FACECUTTR wrote: A couple of mentions of Bundee and Dillane re-signing on boards. Anybody hear anything yet ? Boshoff should arrive this week too.

That's my kind of unsubstantiated speculation.

There was a mention in the Euro Rugby review program on SKY last night that the NZRU were interested in getting Bundee back as there may be an AB cap waiting ahead of an Irish cap. Any truth? Wouldn't blame him for that.

A couple of mentions of Bundee and Dillane re-signing on boards. Anybody hear anything yet ? Boshoff should arrive this week too.

We have top players, but tonight
Have we got
Henshaw? No
Buckley? No
Muldowney? No
McCartney? No
White? No
Roux? No
Masterson? No
Nepia? No
Boshoff? No (soon, Lions eliminated)
Healy? No
AhYou? No
J.Cooney? No
Have we won? Yes, damn yes
Lam was so right when he said it is all about building a team.....So so right

Boshoff not in the squad for the Currie Cup Semi-Final, least he will arrive injury free!

Jake Heenan is great

That is all

RogueXV wrote:

EvoGeo wrote:

clanman wrote: he's a bit smaller and lighter than Muldoon, definitely not a n0.8 unless we've no other option. McKeoin, SOB and Masterson can all play 8 when available but having a 6 who can also play 7 is more important to us.

We're pretty stacked at 7 now with heenan, Fox matamua, connolly and moloney should surely be pushing for a few starts this season too?

Yeah, back row didn't come to mind as an area of immediate need. It will be interesting to see where he fits in. Are they planning for other player positional movement, moving him to centre, or just keeping stocked for inevitable injuries and future player departures?

There was a rumour mentioned here about Ben Marshall maybe having to retire (hopefully not), so if he does and SOB moves to the second row we will need a back row player. Hopefully the rumour is rubbish and Marshall has a long healthy career

EvoGeo wrote:

clanman wrote: he's a bit smaller and lighter than Muldoon, definitely not a n0.8 unless we've no other option. McKeoin, SOB and Masterson can all play 8 when available but having a 6 who can also play 7 is more important to us.

We're pretty stacked at 7 now with heenan, Fox matamua, connolly and moloney should surely be pushing for a few starts this season too?

Yeah, back row didn't come to mind as an area of immediate need. It will be interesting to see where he fits in. Are they planning for other player positional movement, moving him to centre, or just keeping stocked for inevitable injuries and future player departures?

I was thinking the same thing about Heenan, having the best 3 backrowers in your international team doesn't always work, we've seen that with teams playing 8's. 7's and 6's out of position. 6 and 8 are more similar but where Heenan has a big advantage is he's a proper 7. and looking at the genuine 7's Ireland currently have available I don't see any of them being ahead of Heenan

RoadRunnerR1 wrote: No offence intended, just trying to inject some levity into an otherwise mundane day. But I take your point, I sometimes forget that tongue in cheek is often harder to portray in print than face to face. Post's been edited.

Sound. My post has been accordingly deleted

No offence intended, just trying to inject some levity into an otherwise mundane day. But I take your point, I sometimes forget that tongue in cheek is often harder to portray in print than face to face. Post's been edited.

With the lack of 8's around I think we might see sob move there over the next year or two. Stander is the obvious candidate but he does lack a bit in size.

Along with Van der Flier, Heenan is the best 7 in Ireland at the moment on current form. Can't see SOB being rushed back to quickly after his spate of recent long injury lay-offs. That should make Heenan a certainty for at least a place on the bench v's Canada but this is Joe Schmidt and his knack for picking old favorites over form players.

Don't forget Heenan, certainty for international cap if he can put a relatively injury free campaign or two together.

The itsrugby stats on Dawia indicate that after moving to 15s from 7s, he's covered the outside backs on occasion in the Mitre 10 Cup (no. 22), so playing as a centre is a possibility; but given that Fox-Matamua is out of contract in June, SOB may move to the second row going forward, Mul has been playing since 1885 (I think), and Moloney is yet to start a game, so this is more likely a Ronseal signing and he'll play backrow.

Great to keep the international count going up - we now have 10 in our squad, Adeolokun might make that 11 against Canada, and if they stay Tom and Bundee are shoo-ins to be capped. It's not beyond the bounds of possibility that some time next season we could field a XV of internationals. That really would be something.

He looks like he has the pace & power to be a very good 12 or 13. Since he's Fijian and also plays 7's the transition wouldn't be so great. Given that we have so much top talent in the back row at the moment with Muldoon, Heenan, Connolly, Fox-Matamua, Mckeon, S.O.B (Assuming he doesn't switch back to lock) & Masterson still to return from injury, it might not be a bad option. That's not even counting the academy back row's ready to step off the production line. Bundee-Struck & himself would make one hell of a centre partnership, potentially much better than Henshaw & Ringrose.