Ulster 2016/2017

First topic message reminder :

Well the danger is always that life happens and he might refocus his entire life after two years in France.... were he to go.

LordDowlais wrote:Mitrea had a mare. But Scarlets were the better side in the second half. The fact Uslter failed to score a single point in the second half, or really threaten the Scarlets try line is not down to the ref.

It was a tail of two halfs, Ulster played the weather better in the first half, Scarlets played it better in the 2nd. Also who was saying Mitrea was the most improved ref this year on my referee thread ?

Matrea is a homer, but a decent ref, if that makes sense.

Matrea wasn't really at fault for the mess in the 2nd half. It's the confusion surrounding the new law. Having said that; Ball should have been yellow carded in the 1st half, if Matrea was consistent.

Stop blaming the ref!

Shame on you.

Cyril wrote:

marty2086 wrote:

Cyril wrote:Well done Scarlets! Deserved win.

Back to your trolling

Only when you're so one-eyed in your comments. Nothing personal.

Ulster fans in 'ref lost it for us' shocker

Well we were complaing about the ref when we were ahead and Scarlets fans even say the decisions were awful so seems you are the one eyed one around here

Cyril wrote:

marty2086 wrote:

Cyril wrote:Well done Scarlets! Deserved win.

Back to your trolling

Only when you're so one-eyed in your comments. Nothing personal.

Ulster fans in 'ref lost it for us' shocker

Ulster fans rarely blame the ref.

Cyril wrote:Stop blaming the ref!

Shame on you.

I'm immune to your wind-ups. I have your number, Cyril

marty2086 wrote:

Cyril wrote:

marty2086 wrote:

Cyril wrote:Well done Scarlets! Deserved win.

Back to your trolling

Only when you're so one-eyed in your comments. Nothing personal.

Ulster fans in 'ref lost it for us' shocker

Well we were complaing about the ref when we were ahead and Scarlets fans even say the decisions were awful so seems you are the one eyed one around here

How many refs do you want blacklisted? I guess we add Mitrea to your long list. Let the rugby world know who is acceptable,.

Munchkin wrote:

Cyril wrote:Stop blaming the ref!

Shame on you.

I'm immune to your wind-ups. I have your number, Cyril

Marvellous

Munchkin wrote:

LordDowlais wrote:Mitrea had a mare. But Scarlets were the better side in the second half. The fact Uslter failed to score a single point in the second half, or really threaten the Scarlets try line is not down to the ref.

It was a tail of two halfs, Ulster played the weather better in the first half, Scarlets played it better in the 2nd. Also who was saying Mitrea was the most improved ref this year on my referee thread ?

Matrea is a homer, but a decent ref, if that makes sense.

Matrea wasn't really at fault for the mess in the 2nd half. It's the confusion surrounding the new law. Having said that; Ball should have been yellow carded in the 1st half, if Matrea was consistent.

From what I made of it, Scarlets started playing the ref in the second half, just as Ulster were in the first. Mitrea did not have clue at the breakdown or the scrum, so the Scarlets must have been listening to the commentators and decided to do the same.

Saying that, Scarlets cut down on the errors, McNicholl started catching the ball, and the change of scrum half for Scarlets was a big game changer.

marty2086 wrote:

Cyril wrote:

marty2086 wrote:

Cyril wrote:

marty2086 wrote:

Cyril wrote:

marty2086 wrote:

Cyril wrote:Well done Scarlets! Deserved win.

Back to your trolling

Only when you're so one-eyed in your comments. Nothing personal.

Ulster fans in 'ref lost it for us' shocker

Well we were complaing about the ref when we were ahead and Scarlets fans even say the decisions were awful so seems you are the one eyed one around here

How many refs do you want blacklisted? I guess we add Mitrea to your long list. Let the rugby world know who is acceptable,.

Do us all a favour and piss off

If you stop complaining about refs, I disappear...

You arent interested, you are a troll

I disagree with you and your opinion. You insult me. I said Ulster would struggle this season.

Cyril wrote:

marty2086 wrote:

Cyril wrote:

marty2086 wrote:

Cyril wrote:

marty2086 wrote:

Cyril wrote:

marty2086 wrote:

Cyril wrote:Well done Scarlets! Deserved win.

Back to your trolling

Only when you're so one-eyed in your comments. Nothing personal.

Ulster fans in 'ref lost it for us' shocker

Well we were complaing about the ref when we were ahead and Scarlets fans even say the decisions were awful so seems you are the one eyed one around here

How many refs do you want blacklisted? I guess we add Mitrea to your long list. Let the rugby world know who is acceptable,.

Do us all a favour and piss off

If you stop complaining about refs, I disappear...

You arent interested, you are a troll

I disagree with you and your opinion. You insult me. I said Ulster would struggle this season.

So you are saying the ref was good tonight?

You cannot beat Irish provinces (especially Ulster) except on the scoreboard. Do they really go home thinking they won, except for the ref?

Answer the question

LordDowlais wrote:

Munchkin wrote:

LordDowlais wrote:Mitrea had a mare. But Scarlets were the better side in the second half. The fact Uslter failed to score a single point in the second half, or really threaten the Scarlets try line is not down to the ref.

It was a tail of two halfs, Ulster played the weather better in the first half, Scarlets played it better in the 2nd. Also who was saying Mitrea was the most improved ref this year on my referee thread ?

Matrea is a homer, but a decent ref, if that makes sense.

Matrea wasn't really at fault for the mess in the 2nd half. It's the confusion surrounding the new law. Having said that; Ball should have been yellow carded in the 1st half, if Matrea was consistent.

From what I made of it, Scarlets started playing the ref in the second half, just as Ulster were in the first. Mitrea did not have clue at the breakdown or the scrum, so the Scarlets must have been listening to the commentators and decided to do the same.

Saying that, Scarlets cut down on the errors, McNicholl started catching the ball, and the change of scrum half for Scarlets was a big game changer.

Scarlets were more intense in the 2nd half. I don't think it was anything to do with playing the ref better. The penalty Try beat us, and that's down to interpretation. Reidy was carded for the exact same offense as Jake Ball, yet Ball wasn't carded. Matrea interpreted Reidy's high tackle as deliberate. Hog-wash.


I'm thinking there's going to be a huge amount of controversy caused by this new law.

marty2086 wrote:

Cyril wrote:

marty2086 wrote:

Cyril wrote:

marty2086 wrote:

Cyril wrote:

marty2086 wrote:

Cyril wrote:

marty2086 wrote:

Cyril wrote:Well done Scarlets! Deserved win.

Back to your trolling

Only when you're so one-eyed in your comments. Nothing personal.

Ulster fans in 'ref lost it for us' shocker

Well we were complaing about the ref when we were ahead and Scarlets fans even say the decisions were awful so seems you are the one eyed one around here

How many refs do you want blacklisted? I guess we add Mitrea to your long list. Let the rugby world know who is acceptable,.

Do us all a favour and piss off

If you stop complaining about refs, I disappear...

You arent interested, you are a troll

I disagree with you and your opinion. You insult me. I said Ulster would struggle this season.

So you are saying the ref was good tonight?

He was ok. Why is it always the ref with you when you lose? You can lose by being the lesser side. Every single time you lose it's ALWAYS the ref.

Well your the only one who thinks he was ok, seems you are the biased one

marty2086 wrote:Well your the only one who thinks he was ok, seems you are the biased one

The ref was crap, he is a crap ref, not the worst in the Pro12 mind. But, it was not the refs fault why Ulster lost today, the fact that Ulster did not look like scoring a point in the second half is why they lost, and that was not the refs fault.

Munchkin wrote:I'm thinking there's going to be a huge amount of controversy caused by this new law.

not from MrsP there wont.

LordDowlais wrote:

marty2086 wrote:Well your the only one who thinks he was ok, seems you are the biased one

The ref was crap, he is a crap ref, not the worst in the Pro12 mind. But, it was not the refs fault why Ulster lost today, the fact that Ulster did not look like scoring a point in the second half is why they lost, and that was not the refs fault.

Im not disagreeing but for the penalty try though they wouldnt have needed to thats the problem

marty2086 wrote:Well your the only one who thinks he was ok, seems you are the biased one

Did he deny Ulster a win?

I'm waiting for the next time Ulster (Irish province/Ireland) lose and there isn't a referee problem.

LordDowlais wrote:

Munchkin wrote:I'm thinking there's going to be a huge amount of controversy caused by this new law.

not from MrsP there wont.

I await massive hypocrisy

LordDowlais wrote:

Munchkin wrote:I'm thinking there's going to be a huge amount of controversy caused by this new law.

not from MrsP there wont.

I agree with MrsP on the new laws, but the interpretation this evening was ludicrous. I'm not blaming Matrea for that (although I do blame him for lack of consistency). I am blaming World Rugby for lack of clarity.

marty2086 wrote:

LordDowlais wrote:

marty2086 wrote:Well your the only one who thinks he was ok, seems you are the biased one

The ref was crap, he is a crap ref, not the worst in the Pro12 mind. But, it was not the refs fault why Ulster lost today, the fact that Ulster did not look like scoring a point in the second half is why they lost, and that was not the refs fault.

Im not disagreeing but for the penalty try though they wouldnt have needed to thats the problem

Andrew Trimble was lucky not to see red during that incident if you ask me, what with how finicky these new laws are. I think Scarlets would have gone on to win that game in the second half anyway. Uslter just imploded in the second half, after an almost perfect way to play the weather in the first half.

No play offs this year then.
Where is Marcel?
Any word on his recovery?
Has he said 'sod this shanbles' and gone home?

Marty forget Cyril - everyone else does.

Neither side looked to have any real quality tonight. Ulster surprised me in that they stayed in it for so long and Scarlets disappointed at home. It was a pity the game was decided by a World Rugby ruling that didn't seem in any way in the spirit of the game. World Rugby are running scared of events around them but all they do is react rather than take control of the sport. If this game had been say a club semi-final or a Test championship decider WR would be in serious trouble. Don't blame the monkey when the organ grinder is at fault.

The Great Aukster wrote:Marty forget Cyril - everyone else does.

 Love you too

Cyril wrote:

The Great Aukster wrote:Marty forget Cyril - everyone else does.

 Love you too

Light and shade

The Great Aukster wrote:

Cyril wrote:

The Great Aukster wrote:Marty forget Cyril - everyone else does.

 Love you too

Light and shade

 Light and shade (and then some)

Sorry all. I got banned for pointing out that Cyril is obsessed with Irish rugby in an unhealthy way. He is clearly a very odd person whose interest include denigrating others for personal satisfaction. Some would question the sanity of such an individual. I can't comment. Apparently giving an accurate description of Cyril's condition is a bannable offence. How unfortunate. He might learn something.

The Goosey - tell us about your childhood experiences... in particular any of them that invoved individuals whose names began with C

Only just watched the match. Haven't read all comments. Penalty try was the difference. Truth is, I think Reidy's tackle was perfectly OK on a player dipping down headed to the line. But the yellow was actually deserved by Trimble, whose forearm actually made contact with the players face at same time. Not a nano second later and Henderson seems to punch the guy in the face during holding it up. I expect him to be cited on that.

Oh and of course, the Scarlets yellow card was a joke. May as well make the rule 'only tackle below the waist'.

Pete330v2 wrote:No play offs this year then.

Its looking very much like Ulster wont make them. It would take some turn around in form for them.

Did anyone else see Henderson appear to punch the player in the face while he was held up. The first definitely went into his face. Not near the ball. BBC Wales made sure to show that specification in slo mo after the conversion. I expect a citing.

His arm pops out in the attempt to rip the ball. He then tries to go for the ball again and makes very light contact. I'd hate to see it cited but who knows, they're trying to kill the game anyway so why not.

Thats a positive way to look at it Pete! Hopefully official s agree with you. I'm not entirely sure it was light, and it was pretty innacurate of him if he were looking the ball. Only thing that goes in his favour is that his fist doesn't look entirely clinched. I wouldn't be surprised. I just know the TV production team were showing it again because they must have thought it was foul play even if ref and commentators didn't see it.

When I saw the penalty try incident, I thought the Ulster no8 (who had a really good game) had pulled off a superb try saving tackle and even after the slowmo replays I am still of that opinion.

However after watching the slowmo I thought that the swinging hand to the face of the try scorer, whilst completely accidental, would be classed under the new rules as foul play and I expected the wing to be carded and then the question would be whether this foul play prevented the try?

In the continued slowmotion replays it also became apparent that the Ulster no 5 has a cheap shot to the face of the Scarlets player on the ground. That looked a lot more serious and had the ref decided to officiate on that then a red card would have been the likely outcome.

The ref was very poor for the whole game, Ulster played his ineptitude better in the first half and certainly got the upper hand. I suspect the Scarlets coaches instructed their players on how they could also play the ref in the second half and this certainly worked.

Very lucky win for the Scarlets, they certainly would not have been able to complain if they had lost. Ulster no8 and Ball were both extremely unlucky to be carded. The Ulster wing (was it Bowe) was lucky not to be carded and the Ulster 5 will be sweating over the next few days to see if he gets cited and subsequently banned, for what looked a pretty stupid punch!

Highlights here if anybody wants to see them, the more I see the try incident, the more I think a penalty try is the right decision, due to Trimble's flailing arm, but I think a pen try would have been adequate, a yellow on top is far too much. If anything the wrong player was punished.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/rugby-union/38514314

There should be two players for Ulster sweating over the next few days if the citing commissioner gets involved.

It certainly looks like a punch from the Ulster 5 which was worthy of a yellow card in itself for cynical play. Not sure of the YC and Penalty Try for the tackle though.

eirebilly wrote:It certainly looks like a punch from the Ulster 5 which was worthy of a yellow card in itself for cynical play. Not sure of the YC and Penalty Try for the tackle though.

No, not both, penalty try would have sufficed for Trimble's trailing fore arm. Him and the player who punched can look out, as no doubt the situation was overall was so controversial that it is bount to be looked at, and they will see both incidents.

Trimble didnt stop the try so penalty try would have been wrong against him

I dont think Henderson was trying to punch the Scerlets player, his face is buried and looking the opposite direction but theres an element of recklessness and we saw Wilson get suspended for something similar against Scarlets a few years back

LordDowlais wrote:

eirebilly wrote:It certainly looks like a punch from the Ulster 5 which was worthy of a yellow card in itself for cynical play. Not sure of the YC and Penalty Try for the tackle though.

No, not both, penalty try would have sufficed for Trimble's trailing fore arm. Him and the player who punched can look out, as no doubt the situation was overall was so controversial that it is bount to be looked at, and they will see both incidents.

I honestly saw nothing wrong with the tackle, what else is a defender to do in that situation when a player dives for the line?

Just playing Devils advocate here as a neutral but if I were the TMO (or ref) I would not have awarded a penalty try. I would have awarded Scarlet's a penalty for the punch (Yellow Carded the Ulster 5) and left it at that.

As for Trimble, I think that did not expect the Scarlet's 21 to go low early and was in two minds to make the tackle. As a result, he left his trailing arm out but it was not that bad, certainly will go to the citing commissioner though and could face a weeks ban.

Henderson's fist was closed as he made contact so he will almost certainly receive a citing and a ban.

LordDowlais wrote:

eirebilly wrote:It certainly looks like a punch from the Ulster 5 which was worthy of a yellow card in itself for cynical play. Not sure of the YC and Penalty Try for the tackle though.

No, not both, penalty try would have sufficed for Trimble's trailing fore arm. Him and the player who punched can look out, as no doubt the situation was overall was so controversial that it is bount to be looked at, and they will see both incidents.

Trimble's trailing arm wouldn't have prevented a Try, so no penalty try.

The horrible truth is that both yellow cards are correct under this new law, and under the new law the penalty Try was the right call. Pathetic, against the spirit of the game, but a penalty Try.

I think Henderson was trying to punch the ball out, but he will be cited and he will be out for a couple of weeks.

Henderson is clearly trying to rip the ball. When that fails his hand goes in to try again and contact is made. It's not a punch and if cited will truely be laughable.
On the other ruling I've counted a number of tackles from both sides in the O's v Westies that should have that match down to about 12 aside Utter joke of a ruling which should have been brought in after this season.

Pete, you are being incredibly one-eyed if you at least don't admit the contact may have been intentional. He knows where the ball is surely, and his hand goes nowhere near it. I'm not saying it was a deliberate punch, but it definitely does look like something that would get cited. Fairly hard contact with his fist to the temple area.

Besides, when are we going to learn... Intent is irrelevant!

It isn't a punch. How anyone can see it as one is beyond me. Simple as that.

clivemcl wrote:Pete, you are being incredibly one-eyed if you at least don't admit the contact may have been intentional. He knows where the ball is surely, and his hand goes nowhere near it. I'm not saying it was a deliberate punch, but it definitely does look like something that would get cited. Fairly hard contact with his fist to the temple area.

Besides, when are we going to learn... Intent is irrelevant!

clive watch again, he has no idea where anything is his face is buried and looking in the opposite direction but likely to miss Europe which is worrying as Exeter are currently beating Saracens

Only slight upside is Saries are down to 14.

Back to our game, we've seen a vision of things to come. Give or take, that's the team we can expect next season.

No Pienaar
No VDM
Shannanon getting gametime
Treadwell getting gametime
Marshall as our main 9
Ross off the bench
Warrick off the bench
Henderson in the 2nd row

There are other players to come back in sure. But only Coetzee makes that team materially better, and that's not a slight on Herbst, Piutau or McCall - just a statement that we're looking ok in those positions.

Of course, it could get massively worse if we were to lose someone else like Jackson or another key player.

Not exactly cheering me up at our medium term prospects. And we can forget the playoffs, even if she scrape through we'll get eaten alive by a Munster (who aren't even that amazing but improving) or Leinster.

[quote="Pete330v2"]It isn't a punch. How anyone can see it as one is beyond me. Simple as that.

Pete330v2 wrote:It isn't a punch. How anyone can see it as one is beyond me. Simple as that.

Closed hand jab to the face not a haymaker but they call that a punch where I come from! A cheap shot at a player pinned to the the ground, stupid play! He will be sweating for the next few days when he waits to see if he is cited and banned.

Exeter ended up drawing with Saracens, hopefully a sign of things to come

For Ulster though theres a real lack of cohesion about the team for me and even leadership, last night when we needed to score we tried playing an open game in awful conditions when early on keeping it tight had worked for us too.

Pienaar is the only player we have who regularly shows an ability to switch up the gameplan intelligently