It could be a tough start to the new competition for the men from Munster.
The kickoff for the inaugural European Rugby Champions Cup is just days away and the Irish are well represented in the new competition in the form of Ulster, Munster and Leinster.
We will be having a look at all five pools this week and giving you our predictions for how each one will turn out. But to make it even better, we will be discussing possible World Cup bolters and wildcards as well as a range of other topics.
Watch this space all week to get your definitive JOE guide to the Rugby Champions Cup…
We start off with Pool 1 which contains Munster, Sale Sharks and perennial European heavyweights Clermont and Saracens. This is the group of death, as the saying goes, and Munster could not have gotten a much tougher draw this year. It must be said, however, that they were due a tough group following some relatively straightforward draws in recent years in the old Heineken Cup.
Top Dog…
The top dogs in the pool has to be Saracens. They lost last year’s Heineken Cup final against Toulon and they have been consistently good in Europe over the past number of seasons.
They defeated Clermont comprehensively in the semi-final last year and with four wins from five in this year’s English Premiership they seem to be picking up where they left off last season.
Clermont are nigh on impossible to beat away from home but historically, they do not travel well, meaning that a win at home against them is a much easier task than in France. Munster will have to get something from their away games with these two sides to have any chance of progressing in the competition.
Whipping boys…
Sale Sharks are undoubtedly on the bottom rung of this group. Having finished sixth in last year’s Aviva Premiership, they can hardly be considered powerhouses of the English Premiership and they suffered a heavy beating to Toulon last year in the Heineken Cup.
Danny Cipriani is a rare bit of star quality in the Sale Sharks side
They have quality in the form of occasional genius yet sometimes flaky Danny Cipriani, the brilliant Daniel Braid and veteran Nathan Hines. But overall they lack the quality and the squad depth to really make an impact in the pool.
Schmidt's about to get real
In this category we look at the Irish players who need to give Joe Schmidt something to think about ahead of next year’s Rugby World Cup and as far as Munster are concerned, we're going with the talented
Simon Zebo.
The flying Cork man needs a big season if he is to cement his place in the Irish camp. He isn't exactly Joe Schmidt’s go-to man and the Kiwi has often preferred the safer and more industrious Dave Kearney or Fergus McFadden over the Munster man. Tommy Bowe and Andrew Trimble may go into the November internationals as first choice but some strong showings from 'Zeebs' in the Champions Cup could ensure he gets a bit of game time against South Africa and Australia.
He has worked hard on his defensive game and after a solid display in Argentina during the summer, the winger will be hopeful of getting a regular berth in the Irish set-up.
The 'Conor Murray come from nowhere to get the Irish number nine shirt at the World Cup in New Zealand in 2011 candidate for the most likely unknown player or player with little international experience to make the World Cup squad for England 2014'…
And the award goes to…
JJ Hanrahan.
JJ Hanrahan has the potential to be a possible World Cup wildcard if he can get an extended run of games for the southern province this year. The talented fly-half/centre has a vast array of skills and offers both Munster and Ireland a different dimension in the 12 jersey. While most teams these days are opting for a battering ram centre as a crash ball option, Munster have the option of a ball-playing inside centre with a great kicking game if they choose to pick him.
Since being nominated for Junior World Player of the Year in 2012, an award which has been won by the likes of Jerome Kaino, Julian Savea and Aaron Cruden in the past, JOE has been a big admirer of the Kerryman.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eHj_V2xOkP0
Video via RugbyRecon.
We think this could be his breakthrough season…
Player most likely to have their own Parody Twitter account
Saracens player
Chris Ashton.
It would most likely be called Chris Ash-hole and his bio would read “nobody likes me and I don’t care”.
Prediction…
- Saracens
- Clermont
- Munster
- Sale Sharks
Although we will state that if Munster get something out of their away games with Saracens and Clermont they have a chance of nicking second place in the pool. Don't rule them out just yet…
