Connacht underline progress - even in narrow league loss

Ospreys 26Connacht 21

Rob Murphy at Liberty stadium

IF you're a member of the Connacht professional rugby set up – be it in the guise of player or team management – best look away now.

You're not going to enjoy this report. The Westerners lost their second away game of the season at the Liberty stadium, but rescued a well warranted losing bonus point with the last kick of the game.

So why have we got those involved to look away? Well, we're going to be ultra positive and judging by the post game faces around the visiting dressing room at a balmy Liberty Stadium, all were very much focused on what went wrong. For them, this was a game of wasted opportunities and very much a case of three points lost.

For us, this was a hugely encouraging display of attacking rugby where chances were created and admittedly not enough were taken but that's all part of the development process. Last season's Connacht squad would hardly have had been cut such slack but this is a side on a learning curve.

Fair enough, the pack are largely a group of grizzled experienced players overall with the exception of Dylan Rogers and TJ Anderson, but the back line is raw, especially as a collective unit. Niall O'Connor might be 24 but this is a new setting and he's only now starting to settle. Eoin Griffin and Tiernan O'Halloran may well be sparkling but they are learning too.

There were just seven players starting on Friday night, in the evening warmth of a Welsh indian summer, that lined out in the previous fixture between these sides back in February. Elwood is assembling a new look outfit with long term goals and using this World Cup period to get them from the filter lane into the high speed traffic.

After five weeks of action, it is patently obvious that the standard of the current Rabo Direct Pro 12 is dramatically off kilter with the norm. Speed restriction are in place to continue our motorway metaphor. Even during the Six Nations and Autumn internationals the drop off in quality is not nearly as dramatic. The sheer number of top players missing is having its impact.

The Ospreys top the pile after this victory with five from five. They are without question the strongest squad in the competition at the moment and that’s with ten players down in New Zealand. Connacht have been the least affected with just the one player – Fetu’s Vainikolo - on World Cup duty and their current position of fourth place reflects as much.

A pessimist would suggest that come round seven on the last weekend in October, Eric Elwood’s men will be overawed and overran. It’s true to say that wastefulness, like we saw in the second half here and slow starts like we’ve seen in all five games, will be ruthlessly punished.

That’s possible, yet if, and it’s a big if, Connacht can round off the opening period of games with a victory over Leinster this weekend, they’ll have a foothold and confidence to push on. Rodney Ah You and Dylan Rogers are now putting in some impressive displays at tighthead which suggests all might not be so bad in that department. 

For more, read this week's Galway City Tribune.