Rugby - Hands Off Green!

[LDiCesare]

I was unable to comment on SA-France last week because I was busy running after cows and playing rugby in the Mediteranean last week-end (to anyone who would like to visit France: avoid la Camargue if you dislike mosquitoes).
South Africa's scoring of 26 points was partly due to a very generous refereeing. They were thrashed 4 tries to one and the end game difference in points should have been more had the referee given penalties logically (Marconnet's facial expression after another penalty awarded by the ref at a scrum must be like Havak's when he hears Robinson's explanations as to why yet another English defeat is a good thing for the Worl Cup).
The French scrum just shredded the Boks'. The forwards were stronger in mauls too, only the lineouts being balanced. As for the backs, Traille played 10 quite well despite being unfamiliar with that position. He played fly half twice this season in club I believe, has experience at full back and center, plus some at fly half from several years ago at Pau but only occasionally. If he plays 10 more at Biarritz next season, he can only become better and that would be great as I think he's better able to make his partners play than Michalak.
For those who didn't see it, I'll just explain the last French try: Boks charging fast in defense, trying to put some pressure on the French backs. Traille passes immediately to Jauzion, who sidesteps the bok defender. This opens up the field for him. He runs, passes to Fritz, who fixes a defender and passes to Clerc, who gets rid of du Toit and runs to score. Everything comes from a hasty defence, where the boks ran too fast and didn't manage to put pressure but, being too fast, allowed Jauzion to breach their line of defence. The rest was, I'd say, natural. This is clearly not somehting coached, it's just players used to playing together (both centers and wingers were from Toulouse) rather than being coached over and over.

One point on this match, though. The French team was about the best one we could muster. The back row and the wingers could be different, but apart from that we couldn't do much better. Michalak or Boyet could have played 10 but I doubt it'd have made a difference. I think the boks had more than Burger hurt, particularly in the centers. Still, their scrum got destroyed.

[finbar]

Sounds like the Boks' rushing defence was exposed. When it works - and when they're not caught out off-side, which they usually are (off-side, that is, not caught out) - it can be very effective. OTOH, get behind them and there's usually a try on offer.

[Havak]

Marconnet's facial expression after another penalty awarded by the ref at a scrum must be like Havak's when he hears Robinson's explanations as to why yet another English defeat is a good thing for the Worl Cup

One of my favourite topics this of course - why do SH referees simply not understand the scrum? They often penalise the wrong side continuously.

Mind you the standard of NH refereeing has nose dived too in recent years.

English referees for all games seems the answer - it would certainly guarantee that England never win another test (although Robinson is already doing his best on that one).

*edit* If you start a League thread PA I will gladly respond to your points - it is time however that this thread returned to Union (the true code of rugby).

I particularly loved your reference to the 'French' side (that comprises mainly Brits and Aussies) and the selling of league as a global game because Russia play it and they occassionally find enough pacific Islanders not signed by the All Blacks to cobble together an 'islands' side.

[Havak]

Strewth.

An Australian TV company's portrayal of New Zealand rugby players carrying women's handbags has upset its neighbour.
An advertisement shows All Black players performing the haka challenge carrying computer-generated handbags.

It is a reference to a May incident which involved a nightclub, a scuffle, a woman's handbag and an All Black who burst into tears.

The segment is promoting an upcoming Tri-Nations test between the two sides.

"It's insensitive, I think, to Maori and disrespectful of the All Blacks," New Zealand assistant coach Wayne Smith said.

Australian coach John Connolly told local radio he had not seen the advertisement yet.

The incident in May took place when former New Zealand captain Tana Umaga broke up a fight in a nightclub between team-mate Chris Masoe and another man by hitting Mr Masoe over the head with a woman's handbag.

Mr Masoe, who was reduced to tears by the blow, was later fined.

The incident generated considerable media coverage and sparked jokes at the All Blacks' expense.

The handbag went on to fetch NZ$22,750 ($13,650, £7,500) in an online auction.

Okay so don't you think that this AB coaching team is starting to take itself just a little bit too seriously? Suffering a touch of the 'Sir Clives' perhaps? This is the kind of nonsense the Aussie media always throws at opposing sides - the best reply will be to wallop them on the field rather than whine about 'disrespect' to the Maori and ABs.

And Wayne Smith was such a level headed chap when he led Northampton to serial disasters in the League as well.

[finbar]

Publicity, publicity, publicity. Does anyone take any of it seriously?

On an even lighter note, O. Finegan has signed on with Leinster. Where I thought he'd have gone in the first place instead of Newcastle. Obviously Newcastle offered more. The Leinster coaching crew - Cjeka and Knox - are old Randwick boys, Finny is an old Randwick boy, as is Chris Whitaker, now with them, so it's a Randwick old boys' reunion.

[Caligastia]

Originally posted by Havak
Okay so don't you think that this AB coaching team is starting to take itself just a little bit too seriously? Suffering a touch of the 'Sir Clives' perhaps? This is the kind of nonsense the Aussie media always throws at opposing sides - the best reply will be to wallop them on the field rather than whine about 'disrespect' to the Maori and ABs.

Yeah, that is pathetic. Some people need to get a sense of humor.

[Caligastia]

NZ 32 - Oz 12

Rocky Elsom will be hanging his head in shame for a while. I think if he hadn't been sin binned it could have been a very different game. The Wallabies were playing well and ahead by 7 when he got sent off after repeated warnings, and in his absence the All Blacks scored 14 points. Great effort by NZ, they crushed the Australian scrum all night.

What did you think of that McCaw try Finbar?

I'm getting a bit sick of Rocky-cocky turning over the ball just about every time he gets tackled. Sure, he can run, but he needs some practice in the tackle situation.

[finbar]

Couldn't organise to see it, Cal. Had to listen to the match. From all published reports, it seems you could be being generous to the Wallabies. Their pack was smashed - back to the future! - and they were lucky to be as close as they were at various times. But, certainly, Elsom's dismissal cost them dearly.

Anyway. The ABs thump the Wallabies. The Wallabies thump Ireland and England. Ergo ...

[Havak]

..it's nice to have the comfort of home games.

Beyond that it means very little really. The return fixture will be more telling.

Personally I would like to see the tri-nations expanded and the confort of home 'bankers' taken away from all the sides. When you rotate home and away year on year a slam where you win the big games away really has meaning.

As it stands the ABs and Boks have been banking their home games for three years IIRC - and jostling for that away performance that clinches a title on points?

It is possible to learn from the 6N on this - but I doubt SANZAR will ever be prepared to do so. SANZAR admitting they could improve something by following an NH example is like the RFU sacking a coach - highly improbable.

Incidentally I got up too late to catch the game after a small party on Friday night - so I am in the dark as to how it went.

*edit* I caught the result obviously - but none of the action whatsoever

[Havak]

Interesting little story about Jerry Collins - it seems he got caught short just before kick off at the weekend so took a piddle at the side of the pitch. You don't see that very often at Test level.

[Caligastia]

Havak...I don't quite know what you mean when you propose rotating home and away year on year. As it stands, the TriNations fixtures are fairly balanced between home and away for each team. Each team plays each other team twice - once at home, and once away. You can't ask for fairer than that.

[ravagon]

I believe that he's referring to that 'limitation' in the 6N competition whereby each team plays the other only once.
I'll put this in the bank for the next rainy day when he's grizzling about England having lost the 6N title to Wales after losing away to the French, Irish and Welsh while a jubilant Wales beat their away opponents, Italy and the Scots.

[Havak]

Ah gentleman - my point was that the greater challenge would be for the All Blacks to win a slam by beating the Wallabies in Sydney without the comfort of a home fixture to fall back on.

I was not suggesting a fair arrangement - just a more challenging one. As it stands in the Tri-nations the home fixtures are largely non events - only the Wallabies have been vulnerable on their own soil in the last few seasons (and not too much then). Do you not see the effect this has on the tournament - it makes many of the rubbers ever so slightly predicatable (boring even).

This system adds real spice to the 6N - it is a shame you can't see that. That said Ravagon did pick on the weakness of the system (who cares where Wales play). The rotating France-England fixture is often crucial - and indeed all England away games except Italy are unpredicatable. other teams seem to like to beat us - I don't understand it myself.

*edit* And I expect you will get more moaning from me in next years 6N. I can't see myself having any cause to be positive until they finally sack Robinson. The ABs have had their coaching wobbles over the last decade but they haven't had anything like 'Mr Denial'.

[ravagon]

Hark!

Is that something other than utter contempt for the inestimable Graham Henry coming from over yonder? Never thought I'd hear the day ...
The term 'damned by faint praise' does spring to mind but it did sound almost like praise, nonetheless ...

[Havak]

Well in all honesty how could anyone (even me) argue that Henry was a worse coach than Robinson?

It seems clear to me he is just a teensy tiny bit better. A Smidgen if you like.

I like his tag team assistants as well who were very solid guys up here but now take turns to make muppetry comments to the media.

So yes - all in all I quite like the NZ coaching team right now. Damned by faint praise indeed.

So do you think anyone will have shown the Jerminator what a urinal looks like before the next test?