Rugby World Cup 2003 - The Rugby Widows Weep!

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Originally posted by MikeH
That's rich coming from an Aussie.

Funnily enough, offside doesn't occur in the Wallaby vocab.

[MikeH]

Exactly!

[TheStinger]

Originally posted by finbar


Obviously I only raised the matter after it occurred to me that you were far too gracious to do so. It was only my fear of raining on Havak's and MikeH's parades that prevented me from mentioning the collapsed maul and early tackle. After all, no England sporting team has won a World Cup of any sort since 1966 and these two lads should be left to delude themselves for just a wee bit longer.

Edit. Oops! Sorry, forgot about Stinger. Make that "these three lads".

Thanks for the mention

I'm not certain we will win by any means, I just find the Aussie bleating highly amusing.

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It's the Bok who's bleating. The Wallaby is only lending, um, immoral support.

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Originally posted by MikeH
Exactly!

And if you asked one of our resident grenouilles - the one with the penchant for s - he would say "contested scrum" and "maul" don't exist in the Wallaby vocab either.

[MikeH]

A maul... that's where you keep charging men in from the side until you can spin it to the try line isn't it?

[Havak]

Good to see Abott given a game

Looks quite promising. Bit Green still.

George Smith and Phil Waugh

Writers! For and read or.

You must admit surely that Smithy has had a trying season after his injury – and Waughy is a great lad but not the worlds greatest analyser of the game perhaps?

I'd forgotten that the Lions had lost 5 of their lineouts, 3 of them to the Plank!

Wish I had forgotten it – Woodsy had an awful game in that respect.

what's happened to the fullback Perry? And the winger James?

Matt Perry has been very unlucky – he has done nothing wrong but has simply fallen out of favour. He is an old fashioned fullback – solid defensively and with a good boot but lacking pace – Robinson’s defection from the other code sounded the death knell for his England career as Woodward now prefers ‘attacking’ fullbacks – he’ll slot Robinson, Lewsey or Balshaw in there by choice now.

In fact Balshaw makes his England return this weekend himself – on the wing with Robinson at fullback.
James – never good enough to wear a Lions shirt - I don’t think he even figures in the Welsh squad anymore.

How did that big Lions' centre stay on the field after his ridiculously late shoulder charge on Larkham?

It was Henderson wasn’t it (12)? Not sure how he stayed on actually. On the plus side he made a similar hit on Austin in April that certainly kept the mouth away from Australia in the final cut. So not all bad then.

You mean the try that came about as a result of an England player being in an offside position?

Some pundits have hinted at it. I think it misses the fact that Koen received slow ball on his shinbones – and that Moody is both an excellent reader of the game and very very quick. Koen had stepped back into the pocket, Lewis had seen it and just made the charge down. I’ll watch it again this evening and see if the ‘hint’ has any substance.

I have held back in mentioning that instance and the collapsed maul and the early tackle on our outside centre.

I mentioned the collapsed maul for you.
As for early challenges = watch the game again looking at the green shirts.

World Champions? We are the gallant triers and losers old boy. Surely only nations that offer little economically or culturally to the world have to define themselves totally through success in sport?

Ultimately it's up to one of the SH teams in this tournament to actually beat England rather than talk about how they will/should have/could have isn't it?

*Edit* There's a familiar name involved with Samoa I see - one Michael Jones, native born Samoan. Strange that as I clearly remember him scoring a try for New Zealand against England way back in 91 I think it was.

[Tamerlin]

Originally posted by finbar
And if you asked one of our resident grenouilles - the one with the penchant for s - he would say "contested scrum" and "maul" don't exist in the Wallaby vocab either.

The Southern Hemisphere Rugby historians themselves have trouble to remember when these words where used for the last time in this part of the world.

The problem is that the Carbon 14 dating process is not very reliable with old documents.

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DP! And I blame Tamerlin!

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Originally posted by Havak
Looks quite promising. Bit Green still.

To match the colour of the jersey he should be wearing by your own personal set of rules?

You must admit surely that Smithy has had a trying season after his injury – and Waughy is a great lad but not the worlds greatest analyser of the game perhaps?

And your chap, thanks to injury, has played how many Tests in recent times? And you base your claim on his recent form? At training? Hyperbole is the enemy of reason.

Originally posted by MikeH
A maul... that's where you keep charging men in from the side until you can spin it to the try line isn't it?

Close. It's where biggish chaps - usually with one eyebrow between the lot of them, no neck, and usually no ears - come together to lumber in roughly one direction at roughly the same time as if someone had let slip that there's a free feed of pork pies going near their try line.

I'm sure Havak will be happy to confirm this.

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Originally posted by Havak
with Robinson at fullback

It's interesting watching Robinson in action. I often have the feeling that, once he gets the ball, he has absolutely no idea which way his feet are going to take him. Thus neither do his teammates. He ran right away from his support a couple of times on Saturday.

James – never good enough to wear a Lions shirt - I don’t think he even figures in the Welsh squad anymore.

I checked. He doesn't. That's why I asked.

It was Henderson wasn’t it (12)? Not sure how he stayed on actually. On the plus side he made a similar hit on Austin in April that certainly kept the mouth away from Australia in the final cut. So not all bad then.

Yes, it was Henderson. I hadn't realised he'd tried to kill VD. All, then, is forgiven.

Some pundits have hinted at it. I think it misses the fact that Koen received slow ball on his shinbones – and that Moody is both an excellent reader of the game and very very quick.

Gee, you'd get a job spinning for Tony With The Dikky Ticker. How good a reader of the game he is, or how quick he is, is irrelevant if he's offside. OTOH, if he'd done what he did from an onside position, the talents you cite would obviously become relevant.

I’ll watch it again this evening and see if the ‘hint’ has any substance.

I suspect you'll find you accidentally hit the Pause button just as he left the offside position and accidentally released it again just before he crossed the tryline.

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Originally posted by Tamerlin


The Southern Hemisphere Rugby historians themselves have trouble to remember when these words where used for the last time in this part of the world.

The problem is that the Carbon 14 dating process is not very reliable with old documents.

Fact it. The average dullard, illiterate Australian thinks a maul is where they go shopping.

[finbar]

Originally posted by Havak

*Edit* There's a familiar name involved with Samoa I see - one Michael Jones, native born Samoan. Strange that as I clearly remember him scoring a try for New Zealand against England way back in 91 I think it was.

Yes, and only yesterday he joined the chorus asking the NZRFU to do something for the Pacific Island nations. And he remains the devoutly religious soul he always was when he declined to play matches on Sundays. He has removed himself from the coaching staff for this Sunday's match.

Tonight's Japan -v- Fiji match should be a corker. There will be runners charging from all directions. Japan's defence is stronger than the Fijians' - albeit obviously on the slight side - with the Fijians' defence spelled a-t-t-a-c-k. Fiji will still be missing Caucau. The Kiwi-Japanese halfback Miller marshalls his backline very well and I wouldn't be in the least bit surprised to see Japan come out on top.

[Tamerlin]

Originally posted by finbar
Fact it. The average dullard, illiterate Australian thinks a maul is where they go shopping.

You are a stranger in a strange land.

The Kiwi-Japanese halfback Miller marshalls his backline very well and I wouldn't be in the least bit surprised to see Japan come out on top.

I agree, I think the Japanese should win this game. Their team is more consistent than the Fidjian's one, the half-fly is more constructive, their forwards are superior and the Japanese number 11 has dynamite in his legs.

[finbar]

Originally posted by Tamerlin
You are a stranger in a strange land.

Just get me out of here!

I agree, I think the Japanese should win this game. Their team is more consistent than the Fidjian's one, the half-fly is more constructive, their forwards are superior and the Japanese number 11 has dynamite in his legs.

The Japanese also play as a team whereas the Fijians tend to run solo missions. I suspect the biggest threat to the Japanese is the Fijians' size and strength.