The Official English Rugby Thread

[SaintK]

Even if they manage to pull something out of the bag in the last 5 minutes, this performance is indicative of how they've fallen off in recent weeks and dropped so far out of playoff contention.

Yep, their form has fallen off a cliff since Christmas when they were in the top 4.
Well played Falcons, 65 minutes with 14 men was a decent shift. Radwan was outstanding in attack and defence and made LRZ look like a mug at times

[Rhubarb & Custard]

No inference necessary, just read my other posts. It's all there.

So don't read that post and consider it says what you think, read some other unspecified posts because those will specify your thoughts?

It's all in sequence and written in English.

HTH

It does not help, and for a couple of reasons.

Firstly the corollary of the post I'd queried, given how I'd inferred it, was you consider academies overly risky and providing insufficient returns, and that whilst they might make sense in football they don't in rugby, i.e. one might as well close them. Now either my reading of that comment you made is wrong, and it would hardly be the first time I'd be wrong, or you didn't mean what you'd written. So reading further comments doesn't offer much of a solution, either I'd have no way of knowing whether what you meant in other comments was to be taken at face value, or I'd be proceeding on a false premise.

Secondly, no chance I could be bothered to go back and read other comments whether or not you consider them to run sequentially

As an overall position I still consider few clubs will take the risk of closing their academies, yes they're risky or at least at risk of being inconsistent, but the rewards far outweigh the risk. I'm broadly supposing you were being somewhat melodramatic and what you're really arguing for is just more money for Sarries.

[Kawazaki]

no chance I could be bothered to go back and read

Would have been quicker and more honest to simply reply with this.

[Paddington Bear]

It's Gloucester - the gene pool is very shallow

Too close to Wales ... like Bath

Thank heavens for the Severn Estuary.

(in terms of proximity, Melrose is closer to England than Bath is to Wales)

If St Cuthbert lived there it should be English, in fairness.

Hell of an effort from Newcastle, Zammit is so overrated. Can’t pass, catch or defend but is quick, he always reminds me of an Al Davis draft pick

[sockwithaticket]

Tigers - Bristol has a had a pretty good second half so far. Randall just made Steward look very cumbersome to score.

[sockwithaticket]

Who volunteered Lawes for the ITV pre-match punditry? He's not enjoying it at all. a really stark contrast in his demeanour and that of Robshaw and Flatman.

[Oxbow]

I love Courtney Lawes, but he's not really the man you want for punditry.

[Happyhooker]

I've said this before on the other bored, but an old coach of his once (privately) said of Lawes " he couldn't empty a shoe of water if you printed the instructions on the sole"

[Oxbow]

I'll give it five minutes before Nolli uses the adjective 'unbelievable' about a fairly ordinary passage of play.

[Oxbow]

I'll give it five minutes before Nolli uses the adjective 'unbelievable' about a fairly ordinary passage of play.

1 minute 42 seconds.

[Margin__Walker]

I've said this before on the other bored, but an old coach of his once (privately) said of Lawes " he couldn't empty a shoe of water if you printed the instructions on the sole"

I'm stealing that one. Cheers.

[sockwithaticket]

Decent start for Quins, that should settle them.

I'll give it five minutes before Nolli uses the adjective 'unbelievable' about a fairly ordinary passage of play.

1 minute 42 seconds.

[Kawazaki]

Owen Farrell is a completely different player for Saracens.

[Oxbow]

How is that not worth an HIA?

[sockwithaticket]

Well that decisions will get some tongues wagging, especially in the wake of the Steward incident.

How an earth can van Zyl not need an HIA?

[LenCohen]

Holy fuck be quiet for a minute

[GogLais]

Well that decisions will get some tongues wagging, especially in the wake of the Steward incident.

How an earth can van Zyl not need an HIA?

Irrespective of the rights and wrongs of a card it’s certainly brave of the doctor to say he’s ok from the touch line.

[Kawazaki]

Well that decisions will get some tongues wagging, especially in the wake of the Steward incident.

How an earth can van Zyl not need an HIA?

Irrespective of the rights and wrongs of a card it’s certainly brave of the doctor to say he’s ok from the touch line.

Especially as people hundreds of miles away posting on here are better informed than him.

[GogLais]

Well that decisions will get some tongues wagging, especially in the wake of the Steward incident.

How an earth can van Zyl not need an HIA?

Irrespective of the rights and wrongs of a card it’s certainly brave of the doctor to say he’s ok from the touch line.

Is having an HIA now, not a good look.

[GogLais]

Well that decisions will get some tongues wagging, especially in the wake of the Steward incident.

How an earth can van Zyl not need an HIA?

Irrespective of the rights and wrongs of a card it’s certainly brave of the doctor to say he’s ok from the touch line.

Especially as people hundreds of miles away posting on here are better informed than him.

Nobody’s arguing they’re better informed than him.

[sockwithaticket]

Well that decisions will get some tongues wagging, especially in the wake of the Steward incident.

How an earth can van Zyl not need an HIA?

Irrespective of the rights and wrongs of a card it’s certainly brave of the doctor to say he’s ok from the touch line.

Especially as people hundreds of miles away posting on here are better informed than him.

Given that the player is now off getting an HIA, it would seem that we might know better...

[Oxbow]

Well that decisions will get some tongues wagging, especially in the wake of the Steward incident.

How an earth can van Zyl not need an HIA?

Irrespective of the rights and wrongs of a card it’s certainly brave of the doctor to say he’s ok from the touch line.

Especially as people hundreds of miles away posting on here are better informed than him.

That aged well.

[sockwithaticket]

Well that decisions will get some tongues wagging, especially in the wake of the Steward incident.

How an earth can van Zyl not need an HIA?

Irrespective of the rights and wrongs of a card it’s certainly brave of the doctor to say he’s ok from the touch line.

Is having an HIA now, not a good look.

Indeed. I don't know why you'd even run the risk. If a player takes a contact like that and requires a few minutes of attention, they ought to be taken for the HIA as a precaution anyway.

[sockwithaticket]

van Zyl not coming back on.

Doctor who cleared him initially has some questions to answer.

[Torquemada 1420]

I've said this before on the other bored, but an old coach of his once (privately) said of Lawes " he couldn't empty a shoe of water if you printed the instructions on the sole"

[GogLais]

HIA for the ref?

[sockwithaticket]

van Zyl not coming back on.

Doctor who cleared him initially has some questions to answer.

Hmm, ITV reporting incorrectly then, because he's just come back on.

[Kawazaki]

van Zyl not coming back on.

Doctor who cleared him initially has some questions to answer.

Sock wrong again.

Never.

[sockwithaticket]

van Zyl not coming back on.

Doctor who cleared him initially has some questions to answer.

Sock wrong again.

Never.

I was going by what the commentators said. Comms teams usually get these messages from the ground and are right about such matters.

Doc still needs to answer for why they cleared van Zyl only for him to be yanked off for the HIA shortly afterwards.

[Kawazaki]

Shut up you tart, ffs.

[Bullet]

Watermans expert comments are a real struggle, switched to BT but they've got Healeys knowledgable asides instead

[sockwithaticket]

Get over yourself. It is incredibly rare for this to happen, it bears comment.

[SaintK]

Shut up you tart, ffs.

Switched to BT aftre 10 minutes. She is appalling as a commentator

[sockwithaticket]

That is some finish from Murley.

[sockwithaticket]

Think that's pretty fortunate for Northmore.

[Bullet]

Think that's pretty fortunate for Northmore.

He wasn't helped by Farrel going down holding his face

[GogLais]

Just heard the size of the crowd. Wow.

[sockwithaticket]

Marchant has a point. Goode took him while he was in the air, should be a penalty try.

Think that's pretty fortunate for Northmore.

He wasn't helped by Farrel going down holding his face

Probably not, but, however glancing, he was functionaly clotheslined in the throat. It's a little while back, but both Quins and Worcester had players who suffered horrendous throat injuries. It's an area of real risk to be making reckless contact with.

[Bullet]

Marchant has a point. Goode took him while he was in the air, should be a penalty try.

Think that's pretty fortunate for Northmore.

He wasn't helped by Farrel going down holding his face

Probably not, but, however glancing, he was functionaly clotheslined in the throat. It's a little while back, but both Quins and Worcester had players who suffered horrendous throat injuries. It's an area of real risk to be making reckless contact with.

Contact on neck so Northmore lucky Pearce was so clear he didn't want to see it in slo-mo. Not good for the England captain looking like milking a bit?

[Kawazaki]

I reckon if London Irish can finish in third then they'll reach the final.