80+ column : January 28
Our weekly newsletter looking at the wider rugby world
ON THIS WEEK’S COLUMN…
WRAP OF A WRAP
POURQUOI, FABIEN?
WILL GOES WEST
CAREFUL WHAT YOU WISH FOR
PROP IDLE
CLAYTON’S CALL
IRELAND’S 6N SQUAD
SIX NATIONS LAUNCH
LEINSTER SQUAD UPDATE
TROLL PATROL
COMPETITION UPDATES (incl RE Super Cup)
NEXT HARPIN’
WRAP OF A WRAP
The timeline sharing on Saturday morning continues to be popular - if you haven’t seen it, as a new feature this season I’ve begun sharing my timeline notes from our feature match of the weekend on Substack. They looked very bland and boring on their own so a few weeks ago I took a mind to adding the real-time reactions from the Harpin contributors in our WhatsApp group throughout the post. It’s a lot of extra work so it means my rewatch has to be done in stages throughout Sunday as opposed to all in one go, but I enjoy doing it and it’s worthwhile for the feedback like this comment from the weekend…
Real-time WhatsApp commentary layered into the timeline is such a smart move. Turns what could've been dry match notes into something way more engaging, kinda like having mates watching with you. Saw similar approach from a cricket blog last year and it completely changed how readable the coverage was.
As for the wrap itself, this week I was joined by Ciarán Duffy who has been running a fundraiser on his own blog Post To Post sport to raise money & awareness for the autism charity As I Am. He has been wearing a Mexican wrestler mask to Leinster matches throughout the month of January, it’s a very worthy cause so please follow this link and chip in a bob or two if you can.
For the pod we had a good chat about the match, focusing on Leinster’s many comebacks in the 10-match winning streak since defeat to Munster at Croke Park. ICYMI follow this link to check it out.
To start off this week’s column, our Front Five feature looks at articles about all three of Leinster’s provincial rivals as well as Ireland’s biggest opponents from the upcoming Six Nations.
POURQUOI, FABIEN?
…his defence hasn’t been up to standard and his scoring record has fallen slightly for his club so far this campaign.
Why are Damian Penaud and Grégory Alldritt not in the France Six Nations squad?
Sarah Rendell - Rugby World
Follow-up question…why is Gael Fickou not in your headline Sarah?
Seriously though, this article will no doubt please the Irish commentators who accuse Andy Farrell (and coaches before him) of selecting on reputation rather than form. For the reigning champions to omit names that have become household ones in the sport definitely does raise an eyebrow, although you can argue that the talent pool in France is slightly wider than on these shores, just look at the likes of Lucu and Le Garrec should Tony Bridge be unavailable.
I suppose we’ll see whether or not these omissions are a good idea a week from Thursday.
UPDATE - As I’m typing I’m hearing the sad news that Uini Atonio has been forced to retire due to a heart attack, although it is of course very good news that he was able to survive the incident and naturally we have nothing but best wishes for him and his family.
WILL GOES WEST
“His tackling ability and defensive work-rate is well known, but he has real attacking strengths too, which I’m looking forward to developing.”
Connacht see Will Connors’s ‘potential as a leader’ after backrow signs from Leinster
Linley Mackenzie - Irish Times
One of many “rugby’s worst kept secrets” got confirmed Tuesday. I remember a British & Irish Cup game in Donnybrook years ago when I was extremely impressed by a young Leinster A back row consisting of Max Deegan, Will Connors and Caelan Doris. Obviously their careers have moved at different paces, and in Will’s case it has been mostly injuries holding back his progress. He has proven very useful at times for the full Leinster side, like when we used him as a counter to La Rochelle’s Will Skelton, and his chop tackling expertise as well as the leadership mentioned in the article will no doubt serve Connacht well. As for the Leinster squad he leaves behind, it gives a perfect opportunity to Scott Penny to assert himself as the nailed-on back up to Josh VDF, with a view to making that 7 jersey his own down the line.
CAREFUL WHAT YOU WISH FOR
“To have 15 guys in and around the Ireland squads is huge for us”
Ulster head into this weekend’s meeting with Cardiff without a number of key players.
Michael Sadlier - The42.ie
I can definitely appreciate the desire for Ulster, Munster & Connacht to see more representation in Irish squads, but there is of course a downside. Richie Murphy’s side have been challenging well on both fronts so far this season and when at full strength they definitely have a squad that could well go deep in knockout rugby down the line. But take key players out and they will be tested. That said, it works for all sides at this stage of the season so we’ll see how they get on this weekend against Cardiff who are also riding high in the URC.
PROP IDLE
Rodd has made only two appearances for England since the 2023 Rugby World Cup, while Iyogun is yet to win his first cap.
Baxter out of Six Nations as prop problems grow
Mike Henson - BBC.com
The quote is about the back up loose heads for Ellis Genge and it looks like we’re not alone when it comes to injured props. Thing is, assuming he stays fit I can totally see Genge as the type more than able to play 75+ minutes, even in this year’s 6N which has one less off week than normal. As for Ireland’s dilemma, we discuss that on our bonus chat further down the column.
CLAYTON’S CALL
His teams seek physical control first, they earn the right to play before exploiting space.
The McMillan Era: Munster’s rebuild and the patience it will demand
OverTheHillProp
We joked on these pages about the possibility of Clayton McMillan being considered for the All Black job after Razor’s premature demise, but we all knew that was never going to happen. He’ll have been well aware of what went with accepting the task of the Munster project, and OTHP does a good job laying it out for us.
IRELAND’S 6N SQUAD
“We had planned to devote these videos to individual Leinster players for the next while, but this week I suppose I could hardly ignore the naming of the Irish Six Nations squad so this week I’m asking my guest Ciarán Duffy to offer his thoughts, and maybe even try to come up with a matchday squad to play France while he’s at it. For sure the injury news from this weekend hasn’t made it easy…”
SIX NATIONS LAUNCH
I was never a fan of these launch events, although don’t tell the tournament organisers please because one of these years I might just be in a position to accept the invitation I get!!! This year’s version was in Edinburgh and I’ve shared some content I thought relevant below including the transcript of a brief interview with Andy Farrell.
Question: You’ve only lost three games in the last four years in the Six Nations. How do you approach the new year, the new championship, to maintain those standards, even taking them to the next level?
Andy Farrell: I suppose teams change and evolve and people retire, injuries, form, all of that. So there’s always moving parts. But the same excitement is always there at the start of every Six Nations.
The Six Nations is always full of surprises, everyone has the idea of who’s favourites this year and who’s going to go for a Grand Slam. There is so much excitement when you move through the games, somebody’s always in a completely different place to where they were the week before. So, all the emotion and everything that goes with that and the pressure that goes with that, makes it a special competition, and it never ceases to surprise you.
Question: Due to your performances over recent years, both in the Six Nations and general international circuit, I think Ireland have been seen as the benchmark, especially within European rugby. How do you handle that internally? Is that a conversation that you have about pressure or does everyone know their role?
Andy Farrell: Our squads are changing so at this moment in time, we’ve had 12 new caps last year with 16 guys that are on 10 caps or less so it’s a different group for us, so we’ve got to go through our learnings together. At the same time, we care about performing and winning for the country, for the fans, and for each other. It really doesn’t matter to us whether you’re being hunted, or you are hunting. It’s the same for us. We’re trying to play ourselves the best way we can and that all comes down to standards and preparation. If you take care of that, the rest of it looks after itself.
Question: Starting off a tournament away in Paris and handling the emotions of that, is it ideal for you to go big early on? Or do you not mind, it’s just part of the game?
Andy Farrell: It’s one of the most iconic places to play in World Rugby, to be privileged enough to start off a competition, on an unprecedented Thursday night is always going to be special, so it’s exciting for us. Everyone prepares to kick the competition off with a bang, but two good sides will be going at it hammer and tongue. We’ll see which course it takes, but everyone knows Paris is a tough place to go, but it’s an exciting one at that.
LEINSTER SQUAD UPDATE
I tried my best to account for all the cotton wool with this 23, not only does the 6N need to be accounted for but also the XV squad. As for the injury report, that last category is VERY concerning for Leinster, especially as I’m hearing on the rumour mill that Hugo Keenan’s recovery plan doesn’t seem to be going as it should.
HARPIN’ POSSIBLE MATCHDAY 23 V EDINBURGH
H McLaughlin, A Osborne, R Ioane, C Tector, R Moloney, H Byrne, L McGrath (c)
J Cahir, G McCarthy, N Smyth, B Deeny, RG Snyman, A Soroka, S Penny, M Deegan
J McKee, A Usanov, T Clarkson, A Spicer, J Culhane, F Gunne, C Gabriel, H Cooney
caveat : I have no “ITK” a la Thornley
OFFICIAL INJURY REPORT
AVAILABLE FOR SELECTION:
N/A.
FURTHER ASSESSMENT REQUIRED:
N/A.
NOT AVAILABLE FOR SELECTION:
Jack Boyle: will undergo a procedure on his Achilles tendon this week after sustaining an injury in Saturday’s win over Connacht.
NO FURTHER UPDATES ON:
Ryan Baird, Robbie Henshaw, Jordan Larmour, Paddy McCarthy, Jimmy O’Brien, Andrew Porter and Rabah Slimani.
TROLL PATROL
Now it’s time for Troll Patrol where we ‘detain’ a social media commentator and charge them with gaslightery and general online mayhem.
I don’t think I have ever “recycled” a troll for this section before but in this case I reckon it’s worth it, even if Connacht are my second favourite province. They knew what they were doing with this, and it did raise a smile at the time, but given how the two matches in January panned out (where one might say Leinster have 10 URC points in that BT bag), I reckon a callback is in order.
Being serious however, while I didn’t make it to Galway myself I have heard only good things about the new stand and the overall atmosphere at the Dexcom so congrats to all involved and it’s great to see our western cousins have a decent place to call home.
The Women’s AIL gap has been breached!!!!!!!! I have been harping for ages how the top 4 clubs UL Bohs, Railway U, Rock & Belvo always beat the other 6 clubs in the league, often with “cricket scores”, and I singled out Galwegians in particular for what appeared a deceptive 100% start to the season which came crashing down once they met the Fab4. Well, they are the very ones to have broken the spell courtesy of a 15-10 win away to Belvo, and congrats to them. Could I be cynical and suggest it has something to do with players being involved in the Celtic Challenge? I could, but I won’t. It is actually a result this league badly needs IMO and hopefully there will be more like it.
Speaking of competitions in need of a PR boost, congrats to the Iberians for their RE Super Cup success, although I have to question the viability of the competition going forward, since it is but a shadow of what it looked like when first launched.
WOMEN’S SIX NATIONS
CELTIC CHALLENGE
URC IRISH SHIELD
Leinster 14-31 Munster
Munster 17-15 Connacht
Leinster 24-20 Ulster
Munster 8-13 Leinster
Connacht 24-29 Ulster
Ulster 28-3 Munster
Leinster 52-17 Connacht
Connacht 23-34 Leinster
Mar 20 Ulster v Connacht
Apr 17 Ulster v Leinster
Apr 25 Munster v Ulster
May 9 Connacht v Munster
U20 SIX NATIONS
ALL IRELAND LEAGUES
WOMEN’S
MEN’S 1A
LEINSTER SCHOOLS SENIOR CUP
VINNIE MURRAY CUP
QUARTERFINALS
(4 semifinalists advance to Senior Cup)
St Vincents 26-24 CUS
Temple Carrig 14-14 St Andrews
St Fintan’s 59-23 St Patricks Navan
King’s Hospital 12-19 Pres Bray
(replay) Temple Carrig 17-12 St Andrews
FIRST ROUND
Terenure College 51-14 Kilkenny College
Clongowes Wood College 15-22 St Mary’s College
Newbridge College 38-31 Wesley College
Belvedere College 8 -18 Cistercian College Roscrea
Gonzaga College 62-7 Temple Carrig
Wed Jan 28 - St Gerard’s School v Pres Bray
Thu Jan 29 - St Fintan’s v St Michael’s College
Fri Jan 30 - Blackrock College v St Vincent’s
EPCR CHALLENGE CUP
RUGBY EUROPE SUPER CUP
SVNS
PREMIERSHIP
Round 10
Gloucester 26–30 Bath
Exeter Chiefs 3–8 Bristol Bears
Saracens 73–14 Newcastle Falcons
Harlequins 7–34 Leicester Tigers
Sale Sharks 29–43 Northampton Saints
ROUND 11
Fri 30 Jan
Bath v Exeter Chiefs
Sat 31 Jan
Bristol Bears v Gloucester
Leicester Tigers v Northampton Saints
Sun 1 Feb
Newcastle Falcons v Sale Sharks
Saracens v Harlequins
🔝🐱🐴
PROD2
JAPAN LEAGUE ONE
Round 6
Toshiba Brave Lupus Tokyo 24–20 Kubota Spears
Mie Honda Heat 32–23 Urayasu D‑Rocks
Saitama Wild Knights 31–30 Tokyo Sungoliath
Mitsubishi Sagamihara Dynaboars 24–33 BlackRams Tokyo
Yokohama Canon Eagles 32–38 Kobelco Kobe Steelers
Shizuoka BlueRevs 43–19 Toyota Verblitz
Saturday, 7 February 2026
Kobelco Kobe Steelers v Shizuoka BlueRevs
BlackRams Tokyo v Saitama Wild Knights
Mie Honda Heat v Toshiba Brave Lupus Tokyo
Toyota Verblitz v Yokohama Canon Eagles
Tokyo Sungoliath v Mitsubishi Sagamihara Dynaboars
Sunday, 8 February 2026
Urayasu D‑Rocks v Tokyo Sungoliath
Next match : MARK v CONOR
NEXT BATCH OF HARPIN’
Thursday
Throwback Thursday (Substack)
Friday
Leinster v Edinburgh preview (YouTube & podcast)
Saturday
Leave your thoughts after full time whistle on our Facebook page
Sunday
Leinster v Edinburgh wrap pod recording
In the meantime be sure to enjoy your rugby wherever you are. JLP