Ospreys v Leinster

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6 Nations shmations, back to the bread n butter of regional top flight rugby. Woohoo!

Pro12: Ospreys v Glasgow
Venue: Liberty Stadium, Swansea Date: Friday, 27 February Kick-off: 17:35 GMT Coverage: Scrum V BBC 2 Wales and BBC Sport website; updates on BBC Radio Wales.

Ospreys: Dan Evans; Tom Grabham, Jonathan Spratt, Josh Matavesi, Hanno Dirksen; Sam Davies, Martin Roberts; Ryan Bevington, Scott Otten, Dmitri Arhip, Tevita Cavubati, Tyler Ardron (Capt), Joe Bearman, James King, Dan Baker
Replacements: Matthew Dwyer, Marc Thomas, Daniel Suter, Rhodri Hughes, Olly Cracknell, Morgan Allen, Tom Habberfield, Richard Fussell
Leinster : Zane Kirchner; Fergus McFadden, Ben Te'o, Gordon D'Arcy, Dave Kearney; Jimmy Gopperth, Isaac Boss (capt); Michael Bent, Richardt Strauss, Tadhg Furlong; Tom Denton, Kane Douglas; Rhys Ruddock, Josh Van Der Flier, Jack Conan.
Replacements: Aaron Dundon, Peter Dooley, Royce Burke-Flynn, Ben Marshall, Dominic Ryan, Luke McGrath, Noel Reid, Darragh Fanning.
Referee: John Lacey (IRFU)
Assistant Referees: Craig Evans, Chris Williams (both WRU)
Citing Commissioner: Gwyn Bowden (WRU)
TMO: Derek Bevan (WRU)

Ospreys need to win this one to get their play off campaign back on track.

I honestly didn't think it was as bad as it looked

GavinDragon wrote:another terrible performance from John Lacey - when will the Pro12 start utilising neutral ref's only it is an absolute joke

Neutral refs are not necessarily the answer, as I would hate to be forced into playing big games with Italian or Scottish refs. Maybe just ensuring that when a ref has an absolute howler of a game more than once they get moved down the pecking order, and when a young red does well rewarding them with bigger games.

Except for last weekend I would always be happier with Dudley Phillips as ref in a big game against Munster/Ulster/Leinster than I would with Mitrea or Patterson etc.

I thought he made a couple odd calls, at the breakdown which favoured Leinster. It didn't affect the result but IMO it still isn't acceptable at this level! Wonder how other Pro12 ref's faired this weekend?

jimbopip wrote:From a Glasgow point of view: could you contrive a low scoring draw please?

Tonight's lottery numbers provided for a small fee.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/rugby-union/31717203

Elbow has been cited

Hmmm.................. so much for the love-in with officials

I'll have to get on the phone this instant to demand they release them boys from the high security prison! Don't they know them's Irish lads??????

SecretFly wrote:Hmmm.................. so much for the love-in with officials

I'll have to get on the phone this instant to demand they release them boys from the high security prison!  Don't they know them's Irish lads??????  

really constructive there

ScarletSpiderman wrote:http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/rugby-union/31717203

Elbow has been cited

Just imagine the outrage on here if that was 3 welsh players.

Glad the elbow has been cited, it's dangerous and if the laws condone that type of fend then something should be done.

ScarletSpiderman wrote:

SecretFly wrote:Hmmm.................. so much for the love-in with officials

I'll have to get on the phone this instant to demand they release them boys from the high security prison!  Don't they know them's Irish lads??????  

really constructive there

Oh sorry...this is an official 'serious' thread?

Oh didn't see that on my way in. Carry on, Scarlet.

SecretFly wrote:

ScarletSpiderman wrote:

SecretFly wrote:Hmmm.................. so much for the love-in with officials

I'll have to get on the phone this instant to demand they release them boys from the high security prison!  Don't they know them's Irish lads??????  

really constructive there

Oh sorry...this is an official 'serious' thread?

Oh didn't see that on my way in.  Carry on, Scarlet.

Lets face it you never do

Oh I think I've enough grim, glum and serious posts floating in the ether to prove that theory wrong

Like I said, enjoy the thread.

With regards to these citings, especialy the Ulster pair, I am wondering where all the Irish fans who were Hang, drawing and quartering Liam Williams now are, I remember having an all mighty ding dong on here with the Ulster fans saying that Ulster are a niggly team and now this just proves it, also Ben Te'o has a plaster cast on his forearm that he led with into Sam Davies's face but he the ref refused to take the TMO's advice and ingored this, it happened before to Sam Warburton, same player, same forearm and same result, this league is a joke, it is geared up for the Irish, I am fed up to my back teeth with it, no wonder us Welsh do not go and watch the regions as much as we should, there is to much bias towards the Irish in the Pro12, but funnily enough if you dare say it you get ripped apart.

I know LD. I said earlier the Irish would be going crazy if those 3 were Welsh players. We've seen it before all too often.

Saint, I honestly think we would be better off just walking away from the whole damn thing and doing something ourselves, almost every game the Ospreys have played against Irish sides this season they have had an Irish ref, it's a joke, I am yet to see Nigel Owens ref a Welsh region against an Irish region, I wonder why that is ?

LD - Welsh regions bring WRU referee with them to games in Ireland. Irish provinces bring IFRU with them to games in Wales. The reason being the dire officiated by Scots/Italian refs in these very important matches.

There is rucktions when irish players don't get cited. Now there is controversy because they are cited. A player does something wrong, then they get punished, simple as.

thebandwagonsociety wrote:LD - Welsh regions bring WRU referee with them to games in Ireland.  Irish provinces bring IFRU with them to games in Wales.  The reason being the dire officiated by Scots/Italian refs in these very important matches.

There is rucktions when irish players don't get cited. Now there is controversy because they are cited.  A player does something wrong, then they get punished, simple as.

Irish teams get Irish refs in Ireland as well butty.

LordDowlais wrote:Saint, I honestly think we would be better off just walking away from the whole damn thing and doing something ourselves, almost every game the Ospreys have played against Irish sides this season they have had an Irish ref, it's a joke, I am yet to see Nigel Owens ref a Welsh region against an Irish region, I wonder why that is ?

God you boys when you get on a righteous bandwagon!!!

Beware the wheels.  The wheels are always the first thing to go on the bandwagon.

If the Welsh want to get out of Pro12 - fine.

But here's the facts to kill your 'exacerbated' fantasy, Lord.  Don't you ever look up facts to back up your fantasy, btw?

By all means look up the detail and correct me on anything I have wrong here.  I usually don't do it that often:

So - to date there have been 23 games against Welsh v Irish sides in Pro12.

4 of them have been refereed by Irish referees
8 of them have been refereed by Italian referees
5 of them have been refereed by Scottish referees

How many is that so far? 17?

How many more do we need to make up 23?

6 of them have been refereed by Welsh referees.


And now to the specifics of Ospreys and their afflicted relationship with Irish refs.

Ospreys have played Irish sides 6 times so far this season.

1 Italian referee
1 Scottish referee
2 Irish referees (the scoundrels)
2 Welsh referees (how did they get in to ruin a theory Lord was developing??)

So you see.  Irish sides have been reffed more by Welsh referees than the other way round.  And yet, that means nothing in the continuing war of words about how invasive the Irish ref is and how much he throws games to help his Irish provinces out.

Like I said earlier.  If you're simply frustrated with all things Irish and want out of the Pro12, then fine.  Get the ball rolling by writing your letter.  But don't invent 'truths' to bolster the reasons why.

I think you will find that Nigel Pearson is from Northern Ireland.

LordDowlais wrote:I think you will find that Nigel Pearson is from Northern Ireland.

That's all you can say about the "Almost every game"??

More Welsh refs ruined our games than ours ruined yours so far Lord. That's the only truth in the numbers even if you include Pearson.

I'm sure all the Irish who were quick to criticise Rynard Landman will be along somewhere to criticise the actions of a few Irish based players. All about the balance see.

Risca Rev wrote:I'm sure all the Irish who were quick to criticise Rynard Landman will be along somewhere to criticise the actions of a few Irish based players. All about the balance see.

Angry when we show up... annoyed that we don't.

There are bigger reffing issues now Risca. WRU paid off Walsh to stay away and have replaced him with Barnes. That'll be two yellow cards to us.