80+ column : March 4

Our weekly newsletter looking at the wider rugby world

Mar 04, 2026

ON THIS WEEK’S COLUMN…

WRAP OF A WRAP
RUGBY’S ASHES
AS YOU WERE
DROPPING THE DROP
RENNIE’S REMIT
CLICKBAIT OF THE WEEK
COACHING BY REFS
SAY OOH LA LA, LUKE MCGRATH
IRELAND SQUAD UPDATE
TROLL PATROL
COMPETITION UPDATES (incl Schools Cup)
NEXT HARPIN’

WRAP OF A WRAP

Since we cut from two guests on the wrap pods to one, having the same guest two out of three weeks has been a rarity but that’s how things turned out for the Cardiff pod and since Conor Cronin also chipped in to the 500th episode it means he earned three caps in as many weeks which I doubt has ever happened.

Unfortunately that one dull fact is more interesting than anything that actually happened in the URC match at Cardiff Arms Park but still Conor did a great job analysing what went wrong; I reckon it’s worth a listen if you missed it, click here to do so.

RUGBY’S ASHES

An “identical exhibition trophy” is set to be used for the remainder of the championship

New Six Nations trophy required after fire damage

RTÉ.ie

Not really a crazy story I suppose, fires happen, but I have to say I’m intrigued by the article simply saying “The fire, reported to have taken place in Ireland, led to no injuries…”.

Eh, maybe since you’re the Irish national broadcaster you might want to follow up on that? Where in Ireland? How did the fire start? To be fair if those details WERE in the article I probably wouldn’t pay them much mind, but they are still conspicuous by their absence and it leaves me an itch that needs scratching.

Plus all the talk of a new trophy being “forged” gave our WhatsApp group the perfect opportunity to run a host of Tolkien themed memes…

AS YOU WERE

“We actually have to be open-minded to listening to our fans and to have systems and processes that enable us to adapt and adopt.”

No law changes after World Rugby talks

Murray Kinsella - The42.ie

In my Broken Play article last Saturday, I was writing as a Super Rugby Pacific match was taking place between the Chiefs and the Crusaders. I am forever slagging off the competition on these pages for the high scores that generally result from poor defending and this match was no exception. As I got to the end of the article I said this…

Anyway…the second half has just kicked off in the Super Rugby so I think I’ll kick back with my coffee and watch it to the end, there’s probably another three tries each on the way.

…and I can now follow up with the news that I was damn close, there were 5 tries to come including 3 for the victorious Crusaders.

The reason I bring it up (apart from bragging about my near-perfect prediction) is that Super Rugby is determined to make their matches even MORE free-flowing with a host of law tweaks and although I thought it was crazy to bring in so many at once, never mind so relatively close to a World Cup, I had a hunch they might end up being brought in to RWC2027 given it’s to be played down under.

All of which makes this article good news, both because the Laws won’t be used but also because the test players at the SRP clubs have to learn and then un-learn the changes as part of their World Cup prep.

DROPPING THE DROP

Saracens were both the last team to be relegated…and promoted to the Prem, coming back up a year later.

English rugby set for radical change as Prem ring-fencing and expansion plans approved

Harry Latham-Coyle - Independent (UK)

This news can only be met by loud, long, laughter by URC fans in general, Irish ones in particular. We all remember how Munster and Leinster’s HCup wins from 2006-2018 were vilified by the English press in particular because our league had no relegation. Now after several Prem clubs went to the wall it turns out that it was the format of their business model rather than their league that was the problem, causing this “if you can’t beat em join em” reversal.

Not that this makes all right with the world however, as things stand they still get to have 80% of their competition qualify for the Champions Cup while the URC has only 50%, and since it is has been confirmed that the 26/27 comp with its final in Lyon is to keep the present structure, that doesn’t look like getting addressed anytime soon.

RENNIE’S REMIT

Rennie enters one of rugby’s most demanding jobs with the backdrop of Scott Robertson’s 74 per cent win rate and unprecedented sacking.

Dave Rennie named All Blacks head coach

Ned Lester - Rugbypass.com

It was always down to himself or Joseph, and I’d say they’ve made the correct call, but it’s one hell of a “big ask” (a sporting phrase that looks a lot better on paper than it sounds when you say it) when you consider the zero-sum nature of the expectations. I really do want to wish him all the best, but seeing how the ABs ended our hopes in the last two RWCs I can’t.

…tests carried out by the South African Institute for Drug-Free Sport (SAIDS) dropped from 785 in 2015 to just 127 in 2024

New drug-testing allegations cast shadow on South Africa’s World Cup wins

RugbyLad.ie

So the headline reads like something extremely sinister has happened, and tbf many would be tempted to click and read. But the quote I have chosen shows the basis for it.

Are the facts grounds for suspicion? Hell yeah, but you’d need a proper enquiry that delved deeper into decisions that were made along the way to come to any kind of conclusion that links this data to their World Cup successes.

Not that I’d be against such an enquiry taking place, mind you. It is definitely information that has me curious.

HARPIN ON…COACHING BY REFS

“This week we want to have a look at something about refereeing the breakdown we’ve been discussing a lot in our WhatsApp group this season. Before I go on I must mention that here at Harpin on Rugby we believe in discussing referees and their decisions with nothing but respect, it’s a disagreement, nothing less and we appreciate officials do get a lot of unwarranted abuse and we want nothing to do with that. It’s to do with what we call “coaching at the breakdown” and I’ll let Conor explain what it is and offer some thoughts…”

SAY OOH LA LA, LUKE MCGRATH

We never like seeing Leinster players leave, but at least we can be happy for them to be moving on to a new experience and I reckon Luke McGrath’s move to Perpignan falls into this category. He has been a great servant to the province and with a very decent crop of 9s heading up from the academy it makes sense all round for him to go for the sun and the French Euros and I’m pretty sure I speak for the vast majority of Leinster fans when I say we wish him nothing but the best over there.

And what a way to have it announced! I don’t seem able to get the video posted on the USAP twitter account to play here, but do follow this link and check it out (yeah, I know Musk has made it into a cesspool but hold your nose for the video, you won’t regret it) it really is a great story, especially given he is going to the very French club he watched defeat Leinster with his da. I was at that very same match in fact as I pointed out on the 500th episode this was my first live taste of modern-day Leinster.

So I have tried to find some moments from his career to share here that you may not have noticed elsewhere. First thing to catch my eye, ironically days before Ireland play Wales, was a match against our Celtic cousins in the 2012 Under 20 Six Nations at Dubarry Park. With 10m to go Ireland were losing 5-6 in a snoozefest when Paddy Jackson popped over a drop goal to nudge us in front only for Luke, who had come on for Kieran Marmion, to cheekily drop over another one to stretch the lead beyond a penalty in the closing stages and we won 11-6. For the record, also in that team were two young upstarts named Iain Henderson & Jack Conan.

Fast forward to 2014, when Luke was starting to break into the Leinster team. I have already bragged further up this column about a prediction I got right, so I should warn you I’m about to do it again, only this time to illustrate how much faith I had in the young Luke in the early days.

It was a Friday night at the RDS, and the Cardiff Blues (as they were called then) were the visitors. It was a confident home win on the night for Leinster, but for a while the 4th try was a little bit in doubt. Here’s a snippet from my match writeup…

I think this was my first full season in the press box at the RDS and having tweeted the prediction I felt the urge to tell all around me about it as Luke went over for the score. Turns out nobody cares whether or not some rando blogger made a good forecast, who knew!!! But I at least got some love on the socials…

Anyway, this is how much promise he showed from the start…and we all know he went on to be involved in much success for Leinster over the years. Considering his career was bookended by those of Conor Murray and Jamison Gibson-Park, he did really well to earn himself 19 Irish caps but could easily have had more. But the test team’s loss was the province’s gain as in recent years he has captained us many a time and been a valuable member during test windows.

Oh and you know how they say bad things come in threes? Well I’m about to harp on another correct prediction again, well, almost correct.

The official announcement was made after the weekend, but the rumours were rife before it, which led me to go back and find some of the info you see above. As we were playing Cardiff again on Friday, and Luke was again on the bench, I decided for the hell of it to predict him scoring again in the WhatsApp group. And you know what, he actually did come on and score our only try, except that it wasn’t to be the winning one.

Still, his textbook scrum half trailing line was typical of his career. To be honest, a year or so back we were critical of his form on the pod but everyone has a dip and for at least a year now he has been at the top of his game as this current Cardiff cameo showed.

The only downside of this announcement is that it’s touch and go whether or not Perpignan will be playing 🔝🐱🐴 rugby next season. As you can see in the Comp Updates section further down the column, they sit in the relegation playoff spot with enough of a gap either side of them to suggest they will end up in a winner-take-all clash with a team from the ProD2 come July. I wonder if the club will cheekily request his presence a little early…

Anyway, may the force be with you, Luke, whatever happens…

IRELAND SQUAD UPDATE

I’m writing this early Wednesday morning, and the team is to be named this afternoon so it will probably be known by the time you read this. Personally I’d like to see Ireland go full strength for both matches in search of all 10 match points and a maximised PD but I also appreciate the need to reward players who have impressed.

HARPIN’ POSSIBLE MATCHDAY 23 V WALES

J Osborne, R Baloucoune, G Ringrose, S McCloskey, J Stockdale, J Crowley, J Gibson-Park

T O’Toole, R Kelleher, T Furlong, J Ryan, T Beirne, J Conan, N Timoney, C Doris (c)

T Stewart, M Milne, T Clarkson, J McCarthy, J Van der Flier, N Doak, C Frawley, B Aki

caveat : I have no “ITK” a la Thornley

OFFICIAL INJURY REPORT

There were a number of players released for URC action with their provinces this weekend. Harry Byrne (concussion) has been ruled out, while Cormac Izuchukwu continues his graduated return to play protocols and will join the squad alongside the other nine players who have also returned to camp.

Bundee Aki and Jimmy O’Brien have also linked up, while Robbie Henshaw will connect with the squad in the early part of the week.

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.

On a recent Throwback Thursday I shared my writeup from the match where Ireland denied England a Grand Slam - it was the one where they had the Nike t-shirts ready to go. For this week’s Troll Patrol it’s Adidas taking a different approach to a potential Slam decider by both showing off the cheekily-coloured jersey they plan to wear as well as having a pop at English food…

Every year I am blown away by the standards in the Leinster Schools Cup and this year’s semifinal between Rock and Michael’s was no exception. An exhilarating contest with the result in doubt right up to the final whistle and no doubt we will be seeing a lot of these guys in provincial blue before long.

The name that stood out on the teamsheets was that of Michael’s loosehead Herbie Boyle (brother of Jack); he appeared on the Harpin radar earlier in the season and definitely showed the promise we had heard of with a series of strong carries. But while his side took an early lead through no8 Miles Berman and defended strongly from the start, one lapse saw Rock centre Bernard White spot a gap up the middle and although they never pulled away by more than 8 points, they never looked like losing the lead again either.

I haven’t managed to watch the other semifinal yet but it saw Sexton’s alma mater St Mary’s return to the St Patrick’s Day final which is definitely worth sticking in the aul’ diary.

Meanwhile in the ever-more-important Harpin Prediction League, Rich had a hell of a week which both saw him top the table AND defeat David to reach the semifinals of the Harpin’ Mug knockout competition. Bet you’re delighted I shared that info huh…

It will probably be standard practice of this feature that whenever a “bottom 6” team in the Women’s AIL defeats one from the “top 4”, it will automatically…but it has to be said, Wicklow RFC 27-15 Old Belvedere really does catch the eye when you consider that just a couple of short years ago we were questioning Wicklow’s right to be in the league at all, since they were getting cricket scores put on them each week. And the schedule hasn’t exactly been kind to Belvo in that they must try to put the disappointment behind them by beating 100% UL Bohs in the next round…

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

ROUND 4

FRI MAR 6

SCOTLAND V FRANCE

ITALY V ENGLAND

SAT MAR 7

IRELAND V WALES

ALL IRELAND LEAGUES

WOMEN’S

MEN’S 1A

MEN’S 1B

LEINSTER SCHOOLS SENIOR CUP

FINAL

March 17, Tallaght Stadium, Blackrock v St Mary’s

SEMIFINALS

Blackrock 22-17 St Michael’s

Terenure 10-17 St Mary’s

QUARTERFINALS

Terenure 57-3 Gonzaga

Blackrock 57-14 St Gerard’s

St Michael’s 21-10 Roscrea

St Mary’s 12-0 Newbridge

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

St Gerard’s School 24-17 Pres Bray

St Gerard’s School 17-19 Pres Bray

St Fintan’s 10-22 St Michael’s College

Blackrock College 47-32 St Vincent’s

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

EPCR CHALLENGE CUP

RUGBY EUROPE CHAMPIONSHIP

SAT MAR 7

SEMIFINALS

GEORGIA V ROMANIA

PORTUGAL V SPAIN

5TH - 8TH PLAYOFFS

SAT MAR 7

BELGIUM V NETHERLANDS

SWITZERLAND V GERMANY

SVNS

PREMIERSHIP

Round 11

Friday 20 March

Bath v Saracens

Saturday 21 March

Harlequins v Gloucester

Northampton Saints v Newcastle Red Bulls

Exeter Chiefs v Sale Sharks

Sunday 22 March

Leicester Tigers v Bristol

🔝🐱🐴

PROD2

SUPER RUGBY

JAPAN LEAGUE ONE

Round 10

Toshiba Brave Lupus Tokyo 14–33 BlackRams Tokyo

Urayasu D-Rocks 19–78 Kobelco Kobe Steelers

Saitama Wild Knights 66–19 Mie Honda Heat Yokohama

Canon Eagles 10–28 Kubota Spears

Mitsubishi Sagamihara Dynaboars 29–31 Toyota Verblitz

Shizuoka BlueRevs 24–57 Tokyo Sungoliath

Round 11

Sat 14 Mar
Kubota Spears v Saitama Wild Knights
Mie Honda Heat v Yokohama Canon Eagles
BlackRams Tokyo v Shizuoka BlueRevs
Kobelco Kobe Steelers v Mitsubishi Sagamihara Dynaboars

Sun 15 Mar
Toyota Verblitz v Urayasu D-Rocks
Tokyo Sungoliath v Toshiba Brave Lupus Tokyo