Better Rugby Rules

Classy Conrad is Number ONE !

Well done ABs..

The tight five won the day, the tight five cleaned up in scrums,  line outs and the breakdown. Does this mean I have to eat humble pie and say coach Hanson has got the forward rolling in the correct direction. Guess thats a big fat YES ! Well done..

Gob Smack.. the ABs even completed a rolling maul, coach Hanson has stated he hates the maul, I guess he has seen the light, praise the lord !

However Richard Kahui showed up Joe Rokocoko, and I believe if you favor Kahui then you must favor Zac Guilford, Zac Guilford was very unlucky not to be the starting number 11 for the ABs. I believe Joe Rokocoko short cummings will be shown up in future Tri Nations games.

Ma Nonu selection after a long spell off worked just great, in a NON KICKING game plan Ma Nonu is the ideal 2nd five. This is the position that either MacAlister or Sonny Bill Williams will also compete for. But Ma was great with the distribution to get the ball wide. Also with Ma Nonu connection with Conrad Smith I cant see MacAlister or Sonny Bill being nothing more than bench fodder.

UPDATE: Jimmy Cowan obviously broke game plan rules, his passing and option selection faded as the game went on, he was subbed early, on came Peri Weepu and things began to flow again. Note to Jimmy, stick to game plan !

In the end ABs 4 tries to the Boks zero tries. Cant argue with that !

Just goes to show that sitting players on the bench for a few games gets there blood boiling to get back on the pitch to perform. Ma Nonu and Woodcock are testimonies to that approach.

Roll on Wellington ! ABs hope to make 2-0 vs Boks !

 Bakkie Botha rugby skill set..

I head butt
I hit
I bite
I eye gouge
I commit professional fouls

I say BYE BYE you cheating dirty mongrel !

NO place for this rubbish in rugby !

Ooooh he is a born again christian as well, WTF !

Source: Rugby: Bakkies Botha suspended for headbutt

Why the harsh name you say ?

Well how can a WIN like the above be anything but bullshit !

So what has this guy done apart from take his shirt off !

Guess we will find out in the New Super 15 !

Source: All Blacks rejects among sevens trialists

I was amazed that Zac Guilford didn’t make the ABs Tri  Nations squad!

Then again he and Hosea Gear are just the folks you need to defend the ABs Sevens gold at the Commonwealth Games..

Sneaky Plan by the NZRU, tactical selections going on here, hmmmm !

Haka, haka is every where you look !

It’s getting longer, and more theatrical.

It used to be only done on away games, know its done every game, what a bore !

The haka should be limited to 3 minutes, and only for away games.

The Maori vs England game, the haka went on and on and on, for about 7 minutes. Seriously this just over the top.

Lets tidy this up, and keep the show ponies in their box !

Source: All Blacks: Tialata, Thomson, Guildford axed for Tri Nations

You gotta be kidding me..

After Zac Guilford effort vs Wales (Sat 26th), you leave him out for these fellows:

Joe Rokocoko
Benson Stanley
Rene Ranger
Richard Kahui

Stanley and Ranger have done NOTHING, they have been selected on ‘potential’, so you can bet Sonny Bill will get the same easy entry card.

Joe, Ranger, Stanley all missed tackles and butchered sure thing tries!

Zac save two, set up another !

Joe is not there as an international wing, and the selectors will soon realise this…he is too slow, lazy and cant catch !

We shall see !

UPDATE: There is further evidence that G Henry is rotating the squad, so that come RWC time the bench is strong, as he remembers the last RWC when the bench failed the ABs in that horrible french match !

Little Peter was in his junior school class when the teacher asked the children what their fathers did for a living. All the typical answers came up:
Fireman, policeman, salesman, politician, etc.

However, little Peter was being uncharacteristically quiet, and so the teacher asked him about his father. Reluctantly he replied, “My Dad’s an exotic dancer in a gay club, and takes off all his clothes in front of other men. Sometimes, if the offer’s really good, he’ll go out with a man, rent a cheap room and let him shag him.”

The teacher hurriedly set the other children to work on some colouring and then took Little Peter aside to ask him, “Is that really true about your father?”

“No,” said Peter, “My father plays rugby for England; I was just too embarrassed to say.”

Call me !

Well done ABs !

The Welsh put up a stern resistance for 40 minutes, then ran out of puff.

Why: IRB Rule Change Aholics.

Extract…

…”The southern hemisphere teams now have one thing that the northern teams dont have. Six months more conditioning to a much faster paced game. And that folks matter, dont believe me, just wait for the northern versus southern hemisphere clashes this winter, the English and Welsh boys will be knackered 30 minutes in…and that could mean 30 points.”..

Exception: England vs Aussie (Aussie fell into poms game plan !)

I still dont understand the selection of Joe Rokocoko. Twice on a line break he could NOT keep up with either Dan Carter or Conrad Smith. The pace is gone from his legs. He dropped one catch, caught another, the Boks will see that ! Dunno Zac Guilfords lost favor but hes my first choice.

The new laws or application of them seams to be working out just fine !

Go the ABs !

Source: All Blacks: Vito gets starting spot

Dear Wales.

The AB selectors have made a huge mistake with the selection of Joe Rokocoko as wing. I suggest you send him lots of high balls under pressure. The Boks did this in 2009, and managed to get several tries down his wing, as poor old Joe can NOT catch. However change this tactic if Zac Guilford replaces Joe Rokocoko on the field, as he can catch just fine !

Thats your only chance !

Cheery O boy O !

Forecast Score: ABS 30+, Wales less than 15

Blonker sent off, what the hell was he thinking, doesn’t he know there are about 50 cameras watching him !

Well as soon as the Irish was reduced to 14 men and then 13 men, I switch channels to Tv2 to watch Shrek 3. That was more entertaining.

Why anyone pays good hard cash (and its not cheap) to watch a test match in the freezing cold at night in the rain when the game can resort to a farce.

Easy money for the NZRU, but really rubbish customer service to a kiwi loving rugby public.

All the jurno cheer-leading accolades for the All Blacks performance when the score should have been 100-0. The ABs were rubbish in the 2nd half (after all they were up against 14 men). Guess they were bored as well !

Did ya see the Boks, get the feeling we arnt so sh*t hot !

Source: Conrad Smith will put the All Blacks first

Extract..

And as far as Smith considering a similar code switch, you get the feeling the chances are remote at best.

“League? I don’t know. I played a bit at school when the first XV used to transfer and play a bit. I don’t know, it’s not quite me. I love the physicality of it, but I think it’s a bit too simple.”

COMMENTS:  That is exactly my point why Sonny ‘BullShit” Bill will be a very poor choice for the role of ABs Centre. He is used to a simple game, rugby is more complex and you need the sharpest rugby brains in the correct place at the right time, when the pressure is intense.

The above is exactly why the ABs have NOT been in a RWC final for two decades. Rugby Smarts is lacking.

I would target Sonny at 2nd five eight. He is the same mold as MacAlister, both would run great off Dan Carter.

This means: MacAlister, Sonny Bill, Ma Nonu are battling it out for 2nd five. Notice the common traits then !

However, what’s their kicking game like, well you dont get everything I guess !

The Media

Current All Blacks

His Manager

Current ABs Coach

Are ALL talking this lad up. Hes a great athlete, hes strong, he has great skills.

But he has done nothing, but pose in picture for the girls. Rugby Union is not suited to those that can not think on their feet, or have a low work load. Rugby Union will expose Sonny ‘BullShit’ Bill as just average.

He will have a chance in Super 15. But he is years behind Conrad Smith as centre. I would be watching Sonny for 2nd five eights, and not centre or wing. A center must organise the attack and help those fickle wings, just ask Frank Bunce!

Well hes got 12 months to prove himself, at the moment he has a head start on media beat up.

       Winston Peter’s, had a little trouble with his signs !

Andy Hayden, had better put up the evidence or shut up !

You cant call some one a racist without the evidence ! Or maybe he has been in one too many scrums !

           
Zac Guilford

Whats the difference between a rugby league back and and rugby union back?

One Name : Zac ‘Zig Zag’ Guilford.

A rugby union back must LOOK for work, he must read the game and find the gaps, more so than a league back. For the simple reason there is less room on a union field, and when space comes available you must be ready.

Tana Umaga also new this. The best example today is Zac Guilford of the Crusaders fame. You watch his work load, he seams to find space all over the field. Rugby league players who move to union and complain about the space, or lack of it, just dont have rugby mojo, and should stay in league.

Another reason why Sonny Bill we be a Dud, Dudley, Doodle…

Source : Sonny Bill Gets rugby contract offer.
ref: Sonny Bill doesn’t have rugby mojo.

NZRU dont waste your money, here is why…

1) If he is gonna be in the backs, can he catch, just ask Joe Rokocoko how important that skill is ?

2) Big game experience: Sure he looks great when he’s playing the mino’s of a competition, under pressure in a Bledisloe cup, that is a whole different story.

3) We have Kahui and Conrad Smith, so why spend money on a guy who will sit on the reserve bench.

4) He breaks down: He has not eaten enough WeetBix, he breaks easy, and the South African boys will make sure of that !

5) He is just not that smart, we need leaders and rugby smarts not just brawn (this is G Henry weakness, brawn or body, he normally picks brawn).

6) Consider the path Brad Thorn took, he is the only league play who has ever proven he was worth every cent to switch codes at a late stage in a players career.

Henry is desperate, so he  his motivating NZRU cheque book once again.

Hmm I wonder will selected players be rested from the 2011 Super 15 ???

Source: Lack Of Quality rocks All Blacks

Marc Hinton has just restated why we lost in the quarter finals vs France (RWC 2007). Every RWC opponent knows this, and this is why a bet at the TAB for an ABs win at RWC 2011 is a long shot !

Extract..

…”Someone needs to say something, for it’s difficult to escape the growing realisation that the situation is getting deadly serious for the All Blacks. Throw in a few injuries in a few key positions and these are worrying times indeed.

Think I’m being alarmist? Pessimistic?

OK, answer me this: who are our back-up men for Dan Carter, Richie McCaw, Ma’a Nonu, Kieran Read and Brad Thorn?

The logical answer, in order, is: Stephen Donald, er Tanerau Latimer till Daniel Braid becomes available, Luke McAlister, Rodney So’oialo and, er, Bryn Evans. Not exactly a glittering line-up of form horses.”…

COMMENTS: Get the feeling NZ Rugby is very close to soccer for Brazil. I still dont support picking overseas plays for the ABs, why, the NZRU loss would be $40 M, thats why !

Source: All Blacks get rules head start

Extract..

…”A secret meeting has handed the All Blacks and their southern hemisphere neighbours a big on-field advantage before the Rugby World Cup is staged in New Zealand next year.

All Blacks assistant coach Steve Hansen and coaches from rugby’s nine other top-tier nations met behind closed doors in Dublin last week.

Their aim was to decide what the game’s politicians couldn’t – what rules will be used in international rugby for the next 18 months.

And the good news, from a Kiwi perspective, is that the current “interpretations” being used in this year’s Super 14 have now been set in stone.

IRB chief executive Mike Miller confirmed the news when approached by the Sunday Star-Times.

Miller said: “The rugby world is on the same page again. There is no north-south split as some suggested there would be. This is great news for the game.”…

COMMENTS: Ok first up I am not unhappy on this matter. However it must be said that the IRB wear nothing but flipflops.

I remind you when the ELV experiment was in full swing it was decided that the laws can not be changed 2 years out from the RWC. To give all nations plenty of time to adjust and become solid with the new or adjusted laws of the game.

However a rule/law change in my book is either a law change or a change in the manner of the interpretation of a rugby law. The result is the same.

The southern hemisphere teams now have one thing that the northern teams dont have. Six months more conditioning to a much faster paced game. And that folks matter, dont believe me, just wait for the northern versus southern hemisphere clashes this winter, the English and Welsh boys will be knackered 30 minutes in…and that could mean 30 points.

Source: Justin Marshall Retires

Justin was one of the mentally toughest halfbacks the ABs have ever seen. I have been watching rugby for 40 plus years, and I would say in the wet there was no better.

He was characterised as a halfback come loose forward and did play that role well. However this is why as a pure half back this mix in roles does not see him referred at the best half back the ABs have seen.

You will conclude this when you watch the games when George Greagan and Justin are matched up. George was just that much faster in recycling the ball in a free flowing movement. Justin was just too slow and pass was too short.

No matter, thanks for a fine service Justin. My bet his candid no sh*t approach to rugby will be very interesting when hear him on the TV.

Cheers dude !

Source: Rugby profiteering will hurt NZ

Extracts..

..” Either the seller meets the buyer or the buyer will go elsewhere or not come at all.”..

COMMENTS: No matter what you charge, give the buyer a fair service for the RWC period. But make sure you do profit and well at that, after all the NZRU and its unions have been fleecing the NZ rugby public ever since rugby went professional.

Some examples

1) Charging full prices for test matches at night in June/July.
2) $40 plus for a super rugby game for average seats.
3) Charging kids too much for the cheap seats.

In 1983 3 kids were playing in the street in Sydney when they were hit by a train. They all go to heaven and God says to them, “You weren’t supposed to die, you were all supposed to live out your lives. This was not your time. To make it up to you, I’ll let you choose what you want to do with your life. Take a running jump off of that cloud over there, and as you’re flying back down to Earth, shout out what you want to do. And so it shall be.”

The 1st kid takes a running leap and shouts “Lawyer” and so, 20 years later, he is a very successful lawyer, making lots of money, with an upcoming appointment to the Bench.

The 2nd kid takes his turn and shouts “brain surgeon” and so, 20 years later, he is the most admired man in his field of medicine and making a ton of money saving lives.

The 3rd kid goes to take his turn, and as he runs he trips over his own feet and stumbles of the cloud muttering “stupid clumsy arsehole.” 20 years later, he’s first five for the Wallabies.

Coaching  jobs on the line …

Source: Top school’s coach barred

Extract..

..”A rugby coach at an exclusive Auckland high school has been suspended for poaching a player from a poorer South Auckland school.

The suspension is part of a move by sport bosses to act on long-running concerns about the practice among secondary schools.

St Kentigern College 1st XV coach Tai Lavea – brother of former Auckland Blues star Tasesa Lavea – has been banned from any match day involvement with the team, after being found guilty of breaching tough recruitment bylaws to poach a player from Papatoetoe’s Aorere College.”..

COMMENTS: Graham Henry won many a secondary rugby school competition, and being a headmaster managed to do the exact same thing as the above. The rules weren’t around then, or if they were, they were not enforced. I remember seeing Henry sides play, and I always thought the beards on the players just suggest they were a little older than the rest of us, as Henry allowed critical players to repeat a senior year just until the rugby season end.

Don’t believe me, just examine Henry’s recruitment for the Welsh rugby side while he was in charge ( ak Granny gate).

Henry win at ‘any cost’ most likely cost us the rugby world cup in 2007. Players pulled from Super rugby, thus being under cooked for RWC. Refusing to stand back and let the players lead the game on the field, and insisting on radio link ups during the game. Like I said before the team that wins the RWC can self steer !

Source:  Selectors HalfBacks are Kings NOW !

Extract..

..”The All Blacks selection panel appear poised to spring a surprise on us with confirmation coming yesterday from assistant coach Wayne Smith that he and head coach Graham Henry believe rugby has a new kingmaker: the halfback.

The reign and control once exerted by first-fives is now on the wane and the search is on for a No9 who, first and foremost, can run and therefore take advantage of the new powers bestowed upon the position by the game’s lawmakers.

Smith, a former All Blacks first-five, believes this year’s law interpretations “mean the halfback is much more important than he used to be”….

COMMENTS: Well, anybody who’s over 40 will not be upset with this analysis. Why, we can remember Loveridge,  Bachop and Going. These guys had to be equally clever and rugby smart as first fives , and they were. However to day, its not so much the person who is the half back its is anybody who is standing there at the base of the ruck as the current game is so fluid that all forwards need to be very rugby smart.

I feel this is a good sign, and the future of rugby is looking up. I also think that Aussie George Greagan replacement Will Genia may be the best in the world (at the moment).

Why are NZ teams struggling in the 2010 Super 14….hmmm

1) Bad coaching : YES, most coaches are still trying to play the loose game. Whereas our South African friends with their extra large men are playing are more tight forward game, and keeping the fatties out of the back line. I put the Blues and Chiefs on this list.

2) Injury: Well this is a factor, but the same for all teams.

3) Player exodus: Well this is also a factor however, same for the SANZAR countries so neutral effect there.

4) ELV Hang over: I guess this is also in (1), but wake up mauls are back. This is one factor Hanson (ABs coach) fails at.

5) Missing Penalty Kicks: Well the Chiefs take first prize here. Donald just doesnt have too many good days there days.

6) Just below par: I would say the Highlanders have never been in the running.

The Blues are awful, Pat Lam coaching days must be numbered.