THE GREAT THEME in Irish rugby right now seems to be one of disgruntlement at the shape of the game.
This is what dominated the post-match press conferences at Thomond Park after Leinster had edged Munster in a hard-fought, tense, error-strewn inter-provincial derby.
The physicality from both teams was strong, but the game was far from the most aesthetically pleasing. It was a stop-start affair with very little flow and a dearth of obvious highlight moments until the gripping finale.
And afterwards, Munster captain Tadhg Beirne joined the growing list of Irish players and coaches who have expressed their concerns about the state of play in rugby at the moment, with some teams focusing heavily on contestable kicking and set-piece work.
“Let’s be honest about it, the style of the game has gone backwards,” said 33-year-old Beirne.
“If we’re being serious, teams are just kicking the ball.
“Why? Because it’s a 50/50 chance of getting the ball back. Teams are going to set-pieces more because if you go up for a 50/50 in the air and you get a knock on, you get a scrum. And if you have a good scrum, you can get a penalty and go into the corner.
“It’s just becoming a set-piece and kicking game with the way they’ve changed the rules. You see teams kicking more and more, and I think it’s just going to continue going that way unless they decide to do something about it.”
Beirne wants the game to flow more than is currently the case.
It has been notable that Irish rugby has been afflicted by poor attacking skills across the board this season, with seemingly far more inaccurate passes and handling errors.
Beirne indirectly suggested there may be a reason for this – the fact that teams are allocating so much training time to their kicking games.
A maul in Leinster's clash with Munster. Dan Sheridan / INPHO
Dan Sheridan / INPHO / INPHO
“I guess all teams are probably spending a lot more time on how they exit and their kicking game and all that kind of stuff,” said Beirne.
“It’ll probably take away from attack and defence a little bit because you have to spend so much time on kicking.
“How you chase a kick, what your set-up is, all that kind of stuff.”
Beirne insisted that Munster were doing their best to bring attacking tempo in Saturday night’s game at Thomond Park, but he felt Leinster managed to slow things down too often.
“We’re trying to bring tempo,” said Beirne. “Sometimes we need to be better at it. But a game like that, it just felt like the scrums were a bit messy. I’d say we probably lost about 15 minutes on reset scrums. It was just so frustrating.
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“They want to scrum, they want to kick the corners. They take their time getting there. That’s just my opinion on it. I feel like we’re trying to bring tempo as best we can. I think we could have been a bit better today.
“I think we kind of fell into their trap once or twice in terms of slowing the game down. That would be the only thing I would feel on it.”
Munster head coach Clayton McMillan had similar frustrations, suggesting that Leinster got away with negative play at the breakdown, which he believed denied his team quicker ball in attack.
He said Leinster’s defensive breakdown work was something Munster brought to referee Peter Martin’s attention pre-match and also that “a big song and dance” was made about this kind of play being strictly sanctioned before the season began.
“We’ve got our part in there,” said McMillan.
“We need to be better in being direct in our carries, getting a long place, winning races so that we’re never really under pressure.
“I think that we see a lot of people getting levers, legs and swimming around the corner of rucks. It becomes disruptive to the halfback. Often, the ball will spill out to the side and then you’ve got to play under circumstances that are not on your own terms.
Munster and Leinster at a scrum in Thomond Park. Dan Sheridan / INPHO
Dan Sheridan / INPHO / INPHO
“I reiterate the fact that we need to be better in our own actions to make sure that that doesn’t become an issue for us. It was disruptive, but we knew it was going to be a contested breakdown. I think probably that area was the defining area in the game.”
McMillan also believes World Rugby need to find a way to bring more fatigue into the game than is currently the case.
“Fatigue opens up opportunities and it might take 60 minutes for that to happen but then in the last 20 minutes you get an open game and the game could swing either way,” said McMillan.
“As much as the guys are putting out on the field, I don’t see players walking off absolutely spent because there’s been enough stoppages in play. Whether that’s the contestable game, whether that’s the scrums, I don’t know.
“But anything that encourages the ability to bring fatigue into the game will make it more exciting for players and spectators.”
Funnily enough, Leinster head coach Leo Cullen had a gripe of his own around Munster’s work at the breakdown.
He suggested that McMillan’s team are good at slowing the opposition’s attacking ball illegally, too.
“They’re clever with some of the stuff they do around the dark arts,” said Cullen.
“Ball carriers on the ground, as you’re trying to place the ball, they’re trying to grab your arms, play your hands, little things which make it quite hard to play.
“They were quite good at letting ball carriers in, checking the support players, getting in on poaches. There’s different dark arts there that we need to be there for on any given day. There’s no point in playing yourself into trouble.”
The Leinster boss explained why his team took the tactical approach they did on Saturday.
It was partly a response to the way their defeat to Munster at Croke Park in October unfolded.
“The game is difficult at the moment, isn’t it?” said Cullen.
“You look back at the last game, we lost 31-14 in Croke Park, but we scored at the death so it was 31-7 up to that.
“We had 60% possession, 60% territory in that game. Munster kicked the ball how many times? 28. How many times did we kick the ball? 13.
“They conceded how many penalties? 15. We conceded 7.
“What does that add up to? That’s the way the game is at the moment.
Leinster celebrate their early try in Limerick. Andrew Conan / INPHO
Andrew Conan / INPHO / INPHO
“I was curious about the way Clayton talked after that game about a dogfight. You come away with a bonus-point win and you’re talking about dragging us into a dogfight. I was like, what does he mean by that?
“Munster had 80 carries and we had something like 180 carries in that game. Sometimes having lots of possession doesn’t get you the positive outcome.
“That’s the bit where everyone is a bit confused about the game at the moment. You’re not necessarily getting the reward.
“Until we clean up the breakdown, it remains very, very messy. It’s not going to be attractive to play the game, is it? Defending is going to be very important. Playing the right areas of the field, that’s big boys rugby. There’s no point giving out about it.
“If that’s the way it’s going to be, that’s the way it’s going to be. I’m not being critical, but these are some of the facts.
“When you come away here, this time of year, it’s not going to be free-flowing rugby, is it? Not with the way the game is at the moment. Players are getting done for in the side, neck rolls, it’s just a hard way to attack right now.
“That’s for the lawmakers; we’re coaches trying to play the game with the rules the way they are.
“I think Connacht will be very aggressive next week based on last year. That was the one where Mack Hansen was giving out after [and got banned]. If you watch the first 10 minutes, they’re going so hard at the ball.
“I talked to Chris Busby after the game, ironically, he goes, ‘I should have penalised them way more at the start,’ and Connacht are giving out after about him!
“The mindset of teams, you need strong referees if that’s the way teams are going to go. We can have the best intentions but that’s the way things are going.”
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'Let’s be honest, the style of the game has gone backwards'
THE GREAT THEME in Irish rugby right now seems to be one of disgruntlement at the shape of the game.
This is what dominated the post-match press conferences at Thomond Park after Leinster had edged Munster in a hard-fought, tense, error-strewn inter-provincial derby.
The physicality from both teams was strong, but the game was far from the most aesthetically pleasing. It was a stop-start affair with very little flow and a dearth of obvious highlight moments until the gripping finale.
And afterwards, Munster captain Tadhg Beirne joined the growing list of Irish players and coaches who have expressed their concerns about the state of play in rugby at the moment, with some teams focusing heavily on contestable kicking and set-piece work.
“Let’s be honest about it, the style of the game has gone backwards,” said 33-year-old Beirne.
“If we’re being serious, teams are just kicking the ball.
“Why? Because it’s a 50/50 chance of getting the ball back. Teams are going to set-pieces more because if you go up for a 50/50 in the air and you get a knock on, you get a scrum. And if you have a good scrum, you can get a penalty and go into the corner.
“It’s just becoming a set-piece and kicking game with the way they’ve changed the rules. You see teams kicking more and more, and I think it’s just going to continue going that way unless they decide to do something about it.”
Beirne wants the game to flow more than is currently the case.
It has been notable that Irish rugby has been afflicted by poor attacking skills across the board this season, with seemingly far more inaccurate passes and handling errors.
Beirne indirectly suggested there may be a reason for this – the fact that teams are allocating so much training time to their kicking games.
“I guess all teams are probably spending a lot more time on how they exit and their kicking game and all that kind of stuff,” said Beirne.
“It’ll probably take away from attack and defence a little bit because you have to spend so much time on kicking.
“How you chase a kick, what your set-up is, all that kind of stuff.”
Beirne insisted that Munster were doing their best to bring attacking tempo in Saturday night’s game at Thomond Park, but he felt Leinster managed to slow things down too often.
“We’re trying to bring tempo,” said Beirne. “Sometimes we need to be better at it. But a game like that, it just felt like the scrums were a bit messy. I’d say we probably lost about 15 minutes on reset scrums. It was just so frustrating.
“They want to scrum, they want to kick the corners. They take their time getting there. That’s just my opinion on it. I feel like we’re trying to bring tempo as best we can. I think we could have been a bit better today.
“I think we kind of fell into their trap once or twice in terms of slowing the game down. That would be the only thing I would feel on it.”
Munster head coach Clayton McMillan had similar frustrations, suggesting that Leinster got away with negative play at the breakdown, which he believed denied his team quicker ball in attack.
He said Leinster’s defensive breakdown work was something Munster brought to referee Peter Martin’s attention pre-match and also that “a big song and dance” was made about this kind of play being strictly sanctioned before the season began.
“We’ve got our part in there,” said McMillan.
“We need to be better in being direct in our carries, getting a long place, winning races so that we’re never really under pressure.
“I think that we see a lot of people getting levers, legs and swimming around the corner of rucks. It becomes disruptive to the halfback. Often, the ball will spill out to the side and then you’ve got to play under circumstances that are not on your own terms.
“I reiterate the fact that we need to be better in our own actions to make sure that that doesn’t become an issue for us. It was disruptive, but we knew it was going to be a contested breakdown. I think probably that area was the defining area in the game.”
McMillan also believes World Rugby need to find a way to bring more fatigue into the game than is currently the case.
“Fatigue opens up opportunities and it might take 60 minutes for that to happen but then in the last 20 minutes you get an open game and the game could swing either way,” said McMillan.
“As much as the guys are putting out on the field, I don’t see players walking off absolutely spent because there’s been enough stoppages in play. Whether that’s the contestable game, whether that’s the scrums, I don’t know.
“But anything that encourages the ability to bring fatigue into the game will make it more exciting for players and spectators.”
Funnily enough, Leinster head coach Leo Cullen had a gripe of his own around Munster’s work at the breakdown.
He suggested that McMillan’s team are good at slowing the opposition’s attacking ball illegally, too.
“They’re clever with some of the stuff they do around the dark arts,” said Cullen.
“Ball carriers on the ground, as you’re trying to place the ball, they’re trying to grab your arms, play your hands, little things which make it quite hard to play.
“They were quite good at letting ball carriers in, checking the support players, getting in on poaches. There’s different dark arts there that we need to be there for on any given day. There’s no point in playing yourself into trouble.”
The Leinster boss explained why his team took the tactical approach they did on Saturday.
It was partly a response to the way their defeat to Munster at Croke Park in October unfolded.
“The game is difficult at the moment, isn’t it?” said Cullen.
“You look back at the last game, we lost 31-14 in Croke Park, but we scored at the death so it was 31-7 up to that.
“We had 60% possession, 60% territory in that game. Munster kicked the ball how many times? 28. How many times did we kick the ball? 13.
“They conceded how many penalties? 15. We conceded 7.
“What does that add up to? That’s the way the game is at the moment.
“I was curious about the way Clayton talked after that game about a dogfight. You come away with a bonus-point win and you’re talking about dragging us into a dogfight. I was like, what does he mean by that?
“Munster had 80 carries and we had something like 180 carries in that game. Sometimes having lots of possession doesn’t get you the positive outcome.
“That’s the bit where everyone is a bit confused about the game at the moment. You’re not necessarily getting the reward.
“Until we clean up the breakdown, it remains very, very messy. It’s not going to be attractive to play the game, is it? Defending is going to be very important. Playing the right areas of the field, that’s big boys rugby. There’s no point giving out about it.
“If that’s the way it’s going to be, that’s the way it’s going to be. I’m not being critical, but these are some of the facts.
“When you come away here, this time of year, it’s not going to be free-flowing rugby, is it? Not with the way the game is at the moment. Players are getting done for in the side, neck rolls, it’s just a hard way to attack right now.
“That’s for the lawmakers; we’re coaches trying to play the game with the rules the way they are.
“I think Connacht will be very aggressive next week based on last year. That was the one where Mack Hansen was giving out after [and got banned]. If you watch the first 10 minutes, they’re going so hard at the ball.
“I talked to Chris Busby after the game, ironically, he goes, ‘I should have penalised them way more at the start,’ and Connacht are giving out after about him!
“The mindset of teams, you need strong referees if that’s the way teams are going to go. We can have the best intentions but that’s the way things are going.”
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Fallout Leinster Munster State of Play Tadhg Beirne URC