URC Semi Final Bulls Leinster Review

[@nathanielpetersen8408]

The referee was autrocious in favor of Leinster

[@waynerockman1242]

Yep !! It was one of those games where Leinster had an extra player on the field in the REF. He was terrible to say the least and yes if this was in Dublin the Bulls would've lost. This is not a Leinster team as they're Ireland with all their internationals. I would be very worried if i were Irish with the upcoming tour to SA. They were crushed by the Bulls forwards and Willie is just top class man. Bulls in the final....great stuff. Don't think they'll let this one slip unlike the Stormers. Please use a good unbiased ref for the finals

[@esof55]

You're class. Objective and clear, great analysis.

[@fromthemarkrugby]

Thanks, much appreciated 👍

[@dn822]

Forget the game. The ref cheated and this should be a very serious issue.

[@pmarkc3743]

I hope this channel grwos a lot because i like your very clear and unbiased views and analysis!

[@fromthemarkrugby]

Thanks. That's very much appreciated.

[@JbRezurectd]

Thanks for your review. As a saffa I always appreciate your vids. Looking forward to the Irish tests and your take on them

[@fromthemarkrugby]

Cheers JB. Glad you enjoy my stuff. The summer tests should be epic. It's a pity it's not 3 tests.

[@at7512]

Worst refereeing display I have seen in years and despite that Leinster still could not win..

[@nox6885]

If you love watching Le Roux, listening to his interview with Juan De Jong .

[@fromthemarkrugby]

I know what I'm doing once I finish work. Thanks for the recommendation.

[@thebeardedastronaut]

Well done, from a Bulls fan

[@fromthemarkrugby]

You must be very happy today. A very well deserved win for the Bulls.

[@Bambi157]

Nice review! The ref was so biased towards Leinster but yet they still lost. Time for a new coach?

[@delareypretorius4258]

And the ref will walk away free

[@one_eyed_odin]

If this was played in Dublin I reckon Leinster would've won, but yet again Leo didn't invest interest in the URC, which is a disgrace, it's an awesome league. There's some sort of mental thing with them all guns blazing for the champions Cup and who cares about the anything else. We Leinster fans deserve more. Some hard questions need to be asked now, next season will be interesting to say the least.

[@fromthemarkrugby]

I love the URC. The SA teams have made the league so much better. With Scottish & Italian sides improving over the last few years and now some green shoots in Wales it's just going to get even better. At home Leinster certainly would have had a better chance but the Bulls did beat them at the RDS two seasons ago. Leinster definitely need to rethink how they structure their season to allow them to respect both competitions, rotate when needed and peak at the right part of the season.

[@worldchampions4379]

The Bulls already beat Leinster in a semi final in there very own backyard

[@one_eyed_odin]

@@worldchampions4379 against another weak team, Leinster don't care for the URC as I said and it's a shame.

[@worldchampions4379]

@@one_eyed_odin care’s so for European silverware…show me the silverware lad, that is what a champion side is measured by yet you have nothing to show

[@mahlanguism]

Playing up on the highveld after a week of travel is no easy feat. The best Crusaders teams jampacked with All Blacks struggled too.

[@fromthemarkrugby]

That's very true. It's a tough place to go and only recently did Munster get the first win there by a European side. So I wasn't sure why so many people made Leinster such strong favourites. Maybe they need to watch more SA rugby.

[@neilmontgomery3470]

@@fromthemarkrugby I never really thought Leinster were favorites. The Bulls home record is immense and this Leinster team had never played at altitude. As @mahlanguism mentioned the top New Zealand teams struggled on the Highveld too. I think sending poor teams to South Africa probably cost Leinster a few league points. If they sent better teams and even got two losing bonus points that could have seen them finish in second place which would have had them had a home semi final. I would definitely back a full strength Leinster at home against any team. However, their worse mistake was playing a heavily rotated side against Ulster in round 17. This is something very few reviewers mentioned. If they had won that match the would have finished first regardless of the matches down in South Africa. I think it is time to prioritize the league over Europe. Toulouse hadn't won a Champions Cup in a few years but they have been winning Top 14 finals on a regular basis. Winning in finals is a habit, an expectation. You need to develop that habit in the league.

[@fromthemarkrugby]

@@neilmontgomery3470 l agree. I'd like to see stronger Leinster sides sent on tour. I think the best players should play the toughest games. Maybe if they were tested more in the regular season they would be a better team. The quest for the 5th star seems to have become an obsession to the detriment of everything else. A return to basic and a focus on the league is good advice.

[@alanobrien3736]

@@neilmontgomery3470Spot on. Good take on it.

[@alcoyne3333333333333]

Being saying it is last few videos Mark . No Dog in this team 😢😢😢😢 Sexton was the dog

[@fromthemarkrugby]

You're right Al. Sexton was a fierce competitor.

[@neilmontgomery3470]

In truth we have been poor all year. It's probably a combination of things. World cup hangover in the early part of the season, changing the defensive system half way through the year and the departure of Sexton and Lancaster has obviously had big effects. I personally think we should have just prioritized the league this year. If we had finished top of the table we would have had all our games at home and had a better chance of breaking the losing streak in the final.

[@fromthemarkrugby]

Sexton is a massive miss. He was a coach on the field and was able to coordinate a response to opposition tactics. Leadership has been poor this year. Changes in systems hasn't helped either. They may be better in the long run but certainly not this year.

[@neilmontgomery3470]

@@fromthemarkrugby I think one of the reasons for Irish and provincial success has been the sympatico between the national side and the bulk supplier Leinster. That is broken now. Leinster and Ireland are playing different systems. I don't think Nienaber was the right appointment not because he isn't a fantastic coach which he plainly is, but because he is not in harmony with the national side. The National side has a fantastic defensive system which suits their style better. The same players seem much happier in green than blue. I also think it was very short sighted of the IRFU to arrange this tour to South Africa the year after a World Cup and the year before A Lions tour. They should have done a purely development tour using younger or uncapped players. Their greed is palpable!

[@fromthemarkrugby]

@@neilmontgomery3470 Unfortunately, many decisions seem to be driven by money post pandemic. I think that being in Ireland camp might be good for the Leinster players. A change of environment could be what they need. It feels like the solution for Leinster just keeps getting more complicated. The different styles will be a challenge for the players but they should be able to adapt next year. I hope to see Leinster picking the players that operate in that system best rather than just defaulting to the test team guys. The squad feels very stale and a bit of a shake up might be necessary.

[@ChristopherRensburg]

​@@neilmontgomery3470 As an outsider I can't speak to the stylistic meshing of Nienaber and Leinster and more broadly Ireland, but watching the tail end of the Champions Cup and URC I would tend to have more concern about the attack than defence (granted all facets can always get better). Leinster dominate everyone bar the one or two end games where an organised team can put enough ruck pressure on them to slow the ball down enough to make their heavy phase based attack misfire enough. The midfield seems blunt and the back line seems to lack the sparkle in broken play or the ability to make something out of nothing. Its seems all the scoring happens off set organised plays. What happens when that is disrupted? Leinster seem to lack a Bundee Aki type, someone who can just bust off a big 30 plus metre run with no fuss. Jordi Barrett will make make a huge difference when he get there, I believe. But isn't the backline more concerning no? Leinster is synonymous with excellence and it seems Ross Byrne is not quite that, and with him being 29 years old is there a ceiling for growth or is it worth exploring and another option? Just some thoughts from an outsider..

[@neilmontgomery3470]

​@@ChristopherRensburgSome good points there. We are definitely suffering a post Sexton dip. He ignited the back line and went to the line much more than Byrne does. Opposing players would take him out and that would give options to others.. Keenan is also a massive loss this year, both in defence and attack. I think Leinster's attack in the past has been much better both off set piece and broken play.

[@okkertgreyvenstein5765]

As a bulls fan how i see it, is since Sexton has retired there is no general at 10, why isnt Sam Prendergast getting more game time, he is better than Ross and he will be the next sexton, teams know how Leinster play and thats how Ireland play too, Andy copy paste it to the irish side, so its going to be exciting the two test in SA,

[@neilmontgomery3470]

Leinster and Ireland play very differently now and that's the problem.

[@nguboyengwekaluvuyo6219]

I also thought Prendergast would be the main man by now

[@fromthemarkrugby]

I thought this might have been the season where we saw Prendergast taking a more prominent role. Neither of the Byrne brothers have convinced long term despite some good performances. The consistency needed to perform under real pressure isn't there. Prendergast should be front and centre next season but then the province need to work out what to do with the Byrnes.

[@fromthemarkrugby]

@@nguboyengwekaluvuyo6219 He certainly should at least have been an automatic inclusion in the match day 23 at this stage.

[@markcrossman3356]

Great video!

[@fromthemarkrugby]

Thanks, much appreciated 👍

[@bjornvonduring5967]

The mere fact you mention nothing about the officiating says alot. It was disgusting, and i would have been embarrassed had my team won in those circumstances. The mere arrogance is why IRA teams aren't going to be finalists until they resolved this. There are so many instances. You got the blinders on my man

[@neilmontgomery3470]

It was a good review, the ref had a stinker but that wasn't the reason Leinster lost or the Bulls won. Mark is a decent guy and has a policy of not criticizing officials. He has reviewed many games where Leinster or Ireland have had bad calls against them and never mentioned them. Please keep your comments respectful and kind. Social media is a cesspit and if you only have negative comments directed at the creator keep them to yourself. Congratulations to the Bulls, totally deserved.

[@bjornvonduring5967]

So you are fine with the officiating... That was Disgusting, i dont even support the Bulls but were like wtf... Would Leinster have been fine with it had they won?? Id be embarrassed and the fact that irish media is keeping the blinders on? Only reason Leinster was in the Game was due to the officiating.

[@mikespencer4922]

This sort of officiating means people are going to get hurt. The refs job is also to look after the players.

[@mahasamatman12]

You've got to wonder whether Nienaber was the right choice for Leinster...

[@fromthemarkrugby]

We'll get a clearer answer to that one next season I think. Jury is out at the moment.

[@willemsteyn7808]

Yes blame the saffa😂

[@johannblignaut1966]

If you dont want Nienaber SA will take him back asap

[@neilmontgomery3470]

Please do.

[@neilmontgomery3470]

@@wlk2408 I think you are right. If Leinster had even got two losing bonus points out of the trip to South Africa they most likely would have finished at least second and would have had the semi final in Dublin where their home record is very good. But to be honest I don't think Leinster deserved to win anything this year and I'm Leinster born and bred and love our team. Our form has been pretty poor all season. Its probably a combination of factors. We lost Sexton and Lancaster in the same year and new defense and attack coaches didn't really start until January due to the World Cup. Cullen probably should have accepted that this year was going to be transitional and just focussed on the league.

[@ritzemaritzema-xo4dz]

bulls team with best backline players injured beating the irish test team and smashing the irish test team front row with players that never played test rugby...irish will never win a world cup and does not rank as a great rugby nation only a nation that can buy players.

[@worldchampions4379]

Show some class, you embarrassing yourself

[@delareypretorius4258]

He was pathetic