Has Ulster's homegrown flyhalf hope become 'persona non grata'? - Neil Best
A horse never runs so fast as when he has other horses to catch up and outpace
Cardiff’s surprise win at Edinburgh last weekend was as good for Ulster as their Ravenhill bonus win against Zebre. Conference B in the Pro14 is by far the more interesting, with a fantastic close contest for playoff places, behind run away leaders Leinster.
Scarlets are sitting fifth but only five points adrift of second place Benetton and the Welsh side has a much easier run in. Sandwiched between them are Edinburgh and Ulster, with the Scots away to the Italians this Saturday -in a huge crunch game for both sides.
Players are often advised to play one week to the next and not focus too much on two and three games ahead. I was always the opposite. I enjoyed the mental exercise of working through the maths and predicting the outcome of other fixtures and what those results might mean for my Club. If any of Ulster’s current crop are doing the same exercise today, they will know that March is the month that will make or break their season.
Home and away with very winnable games in the Pro14, followed by the near impossible challenge of putting Leinster to the sword in a Dublin European quarter-final. Any two out of three will mean a positive end of season.
In Belfast last weekend much more of Ulster’s broader playing pool was on show. We are also getting to see more of who Dan McFarland will be placing his confidence in the seasons to come. Robert Baloucoune is showing more and more ability in every game he plays, and fellow winger Rob Lyttle played with the confidence of someone who starts every week.
Lyttle has just signed a new contrast along with reserve scrum half Dave Shanahan, prop Ross Kane and Alan O’Connor, who I had a sneaking suspicion might have been tempted away from Ulster at the end of this season. Not least with the announcement that Brumbies lock Sam Carter will be joining in the Autumn.
Those contract announcements followed hotly on the heels of Eric O’Sullivan, Michael Lowry and James Hume. And now rumours of Lions prop Jack McGrath moving north are building.
Ulster fans often talk of being “given” players who haven’t made it at Leinster or another province. And it was only a matter of time before one of those became a source of real regret in Dublin -and it’s increasingly looking like Eric O’Sullivan may well become that player. The idea that McGrath could soon be sharing the load with him in Belfast will cause real joy in Belfast and some serious dismay in Dublin.
It’s not positive for all though, the selection of Pete Nelson at flyhalf, ahead of Jonny McPhillips, strongly suggests McPhillips might be playing elsewhere next season. McPhillips did a great job taking over from Christian Lealiifano mid-season last year and was central to steering Ulster back into Champions Cup rugby. But for whatever reason he has hardly featured under McFarland and he’s starting to look like persona no grata.
This weekend I expect to see a few returnees from Ireland duty get game time in Newport. And for me some involvement of the likes of John Cooney, Rory Best, Iain Henderson or Jordi Murphy will tip the balance in Ulster’s favour. Don’t expect Jacob Stockdale to feature though, he’s just too good and too important for Ireland these days. His natural ability to score important tries -often from nothing -is a gift from above.
Your talent is God’s gift to you. What you do with it is your gift back to God.
Comments on RugbyPass
Absolutely..all they need is a chance in yhe playoffs and I bet all the other teams will be nervous…THEY KNOW HOW TO WIN IM THE PLAYOFFS..
2 Go to commentsI really hope he comes back and helps out with some coaching.
1 Go to commentsI think we are all just hoping that the Olympic 7s doesn’t suffer the same sad fate as the last RWC with the officials ruining the spectacle.
1 Go to commentsPersonally, I’ve lost the will to even be bothered about the RFU, the structure, the participants. It’s all a sham. I now simply enjoy getting a group of friends together to go and watch a few games a year in different locations (including Europe, the championship, etc). I feel extremely sorry for the real fans of these clubs who are constantly ignored by the RFU and other administrators. I feel especially sorry for the fans of clubs in the Championship who have had considerable central funding stripped away and are then expected to just take whatever the RFU put to them. Its all a sham, especially if the failed clubs are allowed to return.
9 Go to commentsI’m guessing Carl Hayman would have preferred to have stayed in NZ with benefit of hindsight. Up north there is the expectation to play twice as many games with far less ‘player management’ protocols that Paul is now criticising. Less playing through concussions means longer, healthier, careers. Carter used as the eg here by Paul, his sabbatical allowed him to play until age 37. OK its not an exact science but there is far more expectations on players who sign for Top 14 or Engl Prem clubs to get value for the huge salaries. NZR get alot wrong but keeping their best players in NZ rugby is not one of them. SA clubs are virtually devoid of their top players now, no thanks. They cant threaten the big teams in the Champions Cup, the squads have little depth. Cant see Canes/Chiefs struggling. Super has been great this year, fantastic high skill matches. Drua a fantastic addition and Jaguares will add another quality team eventually. Aus teams performing strongly and no doubt will benefit with the incentive of a Lions tour and a home RWC. Let Jordie enjoy his time with Leinster, it will allow the opportunity for another player to emerge at Canes in his absence.
5 Go to commentsLove that man, his way to despise angry little men is so funny ! 😂
4 Go to comments“South African franchises would be powerhouses if we had all our overseas based players back in situ. We would have the same unbeatable aura the Toulouses, Leinsters or Saracens of this world have had over the last decade or so.” Proof that Jake white does not understand the economics of the game in SA. Players earning abroad are not going to simply come back and represent the bulls. But they might if they have a springbok contract.
22 Go to commentsA lot of fans just joined in for the fun of it! We all admire O'Gara and what he has done for La Rochelle
4 Go to commentsThe RFU will find a way to mess this up as usual. My bet is there will be no promotion into the the Premiership, only relegation into National League One. Hopefully they won’t parachute failed clubs into the league at the expense of clubs who have battled for promotion.
9 Go to commentsWell that’s the contracts for RG and Jordie bought and paid for. Now, what are the chances we can persuade Antoine to hop over with all the extra dosh we’ll have from living at the Aviva & Croke next season…??? 🤑🤑🤑
14 Go to commentsWow, that’s incredible. Great for rugby.
14 Go to commentsYou probably read that parling is going to coach the wallaby lineout but if not before now you have.
14 Go to commentsIf someone like Leo Cullen was in O’Gara’s place I don’t hear Boo-ing. It’s not just that La Rochelle has hurt Leinster and O’Gara is their Irish boss. It’s the needle that he brings and the pantomime activity before the game around pretending that Munster were supporting LaRochelle just because O’Gara is from Cork. That’s dividing Irish provinces just to get an advantage for his French Team. He can F*ck right off with that. BOOOOO! (but not while someone is lying injured)
4 Go to commentsDid the highlanders party too hard before the game? They were the pits.
1 Go to commentsWhat a player! Not long until he’s in the England side, surely?
5 Go to commentsHe seems to have the same aura as Marcus Smith - by which I mean he’s consistently judged as if he’s several years younger than he actually is. Mngomezulu has played 24 times for the Stormers. When Pollard was his age he had played 24 times for South Africa! He has more time to develop, but he has also had time to do some developing already, and he hasn’t demonstrated nearly as much talent in that time as one would expect. If he is a generational talent, then it must be a pretty poor generation.
6 Go to commentsThe greatest Springbok coach of all time is entirely on the money. Rassie and Jacques have given the south african public a great few years, but the success of the springbok selection policy will need to be judged in light of what comes next. The poor condition that the provincial system is currently in doesn’t bode well for the next few years of international rugby, and the insane 2026 schedule that the Boks have lined up could also really harm both provincial and international consistency.
22 Go to commentsJake White is a brilliant coach and a master in the press. This is another masterclass in media relations and PR but its also a very narrow view with arguments that dont always hold water. White wants his team to win, he wants the best players in SA and wants his team competitive. You however have to face up to the reality of a poor exchange rate and big clubs with big budgets. SA Rugby cant compete and unless it can find more money SA players will keep leaving regardless of Springbok eligibility and this happened in 2015 - 2017. Also rugby is not cricket. Cricket has 3 formats and T20 cricket is where the money is at. When it comes to club vs country the IPL is king but that wont happen because the international calendar does not clash with the club calendar in rugby. So the argument about rugby going down the same path as cricket is really a non-starter
22 Go to commentsNZ rugby seem not to have learnt anything from professional rugby. Super rugby was dying and SA left before they died with the competition. SA rugby did a u turn on their approach to international players playing overseas and such players are now selected for Bok teams. As much as each country would love to retain their players playing in local competitions, this is the way the world is evolving my friends. Move with it or stay 20 years behind the times. One more thing. NZ rugby hierarchy think they are the big cheese. Take a more humble approach guys. You do not seem to have your players best interests at heart.
5 Go to commentsBeaches? In Cardiff? Where?
1 Go to comments