Munster were naive, powderpuff and tactically all over the place. A really concerning defeat. Too many guys in the depth chart that would struggle to get a game anywhere else in the league.

The amount of AI swill the URC use on Instagram is genuinely embarrassing

I actually quite like the current iteration of the game tbh but there's been quite a bit of angst after the preseason when some teams really leaned into the new meta, and some teams didn't.

To expand, if you talk to anyone working in the game as opposed to people who's primary experience is looking at Wikipedia pages, you'll hear the same thing. It's about the raw materials showing up at a rugby club between the ages of 7 and 15, and then staying there long enough to get tracked.

Munster played like the game was going to open up at some stage, Leinster played like it was never going to do that. The current meta of the game rewards teams who don't really play phases anywhere outside the opposition 22, and who instead kick to compete. But...

Frawley to Connacht is a sensible move. Leinster would keep him, I think, but the 40% is biting this contract season. Feels like it's a contract cycle too late but he'll get to be their main man at #10 and that's probably what he needs.

Forget about professional rugby provinces for a second. In Ireland, if you look at the big population centres, they are the places who have a lot of professional rugby players originating from there. Dublin, Cork, Kildare, and so on. It's a numbers game. Always has been.

Not too downbeat about that loss. I've been to enough dour losses to Leinster in Thomond Park over the years. This one felt different. Like a few different calls in the last ten minutes turn it into four points, rather than one.

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SUPER DELUXE WALLY RATINGS :: Ospreys 10 Munster 26 A routine win in a place where routine wins are difficult. www.patreon.com/posts/super-... #SUAF

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Good win for Munster. some of the handling was below par, but it was a mucky ould night — defence, set piece and close range finishing was the order of the day and that did the job. Five points from a tough enough place to go. #SUAF

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Jac Morgan and Dewi Lake going to Gloucester is a kick in the teeth for Welsh Rugby. Two genuine top class players. It just feels self destructive to the fabric of the game domestically

Under the radar today but Boan Venter going to the Lions is a big loss for Edinburgh, who almost certainly wanted to keep him. They'll be weaker without him. Wonder who the performance director in Scotland is these days?

No hate watch like watching someone take the low offer on the chase and then get dusted

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That killer start yesterday holed the game below the waterline. Can't concede 28 points, essentially, off four ruck entries. Lineout was a disaster. Calling and structure was all off. A chastening defeat. Everything we needed to hit (lineout, contestables) all fell away to nothing.

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Disbanding the Ospreys would be a disaster for Welsh Rugby and the URC. A historic, prestigious team in the league with multiple titles. It seems self destructive.

Porter is like most props — he has some guys he matches up really well against, and then some guys who are a stylistic nightmare for him. Essentially, the super heavyweights who can slip inside the gap between him and Sheehan really easily.

This is the thing with scrum PR. For every Irish ex-pro prop you wheel out who says the Irish scrum is grand, actually, you'll find a South African or English or French ex-pro prop who'll say the opposite. Nobody asks the guys who decide if a scrum is dominant or not: referees.

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I was watching the Wales/SA game in the press box yesterday with a few others, but we missed what Etzebeth got the red card for. Just saw a scrap and then the straight red. A few minutes later, we saw the replay, and the universal response was "ohhhhhhhhhhh"

A really tight game. Ultimately the scrum was what cost us. John Ryan had very little for either loosehead and Foxe was always going to struggle against Kebble the longer it went on. Throw in the needless yellow, and it's a lost opportunity from a winning position.

A South African/Stormers fan shouted "where's Sam Prendergast" right as Crowley lined up a conversion — it was ultimately scrubbed for a knock on — but very weird stuff.

The Tappe Henning apology email on Monday morning will hit like a birthday cake made of dogshit in Rodney Parade.

At least Angus O'Brien got the referee to explain his reasoning on that decision on video. I've never seen anything like it.

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MUNSTER NAME TEAM FOR #MUNvSTO Crowley, Beirne, Farrell and Casey all return. Ahern and Wycherley in the second row, with Edogbo on the bench. Hodnett back in the squad. Brought to you by @thisisntes #SUAF

MUNSTER NAME TEAM FOR #MUNvSTO Crowley, Beirne, Farrell and Casey all return. Ahern and Wycherley in the second row, with Edogbo on the bench. Hodnett back in the squad. Brought to you by @thisisntes #SUAF

THE GIF ROOM #222 :: Shove The scrum doesn't matter until it does. www.patreon.com/posts/gif-ro...

The best people to ask about what happened in a scrum are referees. What are they coached to look for when it comes to legal and illegal scrummaging? What are the cues that trigger their decision? That's where the real answer to any scrummaging question lies.

That would slow the game down even more and, to be fair, arguably hurt Ireland more than most of the other top test sides.

SUPER DELUXE WALLY RATINGS #319 :: #IREvRSA It'd be easy to fool yourself. Comforting, even. I can feel the urge myself. But don't waste your time. Ireland were pummelled here, and there are no easy answers. www.patreon.com/posts/144276...

SUPER DELUXE WALLY RATINGS #319 :: #IREvRSA It'd be easy to fool yourself. Comforting, even. I can feel the urge myself. But don't waste your time. Ireland were pummelled here, and there are no easy answers. www.patreon.com/posts/144276...

We were beaten up. Lineout sub 80%. Couldn't drag the Bok lineout below 85%. Contestable game didn't work. SA kicked all night, so defence had no purchase outside our own 22. We were physically dominated in almost every single collision. Last set in the 22 summed it all up.

Sweet Caroline should be saved for rural weddings at 8PM before the kids go to bed, or your nan's car as she drives at 40kmh on a Sunday afternoon to Supervalu. At a stadium, it's the audio equivalent of a Mexican wave or Icelandic clap. You'd be as well pumping in cheers.

Ireland were scrappy. Tonnes of heart. Tonnes of grit. That was never in doubt. But we were beaten up in almost every facet tonight. Scrum, obviously was a nightmare. But we struggled to win collisions all night. That has been, and remains, the big issue.

Any referee in the game would have refereed the scrum the same way. He actually saved us conceding another penalty try in the second half.

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One guy picking up the ball and running (breaking the laws of the game at the time to create a new one) is fine, but any further evolution to that game is Bad, Actually

I have a Black Friday deal going on right now where you can get a year of TRK for 40% off. So the supersub tier for €25. Three podcasts and three in-depth articles a week, plus access to the TRK Discord.

The most detailed preview of #IREvRSA you'll read anywhere. What Ireland need to do to win? Plus how South Africa have been the best team in the world this year. All the data, all the metrics, all in 4000 word preview www.patreon.com/posts/144012...

The most detailed preview of #IREvRSA you'll read anywhere. What Ireland need to do to win? Plus how South Africa have been the best team in the world this year. All the data, all the metrics, all in 4000 word preview www.patreon.com/posts/144012...

The only places pushing the discourse these days are the outlets that are trying to monetize it on one hand, while decrying it with the other

What's The Story With :: Michael Ala'alatoa Munster were always going to need a tighthead this season, in both the short and medium term. It's Michael Ala'alatoa, who joins the province until the end of the season. www.patreon.com/posts/whats-... #SUAF