A whiff of Cordite

[Dave Cahill]

He doesn't hate rugby. He just uses a different collection of words to describe what he's looking at and it rubs people the wrong way. I disagree with him around 90% of the time, maybe more. But Irish rugby's media is usually one of two things; 1. Journos with close relations with players and not willing to be objective for fear of irritating players and the IRFU. 2. Journos who write teary eyed nonsense about fans singing on a plane.

McKenna's performance on OTB during that "debate" v ROC was appalling but the entire production was utterly pathetic. He was ambushed by a typically populist and sensationalist Ger Gilroy who really should have acted as a mediator. He brought up some good points that I agree with - hunting for project players and why this is never, ever analysed in the media - only for Gilroy to SHOUT him down over Gerhard Grobler, but that was a completely different issue. Embarrassing, again, from a grown man who sits in a studio that resembles Wayne's World with an annoying ginger gnat next to him. They're too old for all that sh!t behind them.

Anyway. Given the Irish media is almost to a man and a woman singing from the same hymn sheet sometimes we need a tit (and Ewan is a tit) to offer something alternative.

No. He's a c**t.

[johng]

I wonder if any of the people who piled into Eddie o'Sullivan and called him biased against Leinster listened to him on Monday night rugby where he gushed over Leinster and stuck the boot into Munster.

[LeRouxIsPHat]

Couldn't disagree more suisse.

Off the top of my head...

- He recently said that people were arrested in Thomond Park for booing a kicker...which funnily enough he couldn't back up.
- When Miriam O'Callaghan tweeted that the Irish team were still heroes after losing to Wales he replied with "p1$$ off Miriam. You uppity arsehole".
- Tweeted something about it being wrong to enjoy Grand National because of the constant deaths but when people pointed out that improvements had made it much safer and that the death this year was the first in 7/8 years he didn't back down and then "accidentally" deleted the original tweet.
- He liked a tweet that referred to Johnny Cooper being "like that little pr!*k in school...I'd guess the guy who stabbed him a few years ago didn't do it for no reason."
- Constantly drones on about hating elitism...his dad was a producer in RTE and by sheer coincidence a young Ewan ended up on Echo Island and BBC Radio.
- Continuously alludes to knowing some deep dark secrets about rugby players, which coincidentally tend to be the same bullshit rumours that are mentioned in every whatsapp group I'm in. For example, dropping hints about Conor Murray's absence. He has also mentioned having video evidence of one player doing something bad a few years ago and the press didn't mention it. He may be right abut the press not mentioning it, but I would bet everything I own that all he had were the same pics of a player looking drunk that thousands of other people around the country had and nothing illegal was done. He constantly refers to another famous incident being hushed up too, and while the entire country was clearly talking about it at the time, nothing illegal happened so why he feels it needs to be reported on is beyond me. He positions himself as sport's moral compass but he's nothing but a gutter journalist, and a poor one at that.
- Recently he's tried to steal the limelight from those uncovering the John Delaney stuff and pretended to be ITK about what was going on just before the previews of the stories were published on Saturday nights. He was essentially just repeating twitter rumours and some of them turned out to be wrong, and when they were wrong he said that things had changed at the last minute. Utter bullshit.
- Had an article saying that the French team should be despised...because? Because the Vichy government asset stripped the French rugby league team and the union team benefited from that. As ridiculous as that is in itself, there were replies saying that he was wrong about it but of course he didn't take any heed.
- He constantly contradicts himself and when people point out (complete with screenshot) that he actually HAS said something that he denied saying then he just ignores them most of the time, or he shifts the goal posts entirely and hammers home that point instead.
- Slagged off schoolboy rugby players for being the leaders of tomorrow because someone referred to them as that before. Imagine taking aim at schoolboys like that?

There's a place for different opinions but do not confuse his utter garbage with a valid opinion. He's odious and is in no way deserving of respect or air time. I've only heard him talk/write about rugby a couple of times because I try to avoid his stuff (the above points are generally taken from another forum as opposed to me looking at his twitter or reading his articles) but it is abundantly clear that his knowledge of rugby is so poor that he simply doesn't understand it well enough to be commenting on it in any kind of professional capacity.

It galls me that I even bothered to write all that but I'm a bit shocked that anyone on here would stand up for him in any way, shape, or form. Dave's 4 word post was probably the best response.

[CiaranIrl]

Super post LRIP! I didn't fully know why I hated the lad, but now I do! I appreciate the effort.

The tone he takes is abysmal. Conferencing, supercilious and snide. He made a decision to make himself into a clickbait writer, creating content that would draw attention due to the nature of it rather than the points he makes. While Suisse is right above that there probably is a need for a contrarian rugby journalist, this guy invalidated his position by the path he took.

[suisse]

As I said, I disagree with almost everything he writes but the quality of rugby media in Ireland is pathetic. Most of the key journalists are fanboys and no-one properly analysed the NZ game plus the run of victories before it. We have found it hard to score tries and wasted numerous golden opportunities in Australia and v NZ. But every single journalist focused on how awesome it was (it was great) but maybe Murray Kinsella aside, there's either no analysis of rugby and no-one ever stands back and is willing to say the unpopular things, even if they're right.

[Oldschoolsocks]

As I said, I disagree with almost everything he writes but the quality of rugby media in Ireland is pathetic. Most of the key journalists are fanboys and no-one properly analysed the NZ game plus the run of victories before it. We have found it hard to score tries and wasted numerous golden opportunities in Australia and v NZ. But every single journalist focused on how awesome it was (it was great) but maybe Murray Kinsella aside, there's either no analysis of rugby and no-one ever stands back and is willing to say the unpopular things, even if they're right.

Murray’s deadly

[LeRouxIsPHat]

As I said, I disagree with almost everything he writes but the quality of rugby media in Ireland is pathetic. Most of the key journalists are fanboys and no-one properly analysed the NZ game plus the run of victories before it. We have found it hard to score tries and wasted numerous golden opportunities in Australia and v NZ. But every single journalist focused on how awesome it was (it was great) but maybe Murray Kinsella aside, there's either no analysis of rugby and no-one ever stands back and is willing to say the unpopular things, even if they're right.

That implies that his opinion is of value though and I'm not having that. There is absolutely no intellect or substance to what he says, none. Matt Williams offered different opinions when he said our style of play was too turgid, and Andy Dunne was/is the same. Quinlan described a Munster performance as "embarrassing, humiliating, disgraceful". EOS also rocked the boat a bit when he said Joey should leave Leinster. Keith Wood spoke out about Penney's style not suiting Munster.

I mean, I'd love to hear what rugby analysis Ewan offered after the NZ game? He didn't because he knows f%~k all. I didn't see anything about him criticising our linespeed against England, or our carriers being too predictable and static, or being reluctant to use the bench earlier. No, I didn't see analysis from him, just gloating about being right after the NZ game (and wasn't his only argument that the World Cup was all that mattered? It wasn't like he could point to any deficiencies in our game) and that he was supporting England because Irish rugby stood for everything he hated. If you think there's a place for that kind of biased bitter bullshit then good luck to you.

Different opinions are out there but for some reason you ignore them. Harsh analysis and Ewan MacKenna can actually be mutually exclusive, we don't need him to inform us of anything, his opinions are absolutely worthless because of the intentional misuse of information and his agenda for self promotion. All you have to do is look at the hashtags he uses when there's a big event on, he's just a toxic attention seeking liar.

[Oldschool]

As I said, I disagree with almost everything he writes but the quality of rugby media in Ireland is pathetic. Most of the key journalists are fanboys and no-one properly analysed the NZ game plus the run of victories before it. We have found it hard to score tries and wasted numerous golden opportunities in Australia and v NZ. But every single journalist focused on how awesome it was (it was great) but maybe Murray Kinsella aside, there's either no analysis of rugby and no-one ever stands back and is willing to say the unpopular things, even if they're right.

Murray’s deadly

He'll change when the White Walker king gets hold of him.

[fourthirtythree]

EOS also rocked the boat a bit when he said Joey should leave Leinster. Keith Wood spoke out about Penney's style not suiting Munster.

Eddie was jumping on someone else's bandwagon and was very far from rocking the boat. Rocking the boat and offering a contrary opinion at that point would have been arguing that Carbery would not develop his play at Munster under their coaching setup and given their inability to develop outhalves. There was nobody pointing out that obvious truth in the media.

You're spot on about the troll though. His opinions are worthless at best and his presence is in general toxic and poisons the discourse.

[LeRouxIsPHat]

I know what you mean but there was still a backlash to what he said and it started a debate. I think you know that's going to happen when you mention something like that, so you're not just playing it safe and acting like a drone the way suisse implies that most Irish journalists.

Just remembered BOD calling Ulster a basket case as well.

[TerenureJim]

Ewan McKenna, irish rugby's very own localised Info Wars

[leinster23]

The standard of rugby journalism in Ireland is poor but that does nothing to change the fact that Ewan McKeanna is a clickbait gutter journalist who doesn't actually have a clue what he's writing about.

[Twist]

LRIP actually missed one (unless it was one of the rumours you were alluring to) but he posted some very disparaging things about a Leinster’s player’s testosterone levels being suspicious, then didn’t back any of it up

Have to disagree about the Johnny Cooper thing though. He clicked like after reading the first line of the tweet (Cooper has just committed a very underhanded foul in a game that was being broadcast live) then unliked when he saw the second part, about the stabbing and he held his hands up over that at the time and made it clear he thought it was a disgusting thing to say


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[neiliog93]

Franno rocks the boat, regardless of what you think of him.

[Oldschool]

Franno rocks the boat, regardless of what you think of him.

Yeah that's the problem with have a big awkward clumsy f^ckee in the boat.
Especially when they are trying to desert the boat(ie the party line)

[rooster]

Just remembered BOD calling Ulster a basket case as well.

To be fair he was correct at the time

[bails]

Papers reporting that Munster are going looking for a new attack coach

As Ted Hasting would say, "in the name of God" I hope they aren't thinking of looking at any of our coaches

Bad enough playing walking out of contracts, but coaches would really take the biscuit.

[Oldschoolsocks]

Their attack is fairly dependent an getting the ball, they need a getting the ball againstbigger teams coach

[LeRouxIsPHat]

Surely they have to go for ROG then? They need an attack coach and they need a two or three big names players. Maybe there's scope for one big name player but that'll be it so they should really aim for a high profile coach. Unless he's going to join the Ireland setup (and I wouldn't rule that out) then they should do everything they can to bring him on board.

If he did then I'd love to see who he tried to bring with him. They have a lot of young backs so don't think there's anyone obvious because they'd still have NZ ambitions. Crotty would be perfect on paper but he gets injured an awful lot. Matt Todd would be great, think they need a proper 7 and reckon he's good for another few years.

I feel sorry for Felix Jones. He was thrown into the role far too early but IIRC most people were impressed with him at times and it looked like he had a big future. Someone mentioned on OTB that JVG has a big input into the attack as well so their problems aren't necessarily Felix's fault. Hard to know what's going on but hope he sticks around and comes good.

[dropkick]

Surely they have to go for ROG then? They need an attack coach and they need a two or three big names players. Maybe there's scope for one big name player but that'll be it so they should really aim for a high profile coach. Unless he's going to join the Ireland setup (and I wouldn't rule that out) then they should do everything they can to bring him on board.

If he did then I'd love to see who he tried to bring with him. They have a lot of young backs so don't think there's anyone obvious because they'd still have NZ ambitions. Crotty would be perfect on paper but he gets injured an awful lot. Matt Todd would be great, think they need a proper 7 and reckon he's good for another few years.

I feel sorry for Felix Jones. He was thrown into the role far too early but IIRC most people were impressed with him at times and it looked like he had a big future. Someone mentioned on OTB that JVG has a big input into the attack as well so their problems aren't necessarily Felix's fault. Hard to know what's going on but hope he sticks around and comes good.

I think only a lock is needed and a top class attack coach are needed.


FJ was way too inexperienced to take on the role. I don't blame him but the people who put him in the position. It looked like a poor decision at the time and has since proven to be so.


At least the penny seems to have dropped in Munster that the attack is cr@p. If it was anyway average people would continue to ignore them problem but it's so bad now that we might see something done about it.