Six Nations 2014

[Bardon]

Also taking Danny Care off after 61 minutes what a terrible decision. A great example where going with a preplanned switch for the last 20 was the wrong thing to do. Sometimes a guy is having such a good game that it outweighs the benefit of getting fresh legs on.

 

[Cardiffblue]

Saw that with Philips too. Webb was pants when he came on. Liam Williams not the player his old man was but at least he could pass

 

[Hugh Jarse]

There has been a thread about the great rivalry, and mutual respect, between NZL and SAF rugby.

What about the passion and rivalry between WAL and ENG rugby?

@CardiffBlue and many other correspondents seem to rather passionate supporters of the ABE* club. Love it!




*ABE - Anyone But England

 

[emuarse]

Emu the games are being replayed on ESPN2 which should be in your standard sports package. Albeit tomorrow evening. 3-5pm for ITA v WAL and 5-7pm for FRA v ENG. I think the SCO v IRE game is on the following evening.

Btw that is QLD time.


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Thanks for the thumbs up Scoey

 

[Cardiffblue]

There has been a thread about the great rivalry, and mutual respect, between NZL and SAF rugby.

What about the passion and rivalry between WAL and ENG rugby?

@CardiffBlue and many other correspondents seem to rather passionate supporters of the ABE* club. Love it!

last night was a perfect example of why. All week I've been reading the build up articles about how this was England's year and the French should show more respect to the orcs Then after they are flogged for thirty minutes using the same old tactics of brute force and ignorance and ultimately lose the game. Lord bald says how proud he is of them. Gusset announces that based on that performance orcs can look forward to a great year and invertwat says theenglish can take more from this than thefrench.

It's ridiculous. Not all the players fault but the hype certainly has produced some severely over inflated egos. Everything is done with an eye to tv ratings and for that Wales Ireland and scots have to lose.

If any of the last named had played like the saes and lost that way, the same crew would be writing our obituaries. It's why we even if some of the orcs are top blokes I hate them.

It's one of the reasons I like lions tours. It's good to see a few Orc players outside of the England set up and realise they are ok.

 

[Cardiffblue]

That was a fantastic game of rugby. England's power almost did it for them. But France's flare delivered in the end.

There was an interesting discussion on RTÉ about the size versus skill when picking backs given the way the game seems to be moving. It was good to see Fikou pop up at the end and put a tick in the skill column.

Both teams will take positives out of this. There's no doubt in my mind the French will take the most. They've delivered a performance in the 6Ns that has escaped them for a few years.

Think if you watch the game again without commentary or punditry youd think that France were god awful and hardly won any ball and what they did have they kicked away. But they got away with it. And orcland were godawful tactically and are still determined to play the same percentage power play that once won them the rwc and which doesn't work


England might actually be in better shape to have a tilt at the championship after this ? I don't think so.

 

[JSRF10]

Strange how weak Englands scrum has been over the past few years. Their scrum has been the weakest in the tournament for a few years and there doesn't appear to be any young scrummaging props coming through. They are all good ball carriers but can't carry out their primary function.

 

[Cardiffblue]

Don't like to say anything but there's a lot hanging on tonight. Gunnerdownunders predictions have held. Happy mine have not -cept for the bit about the orc frogs and us playing shit. I've got the Irish winning the mac vs mc match in the last minute

 

[JSRF10]

There has been a thread about the great rivalry, and mutual respect, between NZL and SAF rugby.

What about the passion and rivalry between WAL and ENG rugby?

@CardiffBlue and many other correspondents seem to rather passionate supporters of the ABE* club. Love it!




*ABE - Anyone But England

Its tough to like any team that contains Dylan Hartley and Courtney Lawes, poor cheap shot merchants. That said England are a lot more likeable than they were under Johnson. Stuart Lancaster has improved their image a hell of a lot.

 

[Cardiffblue]

A lovely Nigel Owens moment on the ref mike to an England player - 'You didn't know that law did you? How long have you been playing then?' brilliant...

 

[Cardiffblue]

Just watched recording on fast forward. Nyanga and picamoles kept them alive. Nyanja in particular was amazing. hugest was not motm. Still lots of questions about French team. Like, how can James hook get dropped in top 14 and the French national side pick such a godawful 10.

There is a god. His name is dieu

 

[Cardiffblue]

And how can France not have a better centre than fatbastard?

How can the torygraph rate him 7/10

Vuinipola won the battle of overweight centres. Probably could scrummage better than his brother

 

[Cardiffblue]

Its tough to like any team that contains Dylan Hartley and Courtney Lawes, poor cheap shot merchants. That said England are a lot more likeable than they were under Johnson. Stuart Lancaster has improved their image a hell of a lot.

Yup these two are the latest in a great tradition of pricks

 

[Cardiffblue]

1/2d - 5/10 not with the world today. worst game for Wales. Even his goal kicking was off, with an easy (for him) miss and several more that you could hear hadn't been struck properly and wobbled through the posts. Hopefully just a blip.probably being harsh but his standards higher than this.

Cuthbert - 6/10 plenty of threat with ball in hand but not in game enough

Scot and the Doc - 7/10 a good combination, Scot had some lovely distribution at times and Doc tidied up a lot of ball in the middle. Solid in defence. Foxy still better choice if fit tho

North - 5/10 He never looked comfortable under the high ball and should really have taken the cross field kick that Parisse knocked on. He got into the game later but not at his best.

Diocese - 5/10 good kicking game for the most part and some good distribution. Still not world class

Spikey 6/10 not at his best, nor his worst. Big step down to his replacements so he'd better stay fit

James - 4/10 Failed to dominate the scrum. Not great around the field. Hopefully melon back

Hibbard - 7/10. Usual insane tackling and go forward

Adam - 6/10 Solid in the scrum

Charteris - 5/10 didn't look fully fit

AWJ - 7/10 started well and got steadily better

Lydiate - 6/10 usual tackling performance

Toby - 7/10 Great work at the ruck and around the park. Would love someone like tips to go with him in hit ups

Tipuric - 6/10 copping some stick but I reckon he was good. Not sure his game suits gatland ball

 

[tranquility]

Has to be Frances year, on the back of the Lions tour and what not. Given how the respective sides play against Australia, I don't know how the French don't absolutely Rodger the Welsh. No offense intended!

 

[Cardiffblue]

Has to be Frances year, on the back of the Lions tour and what not. Given how the respective sides play against Australia, I don't know how the French don't absolutely Rodger the Welsh. No offense intended!

Cos whilst they consistently beat Australia they are not very good. Don't forget that France haven't exactly been inactive since last year. And top 14 is brutal

 

[the plastic paddy]

Strange how weak Englands scrum has been over the past few years. Their scrum has been the weakest in the tournament for a few years and there doesn't appear to be any young scrummaging props coming through. They are all good ball carriers but can't carry out their primary function.

Rowntree is quite hard to miss. The English scrum is more hyped than Justin fucking Bieber.

 

[the plastic paddy]

Its tough to like any team that contains Dylan Hartley and Courtney Lawes, poor cheap shot merchants. That said England are a lot more likeable than they were under Johnson. Stuart Lancaster has improved their image a hell of a lot.

I thought Lawes kept England in the game in that first half. Now he is trying to play rugby rather than hurt people he is starting to fulfil his undoubted talent. Hartley is a complete Nigel.

 

[Lee Grant]

Wales v Italy

This was a good effort by Italy with three 20-year-olds in their backline. One of them, 13. Campagnaro, is a future star, and he deserved his man-of-the-match award playing for a losing side.

There's not much of him, just scrumhalf size, but he's not afraid to tackle and has an old head when options have to be taken.

The Italy halves: 9. Gori and 10. Allan (another 20-year-old) weren't stellar, but it was one on the best Italy pairings for a while.

Parisse was close to being the MOTM also: Italy should try to clone this bloke because he makes everybody else play better.

Italy scared Wales with a try just after oranges and another with about 12 minutes to go, both by the MOTM—but the easy first try to Wales, assisted by the unfortunate defensive efforts of the the third Italy 20-year-old, and a few missed kicks at goal, put paid to an unlikely win by the visitors.

Wales was poor after the break and ordinary before it, but at least they won their opening game this year, unlike last. They reminded me of the Wallabies most years: scratching around for form in their opening games.

Faletau was superb once more and it was grand to see the two dominating no.8s, of different styles, playing against each other.

Neither scrum is prospering now the power-hit has been outlawed, in effect: Adam Jones and Castro don't seen to be the influential scrummaging props they once were—if Castro was ever that.

France v England

France had a horror year in 2013, though touring NZ is never good for stats. Now they need only two more to beat their 2013 tally of two wins.

England, like Italy in the first game, got a frightful start and should be commended for coming back from being behind 13-3 after 17 minutes.

6.Billy Vunipola didn't deserve to be in a losing side as he ran over more Frenchmen than the Panzers did. 9. Care seems to be back to good form too, and 5. Lawes was strangely decent.

France had commanding periods in the first half but the Poms were all over them in the second and took the lead 21-16. Were in not for a flaky lineout ball, on attack, thrown by replacement hooker Youngs, things might have been different for England—and worse, the mistake allowed the theatre of the Fickou try for France.

I thought Dusatoir was going to be missed more but flanker Nyanga stepped up, and 8. Picamoles was Picamoles. Winger Huget was occasionally brilliant and hard to handle: sometimes I think we forget how big he is.

The France bench was superior and the appearance of the game-breaking Fickou was just right. He and Fofana are going to be in the France midfield for yonks.

A very good Day 1 for 6N I thought.
.

 

[Wales Fan]

LG

Excellent summary.

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