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Six Nations 2009
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Quite frankly, I think the tinkering with the rules that has been going on recently is making the game too even. Bring back proper scrummaging; definitely bring back proper rucking (you're on the wrong side of a ruck? Prepare to get the bejasus kicked out of you...) but ; all kicks at goal to be drop kicks; players to be onside at kick-off; you're allowed to be off your feet to protect your own ball at the ruck.
that way, sides will be forced to pick forwards with scars and cauliflower ears and the days of some pretty boy 7 standing on the wing will end rapidly.
If I wanted to watch a game of overcrowded rugby league, I'd watch, er, rugby league...
plus, bring back the rolling maul
and stop the fecking ping-pong
Bloody hell
can't believe what I'm watching
you lucky bugger Siegfried, being there
Oh b*gger
If I'd known what a stuffing France were going to get I'd've taken longer at the Hastings Half
Well done England
Need to sort the scrums out as #1 priority. Possibly reintroducing proper rugby shirts that the props can actually get hold of would be a good start.
Good point, well made D74. There are too many penalties given away by the props because they have nothinbg to grab hold of!
Good game from England. Can someone please explain why they haven't been playing like that all season? We kept all 15 on the pitch for all the game, ran the ball in the first half and low and behold stuffed the Frogs out of sight!
PS - maybe so, if we just pick the england team
excellent
So, Ireland for the Grand Slam?
no I think wales will beat 'em
In fairness then apart form the Italy game they have been playing similar to that, just got pinged more by the ref. I really don't think that we were any better disciplined, the second half was darn fine line and if the score was closer then Dickinson should have (and would have) sent someone to the bin. Then again, he'd been a bit lenient in not threatening a yellow card to the french in the first half. Having said that Borthwick very visibly read the riot act when the final warning came, although perhaps he should have done more sooner?
I'd been calling for Shaw to come back into the team, but having seen yesterday's perforomance then I think I was probably wrong there, I think he's had his time.
So, my new ELVs to improve the game:-
1) All props to wear baggy old skool tops, can wear skin stuff underneath and hence we actually get scrums. 3 collapsed scrums in a row and both front 5s have to immediuately do a lap of the field. Should encourage them to keep it up.
2) Can't drag down a maul;
3) Scrum half to be thrown into middle of scrum on opponents signal as punishment for rugby league style feed;
4) Once ball becomes playable at the back of a ruck then you have 10 seconds to play it before it is deemed 'out' regardless of anyone standing behind with their foot sticking out.
5) Jonathon Davies to be barred from entering Cardif, Twickenham, Paris, Edinburgh and Dublin for the months of February and April;
6) Add more of the French overhead cameras to all grounds to discourage constant ping pong by adding in the random factor of hitting a camera and effectively being charged down from 60 foot up in the air.
Suddenly remembered why I'll be supporting Scotland on Saturday...
Will also be supporting Ireland against Wales. I feel they really deserve at least the Championship and hopefully a Grand Slam as well.
Hard one, as whilst Ireland may deserve the championship they don't deserve the Grand Slam in my opinion. I admit this is in part that Stringer is still playing and still the second most slapable face in rugby (after Matt Burke). We'll (England) lose to Scotland on Sunday. It's the way it works. We beat the French. The Scots beat us. It's just the way it works.
Not sure about Marius Jonker as a ref. Could go either way. Just hope he lets the scrums happen, although as highlighted above, I don't think that's possible at the moment. I do wonder if changing the engagement to have the front rows bind first, then have the second rows and back row bind on would work?
So in summary, I'll be hoping for a draw in the Wales v Ireland game, as I think that would be the fairest result on the balance of the tournament. In terms of the personhal standings then it should be Ireland, Wales, England and France joint 3rd, Scotland and Italy also joint. Neither England of France deserve to finish 4th.
Fair play to England-a thumping victory,which I think emphasises that there isn't a lot between the teams this season.Everyone looks really good on their day,but can be absolutely horrible the following weekend (or even following half).
I can't remember such an uneven 6 Nations,in terms of performances and I agree that the latest law changes need to be looked at again.Aimless aerial ping-pong is awful (I thought we'd seen the last of that circa mid-90's) and the field looks more clogged up with players than ever.
I still think Wales will beat Ireland next weekend.Ireland simply haven't looked that good and I feel we will finally turn it on next Saturday.Ireland will still win on points difference,which will be just about right,but I don't see them as a Grand Slam team somehow.
Well no one seems as bad or as good as everyone makes out. I'm getting a bit annoyed at the pundits taking one performance out of a series in isolation e.g. England v. Wales or France v. Wales. England were bad but that didn't make them a rubbish team. France were good but that's not enough for a successful season.
At the end of the championship if England finish 2nd it will be deserved. They are the top try scoring team after all - where's the gritted teeth smiley when you need it?
If we're going down that route then there's a fair few points that we gifted away that should be knocked off the records as well then!
Yep, another game when England scored 5 lucky tries
I seem to remember posting that Italy were a better, albeit negative, side than people were giving them credit for when they played England. Ireland also scored 5 lucky tries against them. Wales scraped a win. Draw your own conclusions...
After Wales performance against Italy, they may become as unpredictable as England!
I have to say that game against Les Blurrrs had me checking the Vino bottle , just to make sure it was Italian wine and I was not on the third bottle and seeing things.
Cannot see Ireland blowing it?
ID74 wrote (see)
I would bet ,but all my money´s saved up for Ice cream in May, you know how it is
I live very close to Wales.
Come on Ireland.
Hope to see at least a couple of changes to the Wales "1st team" on Saturday.Please play Ryan Jones at no.8-Powell has been well and truly exposed as a "one trick pony" and was awful against Italy.
I would also like to see Henson and Shanklin start at centre.Henson made the first Welsh try and has that little bit extra compared to Robinson who,again,seems to have been sussed out by oposition defences.
It's disappointing that Wales seem to have regressed from last season,although I still think we'll beat Ireland.I feel the weight of history will affect the way Ireland play-their last Grand Slam was 1948 for goodness sake-and I don't believe this ireland side is a patch on the one that beat England at Croke park in 2007.That was one of the finest team performances I've ever seen,but they still didn't win the Grand Slam that season.
I am still recovering from Sunday. Wonderful day out at Twickers in the sunshine though the bemusement of the crowd in the opening 40 minutes was very entertaining. Wonderful.
I wonder when I am going to get my voice back though?!
Michalak's back!
OK, I know the game against Italy is a bit of an irrelevance now and I suspect it won't be a great spectacle and maybe France won't even win but at least I may get a glimpse of the gorgeous Flaky Freddie on the bench...