We’ve had a few false dawns at Ulster Rugby over the last few seasons, but there is something clean and complete about this one that makes you feel that there might just be some substance behind the pre-season hype.
Whether by accident or design Ulster now have what appears to be the right coaching structure. With absolutely no big egos it features the charismatic figurehead in David Humphreys, the archetypal thinking mans coach in Brian McLaughlin, the inspirational ex-player in Jeremy Davidson and the mouthy sergeant major in the chirpy Neil Doak. All born, bred and buttered Ulstermen, great!
Now, just before the season starts, the last piece of the jigsaw has fallen into place and the administrator in chief Mike Reid has seen the writing on the wall and has made way for a more commercially astute CEO to take over and provide Ulster with the funds required to take them to the top of the rugby tree.
In the past, Ulster were far to fond of appeasement rather than progress with the concerns of self serving politicians, antiquated IRFU committees, and leaching corporate backers stifling the growth of Ulster Rugby.
This is not an indictment of Reid, who progressed Ulster as best he could under the circumstance, but rather an indication of how things have changed over the twelve years of his tenure. The politicians who have called far to many shots (sometimes literally) in Northern Ireland, now have a reputation lower than an estate agent and the IRFU committees have been shown the light with Munster and, to a lesser extent, Leinster running roughshod over them to grow their average attendance from 4,153 and 3,153 respectively in 2001 to 17,930 and 14,727 in 2009. In fact, such is the bogmens influence on Irish Rugby that they now have better worldwide recognition as a brand than the IRFU. During this time Ulster’s average attendance grew from 8,500 in 2001 to 9,085 in 2009. Despite being the best supported team in the Magners League in 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004 and 2005 and never being outside of the top three since Ulster have not kicked on commercially.
The old miss direction of failure in the Heineken Cup will be trotted out here but during the first five years of professional rugby Ulster were easily on a commercial par with the boggers and the ladyboys! Things went to sleep as the Maze raised it’s ugly head and while Ulster slumbered the other two sprinted ahead.
But now Ulster’s time has come, and the new CEO wont have a better chance to dismiss the discredited politicians and put Ulster’s interests first on the commercial stage. The Munster cycle is entering it’s rebuild stage and they won’t be the force they were, for a year or two at least, and Leinster will struggle without the charismatic Contepomi and Elsom despite their undoubted talent.
What is more exciting is that Ulster have a realistic opportunity to generate more income with average success on the field. The play offs in the Magners League and more importantly the chance to qualify for the quarterfinals of the Challenge Cup represent great opportunities for the new coaching squad and their youthful team and if we get a CEO who can reap the financial benefits from improved on field performances Ulster’s fortunes may turn round very quickly indeed.
So despite the doom and gloom of the last few seasons, made worse by the outstanding success of our nearest rivals, The FRU can confidently predict that this is Ulster’s Year. Just as we saved the Heineken Cup in 1999 and gave the struggling Celtic League credibility with our then huge attendances we will be the first Irish side to do the League and Cup double winning both the Magners League and the Challenge Cup in Brian McLaughlin’s first season in charge! Hopefully this time Ulster will make some money out of it!
As Holywood Mike would say, “Sit back and enjoy the ride, baby"!”
Enjoy The Dawn of the New Era in the company of like minded individuals. Don’t miss out on Ulster’s first competitive game of the season. Get along to The Rosie on Sunday. Details here.
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16 Responses to “Dawn of a new era?”
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Can’t help thinking your on to something here Dewi, probably methylated spirits!
But yes agree there is a chance to make a fresh start literally with hopefully the appointment of a new Chief Exec who will sweep out some old cobweebs and rattle skeletons in the administration side and try and maximise commercial opportunities. It remains to be seen if the right man who doesn’t necessarily need rugby experience, is appointed, someone who has no old boy/old school ties.
Still feel injuries could well take thier toll on the field and that we face an uphill task against other Magners teams who mutate and change as each season passes embracing new ideas and strengthening squads. Feel also that if we are successful in the early part of the season we will be seen as the team to beat and will be targeted unmercifully. Right now I doubt if we are being taken too seriously by anyone other than Connaught.
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Nothing wrong with a bit of pre-season optimism Parky! Having watched the matches last night I don’t see too much to be worried about with the strength in depth of the rest of the squads.
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Take off your rose tinted glasses. A vast improvement is required from the squad to even break into the top half of the league.
If O’Donoghue is injured I worry about the standard of the other second rows.
Isaac Boss should have been appointed captain if ever a player thrives with responsibility it is Isaac, the boo boys should get off his back.
The Dragons match will be interesting, a team of nobodys. I am embarrassed to say I only recognised two names from their starting XV, Aled Brew on the wing and Luke Charteris in the second row. Ulster must win in Newport or it is going to be a long hard season.
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But the world looks so much better through rose tinted glasses, you get a nice hue!
I hope that now Matt Williams is gone you’re not going to start directing your rages at me?
If Australia can stuff South Africa as they did today then anything is possible!
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Maybe my glasses have a deeper hue of rose than yours’ but I’m not ready to accept defeat in the HCup before we have even played a game. Dewi isn’t it you that continually tells me how more superior the ML is to the GP yet you target the Challenge Cup as a success already, don’t ypou back your rhetoric? Naive may well be my problem and if proved wrong I will deal with that in time but surely we all start the season with hope.
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You are of course right Flat-top, I should be going for Heiny quarter finals instead of the Challenge Cup. It’s just that I think we’ll be done over by bottom of the group Bath in some drug fuelled skull duggery at the Rec!
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Well Dewi is as buoyant as a cork in salt water whilst others persist with leaden posts in hues of blue rather than the warm lustre of rose. I’m all for optimism but I’ve seen more false dawns than a turkey in November with Ulster rugby so consistency must bid me bide my time.
Thought Edinburgh with thier off loading game looked quite a good outfit though admittedly the Cardstiff Blues were somewhat under primed. Once again refereeing inconsistencies are a factor in the equation in addition to homer touch judges.
My bottom line here is that Ulster may well do good in the early stages but once other teams take notice we are done for because our pack lacks physicality!!! necessary to keep control of the ball.
Think a mid table finish would be an improvement.
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I think the pack can look after themselves this year at long last. Where there may be problems is with the way the backs are throwing themselves into the tackle. As it should be of course but it may lead to a high attrition rate!
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I agree with Ballpark, our pack lacks physicality especially in the second row. Why are we not producing anymore Longwells? Caldwell is nothing more than promising schoolboy who has failed to live up to expectations.
Hi Flat-top Hope you had a good holiday. Have booked into Bath Hilton for Heiny is it up to standard?
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I’m relieved the Raven agrees with me, phew, wouldn’t like to cross that man/bird, he/she does have a thing about second rows mind! Thought Ed was our most consistent lock last season until he got injured.
Can only assume the locks have been picked on form so hope Ed gets that consistency back that he had in the first half of the season and forces his way into the starting XV. think the team will change for the visit to the O’s next week and we may see a slightly revamped starting XV.
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If the Raging Robin and whassisname agree with each other, then I agree with Dewi. Not sure what about….but I completely agree with him.
However, I do agree with them other two about our pack…but not as much as I agree with Dewi about whatever we agreed about in the first place.
Why isn’t Ed playing instead of a walking yellow card?
Dull here in the USSR today, so no beach. Just have to be a twit with the FRU.
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And so it came to pass Ulster huffed and puffed but couldn’t blow the Dragons out. What did you expect with the squad essentially the same as last season. The Dragons beat us twice last season and still managed to end up one place below us in the league. I doubt if that will happen this year and the Dragons wont even qualify for next seasons European Cup. Not big or ugly enough up front to force their way over on a number of occasions and what is BJ up to? I had hoped he would have learned from last season and what that hospital pass to Humph!
So our league position is the same as last week … last ..though this week it is on merit not alphabetically. Galway on 25th already has the look of the wooden spoon match. The sooner the Italians are in the better.
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We were outmuscled in the forwards at the breakdown and despite having a superior scrum for example we could not string any cohesive periods of play together.
Plus ca change from last season, feel the warnings of lack of physicality in the forwatds are justified, they were being out tackled 2 -1 by Dragons who clearly realised that if they stopped Ulster’s isolated charges then they (Ulster) would simply blatter away from left or right field to little effect.
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Boy are you two going to look silly when we stuff the Ospreys next week and go on an unbeaten 13 match run!
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Believe me if we won in Wales against the O’s and went on anything remotely approaching a winning streak I’d gladly eat all the humble pie you can bake Dewi.
This was a return to the McCall era of rugby lite with the forwards looking as if they’d never played together before and as predicted teams realising that if they flooded the breakdown then it would slow our ball up and our brand of mobile rugby would be stifled which is how it was on Sunday. Gonna be a long night into day this season.
Difficult to criticise Ian ‘castaway’ Humph when the ball was so slow coming back. Issac ‘I play like Doaky’Boss needs to start playing the ball quicker and stop making a cup of tea at the back of rucks and mauls before he decides the forwards are all playing to plan ’1C paragraph(iii) and standing in the correct position.
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I’ll start baking those pies – they’ll be available at the Rosie next week at a reasonable price!
As the McCall era was the best we’ve had since 1999 that wont be too bad, at least the League is in the bag then.
To criticise Boss after he got no protection at all is very lazy and stinks of a personal vendetta. If you want to proportion blame I would suggest starting with an anonymous front five.
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