Leinster were the only Irish side that won after Week 4 of Guinness Pro 12. They secured an injury time bonus point win over Cardiff Blues after Luke McGrath crossed for their fourth try. Connacht lost their 100% record when they lost to Glasgow Warriors. Munster tasted defeat at home to the Ospreys and Ulster were surprisingly beaten by Zebre in Parma.
Connacht
Connacht were always going to be up against it when they travelled to Glasgow Warriors last Friday night. Scotstoun has become a fortress for the Warriors and Connacht are the latest team to come away with no points from the venue.
Tries from Dave McSharry, Darragh Leader and a penalty try gave Connacht a chance but their hosts were too strong. Pat Lam would have known that this game was an unlikely to bring victory to his team and I think the five changes he made to his team reflected that.
Next up for is a home game against Cardiff Blues on Friday night. Connacht will be looking to get back to winning ways and should overcome a Cardiff side that has not had a good start to the season. A bonus point win is a possibility.
Leinster:
Leinster bounced back from their surprise defeat to Connacht with a bonus point win over Cardiff Blues at the RDS last Friday. Tries from Rhys Ruddock, Gordon Darcy, Mick McGrath and Luke McGrath secured the win but it was an unconvincing performance by the home side.
This is a game that Leinster should be winning by a clear margin but the game was in the balance until Luke McGrath’s injury time try. Cardiff are a poor side sitting 10th in the table with only the two Italian teams behind them. If Leinster have title ambitions they have to put teams like this away early in the game.
Their biggest game of the season so far takes place against Munster this Saturday night at the Aviva Stadium. A massive crowd is expected at this match and we will see where Leinster are with a week to go to the Rugby Champions Cup. I expect them to win in a tight game.
Ulster:
Ulster were on the wrong side of a major shock when Zebre beat them 13-6 in Parma last Saturday Afternoon. The game was always going to be a struggle when prop Declan Fitzpatrick was red carded for a punch after 10 minutes.
This turned out to be a disastrous game for Ulster with Paddy Jackson coming off injured after suffering a head injury. It is a tough loss to take but Ulster will have to move on quickly as Glasgow travel to the Kingspan Stadium this weekend.
One thing that irked Ulster and indeed anyone that was at the game was the performance of referee Peter Fitzgibbon. Fitzgibbon has not had a great start to the season and this is the second game where he has consistently went to the TMO for every controversial decision. The TMO is used to aid the referee in major decisions, not make the decisions for them.
Munster:
Munster will be terribly disappointed after their defeat to top of the table Ospreys last Saturday. Anthony Foley’s side were expecting a big performance in this game but it never looked like materialising. Dan Biggar and Rhys Webb were outstanding for the Welsh side.
This is a big blow for Munster ahead of the derby match with Leinster this weekend. This game is becoming increasingly important for the team and if they do not get a result Anthony Foley could come under a lot of pressure, especially with his team selection.
Johne Murphy has had a poor start to the season and should be nowhere near the team given his form. Denis Hurley is now playing inside centre and as hard as he tries he does not have the ability to play in this position. It was a major shock that he was kept on to play at 12 and James Downey was allowed to leave.
Ian Keatley is on borrowed time and he just does not have what it takes to be the out half in a supposed top level team. JJ Hanrahan deserves his chance and it has to come soon. If not, he could look elsewhere to get his promising career on the road.
A major blow for Munster is the news that Keith Earls had surgery on Tuesday on a knee problem. He is expected to be out for 3 – 4 months. It is another setback for Earls who has been injured on and off for the last three years.
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