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Post by zerimski on Sept 21, 2023 21:50:19 GMT
Richard Wigglesworth:
Erm... what?
Actual footage of the interview... |
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Post by Danno on Sept 21, 2023 21:51:16 GMT
You're an egg.
Also Galthie is a total fucking idiot running a virtually full strength side for this game. Now Dupont is on his way to hospital for a likely xray for a cheek/jaw fracture.
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Post by grey_matters on Sept 22, 2023 0:14:32 GMT
You're an egg. Also Galthie is a total fucking idiot running a virtually full strength side for this game. Now Dupont is on his way to hospital for a likely xray for a cheek/jaw fracture. Mental. He's the best player that I've ever seen* and has been potentially ruled out of his home WC due to fucking clownbag nonsense. *Yeah, its arbitrary. My context is post-1982 players with bonus points given to the amateur and amateur-to-professional transition. He's a golden nugget more than Zidane ever was (relatively speaking) for the soccerball, I hope he gets back, even if it means us going out at QF again (or later if that happens). |
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Post by Danno on Sept 22, 2023 0:20:18 GMT
I don't think it's a stretch to say the best scrum half you've ever seen
And SH is super important if you're going to play off 9. Which you will if you have a Dupont.
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Post by Danno on Sept 22, 2023 0:48:54 GMT
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Post by grey_matters on Sept 22, 2023 0:56:06 GMT
I don't think it's a stretch to say the best scrum half you've ever seen And SH is super important if you're going to play off 9. Which you will if you have a Dupont. Ah yeah, that's easy. But I mean player. Blanco, Campese, Fitzpatrick, Lomu, Johnson, (peak) Carling, Wilkinson, O'Connell, O'Driscoll, Carter, McCaw, whomever. Best there's ever been. Edit: mental block about a bunch of SA greats not added to that list. With the week that's in it it's probably a weird internal localised bias. But I'm still leaving them out! Apologies to user sport and others. |
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Post by Danno on Sept 22, 2023 1:33:57 GMT
Victor Matfield. Brian Habana I guess but his Sage adverts make me want him to vanish into orbit. Cunt. Frans Steyn. Bakkies Botha for being the biggest cunt in any sport ever.
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Post by elstoof on Sept 22, 2023 6:15:36 GMT
It really is a fucking cult of Farrell, the claims in Cipriani’s book don’t seem like an exaggeration at all |
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Ulythium
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Post by Ulythium on Sept 22, 2023 7:15:44 GMT
It's not as though Borthwick and Wigglesworth are great communicators in the first place, but they're especially bad at talking about Farrell without coming across as infatuated fanboys.
They're not alone in this, mind - every time *anyone* in the England setup is asked about Farrell, their eyes glaze over and they start spewing the same mindless, cultish platitudes. "He's our leader!" "He drives standards!" "He's a Test match animal!"
So fucking tired of it.
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sport✅
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Post by sport✅ on Sept 22, 2023 7:22:27 GMT
I don't think it's a stretch to say the best scrum half you've ever seen And SH is super important if you're going to play off 9. Which you will if you have a Dupont. Ah yeah, that's easy. But I mean player. Blanco, Campese, Fitzpatrick, Lomu, Johnson, (peak) Carling, Wilkinson, O'Connell, O'Driscoll, Carter, McCaw, whomever. Best there's ever been. Edit: mental block about a bunch of SA greats not added to that list. With the week that's in it it's probably a weird internal localised bias. But I'm still leaving them out! Apologies to user sport and others.  |
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Post by elstoof on Sept 22, 2023 7:56:38 GMT
Then why have england been so utterly shit for a number of years?
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Post by grey_matters on Sept 22, 2023 8:11:43 GMT
What's the minimum good result for England? A tight loss in a SF?
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Post by elstoof on Sept 22, 2023 8:30:16 GMT
A good result would’ve been failure to get out the group followed by a root and branch reform of the RFU, but that’s unlikely
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Post by zerimski on Sept 22, 2023 8:55:17 GMT
Then why have england been so utterly shit for a number of years? Example? I'm trying to teach my U17s not to be petulant toddlers and to tackle below the face.
Being facetious, I know what they mean. But he's never demonstrated good leadership behaviours in a public setting. Any time he's captain, you know that the moment things start going wrong for England, he's going to go full tilt and fuck everything up, dragging everyone else down with him.
Is that where they mean by setting an example?
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Post by Ulythium on Sept 22, 2023 8:57:00 GMT
A facial fracture has been confirmed for Dupont, with initial estimates talking about 4-6 weeks before he can play again.
Such a bummer, and it really calls into question the wisdom of risking your best players in such an unimportant match.
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Post by Ulythium on Sept 22, 2023 9:00:28 GMT
What's the minimum good result for England? A tight loss in a SF?
Or a QF, such were the low (bordering upon subterranean) expectations everyone had following the warm-up matches.
Even a trouncing in a SF would be "good" by comparison to what seemed likely before the tournament began.
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Post by muddyfunster on Sept 22, 2023 9:01:49 GMT
Speaking as a slightly more casual England rugby fan these days, I'd say the performances are as important as the results to me this time around. The expectation is that we should go into every World Cup as one of the favourites and we are miles off this time and that's more on the RFU taking too long to drop Eddie and then appointing Borthwich who appears to be a poor choice so far.
Given this one's a write-off (how I'd love this to be quoted back at me after the Final) the minimum is to feel like we are on the right trajectory to win the thing in 4 years' time: a steady improvement with evidence of coaching in the play, and not repeatedly making the same tactical errors. If individuals make errors in execution I can live with that provided they are coming from the younger players who will still be here in four years' time (e.g. Tom Curry).
Personally, I think it's acceptable to get knocked out by France, New Zealand, or South Africa whenever we meet one of them. I'd also be able to live with a narrow loss to Ireland so long as we make them play to their best to beat us. Plus Owen having a melt down whilst being knocked out of his final world cup (surely?) by his dad's team would be sort of funny.
Getting knocked out by anyone else is grounds for immediate dismissal, all hope lost, burn it down.
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Post by alastair on Sept 22, 2023 9:51:17 GMT
What's the minimum good result for England? A tight loss in a SF?
Or a QF, such were the low (bordering upon subterranean) expectations everyone had following the warm-up matches.
Even a trouncing in a SF would be "good" by comparison to what seemed likely before the tournament began.
There's a small* part of me that thinks they might do a 2007 and sneak their way to the final. *Very small. More likely they will lose to Fiji in the QF |
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Post by Ulythium on Sept 22, 2023 10:19:02 GMT
alastairI admire your optimism, my friend! Truth be told, I haven't looked into the QF/SF/final permutations yet, such is my lack of confidence in Borthwick's lot; accordingly, I don't how who England's possible opponents will be if they top the group (as seems likely, at this stage).
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Post by elstoof on Sept 22, 2023 10:43:58 GMT
It’ll be wales/Aus in the quarter, then whoever wins out of France and whoever’s second in Ireland/SA group. A fully undeserved trip
to the semis would be hailed as a good return on their investment in paying off Jones to get borthwick in place, pats on the back for everyone at the rfu
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Post by Danno on Sept 22, 2023 10:46:55 GMT
alastairI admire your optimism, my friend! Truth be told, I haven't looked into the QF/SF/final permutations yet, such is my lack of confidence in Borthwick's lot; accordingly, I don't how who England's possible opponents will be if they top the group (as seems likely, at this stage). Wales beat Aus on Sunday and we'll be 99% likely to have Fiji in the QF. Aus beat Wales, or they draw, and all hell breaks loose. |
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Post by alastair on Sept 22, 2023 11:07:25 GMT
I'm not sure it's optimism that says they might get there. But based on how they performed against Argentina with 14 there is something in the team that can grind out a win.
Even if they did get to the final I am quite sure they wouldn't win the whole thing.
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Post by zephro on Sept 22, 2023 14:01:56 GMT
I can't think past the Ireland game to get out the pool. It feels dirty but come on the Springboks!
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Post by alastair on Sept 22, 2023 14:47:41 GMT
I can't think past the Ireland game to get out the pool. It feels dirty but come on the Springboks! I don't think I could ever support the southern hemisphere against northern. I'm no fan of Ireland as I have no links to there at all. Or Wales for that matter, beyond going there and enjoying the scenery. But I would still support them against SA/NZ/Aus |
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Post by zephro on Sept 22, 2023 15:15:52 GMT
I can't think past the Ireland game to get out the pool. It feels dirty but come on the Springboks! I don't think I could ever support the southern hemisphere against northern. I'm no fan of Ireland as I have no links to there at all. Or Wales for that matter, beyond going there and enjoying the scenery. But I would still support them against SA/NZ/Aus Scotland's way out the group involves beating Ireland anyway. It being a straight shoot out not involving bonus points is our best bet. Though my system is, in priority order 1. Scotland 2. Whatever helps Scotland out (group games 6N table etc) 3. Whoever is playing England 4. Whoever is the underdog There's probably a 3.a of fuck whoever has annoyed me lately. Usually Gatland. England is more of a standing order version of that. |
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Post by Ulythium on Sept 22, 2023 15:17:51 GMT
Thanks, chaps. Wales vs. Australia is a game I'd like to see both sides lose, were such a thing to be possible. For me, the biggest impediment to Alastair's 2007 reference becoming a reality is the one to which we keep coming back: Owen Farrell. Back in 2007, as I recall, the senior players were ballsy enough to throw the coaches' game plan out of the window and do things their way; with a teacher's pet like Farrell in charge this time around, there's no way anyone in the matchday 23 would dare put a stud out of line and, say, pass the bloody ball instead of kicking it all the time.
Without that kind of player-led revolt, we're left hoping that Borthwick's conservative, one-dimensional approach will somehow bear fruit - possible, perhaps, but I won't hold my breath.
Unless our knockout opponents show up as undercooked and off the pace as Argentina did in the opening pool match, I think a QF exit is the most likely outcome.
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Post by grey_matters on Sept 22, 2023 15:34:43 GMT
So if Ireland beat SA by more than 7, and then lose by less than 7 against Scotland (preferably with 4+ tries each), SA are out?
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Post by sport✅ on Sept 22, 2023 15:49:36 GMT
Samoa down to 14. Now Argentina should shine.
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Post by Danno on Sept 22, 2023 15:58:24 GMT
Thank fuck that's only yellow, I would have lost my mind
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Post by zephro on Sept 23, 2023 1:37:46 GMT
I saw the replay and it looked like a dumb thing to do but no way a Red.
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