Round-up

Munster 43-9 Ospreys. 12 April 2009. Munster coasted to an easy win in this Heineken Cup quarter final. There were at their best and the Ospreys were very disappointing. One to forget.

Blues 50-12 Gloucester. 18 April 2009. EDF Cup Final. The Blues were in superb form as they put Gloucester to the sword. The Cardiff back row were immense and the first try by Halfpenny was an absolute peach. One of the tries of the season. (see link for match highlights)

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/rugby_union/7996656.stm

Ospreys 27-18 Dragons. 30 April 2009.

Army 50-7 Navy. 2 May 2009. An entertaining open game albeit a one sided affair. 50,000 crowd at Twickenham.

Leinster 25-6 Munster. 2 May 2009. Heineken Cup semi final. 82,00o people at Croke Park watched a pulsating game as Leinster turned the tables on tournament favourites Munster. The Leinster pack fronted up to the Munster eight and Rocky Elsom had a great game. BOD also played a blinder and his interception and sprint resulted in the try that ended the game for Munster.

Harlequins 0-17 London Irish. 9 May 2009. Premiership semi-final.

Munster 36-10 Ospreys. 15 May 2009. Magners League. Munster ran out comfortable winners to be crowned Magners League champions.

Blues 9 - 6 Toulouse. 11 April 2009

I went down to Cardiff to watch the Heineken Cup quarter final at the Millenium stadium. As usual we had a breakfast at Servinis to set us up for the day. We stumbled upon an old pub called The Vulcan not far from the city centre. Apparently it is the oldest pub in Cardiff and dates back to 1853. It's a bit on the basic side and makes the Rovers Return from Coronation Street look big. Sadly it is due to be demolished soon to make way for a multi storey car park. That's progress for you.

At Cardiff Rugby club visitors bar we met this crazy couple from Italy. They were Calvisano fans and also big Toulouse supporters. Long way to come to support the French team.

Next stop on the pub crawl was the Nos Da pub on the river. At the bar I noticed a lady with a Jamie Robinson testimonial rugby shirt on. I remarked to her that Jamie wasn't even the squad for today's match. It turned out that she was Jamie's mother, Jan Robinson. Spooky. We chatted about Jamie's move to Toulon next season and Nicky's move to Gloucester. Nice lady.

The game turned out to be a tense affair with no tries. Toulouse came the closest to scoring when Dustautoir crashed over the try line, though the replay showed he had knocked it on. The defence of both teams was immense and Blues prop Gethin Jenkins led the way as usual. Xavier Rush and Molitika were superb as well. All the Blues points came from Ben Blair and come the final whistle I think the home side deserved their victory. Not the greatest of games but a fine win.

After the game we had a few pints at Cardiff rugby and watched 4th Street Traffic as they played their usual set of Stereophonics covers. A real good day out.

My man of the match: Gethin.

Worcester 22-8 Saracens. 4 April 2009

Went to Worcester for the first time to watch this Guinness Premiership match. Sixways, the home of Worcester is easy to find; just turn off junction 6 on the M5 and you can't miss it. The ground is in a large industrial area and there are no pubs nearby. On the upside parking is plentiful on the many sideroads surrounding the ground. Don't bother paying the fee to park in the ground, park just outside, and its only a ten minute walk away. Sixways is a decent modern stadium and the new stand built at the start of this season cost about seven million pounds.
The game was pretty boring for the first half, not much sticks in the memory. Second half Worcester began to create more rugby and the try they scored was worthy of winning the game.

My man of the match: Sanderson

Ulster 13-16 Ospreys. 3 April 2009

An away win for the Welsh region in a largely forgettable contest. The Ospreys fielded a second string team and showed enough grit and skill to overcome a disapointing home side performance. There's not really much to say about the match apart from the fact it was a solid away win. More experience for the youngsters.

My man of the match: Tiatia

Cardiff Blues 11-5 Northampton. 28 March 2009

The second semi final of the EDF cup was in stark contrast to the first. Both teams set their stall out early to play expansive and exciting rugby. The first half saw the Blues control the play and they were rewarded with a try through Spice after some fine attacking play. The game was being played at a fair pace and the Saints did well to hold Cardiff at bay. It was disappointing to see the Blues only 8-0 up at half time.
The second half got off to a great start for the Saints as they hit back with a fine try of their own through centre Ansbro. The balance of power was shifting towards the English team and the Blues knew they were really in for a tight game. The moment of the match started from deep inside Cardiff's 22. They secured ball at a scrum and the ball went to the blind side winger Halfpenny. He proceeded to ghost past his opposite number and set off on a mazey, enthralling sprint into Saint's half before off loading to the support. It was a class bit of back play, which failed to turn into points. What it did do though was inspire the Blues to up their game. Leigh's sublime break had the desired effect on opposite wing Tom James. Shortly after he had a powerful run that reminded everyone of his nascent talent. The half was turning into festival of open rugby. Not to be outdone Saint's backs produced some quality play too. Foden was nearly away once, but Gareth Williams the hooker put in a smart tackle. And Halfpenny had one more party piece up his sleeve as chipped over the on rushing defence to regather and sprint deep into the Saint's half. It was a surprise to everyone that more tries were not scored, the game deserved many more. As it was, Ben Blair got a crucial penalty that sealed a good win.
In the second half both teams played some great rugby and it was one of the best club matches I've seen all season.

My man of the match: Halfpenny. Inspirational break.

Gloucester 17-0 Ospreys. 28 March 2009

EDF Semi Final. Just when you think the Ospreys can't get any worse, look out. How they failed to score is beyond a joke. The Welsh side had enough possession throughout the game to win easily. Their problem was that they played as a team of individuals and there was no collective pattern to the play.
Gloucester were able to defend the numerous breaks the Ospreys made and in return took the penalties that came their way. There was a point in the second half when the Ospreys were 6-0 down and had a chance for a kickable penalty. They turned that down for a line out near the Gloucester line hoping to get a try. That was a big decision that went against them.
The game was a poor spectacle, painful at times for Ospreys fans. Gloucester showed nothing in attack but they did finally manage a breakaway try for Balshaw.
Also Henson and Tindall limped off with injuries to dent their Lions hopes.
Hopefully this will be the Ospreys worst performance of the season. On this form they won't improve quick enough to beat Munster in the Heineken Cup.

My man of the match: Olly Morgan

Wales 15-17 Ireland. 21 March 2009

Going into this game I felt destiny was on Ireland's side. It turned out to be a classic 6 nations game full of nail biting tension. Wales matched Ireland in the first half and to my general surprise coped well with Ireland's attacking threats. The Welsh ball carriers targeted O'Gara alot and kept him busy tackling. Wales edged the first half 6 - 0 but Ireland were very much still in the game. This was proved all too early in the second half as Ireland ran in two tries in the first ten minutes to blow the whole game wide open and set them on course for their Grand Slam. The key figure as usual was BOD, and he was involved heavily in the first try, setting up Bowe to race up field and then scrambling over the line after intense pressure on the Welsh line. Wales barely had to absorb that body blow before O'Gara put in a neat cross field kick that found Tommy Bowe out wide. He brushed off Shane Williams and stepped inside Henson to coast in under the posts. A class finish from a class player. A nightmare start for Wales to the second half and the game looked over. Wales somehow dug deep and fought back through penalties from Jones. As the game wore on everyone began to realise it could turn into a tense and exciting finish. The last five minutes produced probably the most memorable of this 6 Nations. Mike Phillips produced a barn storming run that left a trail of Ireland players in his wake. His run took Wales into Ireland's 22 and with some composed play they set-up Stephen Jones for a drop kick that he duly slotted to send the Welsh support into ecstasy. Wales 15, Ireland 14. For a brief moment I actually thought Wales might win this game. From the resulting kick off Wales secured ball but an error from Stephen Jones, a direct kick into touch after the ball was taken into the 22, meant Ireland had a line out. Now it was their turn to show composure and they managed it quite superbly to set-up O'Gara for a drop kick. It sailed over and Welsh spirits sank. Destiny. With only three minutes there was still time for one more piece of high drama. Ireland managed to give away a penalty near the half line and Stephen Jones kick dropped just short. It was a great end to a tense match and those last five minutes were as exciting as anything I've seen sport for a long time.
On balance of play Ireland deserved their victory, they scored the only tries, and in Brian O'Driscoll they had an inspirational leader that put in another World class performance. Worthy Grand Slam winners. Well done Ireland.
As for Wales, I was pleased they ran Ireland close, even though they did not perform to their best.

My man of the match: BOD