General rugby thread
Discussion
ooo000ooo said:
Kermit power said:
That does have its own problems, though. It can't be much fun being a season ticket holder at one of the Irish provinces and never knowing if you're actually going to see any of your top players in a club game.
Wife is a season ticket holder for Ulster, when the internationals are playing they lose their top players for weeks on end. It's great to see them being picked but frustrating when they play against non provincial teams that have different rules and are having to rely on inexperienced players from the Academy to make up the numbers. That's been compounded by the crazy injury list recently.Quins had a dreadful season last year, and their internationals were at the forefront of just not being up to scratch, but that's hardly surprising given the toll that the bloody Lions tour had on them!
I don't want to be in the position your wife has of not getting to see "her" internationals play for the club, but equally I don't want to be in the position of seeing "my" internationals play badly for our club because they're knackered.
Whilst I'm proud of my Englishness, and would always want to see England win, it's the club side that I watch week in, week out that I feel more attached to, and coaching minis for a Quins community club, they absolutely work hard to make it really feel like a community.
I'd never touch the Six Nations (although would like to see promotion/relegation, because Georgia have deserved a crack at the top table for far, far too long), but other than that, I think there are just too bloody many international matches these days. I don't see why we have to have four games coming up, for example? We should definitely be playing Japan, as the established nations need to be supporting the others like this, but why do we need to play all three of the big Southerners when it's only going to result in more injuries? Do we really need more debacles like Wales vs South Africa in the States?
My choice would be to see no more than five internationals per annum outside the Six Nations (so maybe they'll start to feel special again) and - I know many consider this sacrilege - I'd just drop the Lions completely. I'm English first, and British an extremely distant second, so it stirs no emotion in me whatsoever, leaves England players in particular (as they don't have that benefit of getting rested on central contracts) f
ked for the whole season afterwards, and frequently lets the bloody French win the Five/Six Nations!
irocfan said:
DocJock said:
Indeed. The Munster player hit Cips in the face with his head, should've been off! 
not watched the match but I've seen the still and it does look like a very harsh shout, but dems is da rulz
irocfan said:
DocJock said:
Indeed. The Munster player hit Cips in the face with his head, should've been off!
not watched the match but I've seen the still and it does look like a very harsh shout, but dems is da rulzepom said:
I was listening to Brian O'Driscoll on the radio Friday evening, and he made the point that there will be a few controversial ones in the next few weeks (bringing out the rugby has gone soft brigade) and that there has to be before players realize that you can no longer tackle so high up.
I don't think O'Driscoll is a rugby commentator. He may possibly have had a very modest talent as a rugby player, but that's about it.What's that you say? Well, he spent too much time whingeing for a start.
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