GERRY THORNLEYon how Joe Schmidt's side have set the pace despite the absence of Brian O'Driscoll and the demands of the World Cup
AT THE halfway point in the Rabo Direct Pro12 league, the table is starting to tell a few truths, whatever about the whole truth. In style and deed, the European champions Leinster lead the way, giving them a healthier cushion before their focus on conquering Europe understandably becomes more intense as they seek to become the first Celtic side to complete and a League and European Cup double.
It’s a bloody hard thing to do, nigh on “impossible” in France according to Guy Noves, and if anything the Celtic/Italian version is only going to become more competitive in the coming years as the Italians continue to make strides.
And compared to their English and French counterparts, for the leading Celts, the demands of their international sides take a heavier toll, while the Irish provinces have less recourse to overseas imports.
Nevertheless, Leinster may well still be harbouring a slight grudge about the way they came up a game short of the double last season and are now 14 points better off than they were at last season’s midway point.
Considering they have been without some bloke called O’Driscoll for virtually the entire season and Nathan Hines, and were harder hit than anyone by the World Cup, that is a considerable achievement.
Ulster’s brilliant bonus-point win in Edinburgh last night moves them up to fifth behind Munster and it’s worth remembering they came from sixth at the comparative half-way point last season to reach the play-offs. There’s also the possibility of the Scarlets or Treviso also making a big surge that would only be heightened were any or all of them to have their interest in Europe extinguished later on this month.
GLASGOW WARRIORS
ELEVENTH last season, and third so far this, considering what they have on paper after the Scottish RFU's pruning of two summers ago and having eight players at the World Cup, the Warriors have been true to their name.
Completely out of sorts at the RDS in the H Cup, after winning there in the league, they are particularly tough to visit in Firhill.
They know their limitations and play to them, tightening up their defence while relying heavily on the boot of Dougie Weir. Ex-Connacht man Troy Nathan is their leading try-scorer – on two. Will do well to stay in top four and, typically, will lose their best forward, Richie Grey, at the season's end.
Position: 3rd
Leading try scorer: Troy Nathan 2
Leading points scorer: Duncan Weir 145
Average tries per game: 1.25
Average conceded: 1.2
OSPREYS
THE table doesn't lie, and the Ospreys again lead the way in Wales despite cutting loose several of their galacticos.
Indeed, the loss of Mike Phillips, James Hook and Lee Byrne would seriously blunt most teams and while they have suffered a little in Europe their remarkable conveyor belt of young talent has stood to them and suggests rewards down the line.
They have cut their cloth a little, with their try-scoring rate in the league dipping from 2.8 at this point last season to 1.9, but have tightened up and, along with Munster, have the joint best defensive record in the league.
Position: 2nd
Leading try scorer: Rhys Webb 4
Leading points scorer: Dan Biggar 122
Average tries per game: 1.53
Average conceded: 1
CARDIFF BLUES
THEIR stats are almost identical to this stage last season, 23-19 instead of 24-19 in try tallies and three match points less, and as they showed when winning the Challenge Cup two seasons ago, they can sure hit the hits.
But they remain wildly inconsistent, and with the budget, bright young things such as Sam Warburton and strength in depth at their disposal, as in recent years once again you get the feeling that the Blues should be at the sharper end of things both domestically and in Europe.
Position: 6th
Leading try scorer: Alex Cuthbert 5
Leading points scorer:
Ceri Sweeney 62
Average tries per game: 2.2
Average conceded: 1.7
MUNSTER
MUNSTER have returned to more traditional ways in several manners, trading some league consistency (they lost only three of 25 league games last season) for a sharper focus on Europe, where they've won four from four. So it is that Munster traded defeats to Leinster and the Ospreys with ensuing wins over Northampton and Castres as well as a double over the Scarlets.
They haven't hit a true 80-minute effort but they've been struck down by injuries and were hard-hit by the World Cup. They've had to cut their cloth accordingly (their try rate has dipped from 2.2 to 1.7 at the same point in last year's league) though have scored nine in four tough H Cup games, and have fallen back on the joint best defensive record in the league. Plenty of young talent is progressing and their scrum and maul have rediscovered their bite.
Position: 4th
Leading try scorer: Danny Barnes 4
Leading points scorer: Ian Keatley 113
Average tries per game: 1.7
Average conceded: 0.9
CONNACHT
MORE battered and bruised than anyone else in Europe after a dozen defeats in a row amid their debut campaign in the Heineken Cup, and an injury toll of around 13 players from a slim squad of 30.
Perception is everything, for they actually have the same number of tries, same points total and one more league win than at this stage last season. Considering the additional demands placed on them by a Euro pool and the loss of four key players, perhaps they deserve to be cut a bit more slack, all the more so as five of their 13 defeats have been by a score.
They lack depth and a cutting edge, with Fionn Carr a huge loss, and ditto Seán Cronin and Ian Keatley. Yet, save for the final scoreboard, they've been consistently competitive, playing a well-coached expansive brand of rugby. They are developing promising young backs in Dave McSharry, Eoin Griffin and Tiernan O'Halloran, they work hard in defence (which has improved on last year and is bettered by only four sides) and stalwarts such as Gavin Duffy, John Muldoon, Michael Swift and Mike McCarthy have delivered in spades.
Significant progress off the pitch too, some financial backing from the IRFU, notably to sign a quality outhalf, could make a huge difference.
Position: 10th
Leading try scorer: Gavin Duffy 3
Leading points scorer: Niall O'Connor 59
Average tries per game: 1.1
Average conceded: 1.6
NEWP'T GWENT DRAGONS
LETTING go of Paul Turner looks an even bigger mistake now than it did at the time. The next step from last season's solid mid-table showing was to push for a play-off place, especially in a World Cup year, but they have fallen off, becoming the most impotent team in the league. That said, Rodney Parade remains the last of the traditional Welsh bear pits and is no picnic
Position: 11th
Leading try scorer: Tom Riley 3
Leading points scorer: Jason Tovey 107
Average tries per game: 1
Average conceded: 1.8
AIRONI RUGBY
WORKING off no base prior to last season, Aironi already have more wins than in the entirety of last season (which admittedly was a less than fulsome one). With a big pack, strong set-piece and kicking games, a good defence and well organised, if they get ahead at home they are tough to beat. As one of two well financed Italian sides, they are only liable to keep progressing.
Position: 12th
Leading try scorer: Nick Williams 5
Leading points scorer: Naas Oliver 59
Average tries per game: 1.1
Average conceded: 2.75
SCARLETS
A half a dozen points worse off than at this stage last season, that said given their new wave of Welsh backline wizards were at the World Cup virtually en bloc, that represents an achievement. Allied to big, mobile back-rowers, they have a high tempo combination of offloading and pace, who attack with plenty of runners on the outside and have a willingness to strike from anywhere.
If they persevere with Rhys Priestland, whose improvement since the World Cup has been stunning, he and they can only get better, though a couple of props and a lock would truly make them the real deal.
Position: 7th
Leading try scorer: Rhys M Thomas 4
Leading points scorer:
Dan Newton 49
Average tries per game: 1.4
Average conceded: 1.1
EDINBURGH RUGBY
THEY would probably have accepted a ho-hum campaign in the league for a much stronger Euro showing under Michael Bradley, which is what they've had.
They remain sticky and obdurate at the funereal Murrayfield, Tim Visser is one of the best back three players in Europe, while the switch from nine to 10 and promotion to captaincy for Greig Laidlaw has reaped a rich dividend for player and team alike. The possibility of progress in Europe allied to the Six Nations may well make a concerted push up the table unlikely.
Position: 9th
Leading try scorer:
Tim Visser 10
Leading points scorer:
Greig Laidlaw 123
Average tries per game: 2.1
Average conceded: 2.3
ULSTER
WHEN they've been good, like last night, they've been very good, but when they've been bad . . . Last season marked a distinct high after a dozen relatively barren years in Europe and they matched their qualification there by also finishing third to reach the semi-finals of the League. But they've struggled to rediscover that consistency, with seven points less than at the same stage last season.
Then again, Ulster are more the hunted than the hunter of last season; they are coming off a very good season, something they haven't had to deal with in a while and it is a different challenge which perhaps they have struggled to cope with. If they reproduced their home effort against Clermont every week they've be top of the table, but they are possibly even more dependant on Stephen Ferris and their core of Irish front-liners than Leinster and Munster. In saying all of that, Paul Marshall (busy, probing and accurate) has been terrific for them this season and has been one of the most improved players in the entire league.
Position: 5th
Leading try scorer: Darren Cave 4
Leading points scorer: Ian Humphreys 100
Average tries per game: 2.07
Average conceded: 1.76
LEINSTER
UNTIL the Bath game, they'd been a little inconsistent over 80 minutes in the European games but in the league they are top of the table, and are the league's most potent team this season (upping their game and their strike rate further in Europe again) on the back of another well-timed unbeaten run of 13 games in the middle chunk of the campaign.
Joe Schmidt has done another superb job, witness the development of Ian Madigan and the next wave of talented young backs, Devin Toner and others, not to mention the rejuvenation in Luke Fitzgerald's game.
Dipping further into their squad, they have found their high-octane game even more consistently and, a little like Toulouse, they don't have an awful lot of fancy tricks in their armoury but their passing, skill levels, offloading and awareness throughout the squad means that when they're on song they are very, very difficult to beat.
The Six Nations will again hit them harder than probably anyone else, but a 10-point lead over the Warriors in third is a handy buffer. If they can keep everyone else fit and moving forward, they should be able to nail down a home semi-final for the third year running.
Position: 1st
Leading try scorer: Ian Madigan 5
Leading points scorer: Isa Nacewa 85
Average tries per game: 2.25
Average tries conceded: 1.6
BENETTON TREVISO
SAME win/loss record as at this stage last season, but four more bonus points, they are well placed to be the surprise package. Working off a strong base and culture, Franco Smith has done a fine job. They have added to their game, running the ball more and kicking far less, while becoming more of a threat on the road, with some real potent attacking moves off line-outs. After Europe and the Six Nations, they could well buck last season's trend and push on towards a top six or even a play-off finish.
Position: 8th
Leading try scorer: Brendan Williams 4
Leading points scorer: Kris Burton 105
Average tries per game: 1.8
Average conceded: 1.7
