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Topic-icon Champions Cup Qualification 2017/18

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7 years 1 month ago #52876

Thanks Munster, way to end your winning streak!
OK we are not qualifying automatically and that is that.
End of season away trip here we come. Allez Pau ...

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7 years 3 weeks ago #53186

- Team -- P -- W -- D -- L -- F -- A -- BP -- Pts -
Scarlets171205369303553
Ulster161105355250852
Connacht16808299302739
Cardiff17809372387537
Edinburgh174013312384622
Dragons174013277442420

So Connacht have pretty much kept up their end of the deal over the last four games, more or less doubling their points tally.
Unfortunately Scarlets have rather unsportingly elected to win two tricky away assignments (before remembering their manners a little too late in the RDS last night), leaving us almost out of road in the quest for automatic qualification. It's still technically doable, but we'd need to win the rest of our games, pick up maybe 3 TBPs while hoping Scarlets only win two of their remaining 5. Big ask.
On the plus side, Edinburgh and Dragons appear to be nearly out of sight, so barring an Edinburgh win in the Challenge Cup, we should be in the playoff. We should hopefully be able to stay ahead of Cardiff too, which would guarantee it.

Last edit: 7 years 3 weeks ago by pinky.
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7 years 3 weeks ago #53189

Assuming qualification through the play-offs, if Connacht finish ahead of Glasgow (possible) and whichever Italian, are we seeded as the 6th place pro12 team (tier 3), or 'wildcard' (tier 4)?

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7 years 3 weeks ago #53191

Siob wrote: Assuming. qualification through the play-offs, if Connacht finish ahead of Glasgow (possible) and whichever Italian, are we seeded as the 6th place pro12 team (tier 3), or 'wildcard' (tier 4)?


The 4th tier is made up of the sixth seeds from each league, the 7th seed from the Pro12, and the winner of the qualifiers. So however they cut up the bottom seeds, we're in the lowest tier regardless of how we qualify, unless we miraculously scrape into fifth.

Last edit: 7 years 3 weeks ago by salmson.
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7 years 3 weeks ago #53206

pinky wrote:
It's still technically doable, but we'd need to win the rest of our games, pick up maybe 3 TBPs while hoping Scarlets only win two of their remaining 5. Big ask.

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7 years 3 weeks ago #53222

Only 9 points down on last year? That was some record against the remaining teams though. It was the slow start that killed us this year...


"Our march is quite slow y'know, when we get to where we want to get to, it's going to take time, but when we get there it's going to be fantastic." - Johnny O'Connor 2013
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7 years 3 weeks ago #53225

Decadence wrote: Only 9 points down on last year? That was some record against the remaining teams though. It was the slow start that killed us this year...


I checked that yesterday and was convinced I was counting wrong ;-)

But at that same rate of dropping about half a point a game over the final 6 games compared to the same fixtures last year (25-3=22 points would be 4 wins and a couple of bonus points) we'd finish on 61 which is unlikely to be enough for 5th place :-(

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7 years 3 weeks ago #53226

Our botched pre-season cost us this year. Allied to results like being unable to beat a second-string Munster at home, and losing away to the Dragons of all teams!

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7 years 3 weeks ago #53228

Yes mistakes have been made on all levels this season, all we can do is learn from them. We now know that our season is pretty much certainly going to be decided by two playoffs so hopefully we will be focusing on being as well prepared for those games as possible. For me that would involve;

- Getting Carey back to full fitness (out of our control I know)
- Settling on our best 2nd row partnership and sorting out the lineout
- Resting key players so that they are fresh at the end of the season
- Getting Boshoff on the pitch as much as possible once he returns
- Getting Aki and Ronaldson playing together and deciding on our preferred partnership if one is missing
- Which will hopefully lead to improved attacking shape and our wingers getting the sort of space they were rampant in last year
- Ensuring players don't get isolated and turned over
- Improved defensive work at the breakdown (guessing but I would imagine individual and team turnover stats are way down this year)
- Less handling errors (improved weather should help, thought our hands were very impressive at the weekend considering the conditions)
- Being far more clinical in the opponent's 22

Last edit: 7 years 3 weeks ago by Mark Mostyn.
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7 years 1 week ago #53503

So it's away to 7th place French team and then away to 7th place English side or Cardiff, more likely

https://twitter.com/Murray_Kinsella/status/842004995650269185

So if both Pro12 teams win through the semis the lower ranked one is at home. Pure nonsense.

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7 years 1 week ago #53504

so Connacht would be better of finishing below the other qualifier

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7 years 1 week ago #53505

connemara man wrote: so Connacht would be better of finishing below the other qualifier


Took you all of, what, half a second, to work that out? Lonely bloke in Neuchatel The EPCR hasn't twigged yet.

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7 years 1 week ago #53506

salmson wrote:

connemara man wrote: so Connacht would be better of finishing below the other qualifier


Took you all of, what, half a second, to work that out? Lonely bloke in Neuchatel The EPCR hasn't twigged yet.


TBF to the EPCR there was a 50-50 chance this would happen, so I'm sure they were aware

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7 years 1 week ago #53508

Holy flip, I was just about to compliment the EPCR on having the foresight to do the draw early so that teams and fans can maybe get a head start on their planning and then I read the details.
It's a freaking comedy show!
There was also no advance notice that a draw was taking place and thus no opportunity for external scrutiny.

www.epcrugby.com/news/35199.php

Like if they'd announced the draw process in advance, someone would have pointed out the glaringly obvious flaw.

Last edit: 7 years 1 week ago by pinky.

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7 years 1 week ago #53510

Did someone in the Pro12 agree to this?

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7 years 1 week ago #53511

Accidentally Onside wrote: I'm sure they were aware


You're not suggesting they don't care, are you?

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