Munster in the Aviva, August 22nd, 7.35pm KO

[mildlyinterested]

1 month to go..

[LeinsterLeader]

1 month to go..

You'd Image Munster will go 'all duck or no dinner' as they need the points. I'd say we'd go half and half for both these games but second guessing a Leo/Stuart selection policy over a set of games is pretty tricky!

[mildlyinterested]

Munster fans sure seem to think that with their saffer signings and no fans that this is their best chance of beating leinster in years, seen some refer it as potentially their croke park game and the potential to re-shift the balance of power.

Anyone agree? They are undoubtedly stronger now with the world cup winners..

[Blue not red blood]

Thats like Mayo beating Dublin in an empty stadium in a pretty meaningless game and believing the curse is broken

[FLIP]

Interesting that it seems all Irish province matches will be in the Aviva by the looks of it. My guess is that they're going to keep the teams in a bubble for the 2 weeks?

[wixfjord]

They've a far better chance than they would've had pre-lockdown.

Two WC winners added to the squad, no fans in the stadium and a stall in our momentum.

Carbery missing is big though and of course this game is pretty much a pre-season warmup for us, but yes things on paper are more even than they have been for a while.

Whether it's a 'balance of power' shifting game? Not in the slightest.

They'd have to at least back it up in a semi for that to be even remotely in question.

[cormac]

7.35pm KO

[ronk]

They've a far better chance than they would've had pre-lockdown.

Two WC winners added to the squad, no fans in the stadium and a stall in our momentum.

Carbery missing is big though and of course this game is pretty much a pre-season warmup for us, but yes things on paper are more even than they have been for a while.

Whether it's a 'balance of power' shifting game? Not in the slightest.

They'd have to at least back it up in a semi for that to be even remotely in question.

It’s very much a one-off. Doesn’t say much either way.

[Ruckedtobits]

Difficult to think that Leo and Stuart will use anything less than the first choice squad. They will want to:

a) Get a victory against Munster - always a bell-weather fixture;
b) Win the first competitive game of the season - start as you mean to continue;
c) Prepare the players for a string of knock-out games in a row;
d) Re-gain the momentum we had when everything closed down;
e) Ensure that the team units get straight up to speed;
f) Send out the message that the hunger is unabated.

There is little chance that any opposition will under-estimate us, so go straight for the jugular. If we lose a couple of players to injury, so be it, that's why we have such a strong Squad. The competition within the Squad will have produced the motivation for the first choice players to maintain their standards. They know that if they're not at their best, somebody else will get the call.

As for the venue, this is Leinster's turf and familiar to every player in our Squad, so there is nothing I can see that says "Advantage Munster".

Finally, the 2006 semi win in Lansdowne was most remarkable for the influence of the Red dominated attendance who had mopped up every ticket available from the 'Lunsters'. Croke Park in 2009 was a synchronised montage of Blue & Red and our noise advantage only occurred once we got ahead. So an empty stadium confers no advantage to either team because it's empty and eerie.

Leinster have a Squad who have demonstrated teamwork in a variety of combinations in top line matches over two Seasons. Munster have a number of new stars and replacements for injured stars. Very difficult to understand how that will confer any match-play advantage to Munster.

This is ours to win and our players know it.

[Up Wexford]

Agree, I'd go full metal jacket, with lack of training and rusty skills unfortunately being the great equalizer

[LeinsterLeader]

Agree, I'd go full metal jacket, with lack of training and rusty skills unfortunately being the great equalizer

That being said, If James Ryan is out then they might not risk a Toner/Fardy combo, which you'd image would be our next strongest second row .......just a thought!

[deco]

How strong is our squad depth really? Outside of the pack and half backs, we have scant cover for injuries going into the knockout stages.

[mildlyinterested]

How strong is our squad depth really? Outside of the pack and half backs, we have scant cover for injuries going into the knockout stages.

Stronger than most.

[mildlyinterested]

Agree, I'd go full metal jacket, with lack of training and rusty skills unfortunately being the great equalizer

That being said, If James Ryan is out then they might not risk a Toner/Fardy combo, which you'd image would be our next strongest second row .......just a thought!

for the first game out, maybe they'd try Baird... still players are rusty and need to play to get upto speed.. won't be easy to balance it.

[wixfjord]

So an empty stadium confers no advantage to either team because it's empty and eerie.

Leinster have a Squad who have demonstrated teamwork in a variety of combinations in top line matches over two Seasons. Munster have a number of new stars and replacements for injured stars. Very difficult to understand how that will confer any match-play advantage to Munster.

Well it's more of an advantage to Munster to have an empty stadium than to have 40000 Leinster fans there

The data from the Euro football leagues returns have shown that with an empty stadium home advantage is diminished a lot.

Clearly having two WC winners coming in will also have them in a better position than before lockdown.

We'll also have some injured guys back in the fray albeit. Carbery being out is a big loss too.

[munster#1]

Really can’t wait for rugby to return.
Win, lose or draw, this will be a great day.

I haven’t seen or heard comments from Munster fans about this power shift, but if that is being said, then the people saying it are delusional.

In 2009 Munster were not only passed out by Leinster, but unfortunately by a few other teams too.

It will be interesting to see what kind of influence the new signings have.
Given that this will be their first game, and they will have very limited time to train as a full team, I suspect that they will have little impact.

[ronk]

It's a televised preseason warm up, with a smaller crowd. Munster have something to play for.

The absolute peak for Munster was the 2009 QF. Looked better than 2006 & 2008, heavily favoured, dominant selection for the Lions and a Grand Slam for Ireland.

Munster were beaten by Biarritz in the 2010 semi and started to decline slowly as guys aged out.

[Dave Cahill]

Different teams have different needs from these games

Some are focussed only on the Pro14, some are in Europe and the Pro14, some are guaranteed a playoff slot in the Pro14, some still have to secure that slot.

So some teams will have to go fully loaded from the get go, others will try to blend their players in. Its going to interesting to see how it pans out.

[riocard911]

Different teams have different needs from these games

Some are focussed only on the Pro14, some are in Europe and the Pro14, some are guaranteed a playoff slot in the Pro14, some still have to secure that slot.

So some teams will have to go fully loaded from the get go, others will try to blend their players in. Its going to interesting to see how it pans out.

For sure the permutations are endless. How about a return of Blues Talk TV with some expert analysis a couple of days beforehand to get us into the swing of things?

[johng]

What? You are suggesting bluestalk employ some experts and get rid of those three losers?

It just wouldn't be the same....