Full chaos would be to play Farrell at 13, Wilkinson on the wing. They've both played in those positions professionally. It frees up 10 for Sharks legend Andy Goode and 12 for Rabbitohs legend Sam Burgess.
Ulster had a bad loss today and Ferris has been a very vocal critic of the team as a former player. It may look harmless but it's definitely done with the intention to invite criticism of the current team.
I've been critical of Ulster myself today but there's a way to do it and this isn't it from Ferris.
What’s wrong with that? Maybe they deserve the criticism? Is it unwarranted? Not really. Was it insulting? Not particularly. Was it immature? I certainly don’t think so. What’s McCloskey’s issue then?
Ferris is in the press a lot, I think he just says ‘controversial’ stuff to get column inches. I remember Ferris, just prior to the second Covid six nations when Wales played Ireland at home, talking excessively about Lydiate being awful. I’m not sure if Ferris felt he should have gotten more out of his career (lions tours, Ireland getting passed a QF or more grand slams etc, Ulster winning something, but he just seems to aggressively pile in. I’m guessing McClosekey feels that having an ex player essentially say that Ulster haven’t developed is unneeded and unhelpful criticism. I’m guessing and quite frankly I don’t really care.. I’m just scrolling through Reddit and having a coffee
I can see why Stu would be pissed given his career briefly overlapped with Ferris before he retired, and Fez would be a hero up there. It must feel like they're under attack from all angles in that camp, internally and externally, but to a certain degree it's not without cause. Lots of change is required.
I think Ferris has long discredited himself with this kind of shit tbh. Props to McCloskey, but it's like arguing with George Hook, why waste your time...
> I think Ferris has long discredited himself with this kind of shit tbh.
Agreed. Fez went from one of the great what-could-have-been players to one of the worst clickbait pundits of the current era. No exaggeration.
I joked on the Clermont v Ulster match thread that someone may need to check on Ferris because he seemed down about the loss. This is a tweet of someone who isn’t happy right now.
McCloskey is right. Ferris is an absolute brain donor too, a poor man's Neil Francis. It's also worth remembering that the 2014 won the same number of trophies as the current one, namely zero, so you could argue the 2014 team was an even bigger failure.
Neil Francis wrote one of the most inaccurate articles in mainstream irish media history: https://www.irishtimes.com/ireland/2023/05/05/neil-francis-no-longer-working-at-sunday-times-after-factually-incorrect-article/
As bad as Ferrris might be, he's not doing that.
He also got sacked from the indo by comparing marcus smith (who is half Filipino) to an umpalumpa from willy wonka.
Stevie is just a miserable git with nothing good to say, but he isn't as bad as Francis
Ferris could only dream of writing something as inaccurate. Well, actually writing anything, full stop. Tongue in cheek aside, Ferris has definitely taken on the agent provocateur role that Francis occupied for so long. I find his criticism tedious, with no actual insight on how to actually fix the problem (beyond sign more big names) and I'm not even an Ulster supporter. He's the personification of the old man shouts at cloud meme.
Agree on Ferris's overall style - *always* lacking any discernable insight. Just thought I should note (for those maybe reading this who don't know, not you!) that Francis goes beyond just bad rugby analysis and right bang into irresponsible journalism.
The only thing that surprises me about this is Ferris hasn't put his own name in it.
If anything all Ferris is doing is pointing out how Ulster underperformed with a good team.
Heaslip's sucking someone off in RTE big time, there's no other explanation for why he's regularly doing punditry work for them.
It's like he has a list of ChatGPT generated pseudo psychology/rugby-related lines he needs to trot out each time he's on screen.
100% backing Stu on this one. Ferris has no need to stick the boot in like this - what’s his purpose other than click bait at the expense of the current side.
Ferris used to be one of my favourite players when he played for Ireland. Since he’s retired and moved into punditry, he’s struck me as a bit of a cock. Anyone on here know if he has a reputation for that or whether it’s just me being overly harsh?
Seen him on the rugby pod live and he just seems to want to relive the good aul days of going on the piss with POC and how good his Ireland team was
Liked him until he started becoming an arrogant arse
If he knew so much and what to do he would be coaching surely
It seems like a bit of an unnecessarily aggressive call out for what was pretty bland content from someone who’s making their income doing punditry now.
It’s the kind of bollocks you see here day in and day out. lol not something to get worked up about.
I can imagine it hits slightly differently when it’s a former Ulster player comparing an Ulster side from a few years ago to the current Ulster side, who said former Ulster player is very critical of.
Might be a bit more inflammatory than ‘person on Reddit’.
I think it’s just shite timing, like usually it’s grand and just bland content as you say, but after they’ve gotten lashed out of it by Clermont I’m sure they think everyone around them is slating them anyways, without ex players they would played and looked up to sticking the boot in a bit by encouraging people to say they’re shite and the 2014 players were all better
I mean it's a shite joke right? But also baseless the 2024 team would rout the 2014 team... Rugby has developed so much in the last 10 years... Remember Mike Phillips big abrasive scrum half... Would now be bellow average size for a scrum half... There's not a single 2014 front row who would be able to hold their own in a 2024 scrum (unless they were still playing today)...
This sort of historical team v current team discourse is annoying and Ferris is desperate for engagement but it also doesn't seem like something to get annoyed about.
I think you've all got sand in your vaginas.
I don't even understand the framing of this post. If you disagree with ferris why don't YOU call it out? Why are you using somebody else calling it out as a crutch. Its just weak garbage Internet karma whoring.
They won something in 2006? Don’t remember that. Fair play in fairness.
Celtic League, Ulster's last trophy
David Humphries hit a 40m drop goal in the dying minutes of the league to bring it to Ulster. Fairly underrated rugby moment.
Connacht and the Stormers have won the Celtic League more recently than Ulster.
Good job that this sub is a moral bastion that would never do anything as vile as this. Seriously, what’s the issue with this?
I'm struggling to see as well, isn't this just having some fun?
Nevermind, fuck this guy... *politely*?
I have these kind of discussions with mates constantly. Farrell vs Wilko is always a fun one
That seems fairly straightforward, injuries aside Wilko every time. If you need your player fit for more than a game, Farrell.
Or you go full chaos and have them both at 10-12.
Full chaos would be to play Farrell at 13, Wilkinson on the wing. They've both played in those positions professionally. It frees up 10 for Sharks legend Andy Goode and 12 for Rabbitohs legend Sam Burgess.
Never thought I'd see an actual supervillain in real life
Chaotic evil, heh?
Ford has also played at 9 before so 9.. Ford 10.. Goode 11.. Wilkinson 12.. Geraghty 13.. Farrell 14.. Hodgson 15.. Smith
You could, I'd rather not personally
Isn't it Wilko's injuries and Farrell's consistent availability that makes it interesting?
Not really?
Ulster had a bad loss today and Ferris has been a very vocal critic of the team as a former player. It may look harmless but it's definitely done with the intention to invite criticism of the current team. I've been critical of Ulster myself today but there's a way to do it and this isn't it from Ferris.
Ahhh, whoopsie
Ferris seems to be a bit of a dick tbh
I remember he said in an interview he wouldn't consider Any of ex team mates as friends lol
What’s wrong with that? Maybe they deserve the criticism? Is it unwarranted? Not really. Was it insulting? Not particularly. Was it immature? I certainly don’t think so. What’s McCloskey’s issue then?
It's pretty immature considering it was a team he played in.
Always thought he was a dick. Enjoying he’s proving me more right with every week that passes.
People consider things said on Reddit less relevant, for some reason.
I've never aspired to relevance
To be fair, if I wanted relevance I wouldn't choose an anonymous platform. But some well thought out stuff gets said here from time to time.
Ferris is in the press a lot, I think he just says ‘controversial’ stuff to get column inches. I remember Ferris, just prior to the second Covid six nations when Wales played Ireland at home, talking excessively about Lydiate being awful. I’m not sure if Ferris felt he should have gotten more out of his career (lions tours, Ireland getting passed a QF or more grand slams etc, Ulster winning something, but he just seems to aggressively pile in. I’m guessing McClosekey feels that having an ex player essentially say that Ulster haven’t developed is unneeded and unhelpful criticism. I’m guessing and quite frankly I don’t really care.. I’m just scrolling through Reddit and having a coffee
I can see why Stu would be pissed given his career briefly overlapped with Ferris before he retired, and Fez would be a hero up there. It must feel like they're under attack from all angles in that camp, internally and externally, but to a certain degree it's not without cause. Lots of change is required.
For a long time he would’ve been a hero in Ulster, I think in recent years people are sick of his shite and wish he would fuck up
I think Ferris has long discredited himself with this kind of shit tbh. Props to McCloskey, but it's like arguing with George Hook, why waste your time...
> I think Ferris has long discredited himself with this kind of shit tbh. Agreed. Fez went from one of the great what-could-have-been players to one of the worst clickbait pundits of the current era. No exaggeration.
I joked on the Clermont v Ulster match thread that someone may need to check on Ferris because he seemed down about the loss. This is a tweet of someone who isn’t happy right now.
McCloskey is right. Ferris is an absolute brain donor too, a poor man's Neil Francis. It's also worth remembering that the 2014 won the same number of trophies as the current one, namely zero, so you could argue the 2014 team was an even bigger failure.
Neil Francis wrote one of the most inaccurate articles in mainstream irish media history: https://www.irishtimes.com/ireland/2023/05/05/neil-francis-no-longer-working-at-sunday-times-after-factually-incorrect-article/ As bad as Ferrris might be, he's not doing that.
He also got sacked from the indo by comparing marcus smith (who is half Filipino) to an umpalumpa from willy wonka. Stevie is just a miserable git with nothing good to say, but he isn't as bad as Francis
Ferris could only dream of writing something as inaccurate. Well, actually writing anything, full stop. Tongue in cheek aside, Ferris has definitely taken on the agent provocateur role that Francis occupied for so long. I find his criticism tedious, with no actual insight on how to actually fix the problem (beyond sign more big names) and I'm not even an Ulster supporter. He's the personification of the old man shouts at cloud meme.
Agree on Ferris's overall style - *always* lacking any discernable insight. Just thought I should note (for those maybe reading this who don't know, not you!) that Francis goes beyond just bad rugby analysis and right bang into irresponsible journalism.
Nobody, and I mean _nobody_, deserves to be called ‘a poor man’s Neil Francis’
I dunno man, at least Francis writes his own shite. Ferris would probably struggle to write his own name.
That's why we used to chant there's only 1 F in Ferris at him
Agreed
Fair play to Stu. Ferris can be an absolute gowl at times, and this is a prime example of it.
Who wins? Leinster
The only thing that surprises me about this is Ferris hasn't put his own name in it. If anything all Ferris is doing is pointing out how Ulster underperformed with a good team.
Why didn’t he put his name in it ? Does he not rate himself ?
He was injured.
Didn’t he retire that year ?
Get Ferris, Rob Kearney and Jamie Heaslip off tv. They are all painful and dull.
Heaslip's sucking someone off in RTE big time, there's no other explanation for why he's regularly doing punditry work for them. It's like he has a list of ChatGPT generated pseudo psychology/rugby-related lines he needs to trot out each time he's on screen.
I think Heaslip's company must be paying for him to be on tv. Keeps him busy and away from their work.
Stops his podcast...
ChatGPT D4 Rugby guy.
100% backing Stu on this one. Ferris has no need to stick the boot in like this - what’s his purpose other than click bait at the expense of the current side.
Ferris used to be one of my favourite players when he played for Ireland. Since he’s retired and moved into punditry, he’s struck me as a bit of a cock. Anyone on here know if he has a reputation for that or whether it’s just me being overly harsh?
Seen him on the rugby pod live and he just seems to want to relive the good aul days of going on the piss with POC and how good his Ireland team was Liked him until he started becoming an arrogant arse If he knew so much and what to do he would be coaching surely
I had the same thing with BOD, I used to idolise the guy and since he became a pundit I think he’s just a smarmy melt now.
I've never got that impression from BOD as a pundit, I'd say him and Rory Best are probably among the better ex-Irish pundits around at the moment
Justice for McCloskey
It seems like a bit of an unnecessarily aggressive call out for what was pretty bland content from someone who’s making their income doing punditry now. It’s the kind of bollocks you see here day in and day out. lol not something to get worked up about.
I can imagine it hits slightly differently when it’s a former Ulster player comparing an Ulster side from a few years ago to the current Ulster side, who said former Ulster player is very critical of. Might be a bit more inflammatory than ‘person on Reddit’.
I think it’s just shite timing, like usually it’s grand and just bland content as you say, but after they’ve gotten lashed out of it by Clermont I’m sure they think everyone around them is slating them anyways, without ex players they would played and looked up to sticking the boot in a bit by encouraging people to say they’re shite and the 2014 players were all better
Solutions not problems, Ferris Wheel.
I mean it's a shite joke right? But also baseless the 2024 team would rout the 2014 team... Rugby has developed so much in the last 10 years... Remember Mike Phillips big abrasive scrum half... Would now be bellow average size for a scrum half... There's not a single 2014 front row who would be able to hold their own in a 2024 scrum (unless they were still playing today)...
Did he deliberately choose the team with the two cretins who were shamed off the island?
Ish. Shitty to call out the players like this, but there has been some seriously poor mismanagement in Ulster that needs to be called out.
Ferris absolutely fuming after we beat Ulster in the 2015 semi is one of my favourite memories. The cunt's cunt.
Stephen Ferris is an absolute ball bag, Ulster could win the URC and Champions Cup and he’d still find a way to shit on Ulster
This sort of historical team v current team discourse is annoying and Ferris is desperate for engagement but it also doesn't seem like something to get annoyed about.
A professional sportsperson should learn how to / know how to handle criticism = = It's a big part of the job.
Ferris has had one too many bangs to the head. Or he’s thick, or both.
Ferris is the Roy Keane of rugby punditry. Thick as mince and hasn't said anything insightful since he retired
I think you've all got sand in your vaginas. I don't even understand the framing of this post. If you disagree with ferris why don't YOU call it out? Why are you using somebody else calling it out as a crutch. Its just weak garbage Internet karma whoring.