Away to Scarlets, 30/01, Saturday @ 7.35pm

[Dave Cahill]

Game off, positive COVID tests in the Scarlets squad.

[Ruckedtobits]

Game off, positive COVID tests in the Scarlets squad.

Ouch. That's certainly going to impact our Heino prep.

[wixfjord]

Ah that's a shame. Hope the scarlets lads are alright.

Might not be the worst thing in the world for us. A lot of guys have played a lot of rugby in the last 8 weeks and we're picking up a lot of injuries.

Three weeks with no game isn't ideal, but if any coaching team can make the training high quality and intensity enough to prep lads for Europe it's ours imo.

[Blueberry]

Ah that's a shame. Hope the scarlets lads are alright.

Might not be the worst thing in the world for us. A lot of guys have played a lot of rugby in the last 8 weeks and we're picking up a lot of injuries.

Three weeks with no game isn't ideal, but if any coaching team can make the training high quality and intensity enough to prep lads for Europe it's ours imo.

I like the positivity !! Going to have to watch old YouTube repeats of Leinster now on Sunday instead. I have been saving our classic 3-0 win v Zebre for such an occasion, otherwise know as 'game of the century' in our bubble.

Pity not to have another 40-50 point try fest hammering to watch on Sunday but at least Benty can have a nice rest and a cup of tea.

Of course everything now hangs on C testing for our Euro opponents too.....fingers crossed it goes ahead.

Leocasteropomi I am sure will have been planning for situations like this so in them we trust.

Any games I suppose are a bonus but hard to imagine some Euro games won't be hit.....going to be a nightmare getting all this stuff refixed.

[ronk]

Bentos is like Rossy was. He hates missing games and loves playing more than training. Subject to no injuries, he'd go 15 games in 18 weeks without a bother and look as good in the final one as the first one.

Ask the S&C guys. When you're equipped with a high proportion of low-twitch muscles what you need is regular action, few lay-overs and plenty of scrum work. Forget the shuttle runs & fartleg work, just plenty of scrums, mauls, clearouts and ball-handling. Enough of that and he'll go non-stop till April.

Yeah, I guess - despite how I framed it - my concern is injury risk, and not fatigue (since there’s a break before Europe anyway). The more you play, the greater the risk.

Anyway, there’s no way he won’t be involved, since there’s nobody else. Hat tip Nucifora and dIRFU.

Nature finds a way

[curates_egg]

Of course everything now hangs on C testing for our Euro opponents too.....fingers crossed it goes ahead.

Given how many positive tests they have already had, you would think there is a greater risk in one of our lads testing positive but, given there appears to be almost no community transmission in Ireland, that risk is also miniscule.
There are two explanations as to why we have had no announced positive tests so far: highly professional set up and good luck; we did, isolated it, and didn't need to declare it publicly.

But I'm delighted we can avoid the injury risk to Bent and a few other key players.

[Blueberry]

Of course everything now hangs on C testing for our Euro opponents too.....fingers crossed it goes ahead.

Given how many positive tests they have already had, you would think there is a greater risk in one of our lads testing positive but, given there appears to be almost no community transmission in Ireland, that risk is also miniscule.
There are two explanations as to why we have had no announced positive tests so far: highly professional set up and good luck; we did, isolated it, and didn't need to declare it publicly.

But I'm delighted we can avoid the injury risk to Bent and a few other key players.

Let's take the positive slant on it and just say that Leinster so far seem to have handled it well !! Perhaps someone has done the smart thing and bought a load of cheapy Covid tests which always give a negative

With the amount of games being cancelled refixing is going to be a mess - Connaught have missed a few games now and miss the Ospreys this weekend so they will have forgotten which way to run if this continues much longer.

Think we should just give Leinster the Pro 14 title this year as we have it won anyway, for the Euro Cup bypass the group stages and have a zoom off game of table rugby between Leo and Jacky Lorenzetti and Rob Baxter to see who gets the cup this year.

Anyway Benty has the feet up this evening I'm sure, well earnt rest !!

[Dave Cahill]

Are the hotels open in London?

[IanD]

Just thinking....

With the Connacht match postponed too why not play a friendly between Leinster and Connacht.

Might help with fulfilling broadcast\marketing contracts etc and give lads a run out.

[mildlyinterested]

Just thinking....

With the Connacht match postponed too why not play a friendly between Leinster and Connacht.

Might help with fulfilling broadcast\marketing contracts etc and give lads a run out.

[joooooe]

Just thinking....

With the Connacht match postponed too why not play a friendly between Leinster and Connacht.

Might help with fulfilling broadcast\marketing contracts etc and give lads a run out.

Or just play the league fixture now that would otherwise have been played later in the season. Having two squads of healthy players sitting out a weekend is a bit silly.

[ronk]

Just thinking....

With the Connacht match postponed too why not play a friendly between Leinster and Connacht.

Might help with fulfilling broadcast\marketing contracts etc and give lads a run out.

Or just play the league fixture now that would otherwise have been played later in the season. Having two squads of healthy players sitting out a weekend is a bit silly.

Probably too late now

[IanD]

Just thinking....

With the Connacht match postponed too why not play a friendly between Leinster and Connacht.

Might help with fulfilling broadcast\marketing contracts etc and give lads a run out.

Or just play the league fixture now that would otherwise have been played later in the season. Having two squads of healthy players sitting out a weekend is a bit silly.

Probably too late now

But they could play for the Mickey O'Mouse trophy.

It looks like a karate trophy with a yellow post it over the plaque.

I am sure Eir Sport will be happy to have something to show live. There is only so many games Offally played in 1982.

[neill_m]

Game rescheduled for Saturday January 30th 7:35pm KO.

[mildlyinterested]

So internationals will be away, quite a few injury questions:

1. Dooley
2. Cronin
3. Bent?
4. Molony
5. Toner
6. Baird
7. Leavy?
8. Conan
9. McGrath
10. HB
11. Lowe?
12. Frawley
13. ROL?
14. Kelleher
15. Kearney?
16. Tracey
17. Byrne
18. Clarkson
19. Fardy
20. Murphy
21. HOS
22. Hawkshaw?
23. TOB? Turner?

[outcast eddie]

A lacklustre Scarlets lost at home to a one dimensional Cardiff Blues yesterday 10 - 13. Their scrum looked vulnerable at times and Halfpenny was unusually inaccurate with penalty kicks.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/rugby-union/55746614

[curates_egg]

A lacklustre Scarlets lost at home to a one dimensional Cardiff Blues yesterday 10 - 13. Their scrum looked vulnerable at times and Halfpenny was unusually inaccurate with penalty kicks.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/rugby-union/55746614

That could almost be a description of Munster’s loss to us

[Cianostays]

I imagine we'll have Lowe available to get him some game time before joining up with Ireland. What was JO'B's injury on Saturday?

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[mildlyinterested]

Ruddock in irish squad, Conan out.

Ed Byrne out too.

Lowe in too.

[LeinsterLeader]

Ruddock in irish squad, Conan out.

Ed Byrne out too.

Lowe in too.

RR deserves it. We'll miss him next week though. Hope Ireland use him now.

It'' be good to have Conan involved against Scarlets anyway