Video of Leinster tries against Munster in Heineken Cup semi-final at Croke Park Dublin-2/5/09

Ireland: Heineken Cup Semi-final- Reasons why Leinster defeated Munster on a score of 25 to 6 at Croke Park

Odds on favourites Munster suffered a crushing defeat at the hands of Leinster in the Heineken Cup semi-final played at Croke Park. Few pundits or Munster supporters gave Leinster any chance. However the best-laid plans of mice and men often go awry.

The post mortems have already begun. A multiplicity of reasons can be put forward to explain the defeat of the champions:

The overconfidence which pervaded the province translated itself to the players. In addition the media built up Munster as probably the world’s greatest club side. Much of the talk concerned Munster's likely opponents in the final. Even the best professionals can succumb to such pressure. This blunted the edge required in the field of battle. Munster lacked the hunger of heretofore.

In contrast Leinster was roundly criticized as weak spirited and lacking in the bottle required to topple the champions. The savage criticism meted out to Leinster fuelled an insatiable desire to topple Munster. The Leinster players were hungry for success.

The selection of eight Munster players for the Lions tour of South Africa undoubtedly weakened their focus on this game albeit subconsciously. This is undoubtedly borne out by the fact that Paul O’Connell and Ronan O’Gara did not play to their own usual high standards. In addition Paul O’Connell may have lost focus- having been chosen as Lions captain.
The injury to Tomas O’Leary may have affected those chosen for the Lions tour.

Leinster "out-munstered" Munster in the physical battles. Indeed it is safe to say that 14 Leinster players bested their immediate opponents. The physical power of the Leinster pack overwhelmed Munster. Players such as Shane Jennings, Leo Cullen, Jamie Heaslip and Stan Wright were a revelation. Jennings and Cullen have benefited from their stay at Leicester. However it was the signing of Australian Rocky Elsom which was the icing on the cake. Elsom oozes power and class. This is enhanced by a huge work rate. The man is a colossus. Over the last two years Leinster coach Michael Cheika has gradually assembled a powerful pack to complement the class of backs such as Darcy, O’Driscoll and Fitzgerald. Yesterday Cheika got team selection correct.

Errors by Munster players resulted in two tries for Leinster. A missed tackle by Paul Warwick led to a Leinster try by Luke Fitzgerald whilst a misplaced pass from Ronan O’Gara gave the ball to O’Driscoll who duly scored. The loss of Rua Tipoki has severely weakened the Munster back division.

In addition players such as John Hayes, Alan Quinlan and David Wallace are undoubtedly approaching the end of their careers as age begins to catch up with them.

Also Leinster played close to the edge-the mark of a good team.

Good luck to Leinster in the final. Hopefully Leinster can keep the Heineken Cup in Ireland. However Leicester will be formidable opponents. Munster will be back.

Ireland- Euro Elections: Can Burke,Crowley and Sinnott hold Munster seats?

The Euro election campaign in Munster is now in full swing. FG candidates - outgoing MEP Colm Burke and Sean Kelly former president of the GAA have put together two strong campaign teams. Colm Burke has been subjected to some unfair criticism in relation to his profile. It is well to remember that he has been MEP for only two years. He is articulate and hard working. He has been active on the issue of EU aid for Dell workers and secured concessions which benefited the Hasbro toy factory in Waterford. Colm Burke has been vocal on agriculture and fishing issues also.
Both Colm Burke and Independent MEP Kathy Sinnott were interviewed on Waterford Local Radio today. The two candidates were impressive. Colm Burke came across as quite a strong candidate.

Sean Kelly has a very high profile based on his time as president of the GAA where he was instrumental in the opening up of Croke Park to rugby and soccer internationals. He is generally regarded as one of the best presidents of the GAA. He has strong positions on major issues such as agriculture, health, unemployment and fishing. 500 people attended the launch of his impressive website. He should poll very well.

Independent Kathy Sinnott has been quite active since her election as an MEP. She is strong on such issues as health, disability and life. She has a high profile.

FF has two candidates running. Sitting MEP Brian Crowley has been an MEP for 15 years. He should hold his seat. He is joined by Ned O'Keeffe. It is rumoured that Brian Crowley is interested in the presidency of Ireland. If Crowley were elected president Ned O'Keeffe could take his seat as first substitute. Ned O'Keeffe is no sacrificial lamb and sparks may fly.

Alan Kelly from Tipperary is the Labour Party candidate. Over the last year he has been active on radio and television and has been gradually building a profile. He will hope to take the third seat.

Toireasa Ferris from Kerry is the Sinn Fein candidate. She will hold the republican vote but lacks sufficient profile to win a seat. She will also be damaged by the fact that there is another female candidate in the race and by the fact that the Labour Party is resurgent.

The Green Party candidate is Senator Dan Boyle . He is unlikely to win a seat.

It is too early to call the outcome as campaigns are in their initial stages. FF will win one seat, FG will win one. The third seat could be a dogfight between the second FG candidate, Kathy Sinnott and Alan Kelly.

De La Salle Waterford-Munster Senior Hurling Champions -08 after thrilling victory against Adare

Adare who led by 5 points at half time dominated the first half of this exciting and sporting game-played at Semple Stadium. Were it not for some bad shooting Adare might possibly have been out of sight at half time.
Liam Costello ,Conor Fitzgerald and Diarmuid Sexton notched points for Adare.
The De La Salle forwards could make no headway against an Adare defence ably marshalled by Mark Foley. Indeed the Adare defenders hunted in packs. John Mullane frequently found himself confronted by two Adare defenders.
In the first half the De La Salle team had absolutely no pattern to its play

However the second half was a different story. Brian Phelan scored De La Salle’s first point a minute into the half. De la Salle manager Eoin Dunphy wrung the changes for this half. These had the desired effect. Daniels and Richardson played particularly well when they came on. Costello notched two points to push Adare into a seven-point lead.
Phelan pointed again for De La Salle before Mullane snapped up a loose ball, outside the Adare square, and turned onto his left before rocketing a shot to the Adare net. Mullane was now on fire.

That 41st-minute goal was the turning point in the game. Seamus Richardson and Mullane tacked on two more points for De La Salle.
The De La Salle defence snuffed out the Adare forward line with Michael Doherty and Kevin Moran particularly to the fore. Michael Doherty could make the Waterford Senior hurling panel. Donncha Sheehan managed to edge Adare ahead again. John Mullane and Thomas Kearney notched points for De La Salle to ensure victory for the Waterford side.

2008 has been a historic year for the De La Salle club. It has won both the Waterford Senior Hurling Championship and the Munster Senior Hurling title for the first time. All the promise shown at juvenile level has come to fruition. John Mullane who should have won an All Star award will feel particularly happy with the successes of his club.
There are excellent photographs of the game at Ken Sutton photostream on Flickr

Munster is Irelands rust belt: Large areas of the province are an industrial wasteland

The inhabitants of the province of Munster are a quiet people. They have tolerated too much. Traditionally farming food processing and fishing have been mainstays of the provinces economy. In recent years these industries have been blitzed.
Food processing has undergone rationalisation and closures. EU interference and Government failure at EU level wiped out the sugar beet industry and led to the closure of the Mallow sugar beet plant. Fishermen labour under increasingly harsh Government and EU impositions.

Beef, dairy and chicken farming have been crippled by production restrictions and increased Government and EU environmental regulation. Much of the environmental regulation is to put it mildly nonsensical-a product of imbecilish minds. These industries are steadily being regulated out of existence. Yet beef producers in countries such as Brazil are largely exempt from such impositions. Indeed were it not for President Sarkozy’s dogged resistance at the WTO talks 50,000 Irish farmers would have gone out of business whilst another 50,000 employed in spin off industries would have landed on the scrap heap

Chicken has flooded into Ireland from Brazil, Thailand et al. Much of this is relabelled as Irish. The consumer is being hoodwinked. Indeed much of the imported chicken is not even fresh. It often lacks traceability. Spiralling feed costs, loopholes in our food labelling legislation and harsh Government regulation have all but wiped out the chicken industry. Poultry processors such as Castlemahon (Co. Limerick) and Cappoquin Chickens have gone out of business.
A large belt from Mallow (Co. Cork) to Dungarvan (Co. Waterford) is now an industrial wasteland. It is Irelands new rust belt. Food processing industries in towns such as Mallow, Mitchelstown, Cappoquin and Dungarvan have been decimated. Other towns such as Fermoy and Youghal are industrial wastelands.

The Government has failed to protect the indigenous food industry. It will live to rue the day as the dole cues swell.
There is a mistaken assumption in Government quarters that service industries will replace agriculture and food processing. Apparently it is Government policy to trade Irish agriculture in return for access to markets in Asia, South America and Australia for services and industry.

Expense Allowance Abuse by MEPs (Alleged)

Hans-Peter Martin and RTL in the fight against alleged abuse of expense allowances:
A Member of the European Parliament (MEP) in Brussels earns approx. 14,700 euros per month (~£11,587), according to this RTL Report (in German with English subtitles). How much the MEPs have to work (or don't work) for their €14,700 is the subject of this on-site RTL investigation in Brussels. The video is about MEPs who sign in on attendance lists and then allegedly disappear immediately for their weekend.

Independent Irish MEP Kathy Sinnott appears in this video. She explains clearly that she has already been working seven hours up to seven o'clock. The Munster MEP warns him "Be very careful about using this and what you report about me". In actual fact Kathy Sinnott is not abusing the scheme. She explained clearly on RTE radio-in an interview with Myles Dungan- this morning that she can actually verify her claims to have worked up to seven o'clock.

Clare V Waterford Munster Senior Hurling: TV3 Post Match Analysis Part 2

Munster Senior Hurling Championship-Clare defeats lethargic Waterford

Today at the Gaelic Grounds Limerick, Clare easily defeated reigning Munster Champions, Waterford by 2-26 to 0-23.
This was one of the poorest performances from a Waterford side since the early eighties.
Whilst deprived of the services of injured players Ken McGrath, Eoin Kelly, Eoin Murphy and Paul Flynn, the reality is that the team with some notable exceptions displayed an insipid attitude and appeared singularly short of the fitness levels required.
An insidious mentality has begun to permeate hurling circles in Waterford. There is a belief that the Munster Championship has lost its significance. This appears to have translated to the players. There was a lack of appetite for this game.

In marked contrast the Clare players were superbly fit. Except for the first ten minutes of the game the Bannermen were on top.
Their backs hunted in packs. Waterford forwards were generally surrounded by two to three players. Waterford attackers attempted to mix it with the Clare backs. This led to bunching and suited the Clare defence. More ground play, less bunching and more wing play and low ball could have opened up the Clare defence. Waterford forwards were largely static and failed to move off the man. They were sitting ducks for the no nonsense Clare defenders. Waterford forwards generally played as individuals. John Mullane gave probably the greatest performance of his life in a Waterford shirt and was certainly man of the match.
It is obvious that injuries have taken their toll on Dan Shanahan and Seamus Prendergast. It was noticeable that Clare halfbacks cleared their lines with little pressure being exerted by Waterford half forwards.

The Waterford defence was under extreme pressure throughout the game. Similarly at centre field Clare dominated. Both in defence and at centre field the Waterford marking was too loose. A simple illustration of this, Diarmaid McMahon was moved onto Brian Phelan. He promptly drifted away from his marker and scored three points in quick succession in the first half. Even in victory loose marking has been a facet of the team’s play, which was unsatisfactory. Much of the pressure exerted on Waterford backs emanated from ball supplied by Clare halfbacks and centre-field. In fairness Dave Bennett was immaculate from placed balls.




It is time to radically recast the team. Ken McGrath should be placed at full back and Brick Walsh at centre back. Tony Browne is beginning to slow and should be placed in a corner back position. Kevin Moran should be tried at centre field. It is time for Waterford mentors to insist on man to man marking in defence. They must be ruthless with players on this issue. In the course of Championship matches one mentor should supervise the backs, another keep an eye on centre field and a third should monitor the forward line.



Finally in future National Hurling League campaigns Waterford must experiment more. Today Garry Hurney was thrown in at the deep end. He has plenty of potential but would have benefited greatly from experience gained in the National Hurling League.



It is back to the qualifiers now for Waterford. The team has the capacity- especially with the return of injured players- to undo the damage inflicted today. The back room team must radically recast the defence for the game against Antrim. Hopefully fitness levels will improve. Tight marking by the defence and centre field is a sine qua non. No opponents should remain loose between the 65 metre line and the Waterford goaline. A return to combination play by the forwards allied to more wing play and ground hurling is an essential prerequisite for success. In addition forwards must move off the backs more.

Rugby Union at the Millennium Stadium: Heineken Cup Final-Munster defeat Toulouse in a Titanic Struggle

Munster displayed skill, grit and panache to secure their second Heineken Cup triumph in three years, defeating a wonderful Toulouse team by 16-13.
This game -attended by 80,000- was an epic and epitomised everything that is best in Rugby Union. It was a wonderful advertisement for the game.

The atmosphere was electric. The intensity was far greater than that of the Southern Hemisphere’s Super-14.

Toulouse dominated the opening quarter and exerted extreme pressure on Munster.Yet the men from the South of France had very little to show for their efforts. Elissalde missed an early penalty kick but scored a drop-goal after eight minutes. He failed with a second drop goal attempt.It is arguable that Toulouse’s failure to register more scores in this period cost them the game. Byron Kelleher was caught with his hands in the ruck. Munster now launched a ferocious attack, which went through many phases. Denis Leamy went close to scoring but the TMO ruled correctly that he failed to touch the ball down.In the resulting scrum the Munster forward power came to the fore. Toulouse buckled and Leamy was driven over the line for a try. O’Gara now converted. Sustained pressure for about eight minutes from the Munster pack had yielded dividends.
O’Gara converted a penalty. Elissalde converted a penalty for Toulouse just before half- time -Quinlan having infringed.

In the first five minutes of the second half Paul O’Connell twice saved Munster. He stole a line-out metres from his own line. He also stole a ball from a maul as the Toulouse juggernaut trundled towards the Munster line. Today O’Connell answered his ill informed critics in no uncertain manner. Doug Howlett crossed the Toulouse line but the score was disallowed for a forward pass.
Fabien Pelous was sent to the sin bin for a kick to Alan Quinlan’s backside.
O’Gara kicked the penalty and Munster now led by seven.

Toulouse now rose to the challenge and Cédric Heymans took a quick line-out throw to himself inside his own half and instigated a wonderful move. Heymans crafted a beautiful chip, which he gathered and then outwitted two Munster backs before kicking. Yannick Jauzion kicked the ball forward. Donguy finished this stunning move by touching down for a try. After 62 minutes a fine Toulouse move broke down when Elissalde kicked the ball over the Munster goal line. This was a seminal moment as Toulouse had come forward in waves and looked likely to score. After 65 minutes O’Gara scored a penalty. The Munster forwards maintained the high intensity level required. Toulouse- the team of all the talents- was beaten.

All Munster players were heroes. O’Connell, Quinlan , Denis Leamy, Rua Tipoki, Lifeimi Mafi and Ian Dowling in particular stood out. Cédric Heymans was man of the match for Toulouse.
Declan Kidney, Jim Williams and the backroom staff have masterminded another stunning success.

Dynamic Dan Shanahan on top of the hurling world

Congrats to Dan Shanahan who - last night- was selected as Hurler of the Year. The Waterford scoring machine certainly set the championship on fire with some stunning goals and points. Thankfully Dan has kept his feet on the ground and is a fantastic role model for young hurlers not alone in Co. Waterford but also throughout the country. Surely the GAA could usefully employ Dan's talents in the coaching sphere throughout Munster. Even in Dublin Dan has a huge fan base amongst young sports enthusiasts. Hopefully the GAA authorities will exploit Dan's potential to promote the greatest field game in the world.

Irish Rugby Union- Money talks

Apparently All Black wing Doug Howlett appears to be on the verge of signing for Munster. However he will not be available until the latter stages of the Heineken Cup.



The 28-year-old Auckland rocket is part of New Zealand's World Cup squad. The deal is believed to be worth €1 million.

Undoubtedly the Munster back division lacks flair. A fit and eager Howlett could electrify the province. Though only 28 years old he has a lot of mileage on the clock. He has played for the All Blacks on 60 occasions. He has 93 Super 12/14 caps and 52 provincial caps. Munster may gain in the short term but is it not time for the province to produce dynamic backs of its own?

The signing of Howlett will hinder the development of indigenous backs. The huge influx of players from New Zealand and South Africa into French and English clubs has probably forced Munsters hand. Success in Heineken Cup Rugby is a financial necessity.

Indeed Irish Rugby Union has suffered from the failure of the IRFU to cultivate Sevens Rugby both domestically and Internationally. It is noticeable that countries such as New Zealand and Australia take International Sevens very seriously. In general Southern Hemisphere players are more comfortable with ball in hand than Irish players. Granted that the Leinster back division -with players such as Hickie, O'Driscoll, Darcy and Horgan- exudes class. Unfortunately this is the exception rather than the rule.

IRISH coach Eddie O’Sullivan is believed to have signed a 4 year contract with the IRFU worth €5 million. This is in advance of the World Cup. It would make more sense to negotiate with O'Sullivan after the World Cup. This generous deal will have knock on effects as players who do the hard graft will look with jaundiced eye at such generosity.

Renewal of player's contracts may be more costly than the IRFU anticipate. Player contract inflation may haunt the IRFU for a prolonged period of time.