Sunday, May 30, 2010
Ospreys beat Leinster to win the Magners League Grand Final
The home side managed four penalties from Jonathan Sexton, but it was ultimately a frustrating day for them and a disappointing send off for coach Michael Cheika.
"We're just disappointed that we didn't play well enough in a final," Cheika said. "That's the key thing. We had enough opportunities to build pressure on the opposition but we didn't take them. When we eased off they took advantage and took their chances. There's no excuses. Two teams went out there; the Ospreys played better than us and they deserved to win," he added.
Both tries for Ospreys were well constructed and finished as the outside backs showed their class. Leinster mustered a bit of a comeback in the second half, but were held off by the experienced Welsh region who held on for the well deserved win.
"As somebody who has been to every single Ospreys game, it's pretty much up there I can tell you - it's a special night," said coach Sean Holley. "I wouldn't say it was our best performance, but certainly one of our most courageous and determined."
"We went out to try and win it, we went out to score tries and we did that. There aren't too many teams who can come here and score tries against Leinster. To score two in the first half, it just gave us a little bit more belief that we could try and push on and win it.
"We tried to lose it in the second half, by giving away some penalties, but our defensive effort in the end was outstanding," Holley added.
This clip is of the tries from the match. The new format of having playoffs and a final seems to have been a success. Do you prefer it this way, or like things the way they were before?
Time: 04:38
Posted at 7:35 pm | 58 comments
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Viewing 58 comments
Anonymous May 30, 2010 7:11 pm

Anonymous May 30, 2010 7:11 pm

Scotsdale May 30, 2010 7:12 pm

Congrats to the Welsh.. and kiwis :P
Scotsdale May 30, 2010 7:12 pm

Congrats to the Welsh.. and kiwis :P
whippet May 30, 2010 7:12 pm

whippet May 30, 2010 7:12 pm

Anonymous May 30, 2010 8:10 pm

The play-offs are better too, with some teams having so many players away on international duty, this makes it fairer in my opinion
Anonymous May 30, 2010 8:10 pm

The play-offs are better too, with some teams having so many players away on international duty, this makes it fairer in my opinion
Anonymous May 30, 2010 8:23 pm

Anonymous May 30, 2010 8:23 pm

Anonymous May 30, 2010 9:11 pm

Anonymous May 30, 2010 9:11 pm

Anonymous May 30, 2010 9:18 pm

Well done to the Ospreys, trys were sick!
Anonymous May 30, 2010 9:18 pm

Well done to the Ospreys, trys were sick!
keogh May 31, 2010 1:04 am

keogh May 31, 2010 1:04 am

Anonymous May 31, 2010 1:04 am

Anonymous May 31, 2010 1:04 am

Kearney for tests May 31, 2010 1:42 am

Kearney for tests May 31, 2010 1:42 am

KLu33 May 31, 2010 4:07 am

Well done Ospreys - thank you for pulling in some hardware this year after coming up short so many other times. Congrats!
KLu33 May 31, 2010 4:07 am

Well done Ospreys - thank you for pulling in some hardware this year after coming up short so many other times. Congrats!
goodNumber10 May 31, 2010 6:25 am

Two chances two trys.
Good game all round to be fair.
What a great weekend of rugby.
goodNumber10 May 31, 2010 6:25 am

Two chances two trys.
Good game all round to be fair.
What a great weekend of rugby.
Dave Whelan May 31, 2010 7:56 am

Leaving the RDS after such a relatively poor performance by the team was hard, but getting to the HC Semi final and the final of the ML isn't something to be sneered at. We'll have to see how well we do without Cheika - not to mention Mal and Dempsey (heartbroken for him not to have gotten on).
Dave Whelan May 31, 2010 7:56 am

Leaving the RDS after such a relatively poor performance by the team was hard, but getting to the HC Semi final and the final of the ML isn't something to be sneered at. We'll have to see how well we do without Cheika - not to mention Mal and Dempsey (heartbroken for him not to have gotten on).
D4 Dave May 31, 2010 7:56 am

D4 Dave May 31, 2010 7:56 am

Benson May 31, 2010 9:09 am

Benson May 31, 2010 9:09 am

bertbren May 31, 2010 3:44 pm

bertbren May 31, 2010 3:44 pm

M May 31, 2010 4:54 pm

M May 31, 2010 4:54 pm

Anonymous May 31, 2010 8:43 pm

Anonymous May 31, 2010 8:43 pm

TheWelshFire May 31, 2010 9:26 pm

TheWelshFire May 31, 2010 9:26 pm

WelshOsprey May 31, 2010 10:16 pm

best final of the weekend? Pah. GP takes that crown."
In your opinion, which is worth very little if thats all you bothered to write.
Great game with two well worked tries. Andrew Bishop has to start at 13 for wales.
WelshOsprey May 31, 2010 10:16 pm

best final of the weekend? Pah. GP takes that crown."
In your opinion, which is worth very little if thats all you bothered to write.
Great game with two well worked tries. Andrew Bishop has to start at 13 for wales.
mise June 01, 2010 1:29 am

I did wonder about the sequence of closeline tackles (ie arms straight out, neck height connection by the forearm) over the last 20 mins by the Ospreys thou. How many was it? 6 or 7? If that becomes team policy, what should the ref do?
Looked like they knew he'd let them away with it, so they kept it up.
Not even a word in the captain's ear, to tell them to calm it down. Strange, as it completely stopped rugby being played, and was obviously persistent.
Thoughts anyone?
mise June 01, 2010 1:29 am

I did wonder about the sequence of closeline tackles (ie arms straight out, neck height connection by the forearm) over the last 20 mins by the Ospreys thou. How many was it? 6 or 7? If that becomes team policy, what should the ref do?
Looked like they knew he'd let them away with it, so they kept it up.
Not even a word in the captain's ear, to tell them to calm it down. Strange, as it completely stopped rugby being played, and was obviously persistent.
Thoughts anyone?
Tim June 01, 2010 1:31 am

No wonder there's so few tries and line breaks, they take forever to clear rucks and pass the ball.
Tim June 01, 2010 1:31 am

No wonder there's so few tries and line breaks, they take forever to clear rucks and pass the ball.
Tim June 01, 2010 1:33 am

If they were proper head high shots, and there were 6 or 7 of them then the ref is blind as a bat.
If you mean they just ripped blokes down in a clothes line fashion, then that's fine, it just sounds like good defense.
Tim June 01, 2010 1:33 am

If they were proper head high shots, and there were 6 or 7 of them then the ref is blind as a bat.
If you mean they just ripped blokes down in a clothes line fashion, then that's fine, it just sounds like good defense.
Geraint June 01, 2010 9:19 am

Geraint June 01, 2010 9:19 am

Eoghan June 01, 2010 12:07 pm

I thought Leinster were trying to force it from too far out with plenty of time left ; couple of attempted miracle balls off the deck leading to knock-ons, killed momentum and loss of position. Unlucky with injuries to the back row but that's not why they lost - two class tries by Ospreys.
Eoghan June 01, 2010 12:07 pm

I thought Leinster were trying to force it from too far out with plenty of time left ; couple of attempted miracle balls off the deck leading to knock-ons, killed momentum and loss of position. Unlucky with injuries to the back row but that's not why they lost - two class tries by Ospreys.
mise June 01, 2010 3:51 pm

(Btw I think that, notwithstanding Leinster actually finishing on top, the Magners really needs this sort of a playoff ending. For the two main national competitions in the NH, the Top 14 and possibly also GP, I'm not so sure. But with the best players dropping out for internationals in the Magners, the top isn't really the top if you see what I mean.
Basically the top four need a cup final ending to sort it out)
mise June 01, 2010 3:51 pm

(Btw I think that, notwithstanding Leinster actually finishing on top, the Magners really needs this sort of a playoff ending. For the two main national competitions in the NH, the Top 14 and possibly also GP, I'm not so sure. But with the best players dropping out for internationals in the Magners, the top isn't really the top if you see what I mean.
Basically the top four need a cup final ending to sort it out)
cheyanqui June 01, 2010 5:37 pm

"9 months, 182 matches, 330 tries"
At first, I thought that meant the Magner's League was a snoozefest:
With two teams in 182 matches, that means you had 364 teams scoring 330 tries, an average of less than one try per team per game.
However, it seems upon closer inspection, the commentator was taking out his arse:
He said: 182 matches, which he took 10 teams, playing 18 regular games each = 180, plus 2 semis.
He should have said: "92 matches". 2 semifinals, plus 90 regular season matches. (10 teams, so five games per week. Need 18 weekends to play your nine opponents twice. so 5*18 = 90)
That comes out to 1.8333 tries per team per game. Perhaps a bit more reasonable, and entertaining.
cheyanqui June 01, 2010 5:37 pm

"9 months, 182 matches, 330 tries"
At first, I thought that meant the Magner's League was a snoozefest:
With two teams in 182 matches, that means you had 364 teams scoring 330 tries, an average of less than one try per team per game.
However, it seems upon closer inspection, the commentator was taking out his arse:
He said: 182 matches, which he took 10 teams, playing 18 regular games each = 180, plus 2 semis.
He should have said: "92 matches". 2 semifinals, plus 90 regular season matches. (10 teams, so five games per week. Need 18 weekends to play your nine opponents twice. so 5*18 = 90)
That comes out to 1.8333 tries per team per game. Perhaps a bit more reasonable, and entertaining.
Huh!! the 3rd June 02, 2010 7:16 pm

Also, as an advocate of giving Shane Horgan a ticket to jump off a very high bridge, couldn't help but chuckle when he made that intercept, had a 3m start on Ryan Jones (who ain't exactly the fastest backrow) and over 20m chopped him down. Luckily he's starting against the Baa Baas so looks like he won't be near the 22 for NZ and Aus. How he makes the Leinster 15 ahead of McFadden (I know he's a centre but still) is beyond me. McFadden may not be as flashy as Earls or Fitzgearld but he'd be one of the first names on a lot of teams.
Finally, great to see Kearney hitting form in time for the SH. Leinster's best player Sat and for the last few weeks.
Huh!! the 3rd June 02, 2010 7:16 pm

Also, as an advocate of giving Shane Horgan a ticket to jump off a very high bridge, couldn't help but chuckle when he made that intercept, had a 3m start on Ryan Jones (who ain't exactly the fastest backrow) and over 20m chopped him down. Luckily he's starting against the Baa Baas so looks like he won't be near the 22 for NZ and Aus. How he makes the Leinster 15 ahead of McFadden (I know he's a centre but still) is beyond me. McFadden may not be as flashy as Earls or Fitzgearld but he'd be one of the first names on a lot of teams.
Finally, great to see Kearney hitting form in time for the SH. Leinster's best player Sat and for the last few weeks.
Impartial Onlooker June 05, 2010 6:28 pm

The Ospreys cheated their way to the final and should never have even had the opportunity to win the League! If they had had to travel to Glasgow as they would have done had they not deliberately delayed their disiplinary hearing for previous cheating, they would never have made it through.
I feel sorry for Glasgow more tha anyone else as this was their big opportunity this year, what with Dan Parks and other big names moving on next season (says a lot about both Glasgow and Scotlands recent form) and if Leinster had played that badly in the final then i can't see how DP and co could have lost!
As i said, on the day it was the correct result, but it just goes further to increasing the image of rugby sliding to footballing lows of cheating and that cheating being rewarded!
Impartial Onlooker June 05, 2010 6:28 pm

The Ospreys cheated their way to the final and should never have even had the opportunity to win the League! If they had had to travel to Glasgow as they would have done had they not deliberately delayed their disiplinary hearing for previous cheating, they would never have made it through.
I feel sorry for Glasgow more tha anyone else as this was their big opportunity this year, what with Dan Parks and other big names moving on next season (says a lot about both Glasgow and Scotlands recent form) and if Leinster had played that badly in the final then i can't see how DP and co could have lost!
As i said, on the day it was the correct result, but it just goes further to increasing the image of rugby sliding to footballing lows of cheating and that cheating being rewarded!















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