The World of Rugby Thread

[niko_cee]

Yeah, I was also thinking about that. South Africa seem to run their posh sports [cricket and rugby] on an almost exclusive private school basis [quota stuff notwithstanding] and the same is probably true in England [ie to be any good at cricket you seem to have to attend some posh school or other and Dulwich College is the proving ground for Rugby Union, or it was in the past] and I was then wondering if the number of foreign students attending said schools [which has exploded in the last 20 years] is impacting on that supply line.

What is participation in the more Irish sports like? They always look like they promote the sort of physicality that could translate into rugby more than south london football tekkers.

I suppose it's all moot as England will probably lol their way into the semis now, so all is [red] rosey in the garden.

[Jimmy Floyd]

Yesterday I was talking to a head of sport from one of the big local private schools (these are the elite circles in which I mix) and he was saying rugby is sleepwalking into a crisis, as increasingly barely enough boys even in the posh schools now want to play it to get teams out. Also a huge number of parents forbidding their kids from playing it due to the head injury stuff, apparently.

I imagine in ten years it will be a game primarily played by South African immigrants, of whom there are absolutely thousands and thousands.

[Jimmy Floyd]

Chile are playing some fun stuff here, all out attack. Will probably lose 100-30.

[Waffdon]

I knew Scotland’s group was obviously ridiculously stacked (3 of the top 5 in rankings) but I never realised the two teams that go through will have to face the other teams making up the top 5 rankings.

We’re definitely making it to the semis now to bottle it against some gimps.

[Jimmy Floyd]

If that Chilean card ends up in a red then the sport is finished. He gets run into by a ten-ton truck and somehow it's his fault for goodness knows what.

[niko_cee]

They've got it 'right' there but does throw up questions as to consistency in the application of this stupid rule.

[Waffdon]

Need Scotland to avoid another terribly slow start here and no stupid yellows.

So I fully expect to be 2 tries down after 15 mins and a man down.

[Jimmy Floyd]

One of my top 100 stats in sport is that Ian McGeechan is 20 years older than Flower of Scotland.

[Waffdon]

South Africa players singing in the tunnel. Yeah, we’re fucked

[Lewis]

Scotland are a decent match for South Africa because they will try to play a bit and take chances. They will still lose, but not as conventionally as mugs like us or Wales would trying to muscle up to them.

[Waffdon]

Would help if they stopped overcooking their line ups

[Jimmy Floyd]

I always lol at how chucking haymakers around is seen as fine in rugby. The veneer of honest manliness that keeps the show on the road.

[Waffdon]

Very decent 1st half all things told. Scrum has been absolutely brilliant. A Darcy Graham pass away from being in with the lead.

We’re definitely a better 2nd half team and South Africa players look a bit knackered. So there’s a little bit of hope. Get running at them 2nd half.

[Waffdon]

Also lol at the TMO not even bothering to look at the head on head contact at the start. Was worse than the England one yesterday

[Lewis]

The African conditions will have distilled the genetics of that ginger into something approaching a superpower. I bet if you shot him he wouldn't notice.

[Waffdon]

Christ, what are you even supposed to do against that kicking and pace combo.

Finn Russell having one of them games where he’s a detriment. Holding on for it too long and getting his forwards battered. This could be a fisting now

[Manc]

The African conditions will have distilled the genetics of that ginger into something approaching a superpower. I bet if you shot him he wouldn't notice.

[niko_cee]

South Africa just lying on the ball at every breakdown and somehow getting away with it 90% of the time.

[Manc]

Faf de Klerk is one ugly cunt.

[Lewis]

Faf de Klerk is one ugly cunt.

He looks like whichever one of Zig and Zag had the hair.

[Jimmy Floyd]

Second Fijian try a thing of real beauty.

[niko_cee]

Welsh player failing to land on his own head after that 'no arms tackle'. What a mug.

[Jimmy Floyd]

What should be a good game descending into a joke because both teams can't not continually high/illegally tackle. This sport is doomed.

[niko_cee]

So, I'm really struggling here. Fiji were playing with penalty advantage there [no?] and they've somehow ended up conceding a penalty and nearly losing a player to 'THE BUNKER'?

And lol at the commentator worrying about 'simulation'. A sport entirely based on cheating. A sport that had bloodgate. A sport that at every point tries to circumvent to one's own advantage, no, no, we can't be having this going down holding your face business. Oh no, wait, we can.

[Jimmy Floyd]

Does a high tackle penalty supersede a previous non HEAD CONTACT penalty? It must do.

Dan Biggar is such a scrote. Always hated him.

[niko_cee]

So cynical from Biggar but that's fine, just a penalty for denying a clear try under the posts.

[niko_cee]

And again. Far too lenient.

And is the bunker not allowed to point out the actual rules of the game as regards how it should be restarted?

[Jimmy Floyd]

Did union really need this 40/20 bollocks? I thought the whole reason league had it was because it's hard to make up territory inside 6 tackles.

[Lewis]

50/22 is like an easy version they would have in under-age leagues as well. Any competent kicker would be nailing ten of those a game in league.

[niko_cee]

You're probably right in that a sport blighted by kicking probably didn't need to further incentivise it, it works in league as kicking is not really the done thing for the most part.

lol at the insta-yellow for the Fijian guy. I feel this ref has been very poor, is he English? I suppose it took Wayne Barnes a good while to stop being shite and become properly good, and fact checking that reveals to me that he's now a barrister. Good lord.

Also, someone needs to tell Jamie Roberts [is that him in the studio] to give up on the hair front.

[Lewis]

Hair like a dropped lolly. On the punditry front, do you think if somebody who wasn't a prominent gay deliberately gave somebody HIV, like Gareth Thomas did, they would still have a role in public life?

[Lewis]

He never drops that at Parramatta. Basic skills down the drain.

[niko_cee]

At least that drop spared us the agony of them missing the conversion.

[Manc]

He would have missed the conversion anyway.

[Jimmy Floyd]

Don't think it's impossible they do Australia and go through. Wales were so lucky in every part of that game.

[AJ23]

I put 2 quid on Fiji to win at 20/1 when they were 32-21 down as I knew Fiji's sinbin would return earlier than Wales's and the momentum was going with Fiji.

Was willing them on to score another try but I think they were just a bit too naive in the end. Really good team to watch, though. Big game against Australia next week.

[Jimmy Floyd]

The guay are all over the complacent frogs here.

[AJ23]

What is going on? This game is mental. Uruguay are so intense, physical and so naive at the same time.

If these 'lesser' teams could cut out their silly basic errors, they'd be doing themselves a huge favour.

[Manc]

Tonga shitting themselves at every opportunity.

[Manc]

Fiji looking good.

[Jimmy Floyd]

They were better than Wales in the last game and systematically screwed by the refs, imagine the same will happen here.

[Manc]

Kuruvoli can't miss.

[Jimmy Floyd]

That was such a strange game. Fiji made so many unforced errors but were still the better team by such a vast margin that it didn't matter.

[niko_cee]

Looking forward to the second [?] red card of the world cup.

[Waffdon]

The Japanese bloke kicking it out with 10 seconds left might be the most mind boggling thing I’ve seen in a while

Properly dreadful game though. Two teams trying to out shit each other

[niko_cee]

This is more like an England world cup pool game, absolute eye-bleeder.

Japan trying to be funky, England just being mega-one-dimensional and shit with it.

[niko_cee]

How's your luck there?

Since when has the head not been a knock on? I know it's league, but they had to change the rules for that, no [head pass guy]? Always assumed that anything above the waist in union was capable of knocking the ball on. Are you just not allowed to deliberately head the ball?

[Waffdon]

Japan not going for the corner at any point is very annoying.

That try sums up the quality of the game

[niko_cee]

Followed up by England being completely unable to tackle, and then another drop.

Neither side wants to peak too soon.

[Waffdon]

The amount of knock ons is something else