Hesi Posted August 10, 2019 Share Posted August 10, 2019 Good to see Aus playing rugby like they used to The result aside, but why do the AB's play the world's classiest and best first five at fullback Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Globederby19 Posted August 11, 2019 Share Posted August 11, 2019 Good question Hesi. Ben Smith was hardly in the game in his position. But something needs changing. We seem wooden on attack, no change of direction, no running on to passes at speed, loop arounds etc, just shuffling the ball sideways. Good players but no spark.(yet) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brown fox Posted August 11, 2019 Share Posted August 11, 2019 And why are all halfbacks these days obsessed with the 'chip over the top'? More often than not they are just giving the ball away. Once in a while is fine but with some it seems to be 80% or more 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sandpiper Posted August 11, 2019 Share Posted August 11, 2019 It wouldn't be a World Cup year without a loss or two this time of year! Shaping up scarily similar to 2015 especially with the final Bledislow match to follow at Eden Park. The northern hemisphere lot are leaving their warmups late, Wales have 2 x England and 2 x Ireland warmups still to play. I gather the Wales Ireland games may be more of a squad fixture. Not ideal imo .. prefer the southern hemisphere warmup of a hard Rugby Championship followed by (in the AB's case) a single match v Tonga. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hesi Posted August 11, 2019 Author Share Posted August 11, 2019 4 pt win vs Argentina, draw with the Boks, well beaten by Aus You are living on hope and not realistically assessing the situation if anyone thinks we can retain the WC Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sandpiper Posted August 11, 2019 Share Posted August 11, 2019 How would you price it up Hesi? Currently it is ABs 2.6 England 7 Wales 10 Ireland 10 Boks 6.2 Wallabies 15 France 40 Scotland 65 Argies 50 I might even up the top 6, perhaps something like ABs 3.4 England 7 Wales 8 Ireland 8 Boks 8 Wallabies 10 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hesi Posted August 11, 2019 Author Share Posted August 11, 2019 I'll have a go during the week Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hesi Posted August 12, 2019 Author Share Posted August 12, 2019 A work in progress 3 teams, all SH, have dominated the RWC, AB's, Aus and SA The only NH team to win has been England France have made 3 finals, England 2 Wales at best has finished 3rd and 4th Ireland, for all it's good form in 6 nations and other, has never made the last 4 The AB's do not have those once in a generation players like McCaw, Carter and Kaino, also the experience of Conrad Smith, Nonu, Julian Savea. They will cut the lesser teams to ribbons, but the top teams seem to have found their measure. The results to date show that. Too much player rotation? Argentina the dark horse The usual also rans, who might cause one upset, like Scotland Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Globederby19 Posted August 12, 2019 Share Posted August 12, 2019 22 hours ago, Sandpiper said: How would you price it up Hesi? Currently it is ABs 2.6 England 7 Wales 10 Ireland 10 Boks 6.2 Wallabies 15 France 40 Scotland 65 Argies 50 I might even up the top 6, perhaps something like ABs 3.4 England 7 Wales 8 Ireland 8 Boks 8 Wallabies 10 I will have a 100 bucks worth of the BOKs at 8,s. My dark horse for the Cup. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sandpiper Posted August 12, 2019 Share Posted August 12, 2019 Yes there wasnt a whole heap to fear on display Eng v Wales on Sunday. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hesi Posted August 12, 2019 Author Share Posted August 12, 2019 POOL A IRELAND SCOTLAND JAPAN RUSSIA SAMOA POOL B NEW ZEALAND SOUTH AFRICA ITALY NAMIBIA CANADA POOL C ENGLAND FRANCE ARGENTINA USA TONGA POOL D AUSTRALIA WALES GEORGIA FIJI URUGUAY Winners/runners up Pools A and B, C and D play off in the quarters/semis I'll wait till after Sat to see if Aus can duplicate their effort at Eden Park, not necessarily win, before putting up my market Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pete Posted August 13, 2019 Share Posted August 13, 2019 It's hard to shake the feeling that Ian Foster is being lined up as the next AB coach and equally hard to escape the feeling that he is the cause of a lot of the problems with the ABs at the moment. I'm struggling to work out how he's ended up in this favoured position based on his largely uninspiring coaching record. Others may disagree. It's also impossible to understate how important Brodie Retallick is at the moment. It's all gone quiet on his expected return which is slightly ominous. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hesi Posted August 17, 2019 Author Share Posted August 17, 2019 Better put up a market sometime today Bridge and Reece had impressive debuts Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hesi Posted August 21, 2019 Author Share Posted August 21, 2019 My market, I still have the AB's as fave, but a bit longer, as while any AB team is a good one, I don't think this is a great one AB - 5 Aus, Boks - 7 England, Wales - 8 Ireland - 12 France, Argentina - 15 Scotland - 50 Italy - 100 Japan, Samoa, USA, Tonga, Fiji, Canada - 250 Georgia, Uruguay, Russia, Namibia - 500 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sandpiper Posted August 23, 2019 Share Posted August 23, 2019 On 8/11/2019 at 2:29 PM, Sandpiper said: It wouldn't be a World Cup year without a loss or two this time of year! Shaping up scarily similar to 2015 especially with the final Bledislow match to follow at Eden Park. Its omious amd Ive seen enough! ABs 2.2 England 9 Wales 11 Ireland 10 Boks 6 Wallabies 12 France 24 Scotland 50 Argies 50 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hesi Posted August 25, 2019 Author Share Posted August 25, 2019 On 8/24/2019 at 10:43 AM, Sandpiper said: Its omious amd Ive seen enough! ABs 2.2 England 9 Wales 11 Ireland 10 Boks 6 Wallabies 12 France 24 Scotland 50 Argies 50 You might have to shorten up England and lengthen Ireland after last night's drubbing Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ngakonui grass Posted August 25, 2019 Share Posted August 25, 2019 Despite enthusiasm from the media and NZ hypers there are only 4 teams on the list that can win. Doesn't include Ireland,Scotland,France,Wales or,Argentina. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sandpiper Posted August 26, 2019 Share Posted August 26, 2019 On 8/25/2019 at 12:59 PM, Hesi said: You might have to shorten up England and lengthen Ireland after last night's drubbing Weird scoreline that after the Eng Wales results. Im basically confused about all the NH's prospects now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve Paul Posted October 26, 2019 Share Posted October 26, 2019 Go England... sorry, couldn't resist. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hesi Posted October 26, 2019 Author Share Posted October 26, 2019 Wasn't even close was it. The promising newcomers, when the real pressure went on did not deliver. Greatest selection mistake of all time, not having Beauden Barrett as the pivot. For all his skills, Mounga was missing in action and the transcendental skills of Barrett wasted at fullback. Well done England, even though they grate Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ngakonui grass Posted October 26, 2019 Share Posted October 26, 2019 End of an era methinks. Rettalick didn't get into the game. Whitelock to busy with off the ball issues. Sonny Bill over rated for years, Barrett in wrong position Mounga not the bright light we were led to believe he was Read imo still hesitant after back surgery ditto for Cane The win against Ireland led them into a false sense of Security,Ireland were crap against Japan. Too many people believed all the Media Hype instead of actually assessing the All Blacks without tinted glasses on. England were great/grate. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve Paul Posted October 26, 2019 Share Posted October 26, 2019 Eddie Jones Masterclass, it will be typical England to now lose the final. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ngakonui grass Posted October 28, 2019 Share Posted October 28, 2019 As Israel Adesanya tweeted "NZ incase you forgot,You still have an ALL BLACK CHAMP"" Great stuff by the guy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ngakonui grass Posted October 28, 2019 Share Posted October 28, 2019 Result aside i am glad Steve Tew is going. Club Rugby and Provincial Rugby have both died on his watch. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hesi Posted October 29, 2019 Author Share Posted October 29, 2019 Post Mortem Firstly, good luck to the many Poms and any South Africans that read this site I hear them on Radio Sport, asking what you will be watching to see of All Black rugby My answer to that, is that I will be waiting to see if NZ grassroots rugby can produce the next raft of once in a generation players over the next 4 years. It has always been said, that you need 4-5 world class players in a team to win the RWC, we had 1-2. Too many inexperienced players with potential, in the second most high pressure game that happens every 4 years. And that pressure showed them up. No Carter, Nonu, Bunce or Conrad Smith to steady the line. No class wingers who had been there done that(there was one, but he was not there, Ben Smith). No McCaw, Kaino, Fitzpatrick, Michael Jones etc to think on their feet, when you have a fired up English team coming at you at a million miles an hour. The NRL seems capable of doing it, can NZ rugby, which according to many is on the wane, as far as numbers go. Cam Smith, Inglis, Slater and Thurston retire, and are replaced by the likes of Tedesco etc Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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