The Silver Fern

@mn5 said in Scotland v Australia 2021:

@gibbon-rib said in Scotland v Australia 2021:

I just checked the 6N odds out of interest. Clearly the bookies / betting public don't think this is a new dawn for the Scots

France 48/29
England 5/2
Ireland 9/2
Wales 6/1
Scotland 12/1
Italy 1000/1

12 is better than 1000 though

True. And probably better value too.

@stargazer said in Japan v Wallabies:

Wallabies media release:

Nathan Williamson  /  Oct 20, 2021 Hunter Paisami returns for Wallabies to face Japan Hunter Paisami returns for Wallabies to face Japan

Wallabies coach Dave Rennie has confirmed Hunter Paisami will replace the injured Samu Kerevi for Saturday's match against Japan.

When I hear the name Paisami I always think of some sort of Italian charcuterie I really must sample.

@nta said in Wallabies v Pumas II:

Good press conference from Rennie.

"In my day it was a sprained ankle. Now it's syndesmosis which is apparently worse..."

Not sure that you need us to send you Moses, you've been playing quite well the last few games.

It's a feeling I haven't had in a while as a Wallaby fan: to be happy with a comfortable win, but feeling we played a bit below our best. We left at least three tries on the park. JOC bombed one, Nic White didn't realise the law around grounding on the post pad had changed (unforgiveable), and a few times we lost our cool with numbers out wide.

But our general play around the park was as good as it's been in a long time. Defended well, secured our own ruck ball, created space and then exploited it with simple catch-and-pass. Our 10-12-13 is the best it's looked since the Foley-Giteau-AAC axis at the 2015 World Cup.

Sets up our NH tour really nicely. Not sure how undermanned we will be but that England game looks very enticing.

@machpants said in Wallabies v Springboks II:

@nta said in Wallabies v Springboks II:

@smuts said in Wallabies v Springboks II:

Congrats Aussies. First time in forever that I’ve not even watched the highlights. Hope it feels great.

Cheers. Not a great couple of games by your okes but hopefully they'll take it out on the ABs 😉

I don't know much about your coach, but a quick wiki search shows he's Rassie's man, and TBH it smacks a little of nepotism. Hopefully there is a bit of a shakeup and the Boks find their groove. And some fitness training!

One thing on which I agree with Keo: trying to play like someone else is just going to hurt the Boks. Use their strengths by all means, but they've not yet made sure they can execute that to the level required against faster teams.

That would never happen in the ABs……

Not a little smack, no...

@machpants said in Wallabies vs Springboks I:

@frye said in Wallabies vs Springboks I:

alt text

Malherbe hardly in fine fettle either.

Can you imagine what he's gonna look like after retiring? 😲

Foster? 😜

must have been a cold day..

@nostrildamus said in Wallabies vs All Blacks 3 (Perth):

ooh baby

Tom Decent  /  Sep 9, 2021  /  Rugby Union He’s back: Cooper to partner McDermott against Springboks, Bell starts He’s back: Cooper to partner McDermott against Springboks, Bell starts

After 1541 days in the international rugby wilderness, Quade Cooper will be back in a Wallabies jersey this weekend.

Too traumatised to face ABs, so now Noah is a mental wreck from the same!

I have another apology for the AB coaches, I thought in an earlier Bledisloe the coaches had the bench replacement timing all wrong. Maybe, but it is clear that a bigger issue is, the AB bench just isn't of the same calibre.

@pakman said in All Blacks vs Wallabies Bledisloe 1 Eden Park 7th Aug:

@nta said in All Blacks vs Wallabies Bledisloe 1 Eden Park 7th Aug:

@pakman said in All Blacks vs Wallabies Bledisloe 1 Eden Park 7th Aug:

@chris said in All Blacks vs Wallabies Bledisloe 1 Eden Park 7th Aug:

Smashed in the scrum not good by the subs

Bell monstered Ta’avao.

Having Matt Philip behind him helps. I've only just reached that point.

Having just rewatched it may be Ta'avao has been a bit hard done by. First scrum after Patty T on and Whitelock swaps sides. PT packed very high on Karl, and looks like Sam slipped off Ta'avao, who then has whole Wallaby pack driving through him.
Poor cohesion by Black pack, whereas Wallaby changes seem to have been upgrade.

Ta'avao did Ok at previous scrum with Codie and BBBR still on, although scrum did collapse on his side.

@stargazer said in Wallabies v France 3:

@gibbonrib said in Wallabies v France 3:

@steven-harris where did you find that?

Sadly that statement doesn't clarify the decision at all. I'd like to watch that video to see if that helps (fully expecting that it won't though).

@stargazer said in Wallabies v France 3:

@gibbonrib It's only the media release. Not the decision.

Oh, shit, I forgot that if a red card is dismissed, there won't be a written decision. Just the media release.
So the media release is all we get. It has been published on the WR website now, btw.

Forget getting a further clarification of the decision.

For those nerdy enough to care, WR have released a written decision:

https://resources.world.rugby/worldrugby/document/2021/07/21/231213a5-9cec-4fe5-9fbd-82ec2b9f40f9/HRM000.1.996-Decision-M-Koroibete.pdf

It's a bit wordy, but I've read it so that you don't have to. Key points it makes are:

There was no contact to the head Initial contact was to the shoulder There was contact to the neck This means it is technically foul play The degree of danger was not high, so it should not have been a red

Things it doesn't clarify are:

Whether the degree of danger was low (starting sanction: penalty) or medium (yellow card) Whether there was significant mitigation (it mentions both players dipping into the tackle, but doesn't rule on whether that was relevant to the decision) Whether the correct decision would have been a yellow, or just a penalty

Things it doesn't say, but strongly implies:

Jelonch is a cheating git

@booboo said in Wallabies v France 2:

@mariner4life said in Wallabies v France 2:

Until last night the only rugby i had watched all year was the first 50-odd minutes of the Super Rugby TT final (and taht was on a small screen with no volume, through a boozed up haze, while simultaneously punting on harness racing and asian gallops), but that test reminded me why i love this game.

I know it's not great for the purists, or if you actually are supporting one of the teams, but errors make good rugby. Errors offer up opportunity, and when both teams are willing to have a crack at that opportunity, it makes for a spectacle.

What i saw was a young Aussie team with deficiencies in key areas having a real fucking go. You can't fault their endeavor, just their execution let them down at precisely the wrong time. Veletini was bloody good i thought, made repeated dents in the defense and never stopped throwing himself at the French. With the ball the Aussie forwards had a heap of vigour, problem was they couldn't muscle up on defense. And their ruck work was very ordinary. That little 2nd pop pass really is more miss than hit. They played most of the rugby, but could never make it count on the scoreboard. They were still full of running at the end too.

The French were pretty good too. Not much on attack outside of some eye catching counter. it was route 1 football and it was often brutally effective. The hooker had approximately 58 pick-and-goes, the 7 was in to everything, and i was impressed with the work of the skipper at #8. The fullback looked fucking classy as well.

Short turn around to the final test will be interesting. World Cup pool-of-death sort of stuff.

Front paged

Great. Cements the evidence that a certain poster doesn't even watch rugby but has lots to say about it 😉

@cgrant said in Wallabies vs France 1:

@act-crusader
Couilloud is ranked Nr.3 in France, behind Dupont and Serin.
Irribaren, who replaced him during the later stages, is not even the fourth best halfback in the country. Machenaud and Lucu (and Kockott and Parra, but these two are not in contention for Les Bleus) are rated higher than him.

I watched all the French 6Ns matches and what impressed me was the speed of the ball from the ruck from DuPont and Serin.

Speaking of the 6Ns, like last night the French had some last minute heroics and last minute heartbreak - the Wales match and the 80th minute try to win, Scotland scoring in the last minute to win, England snatching a win from them in the final couple of minutes.

https://www.stuff.co.nz/sport/rugby/international/126893931/a-bit-of-a-surprise-wallabies-veteran-kurtley-beale-never-gave-up-hope-on-unlikely-dave-rennie-call

@chimoaus of they could give the AR a laser pointer and he shines it in the eyes of the offending player to let him know 🙂

I think generally once players know they wont get away with it, they will adjust thier own behaviour.

@NTA no! This is the last time I try to explain reading a refs mind on a discussion forum! 😭

@NTA said in Bledisloe Four: Brisbane, 7 November:

@Nepia said in Bledisloe Four: Brisbane, 7 November:

I don't think those fans exist (Australians maybe?)

Only as good as your last 2 Tests, boys. 😎

We've got the Foster * that we can lay on the table through this dark, dark time.

@Machpants said in Argentina v Australia A:

J4L is in rapture, an actual friendly

I hate it when people steal my jokes

Dunno if this has been posted, but 1st time I seen it

@Stargazer said in Bledisloe Two: Auckland, October 18:

@Bones ESPN also calls Bledisloe Cup games friendlies. 🤦🏽♂

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They mostly are these days ( after the full time whistle)

Luatua and Vito-doing well overseas, I understand. Charlie would have been useful too (33 now though). I'd say decline. Stale tactics, so-so selections.
Would have liked to have seen a bit of Jordan in a Bledisloe, hoping it will still happen.