

[Peg Leg]

Losing to Toulouse In 2010 was no great shame either. No Jonny and a mad amount of injuries during the game. Have a look at out back row that finished that game.
Away to the event up winner.
Losing the Ospreys game was worse.

Not to mention Fogarty's multiple concussions in the scrum!
Anyone, any idea what he's up to these days?

[John23]

Forwards coach Leinster "A"

[Peg Leg]

Forwards coach Leinster "A"

Dime bar moment!
Keep thinking it's Reggie

[ceemec]

Compare Knox's 05-06 season to the 09-10 when Gaffney was backs coach, the flow of our game in 05 had a serious electricity to it, with Disco Denis and Swerving Girvan, flash and BOD in their prime; something only fans who were around then would remember... we scored hardly any tries in 2010 and we lost to Toulouse in the HC QF and to the Ospreys in the Pro12 Final, that's all I remember from that season...

While you're probably right in terms of Knox being a more inventive and entertaining backs coach, you're underselling Gaffney and remembering 2009/10 incorrectly. When Leinster developed a hard nosed pack and moved towards a more forward based game in his last season with them, Knox got very little out of the Leinster back line at HEC level (7 tries in his last HEC season). That was the season where BOD famously went without scoring a try for an entire season.

While Gaffney never had us playing the maverick rugby that Knox did, he was able to marry his back line with the new found power up front. It took time to gel but, by the 2009/10 season, we were looking good in the backs again. We scored more tries than anyone in the HEC pools aside from those who had Viadana in their pool. Some of our back play was excellent (despite Sexton being missing for 3 HEC games that season, I vaguely recall) and we scored one of the all time great tries against Brive where Shaggy flipped the spinning top, reverse offload to BOD.

It has to be taken into account that, by 2009/10, we had lost Hickie and Contepomi. Dempsey was on his way out. Sexton missed a section of the season with injury and Fitzgerald missed nearly the whole season. There was a lot of change in the backs over the course of a year or so.

[sid]

What?? Knox was much better than Gaffney... The years Knox was coaching us we played some of our best and most attractive Rugby. Toulouse Leinster 2006 for example, in fact, the whole of the 05-06 season.

And the match after was even be... oh, wait... no...

[simonokeeffe]

Anthony Allen has re signed with Tigers, remember that rumour!
Andress to Edinburgh, sorry nordies