UCD Marian were beaten by UL Eagles at the University Arena in Limerick on Saturday 21 January with a final score line of 75-68 in the Men’s Superleague.

UCD started well and led at the end of the first quarter 10-18, but the home side fought back and were ahead 34-29 by the end of the first half. The third quarter belonged to UCD, who led by seven with a quarter to go. In the final ten minutes, the Eagles upped their tempo and two big three’s by Scott Kinevane set them on their way. With the UCD team down a man due to team fouls, the Eagles were able to keep the score board ticking and went on to win by seven.

UCD Marian had solid performances across their team with the scoring led by Donie Stith (15), Conor Meaney (15) and Kevin Foley (14). UL Eagles were ultimately the better team, with the scoring led by Robert Taylor (21), Scott Kinnevane (14) and Neil Campbell (12).

Soccer

Paul Corry has signed on for another year with UCD AFC. The UCD academy product had been linked to clubs outside the college since the 2011 season ended, but has committed himself to the Belfield club for another season. The twenty-one-year old midfielder has represented Ireland at underage levels, including a home based Under 23 Ireland squad, and is continuing his degree in Commerce as he plays for the college. Over the last three seasons, Corry has played fifty-nine times for the Students, scoring six goals. The close of the season has seen speculation linking him with a move away from Belfield but Corry has chosen to stay with the Students as he continues his final year of studies.

GAA

The recipients of the Grant Thornton were Kildare’s Peter Kelly, Masters student, UCD Sigerson Captain and GAA All-Star in 2010; Donie Kingston, third year Arts student playing U21 and Senior Football for Laois, and Galway’s Colin Forde, fourth year Physiotherapy student and All-Ireland U21 Captain. The Cadbury Football scholarships were also announced last week, with Wicklow’s Aaron Murphy and Westmeath’s Cormac Boyle the two UCD recipients.

Meanwhile, UCD GAA hosted a free symposium on Player Wellbeing in UCD’s Health Science Building on Wednesday night. The symposium attracted a huge crowd from all sports as the guest speakers discussed areas relevant to all athletes competing in sport, including alcohol, nutrition, and injury.

Dave McSharry’s career has reached new heights over the last few months. In October of last year, he scored a try for UCD against Bruff in Division 1B of the All Ireland League. One week later, he was lining up for Connacht in the Heineken Cup against Aviva Premiership leaders, Harlequins.

Fast forward another week, and Dave was lining up against four-time Heineken Cup winners Toulouse. His opposite number was one of the world’s most formidable centres, Yannick Jauzion.

“I got on against Leinster with Connacht, and things didn’t really go my way,” says Dave, “but I got another shot with Ulster and it went a bit better that time. I was lucky that Eric [Elwood] kept faith in me and I got to play in the Harlequins game, at the Stoop. It was some change around from the Bruff game with UCD.

“Toulouse was the next week, and I was opposite Jauzion; that was another big one and it just seemed to keep getting bigger every week.”

Neither game brought victory for Connacht, but a spirited performance from the Westerners looked like it might lift them from their funk, which had seen them lose their previous four games. Connacht would go on to lose their next eight games, before welcoming Harlequins to the Sportsground.

Connacht’s fourteen-game losing streak didn’t look like ending, after a two-point loss to Leinster and an away loss to bottom side Aironi, when ‘Quins arrived in the West. McSharry wasn’t involved in the team due to injury, but was relieved to see the streak come to an end, and for Connacht to get their first ever Heineken Cup win. Their win against ‘Quins essentially put Ulster into the quarter-finals of the Heineken Cup.

“All the hard work that had been going in for the last few weeks hadn’t been coming to anything, so it was great to see the lads get a big win, especially in the Heineken Cup with a lot of eyes on them. We did Ulster a nice favour too!”

McSharry originally started as an out-half, playing in the number 10 shirt for Templeogue College through the Senior Cup, before making the switch to centre during a trip to South Africa with the Leinster schools team. It was through Leinster that Dave earned a scholarship for UCD.

“I had gone away to South Africa for the Leinster schools team and when I got back from that, I got started for the U-18s team. I played the Inter Pros U18s and U19s. During that time my brother had been playing all along in UCD, and I’d been up watching his games. I got chatting to John [McClean] who said he’d seen me play a few times with Leinster, and he basically just offered me a scholarship.”

Dave spent two years playing U-20 in UCD and a year and a half playing senior, before switching to the West. His career took a setback during his second year playing U-20s, as he picked up several injuries, hindering his development at Leinster, where he was in the sub-academy. He jumped at the opportunity to join Connacht at the start of the year.

Connacht has always been the forgotten province of Irish rugby. They are the least funded of the four provincial sides, and with the European success of Munster, Leinster and even Ulster, are often overlooked when talk of developing Irish talent is brought up. However, Connacht have revived the careers of players such as Ian Keatley, Sean Cronin and Fionn Carr.

The departure of those players to Leinster and Munster has seen the emergence of new talent at Connacht, as Tiernan O’Halloran, Mick Kearney and Eoin Griffin are just some of the other young Irish players beginning to establish themselves at the province.

“They had a big time influence [on McSharry’s decision to go to Connacht]. When you see how well those lads have done in the last year, with the likes of Griffin, who I’d played alongside the whole way up, and the same kind of lads with Leinster who were not getting a look in.”

Dave believes the Connacht set-up is vital for the future of Irish rugby. He cites the lack of player depth in the Connacht side as the reason for their fourteen-game losing streak, since they didn’t have enough players to cover the number of injuries they accumulated, due to a lack of funding from the IRFU. Connacht U-20s also won the Inter-Pros this year, the underage inter-provincial tournament.

“I watched them [Connacht U-20s] play two games this year. There are some brilliant prospects coming through there. Over the next two or three years we’ll see them come through into both the Connacht team and the Ireland team.

“I think [the Connacht set-up’s] influence is massive. There are three other provinces to choose from, but if they allow the proper funding and everything to go into it, Connacht could be a stronger fourth province. With the amount of young players coming through, they could look at that and realise that there’s an extra pool of players to choose from.”

One of the young Irish talents coming through is Dave’s centre partner, Eoin Griffin. The two were in the same Irish U-20 squad, but saw limited game time together. Dave is happy to be seeing more game time with the Galway man, who was also signed up to a professional contract in December. “I really enjoy playing with Eoin. He’s got a really bright future ahead of him. At U-20 level we always fitted well together and I get on well with him off the pitch, which is important.”

Dave plays down Connacht backs’ coach Billy Millard’s suggestion that he will play for Ireland one day, alongside Griffin, preferring to take each day as it comes. “With how quickly things have turned around for me over the last few weeks, it hasn’t really been something on my mind. I suppose holding onto the twelve jersey each week is what’s keeping me going.

“Over the next few years, maybe I will [think about playing internationally]. It’s great to see Gav [Gavin Duffy], Macca [Mike McCarthy] and Wilko [Brett Wilkinson] and the lads in the Wolfhounds at the moment.” The Wolfhounds could also be a way forward for Dave in the future.

After a string of impressive performances for Connacht, which saw him play six games and score one try, Dave was awarded the Connacht Player of the month for November, and was then awarded with a professional contract with the club.

He still follows UCD and believes that there are several players from the current squad who can make the next provincial breakthrough. “I keep following UCD and keep in contact with the lads all the time. A few of my best friends are playing for UCD and it’s great to see them overturn Trinity in Colours this year after what happened last year.

“There is a lot of young talent coming through there. I played a small bit this year with a few lads and there’s a few strong players coming through: Andy Boyle, Sam Coughlan Murray, James Tracey. And a few lads from Leinster who have got a few games, Luke McGrath is supposed to be very good, and Conor Gilsenan. There’s a huge crop of good players coming through in UCD.”

After such a promising start at Connacht, it seems that Dave McSharry’s venture to the West has been a success. Turning just twenty-two in February, his future looks very bright.

After taking an early lead, UCD eventually slumped to a 2-1 defeat against title rivals Railway, who handed the Students their first defeat of the season.

UCD began the day unbeaten and top of the table, with a game in hand over their fellow Southsiders, who were two points behind them and also undefeated. Due to international commitments, both teams had to do without key players; UCD were left missing Chloe Watkins, while Railway had to do without Alex Speers, Emma Smyth and Nikki Evans. Both Smyth and Watkins were involved in the Ireland team that lost to Belgium in the second build up game to the Investec Triangular series in South Africa.

The game started off perfectly for UCD, who grabbed the lead in the first four minutes of the match, with Jeamie Deacon scoring for the visitors after good build-up play. UCD looked comfortable for the rest of the half, passing well and keeping Railway to minimal scoring opportunities.

Late in the first half, Railway won a corner, which was fired across ‘The D’ and eventually slotted home by Zara Delany. The two teams went in level at half time after a conservative first half.

It was Railway who controlled the second half, with Jean McDonnell and Julia O’Halloran proving particularly impressive. They made their dominance count, grabbing a second goal through Isobel Joyce.

Railway were happy to see the game out from there, by playing the possession game and letting the clock tick down. UCD couldn’t create much with what little possession they saw near the end of the game, and the match eventually petered out for a 2-1 win to the home side. Railway’s win sees them leapfrog UCD at the top of the table, although UCD still have a game in hand.

UCD 1^st XI team captain, Laura Wilson, was happy with the performance, even if the result didn’t go their way: “We just didn’t take our chances in the game,” says Wilson, “We played well, but just couldn’t finish it.

“Performance wise, it wasn’t far off how we have been playing. But obviously we didn’t get the result, which is what matters. We’re still performing well as a team. It’s only our first match back since before exams in December, so we were out of match practice.”

Meanwhile, UCD’s Men’s team bounced back from their Mills Cup quarter final loss to Three Rock by drawing with YMCA. The draw sees the Students move above Fingal, into eighth place.

Having lost the Neville Cup final in December, and a respectable final position the only realistic goal for the league, the Mills Cup was UCD’s only chance for silverware this season, but after a 1-1 draw in Belfield, they lost 3-1 on penalties to Three Rock.

Strikers have been traditionally the focal point of a football team. Previously judged purely upon their goal tallies and goals per game ratio, the position has evolved to incorporate the Emile Heskey type figure; a player who scores little but can cause problems for opposition defences and create goals by presence alone, without even touching the ball. A manager’s dream, but any fan’s nightmare front man.

One trend which has been developing at Europe’s top clubs is the abolishment of what has become known as a traditional Number 9, or poacher: a striker whose primary objective is to score, to play off the back foot of opposition defences and apply the finish to a team play or opposition mistake.

The poacher Number 9, the likes of Alan Shearer, Ruud van Nistleroy and Michael Owen, are becoming scarce at the top level, as teams steadily abandon a 4-4-2 system in favour of a 4-3-3 (with two attacking wide men, and a centre forward) or 4-2-3-1 formation, wherein a more complete forward is required to lead the attacking line.

Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo do this job to great effect for Barcelona and Real Madrid respectively, while Wayne Rooney often occupies this lone striker position, when fitness allows Ferguson to play his full team. Danny Welbeck has leapfrogged Javier Hernandez in United’s pecking order. When injuries dictate that Rooney must play in midfield, because of his more physically imposing presence and ability to hold the ball up for attacking players running towards goal, Hernandez is an out-and-out poacher.

In Robin van Persie, Arsenal have followed the trend of dropping a poacher, though whether this was due to the failure of Gervinho and Chamakh to score enough goals is up for debate. Chelsea have always preferred a powerful striker, and have continued this in their positioning of Daniel Sturridge or Didier Drogba at the heart of their attack.

Roberto Mancini’s attacking options mean that his frontline is often changed, but even at that, Edin Dzeko, Mario Balotelli and the forgotten Carlos Tevez are not poachers, and to call Sergio Aguero simply a goal scorer would be an insult to his immense skill.

The change hasn’t exactly staggered goals, as the change to 4-2-3-1 and 4-3-3 formation means much more attacking opportunities. Ronaldo and Messi average about a goal every game, while van Persie and the collective Man City attack have been scoring goals for fun in recent months.

Strikers are now a hotter commodity than ever, so inflated transfers are now the norm. Since Chelsea opened their chequebooks to buy Andrei Shevchenko, who was probably the best striker in the world at the time, for £30 million, the price for strikers has shot up.

Young English strikers are incredibly overpriced, as exemplified by Connor Wickham’s £13 million move to Sunderland in the summer, as well as the combined totals that Tottenham, Sunderland and Aston Villa have paid for the services of Darren Bent.

Nowhere is the inflation more obvious than with Liverpool’s £35 million buy of Andy Carroll, whose value probably shot up by £10 million because he has won an England cap. Since arriving in the northwest, he hasn’t looked half the player he did at Newcastle.

Liverpool put the pressure of one of the highest transfers in the world on Carroll when he was in the  best form of his life and recovering from an injury. When his form dropped, so did his head and it seems the pressure keeps mounting on the Tyneside native with each passing game; no matter how many Liverpool players claim that he’s as good at training as he was on the pitch with Newcastle last season, the chance of him reclaiming the form he was in last season is questionable.

Liverpool managed to offset the massive transfer fee by receiving one of their own for Fernando Torres. Chelsea has become a graveyard for big name strikers in their prime in recent years; Hernan Crespo, Andrei Shevchenko and now Torres have all failed to fire at Chelsea after huge transfers.

Torres, as an out-and-out poacher, could be feeling the effect of the football world evolving without him, although the remarkable Demba Ba’s goal scoring in the last year squashes that theory somewhat. Like Carroll, Torres could be failing to live up to his ability because of his massive price tag, but he has looked drained of confidence  since the World Cup in 2010, when a spat of injuries prior to and during the tournament limited him game time. It seems that Andes Villas Boas and the football world is losing interest in Torres quickly, and his star is undoubtedly falling.

One striker who is certainly not disappearing is Machester City striker Mario. He is like the human equivalent of Marmite in the way he divides opinion; he has provided football fans with numerous talking points in his football and personal life.

Fans either love of hate the Italian, but whatever the feeling, nobody can deny his entertainment value. His domination of back pages has finally taken away from the usual stories we hear about footballers.

Players’ private lives, mostly conducted in public nowadays, are notoriously repetitive when the story leaks. Sticking to a tried and tested formula, glamour models or wannabe WAGs go to to the tabloids to tell of their late night meeting with a married footballer. The tabloid in turn prints the story, calling the player a love rat, and calling their source every synonym of the word ‘gorgeous’ that was ever coined.

The annual story of Rooney’s dissatisfaction at Manchester United has sprung up again, while the story of Tevez has been played out so many times that people have begun to forget that he can kick a ball.

Homesick and unhappy with yet another employer, on numerous occasions the Argentine has made noises about moving home, before being linked with clubs further away from home.

Balotelli meanwhile has been accidentally hilarious and fascinating in his actions. There is no doubt that what we see on a regular basis from the Man City striker is the real Balotelli; from his parking tickets, to his house fire, to throwing darts at a youth team, right to his awarding of £1,000 to a homeless man after a casino win. The actions are Balotelli’s, not an act. While not all of his actions can be laughed at and passed off as a bored, petulant young man with too much money, such as his apparent mafia associations and the incident with the darts, his actions are keeping football interesting off the field, as well as on it.

As a youth, he picked up numerous awards, as well as picking up a European accolade for best Young Player in Europe last year, after which he said only Messi was better than him, and that he had never heard of the runner up, Jack Wilshere. Balotelli has begun to show his undoubted talent in the Premier League this season.

If one thing is to sum up the Italian in a nutshell, it is his goal against Norwich, where he shouldered the ball into an empty net. Just to be different. Just to be interesting. Why always him?

Dublin University FC 9 – 31 UCD RFC

Last year Dublin University (Trinity) ended UCD’s hopes for an unbeaten season and the Division 2 title, with a 28-20 victory over their South Dublin rivals. Revenge was on the cards for Collidge when the two met last night.

The first half failed to live up to the hype of what is probably Ireland’s biggest University rivalry. This was the 60^th Colours match but neither side covered themselves in glory in the opening exchanges. After a scrappy opening ten minutes, with both teams knocking-on and kicking poorly, it was Trinity who drew first blood. UCD went off their feet in their own 22 and Trinity captain David Joyce converted the penalty to make it 3-0.

Four minutes later, a Niall Earls penalty tied up the game before Joyce responded with another simple kick in front of the posts.

It was Trinity who dominated the early play. Their full back line of Niyi Adeolukan, Neil Hanratty and James O’Donoghue looked dangerous with ball in hand, but Trinity failed to spread wide after the first ten minutes. They failed to convert their superiority to points though, with Joyce missing a penalty in the 27^th minute.

Earls brought the sides level again in the 36^th minute, after UCD went through the phases and found themselves in their opponents’ 22. Trinity went offside and Earls made it 6-6.

Neither side created a real try scoring opportunity in the first half, until in the 38^th minute when Neil Hanratty failed to deal with a high ball which was latched onto by Collidge’s Alex Kelly, on for the injured David Lynch. Kelly was dragged down short of the line and the ball was illegally slowed by Trinity scrum-half Michael McLoughlin. UCD were awarded the penalty, with McLoughlin shown a yellow card. Earls made the score 9-6 to the team from Belfield.

Joyce levelled the game once again, after UCD went offside. His kick was the last action of the half, as the sides went in with nine points apiece.

UCD came out for the second half looking to make their numerical advantage count, attacking Trinity straight from the restart. Rob Shanley eventually scored a breakaway try in the 44^th minute, with the scrum-half sprinting from the Trinity 10 metre line to touch down and make the score 14-9, after Earls missed the conversion.

The game opened up a bit after the try but neither side were playing particularly creative rugby. Joyce missed a penalty in the 52^nd minute and Earls made the score 17-9 with a penalty in the 58^th minute. Joyce missed another penalty five minutes later.

After the 70^th minute, UCD found their stride and began to notch up the scores. David Doyle showed impressive pace to sprint under the post only to have his try ruled out for a forward pass.

Three minutes later Sam Coughlan Murray scored a brilliant individual try, evading several Trinity tackles to sprint from the halfway line and touch down under the posts. James Thornton made it 24-9 with the conversion.

Trinity should have scored a try in the 78^th minute after a rare second half foray in UCD’s 22, but Paddy Lavelle failed to spread the ball wide where Adeolukan stood unmarked. Instead UCD turned the ball over and broke quickly. Coughlan Murray released Alex Kelly who scored under the posts with Thornton adding the 2 points, to make the final score 31-9 to UCD.

On the balance of their second half performance, UCD were deserved winners. While Trinity failed to create a real try scoring opportunity until late in the second half, UCD were clinical in taking their chances.

Trinity were the architects of their own downfall. Joyce missed several scorable kicks at goal which could have even put Trinity into the lead in the last 15 minutes. Their failure to spread the ball wide until late in the second half, when they nearly scored through Adeolukan, left them relying on their forward play which was one dimensional. Constant substituting throughout the game took away from any structure of their play, though it must be said that UCD’s play also suffered as a result of the unlimited substitutions the two teams were allowed.

The two sides are now in different leagues, after UCD gained promotion to Division 1B last season, so to expect as impassioned a game as last year would be unfair.  UCD will go into next Saturday’s home game against Galwegians with a confidence boost but will wonder about the sacrifice made for bragging rights with both David Lynch and Danny Kenny picking up injuries, with the latter seeming to have a head injury.

For years, player burnout has been a huge issue for the GAA. Gaelic football and hurling, being amateur sports, are more at risk of player burnout than professional sports, since most members have to balance work schedules with trainings and matches, but burning the candle at both ends can have a detrimental effect on the body.

Professor Giuseppe De Vito, Professor of Performance Science in UCD, spoke to the University Observer about player burnout.

“Player burnout is a syndrome. The definition was recently attempted at a conference in London. It is an underperformance, when an athlete doesn’t perform to their standard, lasting more than two weeks.”

Burnout is not just caused by over-training; it is a multi-factor syndrome. Physiological and psychological factors, from stress to malnutrition to infection, contribute to burnout. The idea that it is a syndrome brought about purely because of over-training is a dated notion.

In fact, over-training can be a tool to get the best out of athletes. “In order to obtain an improvement, you need to overload the system. And then you allow the system to recover and overload again,” says Professor de Vito.

This method is used as a tool for training individual sportspersons, such as runners or swimmers. Doing so with a collective team is much more difficult to accomplish however, since they compete throughout a season, rather than aiming for one singular event such as the World Championships.

Repetitive training schedules can have a negative effect on players and lead to burnout. They can also cause players to lose interest in the sport. “Lack of motivation and interest is one of the symptoms [of burnout],”says Professor de Vito. “What you find is that people become uninterested in training and competition.”

It is critical that players, particularly younger players, remain motivated and enjoy their sport. Players dropping off between minor (U-18) and U-21 is a growing problem within Gaelic football and hurling. While there are many factors which contribute to this, such as migration from home, lack of motivation to play because of a poor training structure is correlative.

It is difficult to estimate how many players have suffered from burnout in their careers since there are so many factors to consider. Personal tests, such as measuring a player’s time over a certain distance and recording it are one way to identify the syndrome. Should the times begin to increase and the player display some of the psychological effects, then burnout is a possibility, although the test is not conclusive.

“It’s not easy to make a [diagnosis] of burnout syndrome,” remarks Professor De Vito. “You need to have a number of factors together such as energy levels, mood levels, as well as psychological, physiological and medical testing. From all these tests together, you can have a clear picture.”

The problem for the GAA is that it doesn’t have the resources to implement these kinds of tests on such a large selection of players. Therefore a focus on prevention, rather than treatment, is more important.

One concept which is often ignored by players and coaches is that of rest, according to Professor De Vito;  “Recovery and resting is part of a training programme. When you plan a training week you need to alternate between a period of loading [training] and a period of recovery, to replenish your energy levels. Younger players always want to train harder without understanding that sometimes a resting session or reduced volume session is better.”

There are a number of factors which cause a player to burn out, but the central element is incorrect training. One of the main problems, it seems, is players and coaches being ignorant of proper training regimes, as well as not realising the importance of recovery.

Technical Development and Sports Manager at the GAA, Jimmy D’Arcy, explained how one of the aims of GAA is to increase knowledge of correct conditioning for players.

“Education and awareness are as big a part of the solution as a regulated games programme,” says D’Arcy. “We have a formal coach education programme. We want every team to be coached by an appropriately qualified coach … Currently it’s not a requirement for any coach to have a certain status [within the course].”

In order to reduce the physical and mental burden on players, particularly younger players who may have spent the previous season playing across different age groups, the GAA has a ban on inter-county teams training collectively for the winter break.

“There is a restricted period in November and December whereby inter-county teams are not permitted to train collectively. This would have been one of the initiatives that was brought in to counteract the burnout problem. Burnout isn’t only a physical issue, it’s a stress-related issue. Collective training is something that puts a stress-related requirement on players.”

The GAA has moved in the right direction but if they hope to truly minimise player burnout, they need to step up their current plan. The Coach Education Programme was set up more than twenty years ago but there is still limited knowledge on correct player conditioning among coaches and players.

The off-season restrictions on collective training are almost unmonitored, allowing county teams around the country to continue training into the winter break should they choose to do so. Although there are sanctions against this, there is minimal enforcement of the rule to prevent teams from training.

Burnout is the danger of amateurism. The great tradition of the GAA is the hard-working nature of those who play their sport. Amateurs training like professionals can be very dangerous without proper monitoring and education. Should this not be addressed correctly, burnout will continue to loom large in GAA.

Introduced by Paul Lynam last year, the roll of Sports Officer has been set up in UCD to promote internal sports and healthy living. Though in its second year, this is the first year to have an official sports crew, lead by Sports Officer, Paddy Guiney. One problem that Guiney hopes to tackle is the lack of support for UCD teams.

For so long, UCD has been the centre for academic sporting excellence, but despite having the largest one-campus student population in Ireland, attendance and support at matches is abysmal.

UCD AFC compete in the Airtricity League; UCD RFC are in the second highest league in Ireland and contain potential Irish internationals in their squad, while the GAA clubs have county stars and compete in the Dublin Championship, as well as Intervarsity tournaments such as the Sigerson Cup.

Despite consistently impressive teams, they fail to receive the support that a university with a population of about 22,000 should receive. It’s not an uncommon sight to see UCD AFC playing in front of a near-empty Bowl, or for a hockey tournament held on campus to go almost unnoticed. Whether this is due to the teams failing to capture the imagination of supporters, lack of advertising or just the lack of comradery and togetherness among students, it is a problem that Guiney plans to tackle.

“This year, my own goal is to get people to matches,” says Guiney. “We have a soccer team in the Airtricity, we have a rugby team that’s very successful and the hockey team is better than ever at the weekends. But unfortunately people don’t know that and don’t attend the games. [Low attendance at matches] is a cultural problem in UCD and can’t be changed overnight.”

To try and encourage attendance, Guiney and the Sports Crew have several different ideas to promote sports around UCD. “We’d like to see UCD flags up around campus and we have an idea for a mascot. One of the ideas is Support Your College Week; in any particular week the Sports Crew and I will plug a particular team completely.”

While a big part of the Sports Crew’s job is to try to build a fanbase for the major sports teams in UCD, they are also hosting events throughout the year to encourage students to get involved and get active.

“From the 8^th of November we’re going to be hosting a UCD 5-a-side league. There’s a huge demand for this and I’ve always been told in college from lads who don’t have time to play 11-a-side soccer, why can’t we get a 5-a-side team going?”

As well as the 5-a-side league, the Sports Crew are organising a Playstation ‘Fifa’ tournament on December 1st, a skydive and a flashmob. Though some of the events seem outside the realm of traditional sports, Guiney believes that getting people involved in sport in any way is a positive step; “The main ethos behind these events is just to get people active.”

While promoting activities, Guiney also hopes to promote healthy living. The events are generally alcohol free: “I want to emphasise non-alcoholic events,” says Guiney. “Part of my roll as Sports Officer is to promote healthy living.”

The role of Sports Officer is fairly clear-cut, and Guiney is clear in his goals: “My main aim is to create a link or work on the current link we already have with the sports clubs and create an atmosphere where people want to go to a game.”

With the organisation of events, Guiney is expanding and organising a model already present in UCD. The biggest challenge is sure to be breaking down the apathetic culture prevalent among students with regard to sport in UCD.

Munster

Pool 1

By Gordon O’Callaghan

Last year’s Heineken Cup campaign was perhaps the lowest point in the professional era for Munster, as they failed to qualify for the knock-out stages for the first time in over a decade. Again, this season they are going to have to compete with some very respectable opposition in the opening stage.

First up for Munster is the visit of last year’s finalist Northampton Saints. The English side will have a point to prove in this competition, having had the cup ripped from their grasp during the second-half of last season’s final.

Northampton have added some serious talent to their squad over the summer with fly-half Ryan Lamb joining former Blackrock College winger, Vasily Artemeiv, and Samoan George Pisi.

Performing below par in the opening rounds of the English Premiership, the reintroduction of their World Cup stars, Ben Foden, Dylan Hartley, Courtney Lawes and Chris Aston will mean they will provide stiff competition for that top spot.

The Scarlets are the third rank team in Pool 1 but they should they not be underestimated. The Welsh side may be lacking a bit up front but they have an impressive backline. Irish tormentor Rhys Priestland pulls the strings from out-half and he can call upon powerful runners outside him such as George North and Jonathan Davies. After a landmark World Cup for Wales, a run in Europe can be expected from a regional club, who traditionally misfire in this competition. With the Ospreys losing players to the lure of French money, it might just be up to the Scarlets to continue the revitalisation of Welsh rugby.

Castre Olympique are a slightly unpredictable side, and have surprised many in France by finishing third in the Top 14. They do have familiar faces in Max Evans and Scott Murray, and like any French team will be well organised.

If Munster are to progress into the knock-out stages of this year’s competition they will have to move past their traditional conservative game. The Saints and the Scarlets are more than capable of throwing the ball around the pitch and scoring tries. Ian Keatley has been in good form in the absence of O’Gara, and with the return of Conor Murray and Keith Earls, one would hope that Tony McGahan will turn to the likes of Keatley and Murray as well as Simon Zebo and Danny Barnes, to give them some youthful energy.

Prediction: Quarter-Final

Ulster

Pool 4

By Daniel Keenan

Ulster had their best season in the Heineken Cup last year since winning the competition in 1999. A place in the quarter-finals, where they lost to eventual finalists Northampton, was their best finish in twelve years. They are an ever-improving squad with a mixture of young Irish talent, international players and strong clubmen. Every Heineken Cup team will be buoyed by the return of their World Cup stars, but Ulster have arguably the best returning contingent.

Stephen Ferris and Rory Best, two linchpins in the Ulster forward line, join Ruan Piennar, Johann Muller, Andrew Trimble and new recruit John Afoa among others, in returning to the northern province. The loss of BJ Botha to Munster could have had a catastrophic effect on the Ulster scrum, so pivotal to their attacking game, but with the acquisition of Afoa, Ulster have managed to find an even better scrummager.

Another new recruit, Jared Payne, has ruptured his Achilles tendon and his participation in the group stages is in doubt. The New Zealand born centre/fullback showed brief glimpses of his Blues’ form in the three games he has played so far and his injury comes just as he looked to be settling into the Ulster team.

Ulster face a mammoth task to even get out of their group, with Clermont Auvergne and Leicester Tigers in their way in Pool 4. Clermont have never truly excelled in the Heineken Cup but can never be written off. Losing Napolioni Nalaga is significant but with the signing of Sitiveni Sivavatu, Lee Byrne and David Skrela, Clermont have an extremely dangerous backline, already containing Morgan Parra, Aurèlin Rougerie and Julien Malzieu. Combined with a traditionally strong French pack, Clermont could easily top the group. Ulster’s best opportunity to beat them will be in Ravenhill next weekend, when they may well catch them with a World Cup hangover. Overcoming Clermont in France is a near impossible task.

Ulster won’t fear Aviva Premiership opposition but Leicester Tigers are capable of beating any team, with a bruising forward line and their dogged style of play. The Tigers should overcome Ulster in Leicester and a win for them in Belfast is certainly within the realm of possibilities.

The pressure will even be on Ulster to secure bonus point wins over group minnows Aironi, as with the tight nature of the group, bonus points are likely to decide who progresses. Group 4 will be a very tight group, meaning the second-placed team is unlikely to qualify as one of the best runners-up. Ulster are constantly improving but it seems a place in the quarter-finals will be a bridge too far this year.

Prediction: Group Stages

Leinster

Pool 3

By Kevin Beirne

Given their recent record in this tournament, Leinster will enter the Heineken Cup full of confidence, having won it twice in the past three years and making the semi-final on the other occasion.

After playing the top three sides in France, as well as the English Champions of that year, on their way to the final last season, Leinster have been given an easier draw this year. Looking at the group, it would not be unreasonable to expect an experienced Leinster side to pick up five wins. Bath are not even close to the force they once were. Although they boast talents such as the hard-hitting Lewis Moody, they are far from a daunting prospect.

Glasgow, although a traditional bogey team for Leinster, rarely perform in Europe and lack the necessary skill in their backline to trouble the bigger teams. Barring a miracle of Braveheart proportions, they are unlikely to challenge the top spot in Pool 3.

Despite finishing as runners-up in last season’s Top 14, little would be known about Montpellier by those who don’t follow the French league. Their domestic success last season was something of a shock. With Fulgence Ouedraogo and Francois Trinh-Duc in their squad, they are not tournament minnows, but are inexperienced at this level. Leinster should come out of the group expecting a home quarter-final.

The Heineken Cup is an unpredictable tournament and there are more obstacles to overcome than your opposition, the main problem being injuries. Injuries can stop a championship season dead in its tracks. Although Leinster have great depth in certain areas, others could be left seriously exposed by even one casualty.

The most obvious of these is at out-half. If Jonathan Sexton were to pick up a serious knock, it would be a huge problem for Leinster. Although Ian Madigan has been impressive, it is hard to see him replicating Sexton’s replacement-heroics of 2009, while Mat Berquist has barely left the physio table since arriving in the summer.

More worryingly, should Leo Cullen be forced out by injury, a possibility made all the more likely given the fact he will be thirty-four by the time the knockout stages begin, there is no clear-cut replacement to step in and compete at a level remotely resembling that of the captain.

That being said, Leinster are the team to beat this year. If they can stay clear of injuries and continue to grow under Schmidt, than there is no question about them reaching the final. They may even become the first back-to-back winners since Leicester in 2001/2002.

Prediction: Finalists

Connacht

Pool 6

By Fearghal Bannon

Connacht have qualified for their first Heineken Cup not through the Celtic League but by virtue of Leinster winning the Heineken Cup last season, and rising two ERC ranking points.

With the mass exodus of Connacht’s young Irish hopes; Jamie Hagan, Ian Keatley, Fionn Carr and Sean Croinin, at the end of last season, Connacht have needed to recruit, signing fifteen players during the summer. The return of their star No. 8 George Naoupu will provide a huge boost as it was the New Zealander’s all action performances that brought them to the Amlin Challenge Cup semi-final in 2010. His return from Japanese side Kobe Steelers is easily their biggest acquisition. The signing of Tongan winger Fetu’u Vainikolo is quite a coup for Connacht, while rugby league convert Henry Fa’afili in the centre will plug the gaping hole in their defence.

Overall, Connacht have improved since last season and increased their squad depth, a problem that has hindered their progress over the years. In their traditionally injury-ravaged back row, they have signed former Ulster player Willie Faloon and Munster native Eoghan Grace to join Naoupu and captain John Muldoon.

Despite the youth coming through the ranks, including recent signing of UCD’s David McSharry, Connacht will struggle to make an impact this year in the tournament, with the presence of Heineken Cup legends Toulouse, current English Premiership leaders Harlequins and former big hitters Gloucester.

Connacht fans are sure to be excited at the prospect of Toulouse arriving in the West of Ireland, but Connacht couldn’t have asked for a tougher draw, with the four-time Champions one of the only French teams who travel well. With one of the world’s most ferocious packs and a backline to match, as well as IRB World Player of the Year Thierry Dusautoir, Connacht’s chances are minuscule.

With their upcoming talent and their superb management on and off the field, Connacht are a rising force, which can only be a positive for Irish rugby. The Heineken Cup, however, takes no prisoners, and the best Connacht can hope for is a big financial turnover from games at the redeveloped sports ground; they will be lucky to come out of Pool 6 with a win, the best opportunity for which will be at home to Gloucester on December 10^th.

Prediction: Group Stages

Buccaneers – 23  UCD – 17

After a comprehensive 35-13 beating at the hands of Dungannon, UCD were hoping to bounce back against UCC at home.

The game started slowly, with both sides creating very few opportunities, until UCD slowly began to build momentum and piled on the pressure after a knock-on by UCC. An early opportunity arose for UCD in the ninth minute after excellent build up play. UCD found themselves close to UCC’s five-metre line, but failed to capitalise as the UCC defence held firm.

A moment of inspiration from UCD winger and Irish Under-20 international Sam Coghlan-Murray would make the difference between the two sides in the opening twenty minutes, as he touched down in the sixteenth minute. Niall Earls converted to make it 7-0.

Small errors snuck in to UCD’s forward play from time to time, as penalties began to mount up for infringements. UCC took advantage and put their first points on the board through the boot of Brian Kingston in the twenty-sixth minute.

UCC began to play with confidence and put heavy pressure on the UCD defence with some exquisite back play. Pressure paid off for the Cork side when openside flanker Brian O’Callaghan touched down on the thirty minute mark to make it 10-7 after a Brian Kingston conversion.

This would soon be hampered by two quick-fire penalties struck by Niall Earls which sent UCD into the break with a 13-10 lead.

It was the Cork College who got out of the traps quicker in the second half, as magnificent build-up play from UCC saw them quickly approach the UCD try line, but a knock-on proved costly in the end.

UCD became frustrated as the penalty count began to build up, but against the run of play Sam Coghlan-Murray broke away from the UCC defence to score his and UCD’s second try of the game.

UCD became complacent after the try, giving away a penalty which Kingston duly kicked to make it 18-13. Collidge responded in kind however, as substitute James Thornton kicked two penalties to leave eleven points between the teams.

A late penalty awarded to UCC for a high tackle, which Kingston struck over, was merely a consolation as the game finished 23-16.

After a solid victory over UCC, with performances to match from Niall Earls and Sam Coghlan-Murray, UCD travelled to Athlone to take on Buccaneers on Saturday, but couldn’t maintain their winning ways as they went down 24-18 to their Connacht opponents.

UCD got off to a bad start by giving away a penalty in front of the post in their own twenty-two, which Jack Carthy stuck over for the home team. Things went from bad to worse for the away team as they fell off tackles in midfield to allow Carthy to break away and slip it to Denis Buckley, who powered under the posts from 5 metres out. UCD were 10-0 down after Carthy’s conversion.

Poor kicking was a feature of UCD’s play in the first half, as Earls failed to find touch on several occasions, as well as fullback Michael Twomey having two kicks blocked down.

Earls got UCD on the scoreboard in the seventeenth minute after Buccaneers went off their feet, but after poor hands coming out of defence, Buccaneers turned the ball over before spreading it wide where players were lined up to finish the ball. Denis Buckley dived over in the corner for his second, but Carthy was off target from the conversation.

UCD got their first real attack of the game in the twenty-fourth minute but the ball was knocked on in the Bucs’ twenty-two, as UCD were once again poor in the contact zone. Bucs looked to use their superior scrum as an attacking platform as Collidge gave away a free kick directly from a scrum. A grubber kick down the wing was latched onto by Twomley, who was isolated and lost the ball. Another quick grubber kick into the try zone was jumped on by Paul Harte, to make it 20-3 at half time after Carthy missed another conversion.

The game looked to be over but just two minutes later, after Carthy’s up-and-under was dealt with well by UCD, Tom Fletcher found space and brilliantly avoided several tackles to touch down in the corner, to bring Collidge back into the game at 20-8 after Earls failed with the conversion.

UCD started the second half brightly with James Thornton on for Earls at half-time, scoring a magnificent penalty from the ten-metre line in the forty-second minute, and landing a second penalty eight minutes later after Bucs didn’t roll away.

Collidge went within three points of their opponents after Gareth Halligan slowed the ball illegally, resulting in a yellow card for the hooker and another three points for UCD. They dominated the set plays from there, winning a penalty and a free kick from scrums, as well as pillaging several line-outs throughout the game.

Sam Coghlan-Murray almost put UCD into the lead after good work from the pack gave Collidge clean ball, which released Coughlan-Murray but the winger went into contact when he probably should have kicked, and was put into touch.

This was UCD’s last real attack of the game as Bucs counter-attacked, eventually winning a penalty which was scored once again by Carthy. UCD won two penalties late in the game but were so deep in their own half that they couldn’t make anything of them, as the game finished 23-17.

With two away losses and a home win, UCD sit in eighth place in the league, but are improving since their loss to Dungannon. Their second half performance in Dunbarry Park was impressive and were it not for the exquisite kicking of Bucs’ fly-half James Carthy, they probably would have won the match.

Ireland took their natural place in the quarter-finals of the Rugby World Cup on Saturday 8^th October in Wellington, with an expectant crowd at home bearing a 6am start in order to watch. Two hours later, the sun had risen over Ireland, but was setting on the World Cup careers of some of the country’s best players.

Come the next World Cup in England in 2015, Ireland will have lost two of their most iconic pairings, Paul O’Connell and Donncha O’Callaghan in the second row, and Gordon D’Arcy and Brian O’Driscoll in the centre.

It is hard to fathom Irish rugby without O’Driscoll and to exit the World Cup with hopes of a final so high is a devastating way for him to finish his fourth World Cup. Ireland’s loss to Wales was far from a catastrophe – they were simply outplayed by a vibrant and clinical Welsh team – but the result is hugely damaging to Irish rugby.

Declan Kidney will remain in the job until the end of the 2012/13 season, which coincides with the British and Irish Lions tour of Australia, giving a clear indication that Kidney could be the next Lions coach. Should Kidney get the job, and not carry on as Ireland manager afterwards, it would mean a switch in management halfway through a World Cup cycle; this wouldn’t just mean a change in manager, as Gert Smal (forwards’ coach), Les Kiss (defence coach) and Mark Tainton (kicking coach) could follow Kidney. Such a complete uproot of staff would only unsettle a squad building for a World Cup, and new coaches bring new styles, which take time to adapt to and put into practice.

David Wallace, an dedicated servant of his country and a favourite of Kidney’s, has not ruled out playing for his country again, and Ronan O’Gara seems to have side-stepped his retirement, despite saying he was “done with Ireland in a few weeks.” Their commitment to their country is admirable, but there is a problem with both of them making themselves available to play.

Kidney is a very conservative manager. It’s worth noting that Sean O’Brien was making powerful runs for Leinster two years before he was capped competitively; Wales’ George North was capped by Gatland after playing just 6 games for Scarlets. Kidney’s cautious policy could see him pick O’Gara and Wallace ahead of younger players desperate for game time in an Irish jersey. Should Kidney only be planning another two years in Irish management, he may stick with what he knows, rather than take a risk on the unproven players.

Kidney also has a big opportunity to improve Ireland’s back play after the departure of backs’ coach Alan Gaffney. A more expansive game is needed to progress and this will be dependent on Kidney’s choice. Jonathan Sexton, at twenty-six, could reasonably be Ireland’s out-half for the next six years, so the need to find a player to fill his boots is not as urgent as in other positions. Gareth Steenson had a promising spell with Exeter Chiefs last season, but with any Irish manager reluctant to pick Aviva Premiership players, it seems it will be a battle between Ian Keatley, Ian Humphreys and Ian Madigan for the back-up. Even at that, Humphreys will turn thirty during next year’s Six Nations and hasn’t been impressive for Ulster in the last few months, while Madigan will see much less game time at Leinster with the return of Sexton.

Keatley is the most likely candidate, and at twenty-four, still has time to develop into an international standard player if given the chance. He has continued his good form from his Connacht days at Munster, but it’s unlikely that he’ll ever reach the standard of Sexton, and the return of O’Gara could see him switch to centre.

The second rows, meanwhile, are past their prime. With Donncha O’Callaghan (aged thirty-two) and Paul O’Connell (thirty-two on Thursday) both pushing on, the need for a lock is of huge importance for Ireland. Short-term solutions are obviously to play O’Connell, O’Callaghan or Cullen, or move Kevin McLaughlin to the second row, but Ireland will be in massive trouble if they continue to play their ageing stars and neglect their youth. O’Connell should be retained, for his leadership skills if not his undying commitment to any game, and he would serve as the perfect model for any upcoming lock. The human penalty machine that is Donnacha O’Callaghan has to be replaced quickly however. Munster’s Ian Nagle is the only young contender at the moment, and even he doesn’t seem ready to step up to the international stage. Ulster’s Dan Tuohy will get the nod ahead of him.

Devin Toner, at 6”10, is a huge line-out option, but is ineffectual at carrying ball and is too often caught out in defence. However, with the amount of ball carriers in the Irish pack in the form of Sean O’Brien, Stephen Ferris, Jamie Heaslip, Cian Healy and the soon-to-be eligible Richardt Strauss, Toner could be a viable option should he improve his defensive work.

Like Strauss, Leinster lock Steven Sykes may qualify to play for Ireland in the future, should he see out his three-year contract with the European champions. Since he’ll be turning thirty-one just before the next World Cup, his progression will have to be monitored closely, as he could be a massive asset to the Irish team, since there are few other young locks making a breakthrough.

Considering it is probably Ireland’s best unit, it’s ironic that the back row is the main area of concern. Stephen Ferris once more produced staggering performances in green, but one has to wonder how much more his body can take. He is one of the most amazing athletes Ireland has ever produced, with a combination of pace and brutal strength as well as a huge work rate and technical skill, but his career has been blighted by long injury lay-offs. His body seems incapable of taking the stress he puts it under and his long term international future is a doubt.

Sean O’Brien became an international sensation during the World Cup with his bruising runs, while Heaslip had a fairly solid showing. Ireland’s downfall was their lack of a genuine openside flanker. Considering the World Cup’s four semi-finalists all possessed top quality openside flankers, in Richie McCaw, David Pocock, Julian Bonnaire and Sam Warburton, the roll of the No 7 cannot be played down.

With the hindsight of the Welsh game, where Warburton was key to stopping or slowing so many Irish attacks, it seems that the result against Australia was more down to Pocock’s absence than Irish ingenuity.

Ireland don’t have, nor have ever truly had, a groundhog player: an openside flanker who will work tirelessly to rip and turn over ball, to make dozens of tackles and clear rucks.

Leinster’s Dominic Ryan is the only potential openside flanker, with Shane Jennings now at thirty and failing to ever make a big impact for his country. Though he may not possess the attributes of the likes of Warburton, Ryan simply has to start playing for Ireland in the near future. Joe Schmidt used him sporadically last season, mostly in the Celtic League and off the bench in the Heineken Cup. Such is the nature of club rugby, Schmidt could afford not to play an out-and-out openside in Ryan, preferring to play better ball carriers. With the feverous competition in the back row at Leinster, with Heaslip, O’Brien, Ruddock, Jennings and McLaughlin, Ryan may have to play for Ireland even if he is on the bench behind fellow Irishmen at Leinster.

The task of replacing O’Driscoll and D’Arcy is made easier only because of choice. Earls has been groomed by Kidney as the heir to the No 13 jersey, but Tommy Bowe and Luke Fitzgerald both have the ability to play there. Nevin Spence is an exciting centre prospect at Ulster, with both he and Darren Cave capable of playing inside and outside centre.

D’Arcy needs to be dropped: his form has slipped in the last year and he won’t make the next World Cup. O’Driscoll should be slowly faded out on the other hand, since he has so much still to offer both on and off the field, but this should allow for more of a mentor role, in order to allow players to develop. Should he be kept on as the fulcrum of Ireland’s play, Irish rugby will suffer in the long-term.

The World Cup pairing is difficult to predict with so much choice, and much will come down to form and chemistry. Earls has looked more at home on the wing, so a more natural centre may be utilised, with Luke FitzGerald likely to be given one berth. Cave and Spence could well fill the other, but should Earls be the man chosen to go forward, then a complete reshuffle of the back three will be needed.

Andrew Trimble and Tommy Bowe could easily both feature in the World Cup in 2015, but there will be a need to consider as-of-yet untested wingers like Craig Gilroy and Andrew Conway, who have impressed in appearances for Ulster and Leinster respectively. Rob Kearney’s ability to play on the wing is another possibility which should be explored, with Felix Jones an option at full back.

Ireland’s rugby future is uncertain, dependant on whether untested players can step up to the mark and whether they will be given the chance to do so. Australia threw caution to the wind after their 2007 World Cup failure, and rebuilt their squad; Ireland need to do the same.