[Fid]

That was a cracking start. Really enjoyed Wales v Ireland - Irish just a bit too street wise when it mattered after a stirring Welsh fight back. I thought only 2 yellows was generous given the amount of slowing down that he Irish were doing. If BOD stays fits then a final Lions fling seems likely but the Welsh centres disappointing generally. Tipuric was excellent when he got on and if he carrys on will definitely make the squad.

Calcutta cup needed England to push on, to show that AB victory no fluke. They certainly did that with a strong offloading game - Robshaw and Wood both improving their case for the Lions. Liked12trees on debut and Launchbury could prove the surprise package for Australia. So now les Bleus and Italy to look forward to and then an intriguing game in Dublin next week - should answer a lot of questions about both teams

[Hinter]

Three cracking games this weekend, and bloody well done Italy! The sweaties are already looking at another wooden spoon...

[Fid]

What a cracker this afternoon - will make next week even spicier - even more to play for in every game. France v Wales will see boh teams desperate to get back to winning ways and Scitland v Italy could be a very open game. And then the big one in Dublin - mmm tasty!

[masan's saddle]

Now my hangover, disappointment and rage have subsided I can comment on the weekend. First well done Italy ! 2 on the bounce at home to the Frenchies is a fantastic achievement and thoroughly deserved. They look to have developed some semblance of attacking back play and with their usual grittiness up front it was enough for a strangely listless and directionless France. Playing Michalak at 10 is always a gamble as he's currently playing 9 for his club team and it showed. Primarily though Kudos to the Italian pack who did a number on France at the ruck and slowed them down very well (much like Ireland did against Wales.....seethe.....).

England looked pretty good against a competitive Scotland. I thought the 2 locks Parling and Launchbury were excellent whilst Farrell could make the Lions tour if he keeps developing. Performance of the day though has to go to debutant Billy Twelvetrees, threatening in attack and solid in defence he carried his club form over perfectly, he also has the best name in the tournament. On a seperate point I think Robshaw could be a pretty good outside bet for Lions captain. BOD would probably be everyone's favourite for the role but Robshaw has a very quiet, competent and efficient air about him, he was everywhere yesterday in attack and defence. He did nothing stella, just led by example and that is what a Lions captain needs to do.

Fucking Wales.

Where to start. Don't get me wrong Ireland were pretty good for the first half an hour and for about 5 mins at the start of the second half, other than that they were offside at every ruck with lazy runners, sticking their hands where they shouldn't and generally tackling non stop or being stamped on. Why the fuck did the ref leave it so late before yellow carding them ? They were warned on 2 occasions I can remember and after watching the game on TV ( I was at the game) I am rather pissed off. Now this doesn't detract from how fucking dreadful Wales were for the entire first half. Handling errors, loose passes, missed tackles and awful defensive positioning they were quite frankly shit. I am getting tired of watching what is essentially a very talented and dangerous young team losing games they should be winning. If they can be arsed to start next week's game like they started the second half they could do well. Tipuric has to play at 7, Hibbard at hooker, Ryan Jones will come back, probably at the expense of Shingler or the otherwise OK Coombes as Howley will not drop Warburton but shift him to 6, even though on current form he should drop him. Wales need to change their game plan a bit and if that means dropping some of the monsters in the backline for some smaller more creative players so be it.

Rant over.

A couple of positives, Halfpenny outplayed Kearney, barring injury Faletau is the Lions 8 as he battered Heaslip off the park. Also, my friends and I managed to hurl abuse at Ronan O'Gara for a good 15mins whilst he warmed up in front of us. Fair play to the twat he was a good sport about it.

Meh, i'm not going to try and predict anything until I see next weeks team, Fucking Wales.

[masan's saddle]

Also Wales v France next week means Butler and Moore should be commentating. If so I'm playing this one, I'll be shitfaced by halftime.

 485962_10151254130307339_940038063_n.jpg (72.54K)
Number of downloads: 0

[Fid]

masan, on 04 February 2013 - 05:42 PM, said:

Also Wales v France next week means Butler and Moore should be commentating. If so I'm playing this one, I'll be shitfaced by halftime.

485962_10151254130307339_940038063_n.jpg

Moore introduced te word otiose into hs first sentence last week - he had been tipped off by Dai Lama.

And I agree about the yellows - should have been 3 at least

[alt146]

I've only managed to catch bits and pieces of highlights, since I was out watching the Bulls on Saturday and the Proteas on Sunday My limited thoughts are:

England look like they have a cracking squad this year - decent flyhalf, good pack
Italy ran some great lines, definitely deserved the win.
Sean Maitland is about as Scottish as I am. Him and the fullback seemed pretty much it for the Scottish attack.

Also, it really helps if more than half your fantasy team are actually in the squad come gameday

[Tiste Simeon]

I know what is happening... England are going to be on top form all the way through, about to take the Grand Slam, and then lose to Wales. And I'll never hear the end of it...

[Tapper]

Fuck you St. Andre.
Fofana as an outside back,, keeping Michalak, and when you bring your mercurial nr 10 Tren-Duc it is as a nr 14? Wtf.

I mean, Parra and Tren-Duc might not have won the game, but this was uninspired, shitty and playing into the Welsh hands - a team with 0 confidence.

[Fid]

Tapper, on 09 February 2013 - 08:36 PM, said:

Fuck you St. Andre.
Fofana as an outside back,, keeping Michalak, and when you bring your mercurial nr 10 Tren-Duc it is as a nr 14? Wtf.

I mean, Parra and Tren-Duc might not have won the game, but this was uninspired, shitty and playing into the Welsh hands - a team with 0 confidence.

I assume he has a fantasy team that contains no French players... France have been so off compared to their performance against the Wallabies. There is also no translation of club form to 6N. Having said that, I hope they carry on in the same mindset for Twickenham

[Fid]

That was very stressful - when Haskell was binned I thought England had blown it but huge composure and discipline subsequently resulted in a huge win. This team gas character and focus - hopefully they can repeat the success of Woodward's team this far out from RWC. I think we have some strong Lions candidates too - Robshaw as skipper? Farrell over Sexton at 10?

[masan's saddle]

Tiste Simeon, on 09 February 2013 - 08:30 AM, said:

I know what is happening... England are going to be on top form all the way through, about to take the Grand Slam, and then lose to Wales. And I'll never hear the end of it...

This is exactly what is going to happen. I have my ticket for the 16th March and am really looking forward to the England match as I reckon it will be the championship decider. Not too sure England will be going for the slam though, I can't remember the last time France lost 3 6 Nations games on the bounce and you are quite correct Simeon, you will never hear the end of it.

Tapper, on 09 February 2013 - 08:36 PM, said:

Fuck you St. Andre.
Fofana as an outside back,, keeping Michalak, and when you bring your mercurial nr 10 Tren-Duc it is as a nr 14? Wtf.

I mean, Parra and Tren-Duc might not have won the game, but this was uninspired, shitty and playing into the Welsh hands - a team with 0 confidence.

I didn't go to the game but I was actually in Paris for the week after the Wales match, God the Frenchies were miserable about it ! It was a dreadful game involving two sides under immense pressure and desperate to win. Wales just wanted it more, albeit aided by some absolutely mindboggling selections from St Andre and no discernible game plan that I could see. Yeh the Welsh defence was back to its best, but France were Bloody awful, beware England. I've just seen the French team, 7 changes including Fofana and Trin Duc. I fear England may be brought back down to earth. ( Well to be honest I don't "fear" more "eagerly anticipate")

Fid, on 10 February 2013 - 04:59 PM, said:

That was very stressful - when Haskell was binned I thought England had blown it but huge composure and discipline subsequently resulted in a huge win. This team gas character and focus - hopefully they can repeat the success of Woodward's team this far out from RWC. I think we have some strong Lions candidates too - Robshaw as skipper? Farrell over Sexton at 10?

Yep, Robshaw is definitely my choice as Lion's captain and Farrell has outshone Sexton in both games so far. Gatland picks on form so he is in with a shout, depends who goes as first choice scrum half though, Phillips, Youngs or Care (Murray is an outside bet), and who plays inside centre. No one is really sticking their hand up at the moment although a good performance from Roberts tomorrow will help.

I reckon France v England will be a cracker and possibly a high scoring game. France usually don't do too well at Twickers but what with the changes to the French team and the possibility of losing 3 in a row I think they will come out and target Farrell, Robshaw and Hartley. A few yellow cards methinks, France to win by 3-7.

If Wales start quickly tomorrow they could blow Italy away. The loss of Parisse is MASSIVE for Italy. Their whole game revolves around him. Oh well, he should learn to keep his mouth shut and not gob off at refs. Warburton has been dropped, lets not quibble about injuries and whatnot, Tipuric is in the driving seat, Warburton is on the bench and I think it will do him good. I can't think of a better player to come off the bench to be honest and along with the return of Alan Wyn Jones(bench) Wales are looking pretty good, Need to start well though and not get bogged down in a grind upfront. Wales by 15+

I can't call Ireland Scotland. My heart says Scotland, my head says Ireland although they have a raft of injuries and suspensions. Errm, fuck it Scotland by 3-5

[Fid]

It is almost certainly going to go to the wire in three weeks time - which will make for a spicy occasion, if Wales beat Scotland in next game of course - which just became a rather big IF given that they are playing Scotland at Murrayfield and they just pickpocketed a win against Ireland with just 26% possession. So we have some pretty tasty match-ups ahead of us.

England winning against a French team that imploded through substitutions was good - they know they were not at their best but did what was required. In a way it was probably a good experience to not play at their best and squeak it with the assistance of Joubert - banish all cockiness before the last two matches. I cannot fathom St Andre's "plan" to revert to the disaster combinations of first two matches when the guys on the field were actually looking as if they could win the game, especially with Fofana and Picamoules showing their Top 14 and HEC form. I assume Lancaster will treat Italy as a one-off and try some different combinations.

The Welsh did what was needed against an Italy team that suffered without Parisse and they should be too much for Scotland next week, though Scotland were not meant to win against Ireland. Which brings us onto the imploding Irish - who had so much domination that they really should have cantered away with it. I admire the Scottish determination but they really should not have had any chance to come back. ROG now looks a liability as well. Ireland v France next week should be Ireland's but not a foregone conclusion.

One thing that this has done is throw open a huge number of questions for Lions selection. More Scots on the plane? The next two rounds will be riveting I am sure.

[masan's saddle]

Fid, on 24 February 2013 - 03:59 PM, said:

It is almost certainly going to go to the wire in three weeks time - which will make for a spicy occasion, if Wales beat Scotland in next game of course - which just became a rather big IF given that they are playing Scotland at Murrayfield and they just pickpocketed a win against Ireland with just 26% possession. So we have some pretty tasty match-ups ahead of us.

England winning against a French team that imploded through substitutions was good - they know they were not at their best but did what was required. In a way it was probably a good experience to not play at their best and squeak it with the assistance of Joubert - banish all cockiness before the last two matches. I cannot fathom St Andre's "plan" to revert to the disaster combinations of first two matches when the guys on the field were actually looking as if they could win the game, especially with Fofana and Picamoules showing their Top 14 and HEC form. I assume Lancaster will treat Italy as a one-off and try some different combinations.

The Welsh did what was needed against an Italy team that suffered without Parisse and they should be too much for Scotland next week, though Scotland were not meant to win against Ireland. Which brings us onto the imploding Irish - who had so much domination that they really should have cantered away with it. I admire the Scottish determination but they really should not have had any chance to come back. ROG now looks a liability as well. Ireland v France next week should be Ireland's but not a foregone conclusion.

One thing that this has done is throw open a huge number of questions for Lions selection. More Scots on the plane? The next two rounds will be riveting I am sure.

Agreed, fair play to Scotland they were very jammy to win that one, but Ireland were so profligate and did themselves no favours. Some of their Lions hopefuls are fading as well, Heaslip in particular, it would appear captaincy doesn't agree with him whilst O'Gara is a liability. If Scotland give Wales that much possession and territory they will get murdered.

I thought England didn't play particularly well and as you say were aided by some terrible decisions by Joubert, It seems he has a problem with France as he also reffed them out of the WC final by giving NZ a free pass at ruck time. Take off Tuilagi's dodgy try and combine it with THE WORST COACHING / SUBSTITUTION DECISION IN THE HISTORY OF SPORT and England may have been in trouble. Parra and Trin Duc were starting to boss the game and he replaces them with Michalak who is playing like an absolute turd at the moment. Meh, England deserved the win and to be fair at times are looking pretty good. Robshaw is fast becoming one of my favourite players to watch. His workrate is fantastic and he's at the heart of everything, definite candidate for Lions captain.

Wales were never going to be in trouble against an Italy without Parisse and an Italy with the worst out half in world rugby in Kris Burton. He is utter shite and when I saw he had been picked over Orquera I (like everybody else) knew exactly what kind of a game Italy were going to play. The problem with a kicking game is that it only works when your pack are going forward, Gethin jenkins, Adam Jones and later Paul James destroyed the Italian scrum and when Burton did kick it was at the wrong time, straight out or he saw it sailing back 60 metres over his head courtesy of Halfpenny (another definite Lion) or Biggar. In general it wasn't a great game partly due to the weather, an Italian side bereft of ideas and another shocking handling display from the Welsh backs, Roberts and Cuthbert being the major culprits. I reckon Roberts will go on the Lions tour but will not be assured of a test spot. His form has dipped massively over the last 2 years, due partly to injury and opposing teams double, and sometimes triple tackling him. That said defensively there are not many better than him. The other major negative from this game was that we didn't score more points which may prove costly at the end.

The next two rounds are going to be very interesting but a showdown in Cardiff would be great. We must beat Scotland first and hope England don't get a sackful against Italy.


Just for a laugh here is an attempt at a startin Lions XV based on current form and a bit of previous reputation !

15 Halfpenny (kicker)
14 Tommy Bowe (if fit)
13 O' Driscoll / Jonathon Davies (can't decide)
12 Tuilagi
11 North
10 Farrell
9 Phillips (Care is a close second but Phillips has the agression/ wind up factor)
8 Faletau
7 Tipuric ( It would have been Warburton, still could be. Gotta have a proper ball getting 7 against Oz)
6 Robshaw (capt)
5 AW Jones
4 Launchbury ( Parling, Gray and Ian Evans are pushing hard though)
3 Adam Jones
2 Best
1 Healy

Bench ; Gethin Jenkins, Dan Cole, Dylan Hartley, Ryan Jones, Parling, Danny Care, (wildcard !) James Hook, Hogg.

[Hinter]

Joe Marler has to be in the squad if only for comedy beard value.

[masan's saddle]

2 pretty dire games yesterday lacking in flair or real attacking intent. I fear this championship is puttering out into a fear driven, defence dominated affair, with no one really willing to take risks. I'm not sure if this due to the way the championship has panned out with potentially 3 (now 2) teams having a shot, combined with France and Ireland being crap (fear of losing) . Or whether it is indicative of a general lack of creativity in the backs.

Wales were never going to lose against Scotland and probably should have scored at least 2 more tries, but once again handling errors let them down. It's time Eli Walker was given a chance on the wing instead of Cuthbert who was dreadful yesterday. Warburton put in a MOM performance and showed why he will be going on The Lions tour, especially as it looks like Pocock has done his ACL and will miss the whole tour (Result ) The Welsh pack in general were pretty dominant and the 8 match losing streak is looking like a distant memory. 5 away wins on the bounce is pretty impressive, as is the fact they have not leaked a try since O'Driscoll's in the first game. One stat that staggered me from yesterday was that Halfpenny has not missed a tackle for over 2 years ! He had a pretty good game yesterday and totally outshone Hogg who is his main rival for the Lions 15 spot. He did miss 3 kicks that he normally would make but still managed a sackload in a game that staggeringly had the most penalty attempts in the history of test match rugby ! Thanks Joubert you fucking muppet. Granted there were a lot of stupid mistakes, primarily from Scotland, but his interpretation of scrum and ruck was mind boggling at times. How is a game supposed to flow and be entertaining if the pissing ref has got a choccie whistle ? He was more finickity than Wayne Barnes yesterday and that is no mean feat. Anyway it all sets it up nicely for next weekend where I will be shitfaced drunk and screaming from the stands hoping we ruin England's party. I do think England will win the championship but not via the slam. By the time they demolish Italy today they will have an unassailable points lead which will be too much for Wales to claw back. That said if Wales decide to start chucking it about who knows, but I doubt it.

France Ireland was another eye bleeder. Michalak at 10, AGAIN ! FFS. He played a bit better yesterday but still looked out of sorts. I have no idea why St Andre perseveres with him. He must have a game plan that involves him doing something but what that is I don't know, it is obviously not working. They did well to get a draw and Picamoles was immense, but if anything it showed that Ireland are still a team in transition and not as good as they keep making themselves out to be. Possibly BOD's last ever home game ? Shame he couldn't end it with a win but nevermind. The word legend gets bandied about a lot but he's the real deal. Ireland will really miss him when he's gone. A Lion's swansong would be well deserved, i'm just not sure that Gatland is that sentimental.

[Fid]

Decided not to make any commnent on the games until the England v Italy match was over. Going into this afternoon, my expectation was that England would win easily and would then go to Cardiff and lose. Having watched today's match I think Italy may have done England a favour as the coaches have something to work on this week. But before I look forward to that, what did we learn?

The Scotland v Wales match was horrible to watch, as much for Joubert's appalling performance at the scrum as well as the lack of any decent flow. Biggest plus point for Wales was the return of Warburton to some decent form. The Ireland v France match was interesting for both England and Wales as Steve Walsh will be the ref next week. Not as bad as Joubert but that is not saying much. Both France and Ireland will want to forget this season - especially the appalling injusry list for Ireland and a very sad sight seeing Reddan stretchered off at the end.

Today had England sharp for 10 mins but going wide too soon and then not executing, the story really of the first half but Italy showed great fight, led by Parisse, who showed he is a giant. Second half they carried on with the pressure and England just played badly, especially leading up to the try - Care's box kick dreadful and then sublime work by the Italian 10 to exploit the lack of width in defence, I was impressed that England did not concede anything on the goal line, which would have been easy to do. Hope Parling not too badly injured.

So next week, with Walsh blowing. Think that favours Wales with their back row speed at breakdown - England will have to be precise in clearing out the rucks to avoid being pinged. We will see Young and Farrell back - which will be a step up in the tactical kicking dept and then Care's sniping probably more beneficial in last quarter. both teams wilol look for dominance up front and suspect they may neutralise each other - line-out will also be close. Both the HBs likely to be good match ups and I think Wales will shade it in the back three, though they may wind Ashton up so much he plays a blinder. Centres might cancel out.

Head says Wales should win with home field advantage, and could nick more than 8 for the title and the bulk of Lions. Heart wants England to play like they did against ABs and just hope none of us are bitching about Walsh at 7PM next Saturday

[masan's saddle]

That's a really good point about Steve Walsh Fid and I agree that he will favour Wales at the breakdown. What will be interesting is that with Ryan Jones potentially out with a shoulder injury, will Howley go with Warburton at 6 and Tipuric at 7 ? England can get a bit isolated in attack and those 2 are like lightning. Wood and Robshaw will have to play very well to keep up.

I agree with pretty much everything you say with regards to cancelling out. The 2 most physical packs in the tournament will butt heads and how Walsh deals with the scrum in particular will be key. If Wales can slow England down at the fringes and target Care/ Youngs they will get something as I think scrum half is where England tick. Phillips will also be all over whoever England pick. I think Wales will also try and target Ashton. He was poor again today and kicking behind him or shoving North or Cuthbert up his arse will make him flap. Saying that he will probably have a stormer like you say and score a hat trick !

Lots of mouthwatering Lions match ups to look forward to as well. Phillips v Care/ Youngs, Jones v Cole, all 4 locks (as with Gray getting injured I think all 4 will go), Roberts v Tuilagi and the back rows. I reckon Robshaw, Warburton, Faletau, Wood, O'Brien and possibly Heaslip,Kelly Brown and Ryan Jones are on the plane. It will be interesting to see who England pick, still no Armitage, very strange.

My nationalistic fervour has taken over i'm afraid ! I'm going with Wales to win it all at a mental Millenium stadium.
Ticket, post match retsaurant and apocalyptic piss up are all arranged. I cannot wait for next weekend !

[Hinter]

Congratulations to Wales. Damn, that was hard to write:(

[Tiste Simeon]

Oh man tough evening being an Englishman in Cardiff... Outplayed on every level... :-(