Law question- Farrell tackle

Where goats go to escape
Post Reply
User avatar
Sandstorm
Posts: 10883
Joined: Mon Jun 29, 2020 7:05 pm
Location: England

Grandpa wrote: Tue Jan 10, 2023 9:50 am So why is Owen Farrell not seen in the same light as Johnny Wilkinson? If they are so similar... why is one seen as the pantomime villain and the other admired not only by the English, but just about everyone else too?
Spot the difference:

Image

Image
User avatar
Grandpa
Posts: 2266
Joined: Tue Oct 06, 2020 2:23 pm
Location: Kiwi abroad

Kawazaki wrote: Tue Jan 10, 2023 9:59 am
Grandpa wrote: Tue Jan 10, 2023 9:50 am So why is Owen Farrell not seen in the same light as Johnny Wilkinson? If they are so similar... why is one seen as the pantomime villain and the other admired not only by the English, but just about everyone else too?

Probably a combination of things;

Home counties accent > Wigan accent
Doleful philosophical thinker > Hard northern bastard
Played for a team that losses a lot > Team that always beats you
Wears heart of sleeve > Doesn't have a heart
He needs to do some underwear ads... :wink:
User avatar
Tichtheid
Posts: 9400
Joined: Wed Aug 26, 2020 11:18 am

Grandpa wrote: Tue Jan 10, 2023 9:50 am So why is Owen Farrell not seen in the same light as Johnny Wilkinson? If they are so similar... why is one seen as the pantomime villain and the other admired not only by the English, but just about everyone else too?

This is just my personal view, Wilkinson was just as competitive, possibly more so than today's players. Reading his book I often thought, "sheesh, lighten up, don't be so hard on yourself".

Farrell is a bit like Sexton and Biggar in that they do try to force their will on the referees and that sticks in the craw a bit. It's not jealousy because other Saracens players over the years haven't attracted the opprobrium that Farrell does, Itoje's idiotic antics also attract a lot of heat, but they come with appreciation of his playing ability.

Maybe Sarries getting caught with their hand in the salary cap till adds to the circus too.
Last edited by Tichtheid on Tue Jan 10, 2023 10:07 am, edited 1 time in total.
User avatar
Grandpa
Posts: 2266
Joined: Tue Oct 06, 2020 2:23 pm
Location: Kiwi abroad

Sandstorm wrote: Tue Jan 10, 2023 10:01 am
Grandpa wrote: Tue Jan 10, 2023 9:50 am So why is Owen Farrell not seen in the same light as Johnny Wilkinson? If they are so similar... why is one seen as the pantomime villain and the other admired not only by the English, but just about everyone else too?
Spot the difference:

Image

Image
Image
User avatar
Grandpa
Posts: 2266
Joined: Tue Oct 06, 2020 2:23 pm
Location: Kiwi abroad

Tichtheid wrote: Tue Jan 10, 2023 10:06 am
Grandpa wrote: Tue Jan 10, 2023 9:50 am So why is Owen Farrell not seen in the same light as Johnny Wilkinson? If they are so similar... why is one seen as the pantomime villain and the other admired not only by the English, but just about everyone else too?

This is just my personal view, Wilkinson was just as competitive, possibly more so than today's players. Reading his book I often thought, "sheesh, lighten up, don't be so hard on yourself".

Farrell is a bit like Sexton and Biggar in that they do try to force their will on the referees and that sticks in the craw a bit. It's not jealousy because other Saracens players over the years haven't attracted the opprobrium that Farrell does, Itoje's idiotic antics also attract a lot of heat, but they come with appreciation of his playing ability.

Maybe Sarries getting caught with their hand in the salary cap till adds to the circus too.
I'm trying to think of another sportsman who polarises opinion... Roy Keane maybe? I used to hate him... but at the same time wish he played for Liverpool...
User avatar
Sandstorm
Posts: 10883
Joined: Mon Jun 29, 2020 7:05 pm
Location: England

Meh; everyone respected Johnson, but not many liked him.
User avatar
Paddington Bear
Posts: 5957
Joined: Tue Jun 30, 2020 3:29 pm
Location: Hertfordshire

Tichtheid wrote: Tue Jan 10, 2023 9:42 am
Paddington Bear wrote: Tue Jan 10, 2023 9:32 am
Ymx wrote: Tue Jan 10, 2023 7:20 am Well, indeed. And one should be taking a serious look at themselves if they find themselves agreeing with Walrus. Which side of history… and so on.
Not so much about ‘picking sides’ as it is about pointing out that four pages for a missed call in a club game is a massive overreaction.
Is it?

It's early January, the 6N is close and the Heineken Cup is this coming weekend. Having a very important player in both competitions involved in this situation is a big deal.

The fire is of course stoked because there is a perception, real or not, that Farrell should have received many more cards than he has for this same offence.

I think it's not a huge reach for it to be a talking point on a rugby bored.
Yeah it definitely is, we all knew immediately he’d got away with one and roughly the length of ban he can expect. It isn’t like there’s been a massive shitfight about either of these points.
Old men forget: yet all shall be forgot, But he'll remember with advantages, What feats he did that day
User avatar
Tichtheid
Posts: 9400
Joined: Wed Aug 26, 2020 11:18 am

Grandpa wrote: Tue Jan 10, 2023 10:10 am
I'm trying to think of another sportsman who polarises opinion... Roy Keane maybe? I used to hate him... but at the same time wish he played for Liverpool...
After ten minutes thought I came up with - McEnroe
User avatar
Grandpa
Posts: 2266
Joined: Tue Oct 06, 2020 2:23 pm
Location: Kiwi abroad

Tichtheid wrote: Tue Jan 10, 2023 10:18 am
Grandpa wrote: Tue Jan 10, 2023 10:10 am
I'm trying to think of another sportsman who polarises opinion... Roy Keane maybe? I used to hate him... but at the same time wish he played for Liverpool...
After ten minutes thought I came up with - McEnroe
Too flamboyant... needs to be a sportsman who despite their methodical make-up, made up for it through shear willpower.. Farrell, Keane, Djokovic...
User avatar
Guy Smiley
Posts: 6014
Joined: Mon Jun 29, 2020 7:52 pm

Kawazaki wrote: Tue Jan 10, 2023 8:27 am
Ymx wrote: Tue Jan 10, 2023 7:20 am Well, indeed. And one should be taking a serious look at themselves if they find themselves agreeing with Walrus. Which side of history… and so on.


Just a quick rudimentary look at the stats has shown Biffer up. For whatever reason, some people just froth and get triggered by Farrell which just gets others frothing and triggered and then the paranoid feedback loop about him starts up again. Other players do the same or worse and it gets ignored.
They don’t, though. Every time a player is involved in a dodgy play that invites a card there is lengthy debate and shit flinging.

What is a little unusual is the lengths you’re going to to defend Farrell. Mental gymnastics.

Darrell’s downfall is (autocorrect and fuck it I’m leaving it there) that he got away with a few glaring incidents that deserved action… a shoulder charge on the line is the one I clearly remember. Other than that, he’s just another player and the fuss over this latest is no more unusual than the fuss that erupts over anyone else doing something similar.

You could always drop the aggrieved defense and allow that.
User avatar
Guy Smiley
Posts: 6014
Joined: Mon Jun 29, 2020 7:52 pm

Grandpa wrote: Tue Jan 10, 2023 10:30 am
Tichtheid wrote: Tue Jan 10, 2023 10:18 am
Grandpa wrote: Tue Jan 10, 2023 10:10 am
I'm trying to think of another sportsman who polarises opinion... Roy Keane maybe? I used to hate him... but at the same time wish he played for Liverpool...
After ten minutes thought I came up with - McEnroe
Too flamboyant... needs to be a sportsman who despite their methodical make-up, made up for it through shear willpower.. Farrell, Keane, Djokovic...
McCaw
User avatar
Grandpa
Posts: 2266
Joined: Tue Oct 06, 2020 2:23 pm
Location: Kiwi abroad

Guy Smiley wrote: Tue Jan 10, 2023 10:33 am
Grandpa wrote: Tue Jan 10, 2023 10:30 am
Tichtheid wrote: Tue Jan 10, 2023 10:18 am

After ten minutes thought I came up with - McEnroe
Too flamboyant... needs to be a sportsman who despite their methodical make-up, made up for it through shear willpower.. Farrell, Keane, Djokovic...
McCaw
Thought about him... but he's too nice and doesn't really polarise does he? He may have been hated for being too good.. but not for his personality?
User avatar
Tichtheid
Posts: 9400
Joined: Wed Aug 26, 2020 11:18 am

Guy Smiley wrote: Tue Jan 10, 2023 10:33 am
Grandpa wrote: Tue Jan 10, 2023 10:30 am
Tichtheid wrote: Tue Jan 10, 2023 10:18 am

After ten minutes thought I came up with - McEnroe
Too flamboyant... needs to be a sportsman who despite their methodical make-up, made up for it through shear willpower.. Farrell, Keane, Djokovic...
McCaw
Is there divided opinion on McCaw?

There was talk of Invisibility Cloaks and all but that is part of what made him so good.
User avatar
Grandpa
Posts: 2266
Joined: Tue Oct 06, 2020 2:23 pm
Location: Kiwi abroad

Patrick Reed... actually no, Nick Faldo...
Last edited by Grandpa on Tue Jan 10, 2023 10:56 am, edited 1 time in total.
User avatar
SaintK
Posts: 6616
Joined: Tue Jun 30, 2020 7:49 am
Location: Over there somewhere

Guy Smiley wrote: Tue Jan 10, 2023 10:32 am
Kawazaki wrote: Tue Jan 10, 2023 8:27 am
Ymx wrote: Tue Jan 10, 2023 7:20 am Well, indeed. And one should be taking a serious look at themselves if they find themselves agreeing with Walrus. Which side of history… and so on.


Just a quick rudimentary look at the stats has shown Biffer up. For whatever reason, some people just froth and get triggered by Farrell which just gets others frothing and triggered and then the paranoid feedback loop about him starts up again. Other players do the same or worse and it gets ignored.
They don’t, though. Every time a player is involved in a dodgy play that invites a card there is lengthy debate and shit flinging.

What is a little unusual is the lengths you’re going to to defend Farrell. Mental gymnastics.

Darrell’s downfall is (autocorrect and fuck it I’m leaving it there) that he got away with a few glaring incidents that deserved action… a shoulder charge on the line is the one I clearly remember. Other than that, he’s just another player and the fuss over this latest is no more unusual than the fuss that erupts over anyone else doing something similar.

You could always drop the aggrieved defense and allow that.
I'm not the biggest Farrell fan but he appears to get far more shit flung at him for his actions than just about any other English player I can think of.
Slick
Posts: 11909
Joined: Tue Jun 30, 2020 2:58 pm

Tichtheid wrote: Tue Jan 10, 2023 10:18 am
Grandpa wrote: Tue Jan 10, 2023 10:10 am
I'm trying to think of another sportsman who polarises opinion... Roy Keane maybe? I used to hate him... but at the same time wish he played for Liverpool...
After ten minutes thought I came up with - McEnroe
Ronaldo?
All the money you made will never buy back your soul
Biffer
Posts: 9141
Joined: Mon Jun 29, 2020 6:43 pm

Kawazaki wrote: Tue Jan 10, 2023 9:59 am
Grandpa wrote: Tue Jan 10, 2023 9:50 am So why is Owen Farrell not seen in the same light as Johnny Wilkinson? If they are so similar... why is one seen as the pantomime villain and the other admired not only by the English, but just about everyone else too?

Probably a combination of things;

Home counties accent > Wigan accent
Doleful philosophical thinker > Hard northern bastard
Played for a team that losses a lot > Team that always beats you
Wears heart of sleeve > Doesn't have a heart
You don't seem to point out in this reply that Farrell is a 12?
And are there two g’s in Bugger Off?
User avatar
Grandpa
Posts: 2266
Joined: Tue Oct 06, 2020 2:23 pm
Location: Kiwi abroad

Slick wrote: Tue Jan 10, 2023 11:01 am
Tichtheid wrote: Tue Jan 10, 2023 10:18 am
Grandpa wrote: Tue Jan 10, 2023 10:10 am
I'm trying to think of another sportsman who polarises opinion... Roy Keane maybe? I used to hate him... but at the same time wish he played for Liverpool...
After ten minutes thought I came up with - McEnroe
Ronaldo?
Ronaldo is far too skilful to be compared... of current footballers.. Maguire?
User avatar
Paddington Bear
Posts: 5957
Joined: Tue Jun 30, 2020 3:29 pm
Location: Hertfordshire

Slick wrote: Tue Jan 10, 2023 11:01 am
Tichtheid wrote: Tue Jan 10, 2023 10:18 am
Grandpa wrote: Tue Jan 10, 2023 10:10 am
I'm trying to think of another sportsman who polarises opinion... Roy Keane maybe? I used to hate him... but at the same time wish he played for Liverpool...
After ten minutes thought I came up with - McEnroe
Ronaldo?
The entire Australian cricket team in the late 90s/early 2000s. There’s tonnes of examples but few who seem to relish/encourage it less than Faz
Old men forget: yet all shall be forgot, But he'll remember with advantages, What feats he did that day
User avatar
PornDog
Posts: 816
Joined: Mon Jun 29, 2020 9:39 pm

Grandpa wrote: Tue Jan 10, 2023 10:49 am Patrick Reed... actually no, Nick Faldo...
Don't think either of them really divide opinion though - I think pretty much everyone agrees that they're very talented cunts!
User avatar
Kawazaki
Posts: 4795
Joined: Tue Jun 30, 2020 8:25 am

Biffer wrote: Tue Jan 10, 2023 11:07 am
Kawazaki wrote: Tue Jan 10, 2023 9:59 am
Grandpa wrote: Tue Jan 10, 2023 9:50 am So why is Owen Farrell not seen in the same light as Johnny Wilkinson? If they are so similar... why is one seen as the pantomime villain and the other admired not only by the English, but just about everyone else too?

Probably a combination of things;

Home counties accent > Wigan accent
Doleful philosophical thinker > Hard northern bastard
Played for a team that losses a lot > Team that always beats you
Wears heart of sleeve > Doesn't have a heart
You don't seem to point out in this reply that Farrell is a 12?


And?
User avatar
Mahoney
Posts: 632
Joined: Tue Jun 30, 2020 9:37 am

Paddington Bear wrote: Tue Jan 10, 2023 9:32 am
Ymx wrote: Tue Jan 10, 2023 7:20 am Well, indeed. And one should be taking a serious look at themselves if they find themselves agreeing with Walrus. Which side of history… and so on.
Not so much about ‘picking sides’ as it is about pointing out that four pages for a missed call in a club game is a massive overreaction.
Length of thread on an internet forum has little to do with the importance of the thing under discussion; it's mostly about with whether or not people agree. When they disagree they keep trying to convince each other and the thread grows.

Which is why 1/6 of the posts on the thread are by you or Toga.
Wha daur meddle wi' me?
User avatar
Grandpa
Posts: 2266
Joined: Tue Oct 06, 2020 2:23 pm
Location: Kiwi abroad

PornDog wrote: Tue Jan 10, 2023 11:43 am
Grandpa wrote: Tue Jan 10, 2023 10:49 am Patrick Reed... actually no, Nick Faldo...
Don't think either of them really divide opinion though - I think pretty much everyone agrees that they're very talented cunts!
Their mother's, wives, agents?

OK, you win...

Djokovic then... though he is pretty talented if somewhat methodical..
westport
Posts: 765
Joined: Thu Jul 02, 2020 7:45 am

User avatar
Sandstorm
Posts: 10883
Joined: Mon Jun 29, 2020 7:05 pm
Location: England

westport wrote: Tue Jan 10, 2023 12:17 pm
Christ, he's a serial offender after all!
User avatar
Grandpa
Posts: 2266
Joined: Tue Oct 06, 2020 2:23 pm
Location: Kiwi abroad

westport wrote: Tue Jan 10, 2023 12:17 pm
I'm beginning to fear for his long term health.. chronic shoulder impacts can't be doing him any good... again you can see him starting to fall to the ground from the trauma...
User avatar
PornDog
Posts: 816
Joined: Mon Jun 29, 2020 9:39 pm

It's the tucked arm that really gets me. Everything else can be mitigated to one degree or another so long as it was a legal attempt to tackle. But so often his very first action in preparing to tackle is illegal - you [should] lose all mitigating factors in your favour when you start your process with a deliberately illegal act.

Don't get me started on the American Football style diving at the legs we see so often when people are barrelling against the line. Even forgetting about its legality, it seems like awful technique. Yet you see it pretty much every set within 5 yards of the line :thumbdown:
Biffer
Posts: 9141
Joined: Mon Jun 29, 2020 6:43 pm

PornDog wrote: Tue Jan 10, 2023 12:39 pm
Don't get me started on the American Football style diving at the legs we see so often when people are barrelling against the line. Even forgetting about its legality, it seems like awful technique. Yet you see it pretty much every set within 5 yards of the line :thumbdown:
Yep. Incredibly dangerous. You sometimes see people having a knee on the ground before tackling. Not, so far as I know, legal.
And are there two g’s in Bugger Off?
User avatar
Torquemada 1420
Posts: 11135
Joined: Thu Jul 02, 2020 8:22 am
Location: Hut 8

Biffer wrote: Mon Jan 09, 2023 3:37 pm
Kawazaki wrote: Mon Jan 09, 2023 3:22 pm


1 red card and 2 citings in a 13-year professional career. That's not prolific.

You're reaching because you don't like Farrell. It's pathetic.
Comparing the record of a lock and a fly half is a bit of a push. How about comparing it to another top level 10?

Sexton - never red carded
Russell - one red for a high fend
Biggar - one for a high tackle
Ntmack - no reds
Carter - no cards of any colour
BBarrett - one red

So if you compare him against the same position, he's not looking good in terms of record.
Point of order. Ntamack a top level 10? :problem:

Ironically, Ntamack might have been redded by another ref for his hit on Boudehent at the w/e.
User avatar
Torquemada 1420
Posts: 11135
Joined: Thu Jul 02, 2020 8:22 am
Location: Hut 8

Kawazaki wrote: Mon Jan 09, 2023 4:11 pm Except he plays at 12 for the comparison you made.
Probably quite tight which no. shirt Farrell has started in when playing for Eng but hardly the whole picture e.g. how many times has the notional 10 been shuffled outside of Farrell in game time to allow him to play 10?
The reality is where it counts (in Farrell's and Jones' minds), Farrell is a 10.

Be interesting to see how it looks cw with all positions in the backs.
User avatar
Kawazaki
Posts: 4795
Joined: Tue Jun 30, 2020 8:25 am

westport wrote: Tue Jan 10, 2023 12:17 pm


The comments under the tweet are more in my camp. Witch hunt.
User avatar
Torquemada 1420
Posts: 11135
Joined: Thu Jul 02, 2020 8:22 am
Location: Hut 8

Paddington Bear wrote: Mon Jan 09, 2023 4:42 pm It is pretty farcical that a decision I think everyone agrees was wrong in a prem game has now stretched to four pages here. Had it been in reverse toga and I probably would have commented on the English thread we’d been hard done by, got told to get a grip and move on. The same applies in reverse. It was a bad tackle and should have been a red but was hardly a deliberate cheap shot, people wouldn’t have even suggested that unless it was Faz.
Errr, maybe because with other players, it isn't. The only debate here is whether with Farrell it's deliberate or mitigated against deliberate by a refusal to learn how to tackle properly. In my opinion, it amounts to the same thing. His refusal to change endangers fellow pros. and shows a contempt for their safety.
User avatar
Torquemada 1420
Posts: 11135
Joined: Thu Jul 02, 2020 8:22 am
Location: Hut 8

Quoting Jones period lacks credulity but this:
Head shots must cease. But the victimisation of players, including Farrell, and the hair-trigger pomposity of his haters, is of equal danger to prospects of a quiet life and a safe sport.
:lol:
User avatar
clydecloggie
Posts: 1197
Joined: Tue Jun 30, 2020 6:31 am

I asked ChatGPT what it thinks. Interestingly, the collective wisdom of the Internet seems to think rugby players are often given the benefit of the doubt.
ChatGPT wrote: As a machine learning model, I don't have personal opinions or feelings, so I can't provide an opinion on whether or not Owen Farrell should be banned for his high tackle. Decisions on whether or not to issue a ban for a rugby player are typically made by a panel of experts, such as a disciplinary committee or judicial officer.

The rules regarding high tackles in rugby union are designed to protect players from the risk of injury. Tackles above the shoulder are not allowed, and players who commit such tackles can face penalties including a yellow card, red card, or a ban. The specific details of the incident you're referring to and the judgement of the match officials, are the key factors to determine the disciplinary action if any.

It's worth noting that rugby players are often given the benefit of the doubt, and incidents are usually reviewed by a panel of experts to determine the severity of the infraction and the appropriate punishment. So, regardless of whether or not a tackle is high, what determine the severity is the angle, the intent, the force and the outcome of the contact.
User avatar
Torquemada 1420
Posts: 11135
Joined: Thu Jul 02, 2020 8:22 am
Location: Hut 8

Kawazaki wrote: Tue Jan 10, 2023 9:59 am
Grandpa wrote: Tue Jan 10, 2023 9:50 am So why is Owen Farrell not seen in the same light as Johnny Wilkinson? If they are so similar... why is one seen as the pantomime villain and the other admired not only by the English, but just about everyone else too?

Probably a combination of things;

Home counties accent > Wigan accent
Doleful philosophical thinker > Hard northern bastard
Played for a team that losses a lot > Team that always beats you
Wears heart of sleeve > Doesn't have a heart
Pfffft.

1) Only in England maybe where rugby is a toffs game.
2) Whaaaaaaaaaaaat? Did you mean intelligent versus thick as sh*t maybe?
3) Losses (sic): RWC winning team? Or are you talking about Sarries............ whose winning record is tarnished by cheating. So, yeah. Can see why there is anti cheaters sentiment around.
4) Never saw Wilkinson as that sort of player on the field. Farrell is far more animated (maybe it's a contagious illness contracted from Itoje) than Wikinson ever was.
User avatar
Torquemada 1420
Posts: 11135
Joined: Thu Jul 02, 2020 8:22 am
Location: Hut 8

Guy Smiley wrote: Tue Jan 10, 2023 10:32 am
Kawazaki wrote: Tue Jan 10, 2023 8:27 am
Ymx wrote: Tue Jan 10, 2023 7:20 am Well, indeed. And one should be taking a serious look at themselves if they find themselves agreeing with Walrus. Which side of history… and so on.


Just a quick rudimentary look at the stats has shown Biffer up. For whatever reason, some people just froth and get triggered by Farrell which just gets others frothing and triggered and then the paranoid feedback loop about him starts up again. Other players do the same or worse and it gets ignored.
They don’t, though. Every time a player is involved in a dodgy play that invites a card there is lengthy debate and shit flinging.

What is a little unusual is the lengths you’re going to to defend Farrell. Mental gymnastics.

Darrell’s downfall is (autocorrect and fuck it I’m leaving it there) that he got away with a few glaring incidents that deserved action… a shoulder charge on the line is the one I clearly remember. Other than that, he’s just another player and the fuss over this latest is no more unusual than the fuss that erupts over anyone else doing something similar.

You could always drop the aggrieved defense and allow that.
That was the other one in the SA game?
User avatar
Guy Smiley
Posts: 6014
Joined: Mon Jun 29, 2020 7:52 pm

No... Australia

User avatar
SaintK
Posts: 6616
Joined: Tue Jun 30, 2020 7:49 am
Location: Over there somewhere

Torquemada 1420 wrote: Tue Jan 10, 2023 1:49 pm
Kawazaki wrote: Tue Jan 10, 2023 9:59 am
Grandpa wrote: Tue Jan 10, 2023 9:50 am So why is Owen Farrell not seen in the same light as Johnny Wilkinson? If they are so similar... why is one seen as the pantomime villain and the other admired not only by the English, but just about everyone else too?

Probably a combination of things;

Home counties accent > Wigan accent
Doleful philosophical thinker > Hard northern bastard
Played for a team that losses a lot > Team that always beats you
Wears heart of sleeve > Doesn't have a heart
Pfffft.

1) Only in England maybe where rugby is a toffs game.
2) Whaaaaaaaaaaaat? Did you mean intelligent versus thick as sh*t maybe?
3) Losses (sic): RWC winning team? Or are you talking about Sarries............ whose winning record is tarnished by cheating. So, yeah. Can see why there is anti cheaters sentiment around.
4) Never saw Wilkinson as that sort of player on the field. Farrell is far more animated (maybe it's a contagious illness contracted from Itoje) than Wikinson ever was.
You really are a twat at times
shaggy
Posts: 416
Joined: Sat Jan 02, 2021 11:11 am

Torquemada 1420 wrote: Tue Jan 10, 2023 1:49 pm
Kawazaki wrote: Tue Jan 10, 2023 9:59 am
Grandpa wrote: Tue Jan 10, 2023 9:50 am So why is Owen Farrell not seen in the same light as Johnny Wilkinson? If they are so similar... why is one seen as the pantomime villain and the other admired not only by the English, but just about everyone else too?

Probably a combination of things;

Home counties accent > Wigan accent
Doleful philosophical thinker > Hard northern bastard
Played for a team that losses a lot > Team that always beats you
Wears heart of sleeve > Doesn't have a heart
Pfffft.

1) Only in England maybe where rugby is a toffs game.
2) Whaaaaaaaaaaaat? Did you mean intelligent versus thick as sh*t maybe?
3) Losses (sic): RWC winning team? Or are you talking about Sarries............ whose winning record is tarnished by cheating. So, yeah. Can see why there is anti cheaters sentiment around.
4) Never saw Wilkinson as that sort of player on the field. Farrell is far more animated (maybe it's a contagious illness contracted from Itoje) than Wikinson ever was.
Don’t have to be posh/toff to get onboard the North/South pantomime hate.
User avatar
Torquemada 1420
Posts: 11135
Joined: Thu Jul 02, 2020 8:22 am
Location: Hut 8

Guy Smiley wrote: Tue Jan 10, 2023 2:29 pm No... Australia

Ahhh. My bad memory. That was the one which I thought was also in the SA game. Cheers.
Post Reply