@tim said in Rugby watching in Amsterdam?:

@kruse Can't you say you were using your UK office's VPN?

Yeah - that's what I'm hinting at, without outright stating it and showing knowledge of VPNs.

They aren't identical, I'd agree.

An on rewatching the Folau challenges, there certainly isn't the same 'pulling down' motion (that we can tell from the screenshot, anyway).

I'm not suggesting Kearney deserved a yellow card or suspension, but there does need to be more clarity in the laws about what contact is acceptable in the air in those situations.

It's clearly different on kick-offs, where players are trying to bat the ball back to their own side, and thus have a free hand they can use to stabilise themselves on the defending player.

@no-quarter My team was if Hansen was picking tomorrow.

Coltman - based on Harris having a Grade A shocker in his limited time in the second test and Aumua being a rookie Project.

@catogrande said in 2018 June Internationals:

England are looking good too.

Every silver lining has a cloud 🙂

@chris-b said in Kiwi Teams - The Last 3 Rounds:

Generally, among the competing NZ teams, the home team has won - only exception I think is the Crusaders beating the Chiefs away - so I'd probably pick that one vs the Hurricanes to go to the Chiefs.

I'm not sure the Chiefs should get credit for the strong home records of other teams

So far they've had 3 home matches against NZ opposition:
Won 27-22 against the Highlanders
Won 21-19 over the Blues
Lost 34-20 to the Crusaders

So they snuck home against the easy beats and are 1-1 vs real teams.

@tewaio said in November in the NH:

@catogrande said in November in the NH:

@tewaio said in November in the NH:

I'm going to the Dublin game with a work hookup, corporate box and long lunch beforehand 😃 £50 Ryanair flights Saturday morning from London and an €80 AirBnB 15mins walk from the stadium, where the Irish host seems a legend already telling me to pack tissues.

Pornhub on stream as well. Sounds like a great host.

I knew as soon as I wrote that someone would go there....

It goes hand in hand really..

Check out this letter sent to Football365 regarding VAR at the World Cup. I found myself thinking of this discussion, and nodding my head in agreement. Obviously soccer-focused, but change a few soccer terms for rugby ones and it's on point

"Welcome to Rule Ball, people! Where teams compete to see how much they can cheat, con, harangue and play act. A competition to see how well they can manipulate and intimidate the referee enough to gain advantage for their team! The crowd can join in too! Forget about goals, it’s VAR referrals you’ve come to see and we can promise you plenty!!!!

Last night was abysmal. If there ever was a spirit of the game, it has well and truly been exorcised. As flawed as the ‘old’ system was, there was one thing absolute; the referee’s authority. It could be discussed, protested, deplored but not overruled. VAR, on the other hand creates doubt, uncertainty, indecision and ultimately panic. Yes, panic. I reckon some of these refs are bricking it when they hear something has gone to referral – “oh shit, what have I missed now!” Pomposity and arrogance are a good thing for a person being shouted at for being a “piston wristed gibbon” for close to 2 hours, especially when they need to control 22 baying idiots who expel any decency and sportsmanship from their character as soon as the whistle blows.

Sepp Blatter, for all his many faults, had a few decent traits. One of them was his guiding principle that the football played in the World Cup final should be the same as any match played anywhere on the planet at any level. And in that was included the rules and how they were officiated. What’s wrong with that? Elite footballers are already as removed from the general masses as multi-millionaire elite young athletes can be. Why not apply this one leveller?

Also people seem to be losing sight of what the rules are actually for. They are there to ensure a game of association football can take place. They overarching aim is that people play the bloody game. The stretching and use of rules for your own team’s advantage has been done probably seconds after the first set of rules were scratched down by posh toffs in top hats.

The offside trap is a great example – it wasn’t created so teams could step up to create an offside situation but that’s how the rule was bent to teams’ advantage. Ok, it happens. Now though, with the absolute authority of the referee removed, teams know that every rule is up for grabs to be bent, twisted, manipulated and the authority of the referee can be bypassed. Look how many players scream for VAR for everything!

For pity’s sake, we had a player geeing up the crowd to make noise as the referee went to the pitch side screen! While all that is happening the actual football has stopped being played. As I said, this is not the purpose of the rules. The rules are there principally to ensure a game of football can take place. The referees are taking centre stage too often in this World Cup through no fault of their own. That is not the purpose of football.

In conclusion, I would just like to ask how is anything improved by a 100% adherence to the rules. Not just football, anything? It leads to pettiness and the small minded taking charge of situations as they’re the only ones with the will to make sure every rule is followed. What we have at the moment is Ruleball. I want to watch football. Scrap the whole VAR nonsense, bring back Blatter’s guiding principle and let’s encourage teams and supporters to try and actually play instead of creating situations for VAR review."

@kirwan said in The Rewatch (All Black vs France, June 23, 2018):

That was an awesome read, thanks @gt12 for taking the time to do that.

Agreed, very good work.

@victor-meldrew I met him at a reception following the Munster-Eagles game of 2008. What a solid guy. He held my baby boy for a picture and I found out after we got home that they shared the same birthday! All the best to him for a happy and healthy retirement.

@crucial said in Bokke v Engerland Test 3:

@disgusted-of-tw said in Bokke v Engerland Test 3:

@crucial Surely they can get hairstyling and makeup tips elsewhere?

It's the good good luvvin' they are after.

(It's us that ask for the hair and makeup tips during the pillowtalk)

Nice try mate but you've been schooled.

Last one.

Good by France. NZ under pressure on second shove. NZ maybe trying to be a bit too clever here?
Scrum 13

@mn5

McGrath had a habit of walking into sledging responses and should have learned to STFU as he was useless with the verbals and it affected his bowling.

Like Hadlee, he was too good a bowler to need that crap anyway - something van der Merwe should think about

@mariner4life said in WALES JUNE TOUR: SA IN DC, ARGENTINA:

wait, didn't i read that the kid got 6 weeks for making a pretty funny joke?

Moriarty was smart - by whispering those sweet sweet promises of death and pain, and a couple of mum gags, into the guys ear - nobody could hear what he said - couldn't be reported for saying those mean, mean things.

@rotated said in 26 December 2019 at the MCG:

The article mentions a 3 test series - fantastic - would that mean the New Year's Test in Sydney is on the table?

Solid point! Last Sydney NY test I went to was Aus v SA and it was excellent.

@billy-tell said in Wallabies v Ireland III: The Decider:

Schmidt not including Ringrose is a massive mistake IMHO. If he wanted to give Bundee another run he should have left out Henshaw.

Ringrose is injured. Otherwise, he’s a shoo-in for the 13 jersey. Henshaw is the best at 12.

Chris Farrell is also a good option for 13 for different gameplay. Liked him in the 6N

@crucial said in Most Capped Test Team of All Time:

@booboo said in Most Capped Test Team of All Time:

@duluth having said that, without doin any real research, and if were only talking the XV, there's 14 other starters who potentially had another 5 or 6 games each ... 6 x 14 = 84 ... may not make up for the loss of Woody?

According to my numbers (and I haven't double checked that I have only counted tests and not all games) the Argentina game pips the final

Final Pool game vs Tonga could be a shot. Similar side as Argentina but with 3 tests worth of caps in between.

Naholo for Savea drops it somewhat but the higher capped Kerr-Barlow, Franks and Messam replaced Peranara, Faumauina and Vito.

edit: saw Crucial beat me too it - but also that I missed McCaw out which makes a big difference.

Mike Brown answers his critics

I'm not a robot - Brown on fan row I'm not a robot - Brown on fan row

England full-back Mike Brown says he is "not a robot" after a verbal altercation with a fan following Saturday's defeat in South Africa.

@mikethesnow said in Wallabies v Ireland - Test #2 (Melbourne):

@rapido said in Wallabies v Ireland - Test #2 (Melbourne):

@samurai-jack said in Wallabies v Ireland - Test #2 (Melbourne):

That tighthead for Ireland (Furlong) is a beast, isn't he? Miles ahead of any tighthead in the game at the moment in my opinion.

I haven't watched the second test in full. But have read that Furlong was immense.

But in general, I think Furlong is maybe the most over-rated player in world rugby.

That's not to say he isn't good. And more importantly that he isn't extremely promising as he is still very young. He is fantactic in the loose (was great in Chicago) and I have every expectation that his scrummaging will eventually get to the world class state.

I watched the Lions scrum last year with much interest and was extremely unimpressed with all 3 tightheads in the scrummaging, and my opinion is still influenced by that. They weren't just unimpressive in the tests they were unimpressive against all the SR teams starting front rows (except Hurricanes IIRC). Furlong and Irish scrum was also poor last week v Aussie scrum when he came on as a sub.

To digress. Australian scrummaging is right up there now.

Taniela Tupou is I think going to be worryingly fucking good. I really thought that guy had chosen the wrong sport when he left school (would be a phenomenon in League). But his scrummaging seems to be getting up to speed scarily rapidly. He is still a beast in the loose even v grown men.

I think NH scrummaging is a bit of a current myth, including the French, it may have been true 5 to 10 years ago. But - Owen Franks who I would have rated the best tighthead in the world after last year, got completely owned on the weekend. So ..... take from this post what you will ... a brain dump rather than a hard theory.

The Wales B pack smashed the Argie scrum on several occasions on Saturday night.

Will be interesting to see how the Argies go against the SH teams in The Championship.

I fear any chance of an upset win against Australia has vanished

The Argie scrum has generally been mediocre.

They have the reputation from the 1980s, the bajada, but the modern scrum is in fact the bajada.

But, big but, I assume Argentinian scrummaging prowess between world cup years is majorly impacted by who isn't playing (Top 14 and Premiership contracted players, Figallo etc)

P.S On further reflection on my posts above re: Furlong. I reckon I'm being too harsh saying over-rated. I'd be very happy having a young prop as promising as Furlong playing for my country. Absolutely awesome in the loose and in the breakdown, competent in the scrum with the expectation that his scrummaging will continue to improve.

Maybe not the complete package yet is the better phrase than over-rated.

Brooks Koepka isn't even a real name!