SEASON OF TWO HALVES

Before I start I feel I must apologise for two things:

The first is my lack of posts. Unfortunately due to time constraints and other unseen factors I have not been able to post as often as I would have liked. However, hopefully this will be me back to posting every Tuesday and Thursday like before.

The second is Ulster’s poor form. After thirteen wins on the bounce, Ulster have now won just one of their last five matches and seem to be on a downward spiral. If they do not find some sort of form soon, their season could go down the drain.

Friday night was just a shambles…

Worrying times at Ravenhill

As I mentioned, what a turnaround Ulster have had. Back in December, Ulster fans were wondering if their side really was beatable. Now we have reached the end of March, they have thrown away an eleven point lead in the Pro12 and find themselves in third, a point behind provincial rivals Leinster.

It is worrying for Ulster fans, to say the least. To be in such a commanding position in both the Pro12 and the Heineken Cup, it is hard to see Ulster winning anything now. They just seem to be in that losing rut which they cannot seem to get out of, no matter how much they try.

It is a complete reversal to the start of the season where Ulster just couldn’t lose. It just goes to show how much mentality comes into play whenever you are on a run – Ulster are the embodiment of that. If you start winning, it is hard to lose. If you start losing, it’s hard to win again.

Ulster have to pick themselves up. There’s no point in moping over the last few games, that’ll get them nowhere. Rather they must look ahead with confidence. Next weekend is the eagerly anticipated interprovincial derby with Leinster and if Ulster can manage to pull of a miraculous win in Dublin then they can really head to Twickenham in high spirits.

And why not? Next week Ulster will have all of their internationals back, and there is no expectation to win. They can really cut loose ahead of that all-important Heineken Cup quarter-final away to Saracens and if they do manage to win then top spot in the league still isn't beyond them, even with the mid-season blip.

They need all those players back though. The absence of Chris Henry and Johann Muller has been badly felt and even though the latter returned against Edinburgh, his presence still wasn't enough to compel Ulster to the win. Ruan Pienaar was sorely missed at scrum-half too, even if his form isn't as good as it has been.

It shows where Ulster are really – first team to rival anybody’s, back up player not up to the standard. Injuries have limited Mark Anscombe’s hand obviously, but even so, the players he does have at his disposal should be putting away a side that lies tenth in the league.

In all honesty it was probably the tactics that Ulster got wrong. For the entire match they went along the back line trying to use the backs to break through. But that was the wrong idea because every time they did that they were met by a wall of black shirts blocking their path. Granted, the try did come from the backs but that was just once.

Instead, they should have looked to go through the forwards. There was one period in the second half where five pick-and-go drives gained them more yards than the backs had in the whole match. Yet for some reason, Ulster did not employ this tactic more often and instead kept trying through the backs. It was a poor call.

What is going wrong? I don’t know. All I know is things will have to pick up pretty soon. I don’t know how, and I don’t care how either. Ulster just need to start winning again. And fast.

In other news…

How disappointing was Ireland’s Six Nations campaign. Before the competition began I saw the potential for a Grand Slam with the fixtures Ireland had. How wrong I was because injuries and poor performances all over the shop ensured that Ireland would finish in a dismal fifth, only avoiding the wooden spoon courtesy of a better points difference than the French.

On the other hand, it’s congratulations to Wales who successfully defended their trophy. How ironic though that the side to deny them the Grand Slam was Ireland! But all credit to the Welshmen, they battled back from that opening weekend defeat and capped it all off with a crushing victory over England on the final day to seal their crown.

Although I didn’t see it, congratulations to Methody on winning the Schools’ Cup yet again after beating Inst at Ravenhill. Their results throughout the competition prove that they were deserving winners. Also, well done to Campbell on winning the Medallion Shield too after a deserved victory in the final.