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Rating strains could be deceiving. They can provide you a false sense of how a recreation went in case you didn’t watch it. Final night time on the Sportsgrounds was a first-rate instance. Connacht hosted Leinster on a depressing Friday night time in Galway. Leinster got here out on prime on a rating line of 10-0.

If you happen to didn’t watch the sport, you’ll suppose it was a snug win for Leinster and that Connacht didn’t create a lot and will need to have performed poorly to not even rating. That isn’t the case nevertheless, Connacht performed fairly nicely for main elements of that recreation.

When Leinster scored their solely strive of the sport after 2 minutes, all of us feared the worst. Most Connacht followers at that stage feared a fifty-point drubbing probably on the playing cards and the place Connacht groups of the previous few seasons would have crumbed and conceded one other strive in fast succession, this workforce now appears to have extra resolve.

This resolve appears to start out within the Connacht pack. Niall Murray had a monster recreation within the second row. What a participant he’s blossoming into. Connacht have to be delighted that when different provinces can afford to purchase in skilled bodily locks, they appeared to have unearthed one from their academy. Josh Murphy has continued to impress and was concerned in a lot work on that pitch, absolutely spurred on by going through his previous workforce he was a relentless pest to Leo Cullen’s males.

I mentioned in the course of the week that if Connacht’s scrum and Line-out might stay with Leinster’s then it could be an actual constructive signal for the remainder of the season. Connacht’s set piece did extra than simply stay with it, it challenged it. Bar the opening strive which was extra Van Der Flier’s brilliance than shoddy mauling, Connacht’s scrum and maul was nice all recreation. Murray, Thornbury and Dowling all contested nicely and made themselves a nuisance. This must be an incredible signal for the rest of the season. Connacht can now look to dominate smaller packs and rating lots extra tries from the attacking platforms {that a} good set piece can present.

Connacht didn’t battle to get into Leinster territory in any respect which makes the zero factors much more weird. It was once they obtained into Leinster’s 22 that all of it appeared to disintegrate. Whether or not it was a person error or a turnover by Leinster and their unimaginable line velocity, it simply didn’t click on for Connacht within the scoring zone.

Three possibilities for a kick at purpose have been turned down by Connacht within the first half. You possibly can argue all three had the potential to be kicked however realistically just one had an excellent likelihood of going over. I’m at all times torn about what one of the best technique is for these selections. A part of me loves the aggressive name to go for the nook, particularly when your line out is firing on all cylinders. Nonetheless, turning down any factors, doubtless or not, appears a foul name, particularly towards a workforce pretty much as good as Leinster.

A number of extra alternatives offered themselves within the second half to kick for purpose however at that stage Connacht have been behind the eight ball and so they needed to go for it. Will they give the impression of being again and remorse these calls? Maybe.

The stats will present 26 missed tackles for Connacht which isn’t good. A whole lot of these nevertheless the place after a poor kick chase from Connacht led to some missed tackles however finally didn’t result in something horrific. Only a few of these missed tackles have been up the center which is a good signal. A shout-out should go to John Porch who was phenomenal all recreation and made two or three textbook tackles which stopped any potential breakthrough out huge.

Whereas the primary theme of final night time is disappointment, there’s nonetheless loads of positives to take from that recreation. On one other night time the place Connacht have been scientific, that rating line might have appeared loads totally different. They need to now look to the subsequent two weeks. Two wins from the subsequent two video games could be very potential and if Connacht are to get themselves within the dialog for the Champions Cup qualification, they should get on a superb run. I feel the subsequent few weeks shall be profitable ones for Connacht.

Connacht

Conor Fitzgerald (rep: Tom Daly ’65); John Porch, Byron Ralston, David Hawkshaw, Mack Hansen; Jack Carty, Colm Reilly (rep: Caolin Blade ‘50); Peter Dooley (rep: Denis Buckley ‘45), Dave Heffernan (rep: Grant Stewart ’60), Finlay Bealham (rep: Jack Aungier ‘60); Niall Murray (yellow card 74)Gavin Thornbury (rep: Oisin Dowling ’55); Josh Murphy (rep: Conor Oliver ’21-33), Shamus Hurley-Langton (rep: Conor Oliver ’55), Paul Boyle (rep: Ciaran Sales space ’66)

Leinster

Jimmy O’Brien; Liam Turner, Garry Ringrose, Charlie Ngatai (Rob Henshaw ’46), Rob Russell (rep; Ciaran Frawley ’73) Ross Byrne, Cormac Foley (rep: Nick McCarthy ‘55); Ed Byrne (rep: Andrew Porter ‘45), Dan Sheehan (rep: John McKee ‘80), Tadhg Furlong (rep: Michael Ala’alatoa ‘41); Ross Molony, James Ryan (rep: Joe McCarthy ’63); Caelan Doris, Josh van der Flier, Jack Conan (rep: Martin Moloney ’34)

Referee: Frank Murphy (IRFU)

ENDS