posted Nov 17, 2008

What is it with backs these days? You see it at all levels of rugby, they just will not go deep enough on the offence.

If they went deep and ran onto the ball, taking it at pace, they would penatrate the oppositions defences far easier. It would also make it easier on the forwards who wouldn't have to go backwards to reach the breakdown.

Everybody moving in the same direction (forward)equals better support and less isolation. Quicker turn around of the ball and no stupid penalties.

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posted Nov 17, 2008

England are so desperate to find a world-class replacement for JW and they have attached huge weight to Cipriani's shoulders. He possibly does have the talent to kick, and his legs can run, but he still has huge holes in his game and his defence is really poor - the clean shirt says it all. He just does not inspire really and would like to see others given a chance to shine and make him therefore a little bit more competitive. It should not be a done deal that the number 10 shirt is simply passed to him. There are other players with equal if not better ability for the position of England fly-half.

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posted Nov 17, 2008

I have a feeling Cipriani will front up in defence. Jonno will say in no uncertain terms: 'Shape up or you're dropped!'. First off, it's a miracle that he is even playing. Secondly, his confidence has taken a knock. He is of the 'Wasps school', Dayglo and Shaun Edwards will make him improve his defence. Ultimatley if he wants to aspire to being world class, he has to improve. Would pick a fit JW every time.

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posted Nov 17, 2008

I really must try harder to get to air my views on time, but what with twin six year old daughters there are many demands on my time including coaching a successful under 19 side.

I have to say I was dissapointed in myself for joining the herd that called for Brian Ashton to be sacked, only to actually feel guilty after he was well and truly shafted.

Nevertheless, I have swung in behind Martin Johnson and the new era. And that is my point here - it is a new team, and lets face it they were cruely exposed on Saturday. However, did anybody think they were going to win? No? I certainly did not expect great things on their first real test. I would say, however, in my seat high up in the West stand that I thought there were tantalising glimpses of a new attacking game for us being developed. I did see some (not all) the backs running onto the ball at speed. I did see chances being created, sadly the team didn't spot them, and that will only come with experience.

I would also get off Cipriani's back. He hasn't played a lot of rugby since that career threatening injury miraculously healed. I saw some good stuff he did, come on be honest with the exception of Dan Carter who else makes the type of breaks Cipriani can do. Twice he demonstrated that, its just that the others in the team did not get up and support in time mostly because they did not spot the openings he made. Again, I believe this will be improve given time and experience.

So I would stay stick with them. Yes we could all argue around whether this, or that player should be in. But the reality is that these are probably the best players we have fit (well partially anyway). Let us all get behind them and not snipe from the sidelines. Who knows we might just be able to at least compete against what has been a far from convincing Springbok team.

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posted Nov 17, 2008

Tooold,
One of the "sweetest" posts I've seen to date.Rugby is in yer soul alright.

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posted Nov 18, 2008

Toooldtocare, is also toooldrorecall that by selecting players that do not perform is a recipe for repeat England disaster. Why should we get off Cipriani's back. If he was unfit to play, he should not have been selected, simply. That was bad managerial style. No matter who you select, you put into the numbered jersey those players that are performing well for your club. While my beloved Australia will take chances on new players with the attitude that if ya good enough ya in, if you;re not you're out, Australia continue to move forward. However, England's policy is this: If you;re good enough, we can't guarentee you're in, and if you're poor, in all probability we'll pick you next week. What kind of message is that to your young up and coming players? Gatland has got the managerial formula spot on. He recycles knowing full well now that players respect the fact that if you don't do well, you lose your place. So Wales are in 4th gear going into 5th, as are Scotland. England though are like a reconditioned old Morris Minor - some new parts have been put in, but it's still an old car with old habits.

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posted Nov 21, 2008

About the scrummaging, if you’re still interested, Dr Webb:

Ideally, all forwards take the opposition’s “hit” with their knees flexed as little as possible. This creates a far more stable unit. The problem for Sheridan is that he is very tall, and to engage in a favourable position with his legs back, his hips lower than his shoulders and his back straight, he must rise up into the engagement. Jonker (I think in good faith) was getting the front rows nose-to-nose before they engaged, so Sheridan had very little room rising into the engagement to straighten up. His initial effort was dissipated in trying to straighten his back, instead of driving directly into the opposition. It’s a little more demanding for tall guys with longer muscle-ranges than for the squat guys modelled on Chubb safes, although when they’re settled in the tall guys often can shift more weight. The Australians compounded Sheridan’s problem, knowing that this is the way to nullify the advantage of stronger but taller scrummagers: they got very close before the engagement, grappled to prevent him getting a favourable bind initially, and bore down hard. They also tried to get the shove going before England could settle down, and often got away with it. Incidentally, Vickery and Sheridan were pretty much in the same boat, but Vickery allowed his feet to drift forward and became unstable while Sheridan nose-dived without giving ground. The effect was much the same. Jonker wasn’t the first ref. to penalise the side which didn’t engineer the collapses and won’t be the last. Front rankers don’t survive unless they learn to take care of themselves.

There was nothing new about how Australia went about negating England’s front-row advantage, and there would have been nothing new about what England should have done to counter Australia’s efforts. No doubt Johnson & Co. will keep looking for a scrummaging hooker, and there will be more live scrummaging at practices, with due attention being given to the engagement. On the day, however, the Australian front row went about their business like the mafia taking sweets from babies, and the English front row looked naive and eventually over-awed. A well-coached side at the peak of its game, and having clearly worked hard on its weaknesses, took advantage of a very rusty unit at the beginning of its season and did the necessary. Well done to Australia for driving home their advantage. They might well have lost otherwise.

Although this early-season rust and naivety showed most sharply in the scrummage, the problem existed all over the pitch, to be sure. Noon was clearly unaccustomed to Flutey’s changes of pace and direction, and was often adrift in support; Care did nothing to slow the Australian put-in when their scrummage got an early shove on and England needed a moment more to settle down; the English forwards sometimes had so little response to Australia’s line-out that it is a wonder they turned up at all; Armitage was on occasion grossly slow to get into position; and I shudder to speak of place-kicking and simple clearances from inside the twenty-five!

This is all due to rust and good coaching will get rid of it. Remember, at half-time an England win was well within the bounds of possibility. What troubled me much more was that, when the match started getting away from them, the English players looked increasingly bewildered and rudderless. I saw too little evidence of the tenacity, “mongrel” and sense of purpose which characterises a good team when the going gets tough. In fact, terms like “inferiority complex” and “clueless” sprang unbidden to mind. This might well be the real challenge which Johnson & Co. have to overcome. However, “panic tinkering” isn’t the way to go about fixing a problem like that, especially with games against the rest of the southern hemisphere coming up.

I still haven’t a clue who will play in the South African front row tomorrow but England surely will have sorted out the worst “rust” problems and should do much better.

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posted Nov 25, 2008

Wow, don't we english like to bury our head in the ground and belive that we did well in the both in the Aussie and SA Match. I have read a lot of comments from the match but one thing that has not been mention and that is the ability of Martin Johnson to be an effective Coach/Manager. A lot of noise was made when making MJ the manager and even the man himself was reticent in putting his name in the hat at the beginning. I always believe that you go with your gut instinct and i think that MJ 's was NOT to got for it but was persuaded by his peers. MJ does not have the skills to become a great manager, he's a great rugby player but not a manager. Here's a question, name me a recent(last 30 years) world class international player that has gone on to produce a great team. (The answer is NONE). I respect MJ as a player but i honestly believe he really did not want the England job at this time. So what should England do, take a leaf out of the FA Premiership and recruit the best Coaches/Managers availble and that means go to the Southern Hemisphere where they play the best rugby, consitantly. We have some of the best players in the world if only they are allowed to play. England have a long way to go both on management and player performance. Just remember Winston Churchill won the War not the FA Cup............the right man for the right job.

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posted Nov 25, 2008

Alwasi,
"Just remember Winston Churchill won the War not the FA Cup............the right man for the right job."

Brilliant!

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posted Nov 26, 2008

everyone needs to join this facebook group and also invite their friends list to it aswell. we need a voice and some support to stand up to this

http://www.facebook.com/home.php#/group.php?gid=42200651075

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