Following a surprising Pro 12 Championship in 2016, hopes were high for Connacht. The hope being that maybe they had finally turned the corner. It would seem that this was not yet the case. Connacht found themselves in the bottom half of the table at the end of last season with a 9-13 record.

Squad

There were not many drastic changes to the Connacht team from last season. The most significant departure was former Springbok, Marnitz Boshoff, who is moving back to South Africa. Connacht allowed Boshoff to leave a year early following the sudden death of his father.

The number of players that Connacht brought in was also lean this year. Andrew Deegan from the Australian U20s and Super Rugby Waratahs, as well as Rory Scholes former Edinburgh and Ulster wing, will be playing for Connacht this season. A number of players were also brought up from the academy for this upcoming season to add some much-needed depth to the bench.

This year’s starting XV is likely to be very similar to last year’s with very few players leaving, and few new players brought in. It’s not expected that Andrew Deegan will start immediately, but Rory Scholes is an unknown at this time.

Another big change for Connacht is the inclusion of Jarrad Butler into the squad. Butler has been playing with the ACT Brumbies in Super Rugby since 2014. He is a hard-hitting No. 8 who can play anywhere on the back row. Butler has had over 70 caps for the Brumbies in his four years there and is very excited about his move to Connacht.

“I look forward to being part of this proud club, meeting the supportive fans and community, and most importantly doing everything I can to help Connacht be successful.”

Expected Starting XV:

Denis Buckley: with 118 caps for Connacht Buckley as well as Browne and Muldoon will bring a lot of senior leadership to the pack Tom McCartney: 61 Caps for Connacht Finlay Bealham:82 caps for Connacht, the front row has a lot of experience Quinn Roux:58 Caps Andrew Browne: 154 Caps Eoin McKeon: 105 Caps Jake Heenan: 54 Caps John Muldoon:302 Caps Kieran Marmion: 121 Caps Jack Carty: 80 Caps Matt Healy: 86 Caps Craig Ronaldson: 68 Caps Bundee Aki: 58 Caps Niyi Adeolokun: 57 Caps Tiernan O’Halloran: 127 Caps

Major coaching changes leave direction of Connacht unknown

Early last season it was announced that Pat Lamb would be leaving for the head coaching position with Bristol Rugby. Lamb’s replacement is the former Super Rugby Chiefs’ attack coach Kieran Keane. Prior to coaching the Chiefs, Keane was head coach of Tasman, and led them to an ITM Cup in 2013. Although he is no spring chicken at age 63, Keane insists that he does not plan on taking it easy while at Connacht.

“I’m not coming here as a retirement project, I’m here to sharpen the tools and put more tools into the toolbox for the players. Obviously try and get some very good performances that people can be proud of.”

Kieran Keane’s coaching experience is limited as he has not had a lot of experience as a head coach at this high a level. He has been coaching since 1998, but has never had a head coaching job for a provincial team. The New Zealand domestic competition is very intense, but his stepping up to the Connacht is a very large step for him. At his age, there isn’t a lot of time for him to get up to speed at a new level as head coach. He will need to hit the ground running, and start off very powerful if he is to make his mark. There is not much time for growth at this point in his career.

Schedule

Connacht’s season is going to be very difficult with one of the most difficult schedules in the Pro 14. With the new structure of the Pro 14, all teams will play two games against everyone in their conference. All teams will also play at least one match against every team from the other conference. For Irish and Welsh teams, they will also play home and away against the cross conference teams from their country. This makes the season for Connacht a very steep hill to climb. They will have to play home and away against the like of Munster, Ospreys, Glasgow, Ulster, and Leinster while only getting one match against Edinburgh, Dragons, and Benetton Treviso. Not only will they have to deal with a well-built conference, but they will have to play the toughest teams in conference B of the competition. Although they do have two matches against Zebre, the Cheetahs are too much of an unknown to see how they’ll pan out in the conference.

Outlook

The new structure of the conference has not been kind to Connacht. This structure does not bode as well for the Irish teams. While other countries have at least one lacking team, the Irish do not. Between a bad drop off from a championship winning season, a completely new coaching staff, and the difficult conference, this season does not look good for Connacht.

The addition of Aussie star Jarrad Butler as well as Rory Scholes will help things; this year, however, will be one for rebuilding after Pat Lamb’s departure. Butler aside, there were not any additions of note, with most additions being non-match-day players from other provinces. It is hoped that the historically beleaguered Irish province will have a strong showing this season, but it is unlikely.