ON THE UP

This week’s post is a somewhat difficult one to write.

On one hand, I want to praise the attacking prowess of both Ulster and Munster and the part they played in what was an enthralling contest from start to finish – some of the tries that both sides conjured up would put the attacking-minded Super Rugby sides to shame and it was well worth the eight hour round trip. Even when Ulster fell 11 points behind to Simon Zebo’s try I found myself not really minding too much simply due to the quality of the rugby being produced.

At the same time, you cannot help but lament the defensive lapses from both sides. On Ulster’s side, Munster were making far too much ground on the left wing, through the driving maul and around the blindsides. For Munster, they too struggled with the driving maul and were unable to contain Stuart McCloskey, Darren Cave and Craig Gilroy. If it wasn’t for CJ Stander making three crucial turnovers inside the Munster 22 then the result could be very different.

I was surprised Stander was not Man of the Match because he was phenomenal yet again. What a prospect Munster have on their hands – a bruising ball carrying number eight who also does the breakdown work of a blindside flanker. He has been in sparkling form down in Limerick and if he continues in that vein then it would be a crime for Ireland to omit him when it comes to the Six Nations because he has been that good.

As for Ulster, even though it was a third away loss in a row, it is an improvement.

Against the Scarlets and Edinburgh by the final whistle you were just glad it hadn’t been any worse than it actually was. This time there was a sense of optimism that Ulster are heading in the right direction as we move towards the European fixtures against Oyonnax and Saracens and that we’re finally moving away from the ineffective kicking game towards a positive running style of rugby that suits our dangerous back three.

But on the face of it, it was still another defeat and that needs addressed. Although this was the game where we got closest to actually breaking our away duck, the results column still reads L and instead of picking up a potential five points, we have to make do with two. The why is a little less clear cut than previous weeks and as easy as it is to criticise the defence, it only glosses over the fact that our line-out struggled all night and in the early stages of the second half we failed to deal with Stander’s breakdown work.

Admittedly we will not come up against someone of Stander’s stature every week and now with Rory Best and Chris Henry back we should have a lot more of an impact at the breakdown (with no offence to Sean Reidy who has proven himself to be a very able stand in) so in that regard we should improve. I am expecting a certain amount of dominance in terms of quick ball against the Dragons this Sunday with those two on the pitch.

Speaking of the Dragons, they are a godsend in terms of games we could have before the European weekends. On the face of it, our form in Newport has been patchy at best and Rodney Parade is never a ground we travel to well, but you have to bear in mind the number of times we have actually been there with a full hand to choose from is very rare. Newport is a ground we frequent during international periods and as such we are usually far more affected than they are, and that more than often results in us being on the end of an embarrassing scoreline.

This Sunday, we have no such excuses.

Everyone is back and, barring injuries, we should have as strong a team as possible taking the field. Perhaps Best and Ruan Pienaar may start on the bench to manage their game time after a gruelling World Cup, but besides that we should be looking at as strong a team as possible on the field in preparation for Oyonnax. It is vital that we head over to France with an away win under our belts – it is not fantastic preparation if we still haven’t won away when we reach the Champions’ Cup.

Still, here’s to an improvement from previous weeks. Thomond Park is a bearpit on its best days (hint: last Friday wasn’t one of those days) and it still holds the demons of past Munster teams and can be a daunting experience. Ulster rose above that and performed admirably, they just didn’t have that extra gear over the line.

But there is now a confidence behind this team. And they will be out for that win this weekend.