Michael Allen

[Dan Dare]

Butterworth will be hard to replace .... where else can we get someone no one has ever heard of and don't play them ... How's mike Stanley getting on picking his hole these days ... are we going to announce the departure of Dave Ryan or do we just call a good PR team in and pretend like it never happened...

I think that there is a Ravens game on Thursday evening in Banbridge and I am sure that they will make an appearance for you there. You can go and wave them goodbye !

[Russ]

Butterworth will be hard to replace .... where else can we get someone no one has ever heard of and don't play them ... How's mike Stanley getting on picking his hole these days ... are we going to announce the departure of Dave Ryan or do we just call a good PR team in and pretend like it never happened...

Maybe young Russ Goebbels could take a shot at the latter. He says there are Nazis running amok in Scolund.

Only Jihad's PR team can

[Russ]

Butterworth will be hard to replace .... where else can we get someone no one has ever heard of and don't play them ... How's mike Stanley getting on picking his hole these days ... are we going to announce the departure of Dave Ryan or do we just call a good PR team in and pretend like it never happened...

I think that there is a Ravens game on Thursday evening in Banbridge and I am sure that they will make an appearance for you there. You can go and wave them goodbye !

Avoid Banbridge

[ColinM]

Whilst I like Micky and obviously would prefer he stayed, the clear fact is that he is no better than about 5th choice winger and about 6th & 7th choice centre. He is a great trier who gives it his all but it has to be said, he has hands like feet.

Seymour and Whitten have both done really well elsewhere & I wish Micky well, but the reality is that if young guys like these understand their place in the pecking order and have anything about them, then of course they don't want to sit as a emergency option only.

For those, good but not good enough, it's the way of the world. In a nutshell we want to aspire to better than having Micky as a realistic regular player.

The fact that Seymour is doing well for Weegies & Scotland is neither here nor there, I assume nobody would rather he played rather than Bowe, Trimble or Gilroy? Would we be happy to pay him what he feels he is worth as a 4th,5th choice winger?

If these guys are good enough they will move on, to keep them as background options does them no favours if they can do better for themselves, it's a simple truth.

Good luck Micky.

Indeed, t'is the way of the world and Allen's departure will leave greater opportunities for the likes of Scholes to make their names, however if we'd managed to keep Seymour & Whitten, and to a lesser extent Allen, then we'd have a better SiD claim.

Leinster hold onto their second string more successfully than Ulster so are they providing more meaningful opportunities beyond the Leinster first XV, better opportunities to taste first XV success or do younger guys just feel happier in a successful environment where they are winning trophies on an almost annual basis? I'd say a combination of all three.

As for Allen as a player, yes an honest trier but a sad indictment of our schools game if ever there was one. A lad who's pace and power won games and cups for Methody suddenly wasn't standout amongst the big lads of the pro game. He wasnt encouraged to develop skills at schools level and that has hamstrung his professional career.

[TheElephantMan]

Dave Ryan what went wrong being only a Ravens player?

[justinr73]

The cupboard looks pretty bare during the World Cup - Gilroy must be playing his way into the squad?

[Kofi Annan]

The cupboard looks pretty bare during the World Cup - Gilroy must be playing his way into the squad?

Don't be alarmed we have massive strength in depth

[CIMANFOREVER]

Losing Mike Allen doesn't help. Another Whitten. Assuming it's about moolah (playing for Scotland, really? ) I would have thought he'd been better kept within the Provinces ie Connacht at least?

Good solid Ulsterman. Ballix- one question tho'? How long's Tommy got left? (and AAT for that matter, given his toe...)

[rumncoke]

Provided the players stay free of injuries and away from Welsh chaired disciplinary panels .


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[BuckRogers]

I'm not convinced Michael would have got a game at Connacht either and Butler is an inferior player to Diack who I am not a massive fan off.

Right moves for both parties IMO and allows both provinces to bring through younger players in their place who will, hopefully, be hungry to make a mark.

[Nightsoil]

Balls. Always nice to have a good squad player that covers 11-14.

Mindyou, given the emergence of Scholes and McCloskey, I'm not sure we'll miss him that much... just like Whitten and Seymour, fine players who'd be wasted in our squad depth. If only we found forwards so easily.

"Wasted in our squad depth"

You think we don't have squad depth 11-14 then? We've got seven internationals there, how many more do you want to count as having squad depth there?

We've been without 2-3 of our centres and one of our wingers for most of the season and Allen's still only made 8 starts and 1 sub appearance. Seems to back up Baggy calling him 5th choice winger and 6th-7th choice centre. Bit of a waste to be 5th choice winger and 6th choice centre when a player at Ulster could be challenging for the first team elsewhere, no?

[BaggyTrousers]

Whilst SID jokes are fine and not without foundation the fact is that the players we are discussing are all wingers or wing/centres an area which could be said to be where we have SID if anywhere.

Sorry to be do wise and spoil the fun.

[Spiffsson]

Balls. Always nice to have a good squad player that covers 11-14.

Mindyou, given the emergence of Scholes and McCloskey, I'm not sure we'll miss him that much... just like Whitten and Seymour, fine players who'd be wasted in our squad depth. If only we found forwards so easily.

"Wasted in our squad depth"

You think we don't have squad depth 11-14 then? We've got seven internationals there, how many more do you want to count as having squad depth there?

We've been without 2-3 of our centres and one of our wingers for most of the season and Allen's still only made 8 starts and 1 sub appearance. Seems to back up Baggy calling him 5th choice winger and 6th-7th choice centre. Bit of a waste to be 5th choice winger and 6th choice centre when a player at Ulster could be challenging for the first team elsewhere, no?

Mike is an honest player who gives 100%, but is not that great. He may find that he has just as many problems in cracking the Edinburgh team as he did in Ulster. He would have to improve quite a bit to challenge for a regular slot. Wonder what kind of message he's been getting from the Edinburgh management? Anyway - anything could happen. Fair play to him and I hope he does well. Seymour definitely cranked his game up several notches on his move to Scotland.

[Kofi Annan]

Some, should be more precise.

[scrum5]

a massive round of applause must go to Butterworth's agent for getting Charlie a professional rugby contract anywhere, wonder what they used as a highlights reel this time around, wish him all the best, I wonder would Ryan and Murphy fancy tagging along.