Fans stay away as Connacht fail again

Date Published: 06-May-2008

CONNACHT supporters will be angry after this pelting at the hands of a half-interested Cardiff Blues on Friday but that could turn out to be the least of the Branch officials’worries because the next step for those same fans is apathy and when the majority slip into that zone there will be no turning back for professional rugby out west.

In fact, worryingly it looks as though many are heading that way already. Friday’s attendance at the Sportsground (1,453) was more than a thousand below the average for the season so far. The atmosphere was flat from the beginning despite a week of media coverage telling everyone we were still on track for Heineken Cup qualification. It appears the punters aren’t buying this anymore.

They’ve seen it all before. For three years now Connacht have demonstrated an ability to raise the bar when the odds are stacked against them only to flop back down below acceptable performance levels when the pressure is cranked up and performances are expected.

Inconsistency plagues this side and is the primary reason why they are destined to finish below the Dragons once more despite beating them twice this season. That’s not the only reason for another dismal campaign.

On the field they haven’t had a reliable kicker all season, failing miserably in their bid to replace Mark McHugh and Paul Warwick. There is no proven finisher and, even if there was one, there is no creative spark in midfield to feed off the brilliant running of Keith Matthews while the scrum half position continues to be a problem.

That could help to explain why the Connacht backline has managed just five tries in 17 league games, two of which ………………..