LeinsterLeader wrote:
But that's the problem, we probably won't. It might be distasteful to some but like it or night a large portion of Leinster supporters are Dubs
yeah not to mention getting people to travel from outer counties on easter sunday.. well it's a big ask.
Don't agree. I'd expect the clash between an up and coming, potentially all-conquering Leinster and the back to back European champions from England to generate massive interest and on the day be a sell-out.
LeinsterLeader wrote:
But that's the problem, we probably won't. It might be distasteful to some but like it or night a large portion of Leinster supporters are Dubs
yeah not to mention getting people to travel from outer counties on easter sunday.. well it's a big ask.
attendance will be worse than Exeter game IMO.
I fear you might be right MI but I hope spoofer is and people travel from far and wide to make it. But you're right it's a big ask for people to travel from some of the other counties on an Easter Sunday. So fingers crossed.
At the end of the day I don't care who fills it I'd just want to see it filled with blue. I'll even take the left over Munster supporters.
riocard911 wrote:Don't agree. I'd expect the clash between an up and coming, potentially all-conquering Leinster and the back to back European champions from England to generate massive interest and on the day be a sell-out.
can't see it selling out myself, hopefully you are right.
You're right about the attendance Wixfjord but it was Kerry (kildare was the Leinster Final) with the Dubs in the final and Kerry didn't travel so about 40k were Dubs. A good number of those would definitely have gone to the Wasps game if they hadn't clashed.
As someone has said above, Kildare were in Div 2 final.
Also am I missing something here? The GAA NFL finals weren't on the same day as the Wasps game last year?[/quote]
Definitely not, I was at both
And for the record me and 10-15k other Kildare fans who were there are NOT Dubs!
(Although some of the "Dubs" were on the train home with us)
You're right about the attendance Wixfjord but it was Kerry (kildare was the Leinster Final) with the Dubs in the final and Kerry didn't travel so about 40k were Dubs. A good number of those would definitely have gone to the Wasps game if they hadn't clashed.
As someone has said above, Kildare were in Div 2 final.
Also am I missing something here? The GAA NFL finals weren't on the same day as the Wasps game last year?
Definitely not, I was at both
And for the record me and 10-15k other Kildare fans who were there are NOT Dubs!
(Although some of the "Dubs" were on the train home with us)
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Yep your right. That was my mistake and I wasn't trying to offend anyone by calling them a 'Dub' if they weren't. My point was (and the fact that there were 15k 'whiteys' there emphasizes this) is that there were potentially 40k+ Leinster supporters at this game. As has been established it didn't matter last year but should Kildare and Dublin get to the final again this year...........
I can't believe the amount of negativity there is about getting Saracens in the quarter final. To me this is the ideal time to get them at home. Their whole team is built around just four players; the 2 Vunipolas, Farrell & Itoje. Wiggleworth is a pretty good scrum half too but we have the back row to keep him quiet. The rest of their squad are very good players but no more. If Cullen and Lancaster cannot build a plan to stop these four then they are not the coaching team we all thought they were. Sarries two tight heads Koch and Figallo have been shown up at International level as not being anywhere near world class and Healy and McGrath can really go after them. Their defence has looked really porous in the last few months and with all our quality backs we will find holes there. I wouldn't always be in favour of using Rob Kearney at full back in recent times but this is one game where he should come into his own because Saracens use a kicking game a lot. Having Isa and Ferg on the wings for the same reason might be good too. Having Fardy and James Ryan starting in the row with Devin on the bench might be a better way to deal with their line out. If Ringrose is fit enough to start with Henshaw then our midfield will be way stronger than theirs and with Ross B, Larmour and Carberry on the bench to finish the job, I think we'll beat them well.
Rugby is a good occasion for keeping thirty bullies far from the centre of the city.
Oscar Wilde
rdsblue wrote:I can't believe the amount of negativity there is about getting Saracens in the quarter final. To me this is the ideal time to get them at home. Their whole team is built around just four players; the 2 Vunipolas, Farrell & Itoje. Wiggleworth is a pretty good scrum half too but we have the back row to keep him quiet. The rest of their squad are very good players but no more. If Cullen and Lancaster cannot build a plan to stop these four then they are not the coaching team we all thought they were. Sarries two tight heads Koch and Figallo have been shown up at International level as not being anywhere near world class and Healy and McGrath can really go after them. Their defence has looked really porous in the last few months and with all our quality backs we will find holes there. I wouldn't always be in favour of using Rob Kearney at full back in recent times but this is one game where he should come into his own because Saracens use a kicking game a lot. Having Isa and Ferg on the wings for the same reason might be good too. Having Fardy and James Ryan starting in the row with Devin on the bench might be a better way to deal with their line out. If Ringrose is fit enough to start with Henshaw then our midfield will be way stronger than theirs and with Ross B, Larmour and Carberry on the bench to finish the job, I think we'll beat them well.
Yep I agree with this.
Saracens bullied their way to wins last year with a very effective pack and frankly not much else. They rely on the same tactic this year but less effectively.
As we have seen against various opposition this year, we have a pack that just wont succumb to bish bosh basic rugby.
I can see them coming to the Aviva and realising that they wont make any headway against the likes of McGrath, Furlong, Fardy, Toner, Ryan, all of our backrow lads, and running out of ideas very quickly.
Form is temporary, class is permanent. They had a horrible couple of months but have turned the corner and I don't think there's a hope in hell that they won't turn up at the Aviva. I agree that they've a core group that elevates their performances (although would add 2 or 3 others to the names mentioned) but most of that team have won trophies and will be tipping away while we're missing most of our players to the 6N.
I think we'll win but there's no doubt that it's a tough game IMO. Agree that it's the best time to play them though, and not sure there's any easy game anyway. I suspect there may be more than one away winner this year.
As regards the "pack that just wont succumb to bish bosh basic rugby" one of the most important ingredients is Scott Fardy. It's very noticeable, that any time there's a flare up or even the hint of the opposition giving any of our fellas grief he manages to insert himself in the middle of things and dampen the whole thing down with his presence. IMO, he is the enforcer we've been missing.
If you think Sarries only play 'bish bosh basic' rugby, then you might have another thing coming to you.
Also believing that the whole team is built around four players is like saying we're built around Sexton and Furlong
Just because they're our most important players doesn't mean there aren't other very dangerous guys there.
Goode, Maitland, George, Kruis, Skelton, Williams, Barritt are all experienced, top level players.
They may not be the side of last year, but they are still very dangerous.
I reckon it will sell out. Or be very close. Even with neglible away fans
Its such an easy one to market plus England being in Twickenham makes it slightly more novel. And as sole English representatives the UK media will be all over it. Media here too
My only fear is they try to gouge the heck out of the lrizes
Retired from babbling. Can be found on twittter @okeeffesimon
wixfjord wrote:If you think Sarries only play 'bish bosh basic' rugby, then you might have another thing coming to you.
Also believing that the whole team is built around four players is like saying we're built around Sexton and Furlong
Just because they're our most important players doesn't mean there aren't other very dangerous guys there.
Goode, Maitland, George, Kruis, Skelton, Williams, Barritt are all experienced, top level players.
They may not be the side of last year, but they are still very dangerous.
Agree with most of that but think Skelton is a liability. He's a penalty machine, has poor hands, makes poor decisions...I'd be very happy to see his name on the team sheet.
I think the way that they patiently hold onto the ball until the opposition cracks, and with Wigglesworth's box kicking and Farrell and Goode's strong kicking games, that I'd almost rule out Lowe for this one already. I'm sure he'll adjust to how we defend and am very much of the opinion that what he offers in attack far outweighs the errors, but not for this game.
simonokeeffe wrote:I say this out of genuine curiousity, but how much of a crossover is there between Dublin GAA and Leinster Rugby in terms of serious fans?
Obviously a very small sample size but the serious Dubs fans I know hardly ever go to rugby especially Leinster if at all and the serious rugby fans I know go to All Ireland games if at all. The ticketmaster fans would probably go Leinster over Dublin in April
Football league is a much more hardcore crowd than the Championship
From a scientific study of the three people who sit to my right in the grandstand- (all three are Leinster and Dublin season ticket holders) the issue, as I understand it and should there be a clash, is that the structure of the Dublin season ticket plan means you are rewarded for attendance in the latter stages of the championship (in terms of tickets) by attending all games (including league)- so they would certainly be affected.
simonokeeffe wrote:I say this out of genuine curiousity, but how much of a crossover is there between Dublin GAA and Leinster Rugby in terms of serious fans?
Obviously a very small sample size but the serious Dubs fans I know hardly ever go to rugby especially Leinster if at all and the serious rugby fans I know go to All Ireland games if at all. The ticketmaster fans would probably go Leinster over Dublin in April
Football league is a much more hardcore crowd than the Championship
From a scientific study of the three people who sit to my right in the grandstand- (all three are Leinster and Dublin season ticket holders) the issue, as I understand it and should there be a clash, is that the structure of the Dublin season ticket plan means you are rewarded for attendance in the latter stages of the championship (in terms of tickets) by attending all games (including league)- so they would certainly be affected.
To get a ticket for the All-Ireland Final, Dublin season-ticket holders need to have attended a minimum of 60% of all of Dublin's league and championship matches that season. That's home and away.
