Rolling Rugby Thread

baboon2004

Darned cockwombles.
distraught that england won (didn't see the match, following on Guardian MBM). If as much because one upset needs to happen, not the near upsets that have been happening today. Thats' the problem with rugby vis-a-vis football - those Senegal-France, Cameroon-Argentina moments happen all too rarely.

Of course Samoa are going to beat Wales, but I don't even see that as an upset any longer.

Hm, perhaps Scotland could beat England? Unlikely, but they'd bad enough to do it.
 

don_quixote

Trent End
i think the spread out nature of the rugby world cup is 1) unavoidable and 2) not neccessarily a bad thing

depends how long england last. i have a strong suspicion they can fluke their way to at least the semi final again.
 

baboon2004

Darned cockwombles.
Wales' loss was so fucking predictable. Get rid of Gatland, say I - we have a huge amount of talent (the back row was incredible yesterday), but the mental strength always goes lacking at the big moments, and that is the coach's main role afaic (see Ferguson, Clough, Mourinho etc etc). That game was almost impossible to lose - South Africa were shot at 60 minutes. Now we go to a quarter final against Oz if we even get that far, and 'valiantly' bow out again. How dull.
 

luka

Well-known member
i dunno mate. im not sure this world cup is going to be as predictable as the others. something weird is bound to happen and wales beating aus is not outside the bounds of possibility.
 

baboon2004

Darned cockwombles.
hmm, i'm not so sure, sadly. i think england may get farther than they should again, but that will be numbingly predictable. I predict (and it's a fairly obvious prediciton):


New Zealand - Scotland
France - England
Australia - Wales/Samoa
South Africa - Ireland

Australia v England
New Zealand v Ireland

Australia v New Zealand

Australia


Edit: actually, it could be a NZ-England final.
 

baboon2004

Darned cockwombles.
To be fair, i tipped Ireland to beat a SH team, just not the right one!

Hmm, NZ purposes would now be much better served by losing next Saturday against France.....they aren't going to fancy losing yet another SF to Oz.
 

baboon2004

Darned cockwombles.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/sport/2011/sep/19/rugby-world-cup-2011-samoa

he's absolutely right, hope he doesn't get disciplinary action just for telling the truth, (even tho' I support Wales, and, um, using the word 'holocaust' was ill-advised). The wya the Tier Two nations are treated is disgusting in geenral. Samoa, or at the very least a combined Pacific Islands team, shoudl be added to the Tri-Nations asap, so they can compete regularly at the highest level. It makes football look like a model of fairness.

Message to board/bored: More rugby interest required!
 

luka

Well-known member
id have more to say but australian tv doesnt show the rugby unless aus is playing. its very much a minority sport here, evn more so than in england i think. ive only seen nz vs tonga, aus vs ireland which was brilliant and i watched the first half of england vs argentina then i fell asleep. hopefully the knock out stages will be televised.
 

baboon2004

Darned cockwombles.
that's odd, but makes a sort of sense now, thinking about it. think how good australia would be if they could pick the rugby league guys too! Sometimes the codes thing is annoying.

i haven't seen too many of the games either in honesty, 'cos of the timing in the UK. Missed Ire-Aus, and shouldn't have done. I hope France-NZ isn't thrown by France, cos it could be a belter. Surely they won't wanna meet England in the quarters; and a semi-final is going to be difficult whether you're playing Aus/SA or Ire/Wales; dont' think semi-finals come easy.
 

baboon2004

Darned cockwombles.
that was amazing, but i am a big fan of Genia so it was unfrotunate it happened to him.

The Celtic nations produce some stunning back row players - it's Wales' greatest strength at the moment, for sure. France too, come to think of it.
 

baboon2004

Darned cockwombles.
god this rwc really needs to warm up properly. the spread of the games is really diluting any feeling of excitement. NZ massacred France on Saturday, and Argentina-Scotland, whatever the commentators said, was dire as a spectacle. That said, the QFs are shaping up to be extremely appetising, although NZ-Argentina could be a rout.

final thought: i don't have anything against the guy, but god mike tindall is an ugly man. like some kind of malformed ogre.
 

slowtrain

Well-known member
there have been a lot of drunken argentinians (argentines?) in work lately.

i do not know very much at all about sport.

although i do know my ex-girlfriends nearly got very severely beaten up just because he worked at the university in hamilton during the springbok tour
 

slowtrain

Well-known member
i also saw a midget walking out of the sleazy strip club when the... saturdays game? i can't remember that one now, fiji and someone - fiji lost anyway.

thats about the extent of my rwc cup experiences from here in the middle of everything
 

Sectionfive

bandwagon house
413185933.jpg
 

luka

Well-known member
no more dan carter. that leaves a bitter taste in the mouth. much less of a celebration of nz rugby now. i hope they can find a way to win without him.
 
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