Rugby - Laissez la balle, Bleus!

[Joe Kick Ass]

From another forum...

As a people they are without doubt the biggest bunch of one eyed, self congratulating, racist, whinging, self pitying bunch of losers I've ever had the misfortune to share oxygen with. If a child of mine ever comes home and says "Dad this is bruce/shelagh, we're madly in love and emigrating to Sydney" I'd disown the child and to explain their disappearance I'd tell the neighbours they were a sexual predator and were caught hanging round kids' changing rooms.

[Caligastia]

That's a bit harsh. Not all Australians are named Bruce or Shelagh.

[finbar]

Originally posted by Joe Kick Ass
From another forum...

Why, Dafydd, do you think I fled the sh*thole of a place? It's a deeply conservative, racist, isolated, self-absorbed, immature, smug, backwater. And that's just for starters.

Oh and both were scored down Chuters channel direct from line outs. Angry? You bet I was.

Yes, I think I read that P. Howard said they knew Wasps would try it, and that they'd practised to cope with it. G. Chuter must have been in the dunny at the time.

[Caligastia]

Oh come on. I've found Australians to be generally good people, and from what I've seen (most of the east coast and Tasmania) the country is beautiful too.

[Havak]

In my experience they can be extremely good company (as long as you avoid the subject of sport as it triggers an instant transformation in their demeanour).

G. Chuter must have been in the dunny at the time.

He shoulders a great deal of blame for the two tries – and the second one all but broke the game for us.

And Alun Lewis does suck as a ref but Wasps coped with him so we should have been able to.
On Sunday he ignored offside completely – but penalised hanging on instantly. That somewhat favoured Wasps blitz defence and neutered our favourite tactic of driving through or over the tackled man (when it went to ground Lewis seemingly always instantly assumed the tackled man had held on regardless of whether he could see it). What little momentum we gained the ref whistles us out of. Bitter? You bet. Did the world need more smug Dayglo self superiority foisting on it?

Anyway I am getting upset remembering it again.
Did you catch the Saxons demolishing the USA last Friday Finbar? Jordan Crane (Corry’s understudy) scored a brace. On Monday Crofty gets a run against Scotland A. Sky UK are showing all the Churchill games so you might find them on Sky Italia. Should be better games than the ‘senior’ test against the Boks.

[finbar]

Oh come on. I've found Australians to be generally good people, and from what I've seen (most of the east coast and Tasmania) the country is beautiful too.

I didn't say it wasn't a pleasant place to go for a holiday. I was talking about living there. Or, as in Havak's case -

Originally posted by Havak
In my experience they can be extremely good company (as long as you avoid the subject of sport as it triggers an instant transformation in their demeanour).

- threatening their inherent insecurities.

Did the world need more smug Dayglo self superiority foisting on it?

Whose fault is that?

Did you catch the Saxons demolishing the USA last Friday Finbar? Jordan Crane (Corry’s understudy) scored a brace. On Monday Crofty gets a run against Scotland A. Sky UK are showing all the Churchill games so you might find them on Sky Italia. Should be better games than the ‘senior’ test against the Boks.

No, they're not covered on Sky Italia. Heck, they didn't even cover the Heineken final. I hadn't realised before I came here that volleyball is v. popular. They show it constantly.

T. Croft should be in South Africa.

EDIT. Oh, and guess what? D. Grewcock has been cited for punching. Would someone please take this psychopath out the back and shoot him?

[Havak]

Oh Dayglo’s evening in the sun is entirely Tigers fault – I am well aware of it.

Volleyball is popular in Italy? Well the beach version (female, anyway) has a certain following in the UK too.

Croft should be in South Africa – he will be a fixture for Tigers next season I suspect. Much depends on the new coach of course.

Grewcock – or the Troy Flavell of Bath as we might call him – will receive a lengthy ban that may well end any lingering world cup hopes for him. At 34 his career clock is very much ticking away.

[finbar]

T. Flavell has mended his manners this year. I've seen quite a lot of him in S14. Playing very strong, disciplined rugby.

[Havak]

Lets hope he gets selection for the RWC then. Should be fairly easy to get him sent off and hamper the ABs?

In truth your record never leaves you. The next time he gets red carded his entire disciplinary history will be considered by the panel that hears his case. Whilst I'm glad therefore that he has shown some discipline I somehow do not think we have seen the end of bad boy Flavell.

Grewcock on the other hand is older - a lengthy ban might even prompt him to retire.

In other rugger news there has been a little spat this week between the USA and Scotland. The idea of the Churchill cup is that the home nations don't field full strength sides but rather development ones. Scotland then selected ten full internationals for their game against USA which somewhat upset the Eagles camp as being against the spirit of the cup.

The net result of this was Scotland 'thrashed' USA 13-9.

[finbar]

I noted the scoreline. F. Hadden was full of excuses.

I also noted that Leicester have further done their bit for English rugby by signing a talented young hooker ineligible for England. I expect he'd've signed with anyone just to get out of the shocking pink jersey.

[Havak]

You have to admire Stade for persisiting with that away colour - it is indeed 'shocking'.

Looks a good signing to me. The club is keeping it's word - it told the RFU after the Humphries debacle that they could no longer rely on Tigers developing players for them if the net result is to be that we get penalised for doing so.

[Havak]

I see Larkham is out of the Wales test?

It's an interesting Wallaby squad to me. I hope the two new front rowers are good because if Dunning is the experienced man they are going to need to be!

And Giteau has seen of Gregan then?

Australia team to play Wales in Sydney:

Huxley; Gerrard, Mortlock, Ashley-Cooper, Mitchell; Norton-Knight, Giteau; Dunning, Moore, Shepherdson, Sharpe, Chilsholm, Elsom, Waugh (capt), Palu. Replacements: Freier, Robinson, Vickerman, Hoiles, Smith, Gregan, Staniforth.

[finbar]

The front rowers will be like all recent Wallaby front rowers - capable against average oppo, incompetent against quality oppo. S. Larkham was going to be rested from the next two Tests - Wales and Fiji - anyway, so his rest has come a week early.

S. Norton-Knight, his replacement, is a very interesting player. He has almost literally followed in Larkham's footprints. Started at the Brumbies as a full back, graduated to #10. He's now with the Waratahs. Very similar in looks, and, at this early stage, style. Unhurried, smooth, thinking. He might never be as good as S. Larkham - few will be - but I think he has a future. The alternatives - B. Barnes from the Reds, and K. Beale from the Waratahs, both of whom will probably get starts over the next few weeks, are babies. Neither is yet twenty. Very talented both of them, but babies.

J. Huxley is the third-choice full back. After C. Latham (injured until the Tri Nations) and C. Shepard (ditto). Huxley is talented, fine kicker - field and goal - but has had a tendency to try to do too much. Shades of C. Latham of years gone by.

I don't know what the next couple of weeks is really going to prove for the Wallabies. They're mixing and matching, trying out people and combinations, rotating players. That's why M. Giteau is in for G. Gregan. Gregan will be back for at least one of the next couple of tests. That's also why Gregan lost the captaincy - he wasn't guaranteed a start under this rotation system.

But nice to see D. Vickerman back. Even if rushed. After his most recent shoulder op, having missed the entire year, his game time this year amounts to a couple of 20 minute stints in club rugby.

Oh for the days when Tests were Tests and not glorified trial matches.

[Havak]

That is the Professional era for you I guess.

[finbar]

Still, on the bright side, I get to watch Wales -v- Wallabies on Sky Italia tomorrow.

Australia A smashed the Tongans. Not hard to do, but the two interesting performances were from S. Cordingley at #9, whom Knuckles always saw as Gregan's replacement until injury interrupted; and Lachie Turner, 19 year old rookie with the Waratahs this year, winger, blinding speed, all the skills. He scored three tries. Methinks he will go to the World Cup. Cordingley too, I hope. Feisty and aggressive.