Recent content by kandos

I was unfortunate enough to watch Northampton v Saracens over the weekend. In fact I gave in after the first half. It's why I can't wait for the SH season to start over again. It was dreadful. Also can't remember seeing any great French Top 14 for a long time, to the point I can only stomach the...

Martin Johnson was a totally uncompromising player like Colin Meads and I believe that England wouldn't have won in 2003 without him. Those great players you mentioned don't exist anymore in League since they dumbed down the rules. You don't get ball playing forwards like McTigue or Beetson...

I'm surprised and disappointed that Burgess left and didn't stick with it at Bath. Press unfair - in some cases yes, but in general no. There was a big furore when he was selected, which is fair enough, but some other stuff wasn't. David Walsh (mainly a cycling journo) in the Sunset Times did...

34-17 looks close to a blow out. For me it did not reflect the game. I also stated the AB's deserved their win, but I think they were assisted by poor reffing decisions.

The AB's deserved their win, but I was disappointed in Owens. I thought he was very average and couldn't believe the forward pass that didn't get called back. Someone said he asked Barnes whether it was forward, which for me is a cop out. It was one of the most blatantly forward passes I can...

I keep hearing about French flair, but that disappeared years ago. They used to be a pleasure to watch, but not anymore. Watching the Top 14 in France is like watching paint dry. It's become so forward dominated that backs don't stand a chance. The AB's showed how it should be done.

I would like to go back to lineouts without lifting. For me it's a better contest for the ball. However, with uncontested scrums it penalises the Union team in having something the League players cannot compete with. Then there are the safety issues of a League player getting seriously hurt in...

Trying to compare the two codes is pretty futile IMO. They have never been so far apart, hence the reason it's almost impossible for a League forward to become a Union forward. I think it was Ian Heads described League as the 13 backs game, but that was a long time ago. The 6 biggest and slowest...

Runner Gunner - Perhaps you should read the Sunday Times for the regular pot shots by Jones and Barnes. Now they have David Walsh on his case with a hatchet job in last week's rag on Burgess. Barnes did criticise Robinson quite heavily in a TV broadcast when Robinson played for Bath before he...

Criticism of Sam Burgess in the UK media over the Welsh defeat: Most gave him a fair crack in my opinion. On the various ratings he scored OK apart from the Sunday Times, which has a hate campaign against anyone having the cheek to switch from League to Union. So, whilst everyone else blamed...

No, I doubt that he would. He's between a rock and a hard place. Lacks pace to be a flyer in the backs, lacks knowledge yet to be an outstanding back row, which I believe is where his future is. And as you say, the learning curve is very steep. The codes have never been so wide apart, so it's...

Sam Burgess: I've always thought there's no guarantee he would make it in Union, but if attitude is to go by he's winning people over with the way he handles himself. However, it's what he brings to the table as a person and his ability as a leader and to pump up those around him to better...

No, French League would never be kicking arse because Union was always more popular and had a higher profile. League got a leg up in France when the Union team was booted out of the 5 Nations in the 30's, so many of its best players switched over to League and then switched back later.

Ah, the machinations of French Rugby. What people don’t realise is that ‘professional’ is a misnomer when it comes to League because it was the true amateur game in France. Any money in Rugby was in the hands of Union. Remember that the French were booted out of the 5 Nations due to...