Rugby - Truck and Trailer!

[Caligastia]

The sad thing is...I think he's serious.

[finbar]

Wallabies 34 -d- Scotland 13

Cripes. A re-run of last week. Well, in fact, Scotland were better than last week and we were poorer. If the Scots had anyone half-decent on the outside, they could have finished very much closer. They enjoyed a heap of the ball and we let them have it. Yet again we sputtered and creaked, mixing some sublime play with some immensely average stuff. Apart from one magnificent shunt which had our pack winning a tight head, the scrummaging was average in the extreme. And our field kicking was abysmal. The optimists have it that Eddie has cards up his sleeve and is hiding them from Clive for next week.

Boks 26 -d- Ireland 17

Boks impressive, Ireland a real mixture. The Boks were too big, too strong, too quick, too committed and too cohesive. Their young blindside, Burger, looks very impressive. Ireland, obviously looking forward to a holiday, looked good whenever O'Driscoll got the ball, but it didn't happen enough. And whomever sent O'Driscoll to Mam'zelle Labit's hairdresser should be shot!

[finbar]

Originally posted by Caligastia
The sad thing is...I think he's serious.

Oh? Mmm. Then I apologise to him for not taking him seriously. It occurred to me that he was taking the mickey around the time he suggested that Carlos had engineered the red card, that he had somehow forced Shaw to knee Robinson.

EDIT. I notice Shaw was cleared by the judiciary on a technicality. Not so Grewcock. Banned for rucking Carter's head. Grewcock seems to have a serious self-discipline problem.

But on a brighter note, it was nice to see a NH win on the weekend. The Celts flew the NH flag over the Pumas! Three cheers for the Celts -

Hip-hip!

*silence*

Come on, Havak, one hooray for the Celts won't hurt you.

Hip-hip!

*silence*

Havak!?!

[Caligastia]

Originally posted by finbar


Oh? Mmm. Then I apologise to him for not taking him seriously. It occurred to me that he was taking the mickey around the time he suggested that Carlos had engineered the red card, that he had somehow forced Shaw to knee Robinson.

Yes...maybe he is just taking the piss...nobody could seriously suggest that was the case...could they?

EDIT. I notice Shaw was cleared by the judiciary on a technicality. Not so Grewcock. Banned for rucking Carter's head. Grewcock seems to have a serious self-discipline problem.

Yes, well, Shaw seems to have the the same problem. Wasn't he pulled up by the ref a few times in the first test against NZ?

But on a brighter note, it was nice to see a NH win on the weekend. The Celts flew the NH flag over the Pumas! Three cheers for the Celts -

Hip-hip!

*silence*

Come on, Havak, one hooray for the Celts won't hurt you.

Hip-hip!

*silence*

Havak!?!

Oh, and for the record...I do think the red card was a bit extreme - yellow would have sufficed. However, I think the red card makes up for all the other infringements that England got away with. Most notably their habit of taking out AB players without the ball.

[Tamerlin]

Stade Toulousain 16 - Union Sportive des Arlequins de Perpignan 18

The final of the French Championship will oppose the Stade Français to the USAP.

The Catalans were impressive in the first half with very good forwards against clumsy Toulousains unable to play consistently, loosing too many balls and giving the Catalans the stick to beat them with. Manu Edmonds played well sending the Stade Toulousain back in its side of the field through its kicks. He directed the team efficiently and the Union Sportive des Arlequins de Perpignan was leading 15 to 3 at the half-time. The Toulousains came back on the field with better intentions and largely dominated the second half though they made too many errors and gave back too many balls, especially by the end of the game that was very badly managed.

This result is reflecting the whole season of the Stade Toulousain, not far away from success but a loss nonetheless.



I have just a few words to say before the Final:

"Allez l'USAP"

[finbar]

Originally posted by Tamerlin


Stade Toulousain 16 - Union Sportive des Arlequins de Perpignan 18

The final of the French Championship will oppose the Stade Français to the USAP.

Shame. Still, as you say:

"Allez l'USAP"

And fingers crossed Manny Edmonds turns up to play.

[finbar]

Originally posted by Caligastia
Yes, well, Shaw seems to have the the same problem. Wasn't he pulled up by the ref a few times in the first test against NZ?

Was he? I remember Jones being cautioned for punching people.

The unfortunate thing to come out of all of this, I think, is the smokescreen behind which Clive can now hide. He's now claiming England were "the better team on the day". The score obviously says otherwise. And any claim that losing Shaw contributed to the scoreline is silly. Yes, it's hard to compete one man down at Test level, but England were, again, cut to pieces by the Kiwi backline. A backline minus a massively potent force in Howlett. Muliaina, in Howlett's spot, barely cut the mustard. England's outside defence was marginally better than last week, but nowhere near good enough. At the same time, most outside defences in world rugby will struggle to contain that backline.

Clive should keep things in perspective. England were better than the All Blacks in that they played very much better than last week, and all credit to them. They re-discovered some spirit and commitment. At the same time, the All Blacks were down on their performance from last week. They missed McCaw dreadfully - that's why the England halves had the time and space they did this week - and, obviously, Howlett.

Just to underline the importance of the Celts flying the NH flag on the weekend - the Maori beat England in the Churchill Cup final.

[Caligastia]

Originally posted by finbar
Was he? I remember Jones being cautioned for punching people.

I'm not totally sure to be honest. The commentator made a comment that suggested he had.

The unfortunate thing to come out of all of this, I think, is the smokescreen behind which Clive can now hide. He's now claiming England were "the better team on the day". The score obviously says otherwise. And any claim that losing Shaw contributed to the scoreline is silly. Yes, it's hard to compete one man down at Test level, but England were, again, cut to pieces by the Kiwi backline. A backline minus a massively potent force in Howlett. Muliaina, in Howlett's spot, barely cut the mustard. England's outside defence was marginally better than last week, but nowhere near good enough. At the same time, most outside defences in world rugby will struggle to contain that backline.

Also, discipline is an important factor in determining how good your team is. Speculation on what might have happened if Shaw hadn't been sent off has no bearing on how good they are because the fact is that England are a team with a discipline problem. Not only was Shaw sent off, but there were also plenty of other instances of foul play - i.e. tackling players without the ball.

Clive should keep things in perspective. England were better than the All Blacks in that they played very much better than last week, and all credit to them. They re-discovered some spirit and commitment. At the same time, the All Blacks were down on their performance from last week. They missed McCaw dreadfully - that's why the England halves had the time and space they did this week - and, obviously, Howlett.

Yep, things started off well for England, but you could say the same of their start in the first test. Personally I don't rate England's performance in the second test as being much better than their performance in the first. No doubt things would have been different if Shaw hadn't been sent off, but unfortunately that incident cannot be ignored in an evaluation of their overall performance.

Just to underline the importance of the Celts flying the NH flag on the weekend - the Maori beat England in the Churchill Cup final.

Nice.

[finbar]

Originally posted by Caligastia
I'm not totally sure to be honest. The commentator made a comment that suggested he had.

I don't know. All those England locks look alike to me - head gear and no self-discipline

Personally I don't rate England's performance in the second test as being much better than their performance in the first.

I thought they were vastly better in terms of their commitment and passion. Last week they were lifeless. This week there was spirit. I thought the replacement hooker, whom Havak didn't rate, actually contributed. Something the Beer Barrel hadn't the week before. They're now dreadfully injury-ravaged, so I have no idea who they will field this week against us.

[Caligastia]

Originally posted by finbar


I don't know. All those England locks look alike to me - head gear and no self-discipline

Yep, it's easy to mistake one for another.

I thought they were vastly better in terms of their commitment and passion. Last week they were lifeless. This week there was spirit. I thought the replacement hooker, whom Havak didn't rate, actually contributed. Something the Beer Barrel hadn't the week before. They're now dreadfully injury-ravaged, so I have no idea who they will field this week against us.

They were improved as far as commitment goes, but if you look at the actual results on the scoreboard there wasn't much difference.

[Andydog]

Jeepers Havak, what a load of utter codswallop. I assume you wrote that with a guts full of bitter? Watch the game again, and this time take off your rose tinted glasses!

England couldn’t dominate NZ legally so they resorted to bully boy tactics and it backfired on them. It’s as simple as that. Grewcock was too busy trying to be a tough guy, as was Borthwick, the front rowers all far too interested in a bit of biffo as opposed to proper hard rugby. Clive says that Shaw isn’t a dirty player. Well perhaps he wasn’t, but he is now, either that or he’s just plain stupid. Dallaglio looked to be on the verge of cracking up throughout the test, even before Shaw's dismissal. At one point he was more concerned with unleashing a verbal tirade at the touch judge than with providing the leadership his side so desperately needed. He seemed intent on stamping his physical presence on the game, regardless of the situation. His on-edge feistiness and clearly rattled demeanour contrasted sharply with the strong leadership being delivered to the All Blacks by CapTana.

Which brings me to Clive Woodhead. I don’t think the guy could have done any better to demonstrate to the world what a class A pr!ck he is. The sending off was harsh (yet another bull**** decision from Dickheadson – this guy has to be the worst ref in rugby), but good god Clive, keep it professional please. Why bring up Ali’s reckless rucking, which happened a year ago. Someone should explain to him that rucking is part of the game, kneeing someone in the back isn’t, and then tell him to get the fark over it. How ironic that Grewcock then gets suspended for stomping on Daniel Carter’s head. Clive still believes the poms are a better side. Very intelligent Clivey, zero tries to eight clearly demonstrates vast superiority. His abuse of the ref was just childish. Sorry but he deserves all the derision he gets.

I thought England did well to keep the ABs at bay in the first half. They had little chance to win with only 14 men but battled valiantly. Their performance was up 100% from last week, they forced a few errors and did not allow the ABs to repeat their dominance of the first test, until they slowly got on top of the tiring England side in the second half, waltzing through that poor excuse for a backline.

Originally posted by finbar
Just to underline the importance of the Celts flying the NH flag on the weekend - the Maori beat England in the Churchill Cup final.

Poor old Havak, what a crap weekend he must have had!

[finbar]

Great avatar, Andydog. Havak standing too close to the gas oven pilot light after drowning his sorrows in bitter.

[finbar]

Originally posted by Andydog
Which brings me to Clive Woodhead. I don’t think the guy could have done any better to demonstrate to the world what a class A pr!ck he is.

Agreed. He can't be gracious in victory, he can't be gracious in defeat, regardless of the circumstances. He's adrift from reality.

I thought England did well to keep the ABs at bay in the first half. They had little chance to win with only 14 men but battled valiantly. Their performance was up 100% from last week, they forced a few errors and did not allow the ABs to repeat their dominance of the first test, until they slowly got on top of the tiring England side in the second half, waltzing through that poor excuse for a backline.

I think that pretty much sums it up. Although they were never going to win anyway, even with 15 men. The All Blacks are just too strong in the areas in which England is weakest at the moment.

EDIT. Gee, there are times when I really really miss J****!

The Nose to skipper the Lions? Say what?

FURTHER EDIT. And a step in the right direction for English rugby, although I don't know how they'll fit league, Heineken Cup, 6 Nations and Tests into 32 matches a season.

[Caligastia]

Where is Havak anyway? Purging his memory with endless re-runs of England's RWC victory?

"His pride wounded by the dramatic fall from grace of the world champions, Dallaglio said the All Blacks would face a totally different beast when the touring British and Irish Lions play three Tests in New Zealand at this time next year."

Thank you Captain Obvious.

[Andydog]

Originally posted by finbar
Great avatar, Andydog. Havak standing too close to the gas oven pilot light after drowning his sorrows in bitter.

and he wouldn't need to be that close to the pilot light either, bitter farts being as lethally flammable as they are!

EDIT. Gee, there are times when I really really miss J****!

I like the way Dallaglio tries to poo poo Henry's dream start as coach:

"I remember when he took over Wales they won their first 10 test matches. They swept all before them ... He knows things can change very quickly in a test environment."

Quite right, Lawrence. Things change indeed. Like the world champions losing four of their last five matches, and staring down the barrel of another loss in Brisbane on Saturday night.