The Rugby Union Thread

eSully

For those that missed any of yesterdays games the youtube channel linked below has highlights from all of them

World Rugby Highlights

koneguitarist

Just watched the Daly incident, ref got it spot on. Similar to Finn Russell on Dan Biggar where ref bottled it. Daly was stupid end of story. 
What I am amazed at is England have only had two sent off at Twickenham in their history, considering some of the actions, payback for Mendez incident
Will run and hide now, after diverting attention from Welsh game.

hywelg

koneguitarist said:

Will run and hide now, after diverting attention from Welsh game.

So you were similarly unimpressed by the Welsh performance? 

Few positives, Moriarty played well, Tipuric oustanding,  glad Faletau got a game. Much happier without Roberts. 

On a negative note, this probably delays the necessary coaching change. Biggar touch kicking is unimpressive, mostly far too conservative,  he has the range but never uses it. Gareth Davies, see ball is available, wait, pass. Someone needs to tell him. 

And someone in the coaching team needs to get ball carriers using their eyes and further afield than 5 yards in front. 

exocet

I didn't see game or highlights but looking at scoreline - 24:19 to NZ, France must have upped their game....or are NZ knackered (as in tired)  right now?

koneguitarist

Very unimpressed with Welsh team @hywelg but so much is down to what I believe is coaching issues. These guys don't play like that at their clubs so Howley and co must be issuing orders about kicking to touch or opposition, also any scrum half coached from juniors upwards is taught to scan on way in, pick up and pass, kick or snipe, not get ball ready then make decision. 
We have Charteris, AWJ, Tipuric, all targets for lineout, so we should not be afraid to kick ball off pitch for territory as opposed to just kicking ball back to opposition. 
My personal feeling is the longer you have the ball, the harder it is for opposition to score! 
Hardly rocket science, but the game plan still seems to be give opposition the ball in their half inviting them to run at Wales. Sooner or later they will score as proven in last 20 yesterday. 

Compare that to England, Australia, Ireland, NZ , even Scotland have all embraced the new attack minded game plans. Wales in contrast are playing slower with less pace in all aspects of the game. And to me it's the lack of serious pace that's the issue, we really need to play a faster game, which doesn't mean end of Biggar but gives us another option in Sam Davies for contrasting styles, in way that Stephen Jones and James Hook did in 2008 grand slam. And also in the way that England can change game plan with either Ford or Farrell running the line, going for set piece play or flat on gain line speed. 

tbm

England winning like they did with 14 men is pretty impressive. I reckon they'll put 30 on a knackered looking Wallibies. 

A Welsh fan would have taken your arm off for a score like that against the Boks a few years back. Says more about the Boks now that Wales fans are not happy with things. It also puts Ireland's win in South Africa in perspective. Though doing that with 14 men was also impressive. But the Boks are RUBBISH right now. 

How good would an Eng v BNZ game be though?

digitalscream

tbm said:

How good would an Eng v BNZ game be though?

Personally, I don't want to find out for another 18 months or so Right now, England would definitely struggle against the All Blacks; the team just isn't quite there yet, I don't think.

Another year or so, and they'll either be able to confidently beat them, or they'll have fallen apart. I'm hoping for the former

hywelg

tbm said:

A Welsh fan would have taken your arm off for a score like that against the Boks a few years back. Says more about the Boks now that Wales fans are not happy with things.

Personally I would prefer Wales to have lost yesterday. Yes that might be sacrilege, but the win just puts of the difficult decisions regarding the coaching staff and the ethos. Wales got huge respect in the 2011  world cup for the style of rugby we played. all gone to pot..... 

exocet

hywelg said:

tbm said:

A Welsh fan would have taken your arm off for a score like that against the Boks a few years back. Says more about the Boks now that Wales fans are not happy with things.

Personally I would prefer Wales to have lost yesterday. Yes that might be sacrilege, but the win just puts of the difficult decisions regarding the coaching staff and the ethos. Wales got huge respect in the 2011  world cup for the style of rugby we played. all gone to pot..... 

I'm going to sound like a broken record but Gatland, Howley, McBryde & Co are going nowhere. The WRU is broke and can't afford to pay them off. Internationals at Principality is the main revenue stream....what did they pull in yesterday? 53000 punters or so? There just  isn't the money in Wales to support the game to the levels that it needs. Football is competing hard for the audience spend and Rugby won't be able to combat that unless there is a massive turnaround in performance and achievements at all levels of the game. 

scrumhalf

Meanwhile back in the club game, Wasps start against Sale with a front row of Matt Mullen, Tommy Taylor and Marty Moore - in terms of their initials a palindromic, alliterative front row.

fretmeister

Nick Mullins on twitter...

Apparently Billy V injury is bad enough to keep him out of the 6N.

Gassage

Billy Rolypoly out for the season.

Fuck.

nocasternoproblem

What's happened to Ben Morgan?  He seems to have dropped out of the no. 8 reckoning.

tipuric is the best back row forward in the NH at present. 

scrumhalf

According to Sky News they haven't assessed the scan results for young Billy V yet.

koneguitarist

Tipuric is a good player in the mould of Martyn Williams, 7-8 years ago he would have been considered too lightweight in same way as Neil Back was, but the game has changed, I still see Warburton as part of the Welsh back row. 
Warburton at 6, with Tipuric at 7, with Faletau at 8. Moriarty is a very handy player to have to cover back r replacements, if Faletau or Warburton injured Moriarty covers them, if Tipuric injured Warburton moves across. 
Its the front 5 that worries me, AWJ is a hard working grafter, Charteris is again hardworking and often the work he does is unseen, like really being a nuisance at mails for opposition, like Simon Shaw for England a few years back. But neither really takes charge and competes against opposition in line outs. 
Front Row, been better this season, but Jenkins, should be used as an impact player for last 20 not main starter. Hooker, excuse the pun, but both we have are decent, not world class standard. 
Tight head, Francis has improved and Lee has regressed, we really need these guys to up their game. 
As a loose head Nicky Smith seems mobile even if he would look more at home with a banjo than a rugby ball. Where are the nasty in your face props and hookers that we used to have years, all gone with the pits? 
I worry about Wales, is it down to coaching or lack of awareness, because no offence to Roberts, I know he's a Dr but strap his boots on and all brains fly out the window! 

Gassage

nocasternoproblem said:

tipuric is the best back row forward in the NH at present. 

Better than:

Heaslip?
Rennie?
Robshaw?
Vunipola?
Parisse?

Gassage

Gulliver said:

snakemanStoo said:

I was going to ask what people thought about it. I just got in from training, turned on the computer and saw what had happened and that an Argentine player had done a tip tackle and not got carded.

If Daly was a red, the Argentinian should've been a yellow.  P

Rubbish.

Ref was spot on

rsvmark

nocasternoproblem said:

What's happened to Ben Morgan?  He seems to have dropped out of the no. 8 reckoning.

tipuric is the best back row forward in the NH at present. 

Ben Morgan suffered an horrific broken leg last season. He has struggled to make it back to the (high) level he was at pre break

Gassage

Very honoured to have been given the first piece on rugby by Rob Andrew since he left the RFU.

Incredible thinker on the game and someone very unfairly portrayed in the media and someone who skippered me at age group level.

Enjoy.

http://www.planetrugby.com/news/expert-witness-rob-andrew-on-november-tests/

scrumhalf

Gassage said:

 unfairly portrayed in the media

Not down Sudbury way he wasn't.