[Other Sport] Rugby (Union) World Cup Official Thread

[keaton]

Third Place 'Final' btw - what a horrible, stupid idea.

Third Place play-off at the football world cup is a pointless exercise for two teams of devastated players, who just want to get home to their families. To ask the rugby players to put their bodies on the line again, for such a thing is absolutely ridiculous.

I don't think I've ever thought about watching the play off and I watch pretty much every England or Wales rugby game I can.

Even more of a nonsense is the Premiership is already two weeks into the season so this will add another week at least till the English players can return to their clubs and that's without any more injuries

 

[Normal Rob]

Interesting...

https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/rugby-union/67206691

 

[PeterT]

Interesting...

https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/rugby-union/67206691

Not being widely welcomed if the comments on there are anything to go by.

 

[Eeyore]

Not being widely welcomed if the comments on there are anything to go by.

Not sure what to make of it, but anything that gives the emerging nations a chance is initially met with favour here.

 

[Normal Rob]

Not being widely welcomed if the comments on there are anything to go by.

It's the classic 'most people who voice an opinion do it to moan'. You cannot blame the recent thrashings at the world cup saying that the tier 2 and 3 nations just don't play enough competitive rugby and then criticise when a competition is put into place to do just that. Well sensible, rationale people won't anyway.

 

[Brian Fantana]

World Rugby has made a very quick decision on the alleged racist comment from the England v SA Semi-Final. Let's hope their comments about Tom Curry making the allegation in good faith are actually read and understood, and he's not hung out to dry.

My wife, who is South African and speaks Afrikaans fluently, is of the opinion that it all depends on the exact context of how the remark was said. The phrase in Afrikaans that TC allegedly heard means something quite different to how it sounds said in English (with the South African inflection). She says if he was clearly directing his comment to TC, i.e. looking at him and making eye contact, than it would suggest he was speaking English and using the phrase in the way it was alleged. If, however, it was just shouted in general, it is far more likely that he was telling Tom Curry to stay on the 'white side', i.e. not to stray offside. Why he wouldn't say this in English though, as I don't think TC speak Afrikaans is a bit odd though.

In general, a very difficult incident to get to the bottom of, but I'm probably straying towards it being lost in translation, as the c-word is something I've very rarely, if ever, heard used in South Africa as an insulting term.

 

[PeterT]

Massive forward pass for that first Argie try

 

[maltaseagull]

Massive forward pass for that first Argie try

Agreed but we are dire. They attack with flair we give penalties over and over.We attack with no imagination and just repeat the pick up drive into a forward and repeat.

 

[Brian Fantana]

Agreed but we are dire. They attack with flair we give penalties over and over.We attack with no imagination and just repeat the pick up drive into a forward and repeat.

This.

Our attack has been one dimensional for years though.

 

[ManOfSussex]

Owen Farrell really is a northern twat.

 

[Bodian]

Don't watch much rugby - but saw the last 15 minutes tonight. What a lot of standing around and chatting with time stopped - followed by incomprehensible rules. It really does make football look such a simple, but flowing, sport.

 

[maltaseagull]

Don't watch much rugby - but saw the last 15 minutes tonight. What a lot of standing around and chatting with time stopped - followed by incomprehensible rules. It really does make football look such a simple, but flowing, sport.

Agreed in part but at least a touch from an opponent doesn't result in screams of "agony" and clutching a body part that wasn't even touched while rolling around.
Football has become a game for cheats and drama queens. Still watch the Albion but not much else

 

[Kinky Gerbil]

Would have taken 3rd before it started

 

[Pavilionaire]

England got off to a fast start, their defending was good, they were excellent at the breakdown. best of all, they found a way to close out the win.

They are a work in progress, but to get that cohesion they need to slim down the squad, identify the players they want for the next WC and stick with them.

On the minus side, Smith at full- back didn't work, the retirement of Youngs, May and Lawes leaves 3 big holes and we didn't get our wingers into the game.

 

[PeterT]

Owen Farrell really is a northern twat.

I met him during the tournament, he was actually very friendly!

 

[Beach Hut]

They are a work in progress,

To a certain extent, however, given 4 years ago a young side lost the final I think the management/coaching has been dismal.

We should have been a position to win it

 

[jakarta]

One game left, Saffers have been very lucky so far but think that it will end later today.
This is not a brilliant All Black Side but should still be enough to win.

 

[Eeyore]

I don't think we could have asked much more from England, but I don't think we got any more than we hoped for.

I feel sorry for Ireland, they were good enough to win this.

 

[keaton]

England got off to a fast start, their defending was good, they were excellent at the breakdown. best of all, they found a way to close out the win.

They are a work in progress, but to get that cohesion they need to slim down the squad, identify the players they want for the next WC and stick with them.

On the minus side, Smith at full- back didn't work, the retirement of Youngs, May and Lawes leaves 3 big holes and we didn't get our wingers into the game.

Lawes definitely. May has been in and out of the squad a fair bit and we've a lot of good wingers. And imho Young has been picked on his past for the last few years

 

[Brian Fantana]

Lawes definitely. May has been in and out of the squad a fair bit and we've a lot of good wingers. And imho Young has been picked on his past for the last few years

Agreed.

With the demise of Wasps and London Irish, and resulting exodus of English players from those clubs to France, I think the RFU are going to need to review the eligibility rules.

IMO, it is an absolute nonsense to not pick players based outside England.

If you look at SA’s squad for tonight, for instance, the following either play or are about to play outside the country:

Pollard (England)
Wiese (England)
De Klerk (Japan)
Kolisi (France)
Kriel (Japan)
De Allende (Japan)
Kolbe (Japan)
Vermeulen (Ireland)
Du Toit (Japan)
Mostert (Japan)
Kitshoff (Ireland)
Nyakane (France)
Kleyn (Ireland)
Snyman (Ireland)
Smith (Japan)
le Roux (Japan)

So 16 out of a match day squad of 23 play outside the country. The argument from the RFU that they need to have total control of where their players are playing etc in order to be successful just doesn’t stand up to logic.