AAaaaaaaaaaaaaaargggghhhhh!!!!!!!

Just saw the England squad for the next round of the 6 Nations. How can Balshaw still be in and Lewsey still be out? Lewsey must have slept with Ashton's wife as this has to be a purely personal decision, there is no logical reason why Ashton would continue with a man who goes up for an up and under catch 5 metres away from where the ball is.

What can I write......

Gibbo - So my last rant fully expected England to be spanked and for a new dawn to begin. Instead I may have got the best of both worlds. England won with 14 men as Balshaw was so awful that he should have worn a blue shirt and within any normal bounds of reason, he should be banished from the England squad forthwith.

In all honesty England can put their victory down to French naivety more than anything. One starting cap shared between 8, 9 & 10, no specialist goal kicker, a game plan that was as predictable Reggie Perrin's commuting challenges and a front row that may only be able to compete with Australia at international level. Hardly a recipe for success. Lievremont is correct to play with such youth, but they still need to be smart about it. England were streetwise and their front row is looking ominously good. At the ruck at the end when Wigglesworth scored, you can see Phil Vickery running and hurdling players as if the game had just started to get to the ruck to ensure the ball was safe. Quite a contrast to his recent outings as skipper. England still didn't do much with the ball in hand and need to get the wings more involved in the game.

Wales were the team of the weekend though and are looking mightily dangerous, their game in two weeks should be a good one if the Irish can get pumped up for it. They too looked impressive against the Scots, but they need to bring some consistency to threaten Wales.

One final point to make is that the press have hinted that England can still win the 6 Nations. Statistically this is true but the reality is a stretch. Wales would need to lose to Ireland and France, England would need to beat Scotland and Ireland, and then England would need to make the 7 points deficit that they have to France in points difference at the moment. As France are yet to play Italy where they could clock up a cricket score, I see this as a very big mountain to climb. After the impressive tally Wales racked up against Italy, even a loss would not knock them from favourites for the cup at least.

The Last Alamo

Gibbo - I apologize for continuing to rant continuously on this subject, but I guess that I haven't gotten it off my chest yet and my frustration continues to build. After the game against France tomorrow if England win I will shut up. If they lose, then I also hope to shut up as I believe the axe will need to be swung with vigour around the England dressing room.

The two best teams in the tournament, are the two that have made the most unforced changes. The depth of coach's knowledge about his players and squad international experience that is starting to develop in Wales and France can be cultured for the next four years to create World cup contenders.

The farce that is happening in England and Ireland (I leave out Scotland and Italy as they both lack the talent to judge them harshly) is the antithesis of preparation for the next RWC. It is obvious that Lievremont and Gatland have both said winning is not everything, and without that burden playing with style has led to victory. England on the other hand have picked from experience to win, only to look like muppets in defeat to Wales and an attempted defeat to Italy.

Ireland may take some solace from their comeback against France, but it should not last long. Scoring points when the game is lost is also down to the psychology of the team that racked up a large margin and took their foot of the pedal.

For this weekend, Scotland do not have what it takes to really beat Ireland so it will be a walk in Croke Park for the Irish. Wales need to be smart, the Italians showed against Scotland and England that they can hurt you if you don't concentrate. The rotation in the welsh squad should be motivation enough to force such concentration and assure a solid victory.

As for England France. I hope for an English victory and to be proved wrong by Mr Ashton. I expect a French drubbing and to see a New England appear 3 games too late in a fortnight.

Two weeks off....

Johno- ....thank god, if you are an English fan. The long and short of it, we have a back row problem. Haskell will be good in time, Easter has not got his game legs at the moment, and Lipman is so far down the depth chart at 7 it is no wonder we faded badly against the Italians this weekend. If you break it down we had a nascent star at 6 learning the international game, a journeyman first choice starter at 8 that is lacking match fitness, and a 4th choice starter at 7. It doesn't matter who the opposition is, the make up of that back row just doesn't cut it at this standard. We all know that forwards determine who wins games, and the backs determine the margin of victory.

On a positive note I have been very happy with Flood at 12 barring one or two bad kicking decisions, which is not that bad over two games. The sooner the Balsa-wood farce at 15 ends the better, not a bad bloke and not his fault he keeps getting picked, but he just can't hack it at this level. The back three need JSD and Lewsey...FACT.

This week Ireland looked crap in the first half, but dug deep and showed some good fight in the second half. At least someone is getting the halftime team talk right.

So it looks like the championship will be decided in the Wales v France match, which rather fortuitously is the final game of the tournament.

Sadly for me the highlight of this weekend was not played out on the pitches of Europe, but in the commentary box. It was a delight to listen to Brian Moore spitting venom in an apoplectic rage at England's lamentable second half display. He may have broken the commentators number one rule when he obviously over stepped the "unbiased" line, but he's English and he cares and could no longer contain his incredulity. Brian, I salute you...

Week one - now there's a turn up for the books

In order of play - Ireland were pretty dire against a determined but limited Italy. EOS has got to be a little more bold in his selection. I can't believe people are getting excited about the possible return of O'Connell. Good player that he is, you need a bit more to get excited about than that. Italy are not going to be pushovers this tournament, especially at home. They have a strong pack and exceptional back row. They now have a fantastic coach as well.

I don't even know where to start with England v Wales. England looked pretty reasonable in the first half, although the quality of support running for line breaks was diabolical and we did only score from the ubiquitous cross field kick. At the breakdown and in the tight we bullied them off the park. Then absolute madness set in. For me the telling passage was when we shovelled the ball backwards and mostly along the floor from sheidan to gommers to vickery to balshaw, any of whom should have just shut up shop and taken the hit rahther than offloading. It looked panicked and must have been a huge boost for the leekists. After that you needed cool heads and leaders. There was enough experience out there but it seemed to count for nothing. I firmly believe your captain should play 80 mins unless dead. If we have a position whereby the captain is not perceived to be far enough ahead of his competitor for the spot that he regularly gets subbed on 60 mins, he shouldn't be captain.

Well done to Wales for hanging in there and exploiting the terror that England created for themselves.

I had high hopes for Scotland this year. I thought they had a settled team and some good players. They were awful against France and really need to work hard to put in a performance against Wales. As for France, it was hard to tell how good they were against a team as poor as Scotland were on the day.

One weekend down and all to play for.

Status Quo

I have to admit its difficult to get motivated to write a blog in the aftermath of such a disappointing weekend. Only the French and Welsh can have really enjoyed the rugby, the latter team only for the second half.

Ireland v Italy was a dour game. Ireland looked so superior in the first half making line breaks, intelligent kicking. However they remind me more and more of England, beligerent forward play with unimaginative back's moves. Eddie has not made wholesale changes for round two. Though I think all would agree his tweaking looks positive. The Irish lineout was poor, so Jackman deserves his shot. At the end of the day though, the result for this weekend against France will come down to whether the French can continue to execute such stylish play. It all looks fantastic when it goes right, but when the passes stop going to hand or the kicks bounce the wrong way the wheels tend to come off in a hurry for the French.

England......what can I write. At half time I was a very happy man, not just because England were winning but because their style of play was keeping Wales on the back foot. The headless chickens that emerged in the second half played into the hands and the brains of Wales. I was most disappointed by the fact that so much young talent was ignored because "experienced heads" are required for international rugby (tell that to Mr Lievremont). Our experienced heads played schoolboy rugby and got their just deserts. Hats off to Wales for playing a game that forced the mistakes. As for this weekend, the ridiculous number of injuries will not help England against a pretty determined but unimaginative Italy. Half of the starting pack is out of the game, and Tindall will be missed for the rest of the tournament.

I was informed by Colleen during the Wales game that the metatarsal break that Strettle has is called a Jones fracture, rather ironic considering the opposition's favourite last name.

France have shown Eddie O and Ashton the way forward. Pick youth and let them play. France were great, of course this will be difficult to replicate on a consistent basis. But building a future on fast skillfull and winning play beats trying to build it on dull victories like Irelands and embarassing losses like England's.

As for Scotland, it looks like all of the ground they thought they had gained never really happened. Patterson should never have been left out, and while his inclusion against Wales will help them, ultimately they don't have the firepower to go on the road and beat a team who must be feeling pretty confident right now.

Winners for this weekend,

Wales
France
England

Quick Predictor

Johno- What happened to Gatland? As soon as he got the job he started spewing vitriol. Is he trying to please his paymasters? Whatever his motivation he better have the tactics right or he is going to look like a right numpty . If he doesn't get the win I think he should coach the rest of the 6N wearing a leek fancy dress costume holding a bunch of Daffodils and an inflatable ewe, basically the Welsh equivalent of the Statue of Liberty.

England by 5
Ireland by 10
Scotland by 3

Boring Boring England

With all of the pre 6 Nations excitement I had running through my veins and the cluster of English youth that could titillate us with daring play on the rugby field, the England team selection can be summed up beautifully by the text message Johno sent me, "OK, I guess", and thus my enthusiasm has been deflated significantly.

Can this team beat Wales? Yes, if they play as they did in the RWC. Will they beat Wales? Up for debate, with 13 Ospreys players who demolished Gloucester a few weeks back, Wales are going to be cohesive (a word they don't use very often on when referring to their team). They have some strong back players that will expose defensive frailties.

That being said, the forward battle should belong to the English boys and with Jonny at the helm, boring England should grind out the win. It won't be pretty and schoolboy errors that undid England against the boks (twice) will get punished by Wales.

Interesting points from Mr Cahill on Eddie's dilemma, he certainly does appear to be morphing more and more into Andy Robinson, and we all know how that ended. Against an experimental Italy though it should be a no brainer.

Scotland France is a tough one to call. I question leaving the world cups only 100% goal kicker on the bench. Points make prizes, and Patterson makes points. France are a lottery, lots of new players, new coach, playing away from home. I'll stick my neck out and pick the sweaties for this one.

Ireland
England
Scotland

Ireland v Italy game - 6 tries.

Eddit AKA Little Andy

You have to admire Eddie’s tenacity, loyalty, and ability to stay the course. However the players are not his friends and loyalty in sports to out of form players will cost him his job. Just ask Andy Robinson.

He has sent the message that no matter how bad you play or how good you play he won’t drop his starters. The RWC is clearly the biggest F#$K up in Irish rugby history but he didn’t change the team even though Jackman, Heaslip, Gleeson or Jennings have been the form players. Most notably Jackman & Heaslip. You could throw in Leo Cullen as well but this starts to smack of Leinster bias.

But let’s be honest here – Leamy (who I am a big fan of) can’t make the no 8 jersey his own in Munster, so Eddie is saying Heaslip is the 3rd best No. 8 in Ireland? Jackman has played better teams in the Heineken cup, been a big contributor, and won games there. Best hasn’t…


Eddie biggest faults is he can’t admit a mistake followed closely by blind loyalty. He can’t change the team because this would admit he got it wrong in Paris, and would prove the IRFU investigation was a farce. He can’t betray those who just gave him a 4M Euro salary. The IRFU investigation has backed him into a corner and he is hoping his players can get him out of it.

Italy at Ireland: Ireland
Wales at England: England
France at Scotland: France
Bonus question:
1 point for correct number of tries your pick has in the France / Scotland game: 5 tries

He must give the best head in the Northern Hemisphere

I have been out of the country for the last week soaking up some Caribbean sunshine and trying to ignore the blackberry. I understand that in this time Matthew Tait had a fairly inglorious outing for Newcastle against Leicester. Surely he would have had to have had the worst game of his or anybody else's life for him to not be in the england 22....with Balshite being ppicked at 15. Sadly it had an aura of inevitability about it. Damn that boy must be good.

So, an interesting team. A quick back three, some balance in the midfield, an experianced if slightly creaky half back combo, a very quick backrow, solid seconds and dependable front row. To cap it all, some real potential impact from the bench.....just can't seem to get excited about the selection though.

Should make for a good game and I am really more interested in seeing if Gatland and Edwards can make a differnece in such a short period of time.....I hope not.

Mixed Messages

Gibbo - The WRU's ability to confuse the average punter like me seems to be endless. Their management of coaches, players and teams always carries a soap opera element with it. Their latest snafu is their support of the announcement by Warren Gatland that playing abroad will impact the ability of upcoming new players to play for the national team. While in principal this message is a positive one for growing talent within the Welsh regional game, in the 2 weeks since it was announced the list of player signings that has occurred shows that there is little appetite to back this stance up with the appropriate investment in youth.

Dwayne Peel has signed with Sale and Michael Owen with Saracens. To add to the exit of Welsh players, 2 Kiwis (Xavier Rush and Ben Blair) re-signed with the Blues, Tommy Bowe Ulster's young international winger signed with Ospreys and Peel's back up at LLanelli, New Zealand's Regan King, also penned a new deal.

Ospreys who creamed Gloucester in the Heineken cup a couple of weeks ago did so on the backs of great performances from 3 kiwis including Justin Marshall at scrum half. So 2 of the 4 regions in Wales have Welsh scrum halves, while 2 English clubs have Welsh SHs.

Personally I can't understand why there isn't uproar at this hypocrisy. I know that all of the European leagues are overflowing with foreign players, which grinds on all of our nerves, but the Welsh are the only country making a stance that defies the logic of their investments. If Gatland really believes in this approach then something has to change in the Region's back offices for this to ever succeed.

It's good to be back

Johno- At the end of the RWC I'm not sure what I was more upset about, the end of the blog or the end of England's reign. Fortunately the 6N is upon us and it's time to fire up the Hewlett-Packard again. I'd like to commend Boothers on his name dropping and shoulder rubbing, nice work; and also welcome Pat and his graphics aboard, very impressive!

I think I will keep this post brief as we have a couple of weeks of build up left for the simmering vocabulary churning in the magma chamber of the "volcano of rant" to erupt.

Ireland- I don't know what to expect, but it has to be better than the RWC. The EOS contract situation has robbed Ireland of the chance to have a clear out. They left me confused, as in the space of 6 months they went from credible RWC contenders to a rabble. They have enough talent and HC experience to rally, they just have to have their heads in the game.

France- A team that was built for the RWC has had it's fair share of retirements, a new management team in place, we shall have to see if their youth is ready to step up.

Wales- The fine managerial appointment of Warren Gatland should see a marked improvement from the Principality, coupled with the return of Martyn Williams and the captaincy of a hopefully healthy Ryan Jones things will look better. Just not in the first round though!

Scotland- Probably the only team that know their best XV. Came on in the RWC and expect this trend to continue.

Italy- Not a lot to say here. If they pick up another wooden spoon I want the 6N to seriously consider promotion/relegation and give the likes of Georgia and Romania a crack.

England- This is going to be fun. Ashton no longer burdened by the mandate to "defend a title" allied with a host of lively young backs coming through will look to get the team playing a high octane free thinking brand of rugby. Whether it works or not remains to be seen, but it's going to be exciting watching them sink or swim.

15 matches, 6 Teams, 2 Super Saturdays, 1 Champion...

Jolly Green Rant Number 1

Great idea, Kevin - well done.

I only have one rant at present.

What is going on in Eddie's mind? Maybe he just has awful eyesight but my fear is that he suffers from a debilitaing dysfunction that prevents him from selecting a team that fulfills Ireland's potential.

Shane Jennings and Keith Gleeson are playing out of their skin every week for Leinster, including last week against Toulouse. Who did Johnny O'Connor play against last week? Cetransa El Salvador, don't ask me who they are 'cause i've no idea. Johnny was not getting into the Wasps team last year and if he was the real deal he'd be with a HC team this year.

Ahhh, I feel much better now! Peace, Pat

Ibanez Retirement Scoop

OK - so it's no longer a scoop, but for a full 18 hours I had the insider track on Monsieur le Talonneur's pending announcement.

Coming back from London last Wednesday evening, I had a few moments to spare at St Pancras before boarding the Eurostar, so thought it only right to stop for a quick glass of the bubbly stuff. As I casually glanced around me, there was Raphael Ibanez sitting on the table to my left. Nothing stronger than water for our French friend. My train was then promptly announced, so I was left wondering why he was headed back to France mid week, with the Wasps Llanelli HC game scheduled for the weekend.

When I boarded the train, who should be sat in the seat behind me? I began to wonder if Ibanez was stalking me! I'm not normally one to eavesdrop, but given who it was, I couldn't help but overhear parts of his mobile conversation with (I presume) his wife. Piecing together bits of what he was saying, I had the hunch he was about to announce his retirement, mainly due to references as to how well Lawerence had handled the occassion, and how he was going to do it in a similar way.

I passed the journey thinking of all the questions I wanted to ask him, such as what inspired him to choose the two short try-making line out throws in the final of the Heineken Cup last year, how he felt about losing to England twice in WC Semis etc. I decided to leave the man in peace though, but I somehow regret that now.

A great player, and it's a shame he won't be pulling on the blue shirt anymore. I wonder what the newlook young French team will look like?

Great idea to create this blog Kevin. Am hoping that T's managed to get us some tickets for the France England game. One of her clients is the President of a Paris rugby club, and he's on the case apparently. Will post some pictures if he comes up trumps!

A New Beginning

Gibbo - After the somber withdrawal symptoms brought on by Rugby overload last autumn, the crisp winter mornings have me walking with a new spring in my step, we are just 2 weeks away from the return of international rugby and back to the comfort zone of niggling Anglo-Celtic-Gallic grudges and gloating.

What a fascinating 6 Nations it is going to be. The RWC turned my perspective of all of the teams on its head. France and Ireland both failed to show the prowess that they have offered the last 4 years, Italy's rise came crashing down, Wales could not break out of their dour shackles and show the class that won a Grand Slam 3 years ago, while a bunch of old codgers from England stuck their fingers up at everyone only to fall short at the last hurdle.

It is tough to fathom what may happen in the coming months as so many of the teams are now deemed "in transition".

Scotland may have the least flux as they have been rebuilding for a couple of years, but they have been blighted by some recent injuries.

What will Eddie O do about his aging Irish team? A last hurrah to take that 60 year long evasive Grand Slam, maybe?

Can Warren Gatland bring his magic to the Welsh squad at such short notice? (A stroke of genius has already been played by bringing Martyn Williams back from retirement)

Will Ashton begin the transition to the potential golden boys that England has lined up?

Who the hell is this fella Nallet France picked as a captain?

What will Italy do now that Troncon is old enough for a free bus pass?

So many questions to be answered. I suspect we have more opinions than all of the pundits following the American presidential election combined.

Spout away gents and enjoy the rugby.