RWC 2011 - Odd shaped balls

[Jnor]

Very droll, HJ.

 

[Hugh Jarse]

I just can't rationalise the IRB decision making.

Samoan commercial cheating = 10k fine.
Pommie actual game day cheating = stay away for 1 game.

Which act brought the game into greater disrepute?

 

[Ruggo]

With the pool matches over and the minnows going home, respect is one word that springs to mind. They came to the cup looking to have a go and they have been inspirational in punching above their weight. Respect has most certainly been earned and cheers boys for giving us some solid rugby and the opportunity to yell at the TV in support of you.

Discuss your favourate minnow moments.

 

[matty_k]

Kleeberger's beard.

Mike MacDonald from the USA.

and

Danie van Wyk (Namibia). Plenty of speed. Amateur. Is a brewer at Windhoek Lager

 

[Ruggo]

Georgia man handling the Poms.

Game 2 where Romania put up one hell of a fight against the Scots

The precision and Organisation of the way Canada play.

Russia leaving their first RWC with 6 tries.

Tonga putting the French away.

Poor Namibia, hopefully the draw is kinder to them next time.

Sadly a couple of sides who deserve to stay are going home. Samoa and Scotland were unlucky and victims of a stronger competition.

 

[tigerland12]

Sadly a couple of sides who deserve to stay are going home. Samoa and Scotland were unlucky and victims of a stronger competition.

Dam right, any other pool and they would have qualified.

 

[Hugh Jarse]

Who do you think "unfairly" qualified for the QF's over Samoa and Scotland?

IMHO NZRT, Saffers, Leek Eaters, Spud Bashers, Men in Gold all legitimate QF contenders.

Likewise Soap Dodgers, Le Frogs, and Los Pumas have played pretty ordinary rugby but ultimately winning footy and probably can count themselves a little lucky to still be there.

The Haggis's only played one good game, and they lacked the killer punch in that one.

Samoa and Tonga were probably unlucky, but this is the world cup tournament not a popularity contest. You need to have discipline, consistency, and the ability to grind out a win. As much as I loved their performance, they didn't have it.

If the Scots and Samoans had progressed to QF's by being in another pool, at the expense of one of my 3 "lucky to be there" teams, I wouldn't see them advancing to SF.

I think the "fairest" QF matches based on form would have been
1. NZRT v Les Frog
2. Spud Basher v Soap Dodger
3. Leek Eaters v Men in Gold
4. Saffer v Puma

with winner 1 v Winner 2 and Winner 3 v Winner 4 in the SF.

Biggest problem with all this theory and "form team" speculation is that players do not always listen to that.

At one level the Soap Dodgers v Les Frogs QF is the "easiest", and the winner doesn't deserve to progress to SF stage, however both teams have the depth of talent and ability to rise above their mediocrity displayed so far. The Soap Dodgers, know how to grind out a victory, and that is what RWC is all about.
At knockout stage it is not about winning by 30 points. It is about simply winning. 1 point is enough. 6-5 (2 pk vs 1 try) is the same victory as a 42-0 (6 t/6c vs 0) victory.

It is a brave fool that writes any of the teams off that have reached QF stage. Past form is nothing. The 80 minutes whistle to whistle is everything and in the Land of the Darkness this time of the year, the weather will be a factor.

 

[Ruggo]

The cheating Poms should not of advanced. They should of been striped of all points they got out of the game they got caught cheating. Somoa and Scotland can be their own worst enimies at times but they played the game fair and in the spirit it was intended.

 

[Hugh Jarse]

IRB puts two feet in its mouth

From the SMH today, by Paul Cully:

http://www.smh.com.au/rugby-union/rugby-world-cup/irb-puts-two-feet-in-its-mouth-20111005-1l7uj.html

The IRB's self-defeating and poorly thought out fines for the "Mouthguard Two" - Alesana and Manu Tuilagi - took another comical twist as The Times splashed a huge photo of the 'English' brother sporting the offending item all over its back page, guaranteeing the manufacturer more publicity than it would would have received if nothing had been done.

The maker, Opro, is presumably laughing itself silly at the prospect of a rush in orders, with every English kid who idolises Tuilagi now begging their parents for a similar shield. The IRB has handed down fines totalling £10,000 to the Tuilagi brothers but, at a guess, Opro would have had to shell out five times that much to book that much real estate on the back page of a national daily such as The Times during the World Cup. For good measure the paper also ran a smaller image of Alesana wearing his mouthguard. Some rules are best left ignored.

The J-A Samaranch's of the IRB Blazer Brigade in attempting to protect their commercial interests have wielded their two edged sword very cumbersomely. Ha Ha Well down Clowns.

Meanwhile onfield ball tampering and off field night club shenanagans goes effectively unpunished. FFS IRB it is the 21 Century now and you need to look after your brand more than just preventing titty bars in wellington handling out brochures, and punishing unauthorised mouthguard wearers. Nero, Rome, Fire.

Perhaps they have been sharing the same brand advisor as Marlon BrandO'Conner - of the Bieber Boy Brand.

$20000 US fine has gifted the IRB unauthorised mouthguard Brand $100000 US worth of advertising, and that is just in The Times. BRILLIANT.

 

[Slim 293]

England clearly should've been stripped of their points from the Romanian match.

The fact that they clearly cheated, and there's no lighter way of putting it, and went unpunished by the IRB is disgraceful.

 

[#1?]

IRB should have made more of the England "issues", a Captain who gets so drunk that he can't remember details of the night, players trying to filming sexual acts with hotel staff, Ball Gate. Not sure it is worth losing game points over, but some serious sanction should be applied to send a public message about damaging the IRB Brand.

 

[Inside Shoulder]

IRB should have made more of the England "issues", a Captain who gets so drunk that he can't remember details of the night, players trying to filming sexual acts with hotel staff, Ball Gate. Not sure it is worth losing game points over, but some serious sanction should be applied to send a public message about damaging the IRB Brand.

Branded mouth guards are more damaging to the brand


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

 

[Hugh Jarse]

This from the Belfast Telegraph:

It's May 25, 1987, and Trevor Ringland is lining up for Ireland's first ever match in the inaugural Rugby World Cup against Wales in Wellington. The Welsh team and their supporters had just given a hearty rendition of their anthem 'Mae Hen Wlad Fy Nhadau/Land of My Fathers'.

The Irish team, in contrast, stood on in silence. Then, over the tannoy, came a crackled tape recording of The Rose of Tralee. Ringland and the Irish players just looked at each other.

As the Ireland rugby team was drawn from both sides of the border, the decades-old protocol for anthems was that for games at Lansdowne Road in Dublin, Amhrán na bhFiann (The Solider's Song) was played while God Save the Queen was played for games at Ravenhill.

But no anthem had been previously played when the team was on foreign soil.

"Now there are many songs you are going to lay down your life for, but a really bad tape-recording of the Rose of Tralee was not one of them," recalls Ringland, who went on to win 34 caps for Ireland as well as play in two Triple Crown winning sides and represent the British Lions.
.

I recall watching the boxing at the 1990 Commonwealth Games, and the Northern Ireland competitor won gold. There was some problem with the PA system, so the young fellows coach picked up the microphone and sang "Danny Boy" IIRC.

 

[Hugh Jarse]

Romania had to get a replacement for their winger Catalin Fercu, one of Romania's best backs. He failed to board the team's flight to Christchurch because of his profound fear of flying.

This didn't go down well with some of his team mates who kept saying: "Fercu, Catalin."

That's Gold, Lee. Missed this first time round.

 

[Hugh Jarse]

Ain't that the Truth?

An extract from Gregor Paul's article in the NZ Herald on line today
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/rugby-world-cup-2011/news/article.cfm?c_id=522&objectid=10757651

Maybe by tomorrow night, that reputation will be restored. The Pumas aren't the gentlest bunch. The backs might as well head off and do some flower arranging, or shoe shopping as far as the Argentinian forwards are concerned. The backs are there for decorative purposes only - dainty ornaments to be viewed and admired but never played with.

 

[Hugh Jarse]

Loved this commercial. Specially the head twitch at 0:14.

[video=youtube;G58n7Jdul34]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G58n7Jdul34&sns=em[/video]

 

[Slim 293]

It's just a shame that the game is terrible, and doesn't actually hold the licences for most of the teams...

 

[mark_s]

Ian Smith on the radio this morning: Stephen Donald was out whitebaiting when the All Blacks were trying to contact him to let him know he was being brought into the squad. After seeing he didn’t recognize the number , he went back to whitebaiting and ignored the subsequent calls as well. The continual ringing of his phone made him check it again, and seeing the number was from his good friend Mils Muliana, he answered it. Mils told him the All Blacks have been trying to call him all day and to get himself to Auckland.

Smithy didn’t tell us how the whitebaiting turned out.

 

[Braveheart81]

Lucky the call came from Mils.

If he'd answered the previous calls telling him he'd been called up to play in the RWC, he'd have probably assumed it was a friend giving him a gee-up and told them to piss off.

 

[08umema]

Ian Smith on the radio this morning: Stephen Donald was out whitebaiting when the All Blacks were trying to contact him to let him know he was being brought into the squad. After seeing he didn’t recognize the number , he went back to whitebaiting and ignored the subsequent calls as well. The continual ringing of his phone made him check it again, and seeing the number was from his good friend Mils Muliana, he answered it. Mils told him the All Blacks have been trying to call him all day and to get himself to Auckland.

Smithy didn’t tell us how the whitebaiting turned out.

I never pick up unknown numbers. Poor guy probably thought it was a telemarketer!