2023 Six Nations

[SaintK]

Scotland team to face England in the Guinness Six Nations opener on Saturday, 4 February at Twickenham, kick-off 4.45pm, live on STV and ITV
15. Stuart Hogg (Exeter Chiefs) 96 caps

14. Kyle Steyn (Glasgow Warriors) 5 caps
13. Huw Jones (Glasgow Warriors) 31 caps
12. Sione Tuipulotu (Glasgow Warriors) 11 caps
11. Duhan van der Merwe (Edinburgh Rugby) 23 caps

10. Finn Russell (Racing 92) 65 caps
9. Ben White (London Irish) 9 caps

1. Pierre Schoeman (Edinburgh Rugby) 16 caps
2. George Turner (Glasgow Warriors) 30 caps
3. WP Nel (Edinburgh Rugby) 50 caps
4. Richie Gray (Glasgow Warriors) 69 caps
5. Grant Gilchrist (Edinburgh Rugby) – Vice Captain – 59 caps
6. Jamie Ritchie (Edinburgh Rugby) – Captain – 36 caps
7. Luke Crosbie (Edinburgh Rugby) 2 caps
8. Matt Fagerson (Glasgow Warriors) 28 caps

Replacements

16. Fraser Brown (Glasgow Warriors) 57 caps
17. Jamie Bhatti (Glasgow Warriors) 25 caps
18. Simon Berghan (Glasgow Warriors) 31 caps
19. Jonny Gray (Exeter Chiefs) 72 caps
20. Jack Dempsey (Glasgow Warriors) 4 caps
21. George Horne (Glasgow Warriors) 18 caps
22. Blair Kinghorn (Edinburgh Rugby) 38 caps
23. Chris Harris (Gloucester Rugby) 39 caps

Hogg seems to have been out of the game injured for quite a while at Exeter.
When was the last time he started a match?

[Tichtheid]

Hogg seems to have been out of the game injured for quite a while at Exeter.
When was the last time he started a match?

17th of December v Bulls, according to Allrugby

[westport]

Scotland team to face England in the Guinness Six Nations opener on Saturday, 4 February at Twickenham, kick-off 4.45pm, live on STV and ITV
15. Stuart Hogg (Exeter Chiefs) 96 caps

14. Kyle Steyn (Glasgow Warriors) 5 caps
13. Huw Jones (Glasgow Warriors) 31 caps
12. Sione Tuipulotu (Glasgow Warriors) 11 caps
11. Duhan van der Merwe (Edinburgh Rugby) 23 caps

10. Finn Russell (Racing 92) 65 caps
9. Ben White (London Irish) 9 caps

1. Pierre Schoeman (Edinburgh Rugby) 16 caps
2. George Turner (Glasgow Warriors) 30 caps
3. WP Nel (Edinburgh Rugby) 50 caps
4. Richie Gray (Glasgow Warriors) 69 caps
5. Grant Gilchrist (Edinburgh Rugby) – Vice Captain – 59 caps
6. Jamie Ritchie (Edinburgh Rugby) – Captain – 36 caps
7. Luke Crosbie (Edinburgh Rugby) 2 caps
8. Matt Fagerson (Glasgow Warriors) 28 caps

Replacements

16. Fraser Brown (Glasgow Warriors) 57 caps
17. Jamie Bhatti (Glasgow Warriors) 25 caps
18. Simon Berghan (Glasgow Warriors) 31 caps
19. Jonny Gray (Exeter Chiefs) 72 caps
20. Jack Dempsey (Glasgow Warriors) 4 caps
21. George Horne (Glasgow Warriors) 18 caps
22. Blair Kinghorn (Edinburgh Rugby) 38 caps
23. Chris Harris (Gloucester Rugby) 39 caps

Hogg seems to have been out of the game injured for quite a while at Exeter.
When was the last time he started a match?

It must be about 5/6 weeks ago

[inactionman]

Lots of people who own one,

Actually you never really own one - you just put a down payment on one and set up a direct debit to your local garage

The thing about them, and other LR products, is that there is nothing else like them.

I had decided to abandon LR after the engine of my last Disco destroyed itself at 115k miles. There was no way I was buying another Disco and tested everything else. Then I needed a tow vehicle so hired a pick up, and was upgraded to a the then new Disco. I ordered one next day. It was just so far ahead of everything else.

One of our neighbours was fed up with the reliability of his RR so bought a G Wagen. £130k later it has spent as much time in the garage as his RR ever did, and he freely admits it is not as good as his old RR, let alone the new ones.

For people who live in the country and actually need and use proper off roaders, there is just nothing close to as good. Up here in Highland Perthshire it is either AWD pick ups for proper farming, or LR.

Never really got the G-Wagen, it seemed to much of a middle way between the defender and the Range Rover Sports - agricultural chassis with luxury interior. I think it still uses leaf springs?

I've had LR for a number of years, even the relatively basic model Freelander 2 was very comfortable but could drive through anything. My Discovery Sport is really just the replacement Freelander 2.

I'm hoping engine worries are being addressed. The newer LRs use their own homegrown engines, the Ingenium - pretty much all previous generation would have been Ford hangovers (my old Freelander 2 was a leaky Ford 2.2 Turbodiesel, which is the same engine the very first Discovery Sports used until switching to Ingenium 2.0). They've built a new facility (EMC) outside Wolverhampton, I've been in it a fair few times and you could eat your dinner off the floor of the bays. It's spotless, all big screen kanbans, and just so well-ordered. A complete contrast to the manufacturing lines at Solihull, Castle Brom and elsewhere.

Anyway, all a good distraction from the kickoff on sat.

[Jim Lahey]

Who has the co-commentator gig for Ireland on BBC?

-Rory Best, dour.
-Trimble, not great.
-Tommy Bowe, please no.
-D'arcy, meh, OK
-Horgan, I quite like.
-Ferris, no thanks.
-DOC, no thanks
-Quinny, no thanks

If it were up to me, it'd be the most entertaining man in sports entertainment, Zeebs. His great fashion sense in his choice of jackets made up for the bollocks he was spouting during the AIs.

I used to like Keith Wood, though his time has gone. On a similar theme, Jerry Flannery was funny in his written articles, I think he might be good value and he'd be able to offer good insight into the front row and line outs.

There aren't that many ex-players from any country who offer good insight. ROG is very good but he's also a bit earnest

My issue with ROG, and most other Mexican commentators is how they start everything sentence with a borish "Ah suppose."

Maybe its a rugby thing, or is it a cultural thing?

[Tichtheid]

My issue with ROG, and most other Mexican commentators is how they start everything sentence with a borish "Ah suppose."

Maybe its a rugby thing, or is it a cultural thing?

I'm familiar with the terms Jackeen and Culchie, but I thought Mexicans (which I haven't heard for a while) was for Dubliners? Or am I getting that wrong?

[Jim Lahey]

My issue with ROG, and most other Mexican commentators is how they start everything sentence with a borish "Ah suppose."

Maybe its a rugby thing, or is it a cultural thing?

I'm familiar with the terms Jackeen and Culchie, but I thought Mexicans (which I haven't heard for a while) was for Dubliners? Or am I getting that wrong?

I'd call anyone that lives outside a 15mile radius of Belfast in NI a culchie. And all southerners Mexicans.

But that's just me. Haven't heard of a Jackeen.

Edit. 15 miles is too far actually. 10 miles for the Culchie frontier.

[SaintK]

Hogg seems to have been out of the game injured for quite a while at Exeter.
When was the last time he started a match?

17th of December v Bulls, according to Allrugby

Yes, just checked Chiefs website and he played 60 minutes the week before as well.

[Tichtheid]

My issue with ROG, and most other Mexican commentators is how they start everything sentence with a borish "Ah suppose."

Maybe its a rugby thing, or is it a cultural thing?

I'm familiar with the terms Jackeen and Culchie, but I thought Mexicans (which I haven't heard for a while) was for Dubliners? Or am I getting that wrong?

I'd call anyone that lives outside a 15mile radius of Belfast in NI a culchie. And all southerners Mexicans.

But that's just me. Haven't heard of a Jackeen.

Edit. 15 miles is too far actually. 10 miles for the Culchie frontier.

The words were described to me thus by an Irish lad from Sligo and given this is the land of Yeats, Beckett, Joyce etc it was no surprise that his description was so vivid;

Jackeen - Union Jack supporting Dubliner, as in (to someone who might have just dropped something in the street), "You'd have caught it if it was a bag of heroin ye Jackeen cunt"

Culchie - a bog-trotting muck savage.


edit, I've just checked and my family in Newtonards are 13 miles out of Belfast, so Culchies it is then

[Jim Lahey]

I'm familiar with the terms Jackeen and Culchie, but I thought Mexicans (which I haven't heard for a while) was for Dubliners? Or am I getting that wrong?

I'd call anyone that lives outside a 15mile radius of Belfast in NI a culchie. And all southerners Mexicans.

But that's just me. Haven't heard of a Jackeen.

Edit. 15 miles is too far actually. 10 miles for the Culchie frontier.

The words were described to me thus by an Irish lad from Sligo and given this is the land of Yeats, Beckett, Joyce etc it was no surprise that his description was so vivid;

Jackeen - Union Jack supporting Dubliner, as in (to someone who might have just dropped something in the street), "You'd have caught it if it was a bag of heroin ye Jackeen cunt"

Culchie - a bog-trotting muck savage.


edit, I've just checked and my family in Newtonards are 13 miles out of Belfast, so Culchies it is then

Hmmm. I'd say Newtownards, Bangor and Donaghdee are still non-culchies, but they are on the limit. Lisburn would be the limit to the south. Newtownabbey to the North. Carrickfergus to the East. Beyond those limits it is truely bandit country.

[Slick]

Lots of people who own one,

Actually you never really own one - you just put a down payment on one and set up a direct debit to your local garage

The thing about them, and other LR products, is that there is nothing else like them.

I had decided to abandon LR after the engine of my last Disco destroyed itself at 115k miles. There was no way I was buying another Disco and tested everything else. Then I needed a tow vehicle so hired a pick up, and was upgraded to a the then new Disco. I ordered one next day. It was just so far ahead of everything else.

One of our neighbours was fed up with the reliability of his RR so bought a G Wagen. £130k later it has spent as much time in the garage as his RR ever did, and he freely admits it is not as good as his old RR, let alone the new ones.

For people who live in the country and actually need and use proper off roaders, there is just nothing close to as good. Up here in Highland Perthshire it is either AWD pick ups for proper farming, or LR.

Never really got the G-Wagen, it seemed to much of a middle way between the defender and the Range Rover Sports - agricultural chassis with luxury interior. I think it still uses leaf springs?

I've had LR for a number of years, even the relatively basic model Freelander 2 was very comfortable but could drive through anything. My Discovery Sport is really just the replacement Freelander 2.

I'm hoping engine worries are being addressed. The newer LRs use their own homegrown engines, the Ingenium - pretty much all previous generation would have been Ford hangovers (my old Freelander 2 was a leaky Ford 2.2 Turbodiesel, which is the same engine the very first Discovery Sports used until switching to Ingenium 2.0). They've built a new facility (EMC) outside Wolverhampton, I've been in it a fair few times and you could eat your dinner off the floor of the bays. It's spotless, all big screen kanbans, and just so well-ordered. A complete contrast to the manufacturing lines at Solihull, Castle Brom and elsewhere.

Anyway, all a good distraction from the kickoff on sat.

Christ, I hope your chat is better later

[inactionman]

The thing about them, and other LR products, is that there is nothing else like them.

I had decided to abandon LR after the engine of my last Disco destroyed itself at 115k miles. There was no way I was buying another Disco and tested everything else. Then I needed a tow vehicle so hired a pick up, and was upgraded to a the then new Disco. I ordered one next day. It was just so far ahead of everything else.

One of our neighbours was fed up with the reliability of his RR so bought a G Wagen. £130k later it has spent as much time in the garage as his RR ever did, and he freely admits it is not as good as his old RR, let alone the new ones.

For people who live in the country and actually need and use proper off roaders, there is just nothing close to as good. Up here in Highland Perthshire it is either AWD pick ups for proper farming, or LR.

Never really got the G-Wagen, it seemed to much of a middle way between the defender and the Range Rover Sports - agricultural chassis with luxury interior. I think it still uses leaf springs?

I've had LR for a number of years, even the relatively basic model Freelander 2 was very comfortable but could drive through anything. My Discovery Sport is really just the replacement Freelander 2.

I'm hoping engine worries are being addressed. The newer LRs use their own homegrown engines, the Ingenium - pretty much all previous generation would have been Ford hangovers (my old Freelander 2 was a leaky Ford 2.2 Turbodiesel, which is the same engine the very first Discovery Sports used until switching to Ingenium 2.0). They've built a new facility (EMC) outside Wolverhampton, I've been in it a fair few times and you could eat your dinner off the floor of the bays. It's spotless, all big screen kanbans, and just so well-ordered. A complete contrast to the manufacturing lines at Solihull, Castle Brom and elsewhere.

Anyway, all a good distraction from the kickoff on sat.

Christ, I hope your chat is better later

I've barely even started on it.


Suggest you bring a book

[Tichtheid]

I could talk through the time I stripped down the Series 3 Landy engine and replaced the crankshaft.

I drove that from the Pyrenees to East Lothian and back several times, top speed of 80km/50mph* - a foolhardy thing I did in my 20s that I'd never think of doing now

*you really wouldn't want to go any faster in that vehicle on the road, but it will carry a load of fence posts and high tensile wire to where goats begin to shit themselves

[fishfoodie]

Ireland: Hugo Keenan; Mack Hansen, Garry Ringrose, Stuart McCloskey, James Lowe; Johnny Sexton (capt), Jamison Gibson-Park; Andrew Porter, Dan Sheehan, Finlay Bealham; Tadhg Beirne, James Ryan; Peter O'Mahony, Josh van der Flier, Caelan Doris.

Replacements: Rob Herring, Cian Healy, Tom O'Toole, Iain Henderson, Jack Conan, Conor Murray, Ross Byrne, Bundee Aki.

Furlong out with a slight knock, so Bealham to start

[sockwithaticket]

Ha'penny out, Sanjay in apparently.

[GogLais]

Ha'penny out, Sanjay in apparently.

Odd. I assumed LW was injured as I thought he’d be first choice.

[inactionman]

Ha'penny out, Sanjay in apparently.

Odd. I assumed LW was injured as I thought he’d be first choice.

Yay for Gatlandball.

[sockwithaticket]

Ha'penny out, Sanjay in apparently.

Odd. I assumed LW was injured as I thought he’d be first choice.

Not that I follow Welsh rugby all that closely, but I gather that both of them are only very recently returned from injury. Perhaps it was thought that having both in the side is too much of a risk and Halfpenny edged it in training to get the nod.

[GogLais]

I don’t know what it is with us and full backs. There’s no obvious successor to LW and LH, I think the last genuine 15, not a wing or 10 playing out of position was Lee Byrne.

[fishfoodie]

Scarlets' Halfpenny was due to make his first Wales start in 19 months but he has suffered a back spasm in training.

Cardiff's Williams, who had not been included in the original matchday squad, will wear the number 15 jersey.

Wales assistant coach Jonathan Humphreys insisted Williams was "good to go".

It is the third time in recent months that 34-year-old Halfpenny has been a late withdrawal from the Wales team.

He was named by Wayne Pivac to face both New Zealand and Australia last autumn - having made his Test return against Georgia as a replacement - only to pull out of both games shortly before kick-off.

However Warren Gatland was braced for this twist having revealed Halfpenny sat out training sessions this week with a hip complaint.

"Unfortunately, Leigh had a back spasm this morning (Thursday) and Liam will be playing," explained Humphreys.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/rugby-union/64500447

I think Leigh's body is trying to let him know it's time to call it a career.

[Jim Lahey]

Very surprised to hear LH pulled out of a game injured . . . . Said nobody ever.

[Paddington Bear]

Appreciate this is a LMGTFY but what if any channel are the U20s games on?

[Brazil]

Appreciate this is a LMGTFY but what if any channel are the U20s games on?

I think Iplayer.

[laurent]

Appreciate this is a LMGTFY but what if any channel are the U20s games on?

I think Iplayer.

l'equipeTV for the French games. (VPN should allow you to watch)

[Paddington Bear]

Appreciate this is a LMGTFY but what if any channel are the U20s games on?

I think Iplayer.

Thanks

[Slick]

Appreciate this is a LMGTFY but what if any channel are the U20s games on?

I think Iplayer.

Thanks

Yup, definitely iPlayer, red button etc

[fishfoodie]

Appreciate this is a LMGTFY but what if any channel are the U20s games on?

I think Iplayer.

The BBC Sport homepage, iPlayer, & S4C will all have coverage

[Torquemada 1420]

Appreciate this is a LMGTFY but what if any channel are the U20s games on?

I think Iplayer.

l'equipeTV for the French games. (VPN should allow you to watch)

And already regretting it.

[Torquemada 1420]

Welsh U20 tactic: use smallest player on the park (SH) to try and crash over through Irish fwds

[Torquemada 1420]

Gonna be a long comp for this Fre side. Ita pack is very good and will trouble others but this French 8 is powder puff weak.

[Oxbow]

That was nice from Scotland.

[Paddington Bear]

Pretty wild start at the Stoop - 3 excellent tries in eight minutes

[sockwithaticket]

Eng - Sco is going to be a high scoring game at this rate! Both teams could work on dealing with a kick off on current evidence.


Moderately interesting thing for Prem viewers

Fisilau playing 7 for England having been playing 8 for his club. Exeter have this weird habit of playing someone at 8 who's probably more physically suited to 7 (Kvesic, Simmonds) but sandwiched between two absolute giants on the flanks. Often players who aren't actually seen as flankers. Gatland was on one of the BBC pods this week saying Tshiunza isn't a back row, yet Exeter have been playing him at 7.

[Slick]

Welsh U20 tactic: use smallest player on the park (SH) to try and crash over through Irish fwds

Have you got multiple screen going so you don’t miss criticising anyone?

[Torquemada 1420]

Welsh U20 tactic: use smallest player on the park (SH) to try and crash over through Irish fwds

Have you got multiple screen going so you don’t miss criticising anyone?

S4C for Wal v Ire and
L'Equipe for Ita v Fra
giving Eng v Sco a miss. We all know where that one will end.

[Lobby]

Eng - Sco is going to be a high scoring game at this rate! Both teams could work on dealing with a kick off on current evidence.


Moderately interesting thing for Prem viewers

Fisilau playing 7 for England having been playing 8 for his club. Exeter have this weird habit of playing someone at 8 who's probably more physically suited to 7 (Kvesic, Simmonds) but sandwiched between two absolute giants on the flanks. Often players who aren't actually seen as flankers. Gatland was on one of the BBC pods this week saying Tshiunza isn't a back row, yet Exeter have been playing him at 7.

14 minute hat trick for Hathaway for England. Doubt he will ever have scored three such easy tries.

[sturginho]

Why are the u20 matches not showing up on iPlayer?

[Torquemada 1420]

14 minute hat trick for Hathaway for England. Doubt he will ever have scored three such easy tries.

Like I said ^^^^

[Torquemada 1420]

Why are the u20 matches not showing up on iPlayer?

https://live.lequipe.fr/lachainelequipe ... layer-home

[sockwithaticket]

That was almost fantastic.

Edit - 6 gets his try mere seconds later after the Scottish scrum is duffed up.