NPR

Sandstorm wrote: ↑Sat Mar 18, 2023 6:53 pm That’s enough for me. I’m going to take out the garbage.

Is that you Steve?

C69 wrote: ↑Sat Mar 18, 2023 6:52 pmHarsh imho

Yeah, but I was just going to post how he needed to calm down, & then he did that

He's had a good game, but those top few inches were lacking.

Anyway much more credable than I expected and who knows if it was 15v15

Torquemada 1420 wrote: ↑Sat Mar 18, 2023 6:45 pm

Blackmac wrote: ↑Sat Mar 18, 2023 6:41 pm Itoje is barely more than a well built cheerleader these days.

He's been ill dontcha know?

Whooping cough.

I’d heard it’s the clap.

GogLais wrote: ↑Sat Mar 18, 2023 6:55 pm

Torquemada 1420 wrote: ↑Sat Mar 18, 2023 6:45 pm

Blackmac wrote: ↑Sat Mar 18, 2023 6:41 pm Itoje is barely more than a well built cheerleader these days.

He's been ill dontcha know?

Whooping cough.

I’d heard it’s the clap.

As a neutral I must say the complaints about the officiating has been somewhat distasteful.
PD hang your head in shame, you and OS and the more feral England supporters should be proud of your teams efforts.

Congrats Ireland. Best team in the tournament. Peak game was v the Frogs. I sincerely do hope you keep it going as it would be great to see you on top of the world.

tc27 wrote: ↑Sat Mar 18, 2023 6:54 pm Anyway much more credable than I expected and who knows if it was 15v15

Congrats Ireland sure that was a frustrating 60 odd minutes.

England much better than last week.

Congrats Ireland. Champion team. England was very good tonight.

Congrats to Ireland.

Ireland and France just brilliant rugby this championship.

Sad it’s all over now.

Hilariously all kept in the single thread.

Congrats Ireland. Every side in this 6N has had wobbles, but Ireland’s were small and short wobbles. By far the best and most consistent team this year.

C69 wrote: ↑Sat Mar 18, 2023 6:53 pm

Hal Jordan wrote: ↑Sat Mar 18, 2023 6:52 pm Another black hole dense piece of play from England.

Why are we so fucking thick? For years we been fucking morons.

Inbreeding?

From a Welshie ? I have heard it all now

C69 wrote: ↑Sat Mar 18, 2023 6:59 pm As a neutral I must say the complaints about the officiating has been somewhat distasteful.
PD hang your head in shame, you and OS and the more feral England supporters should be proud of your teams efforts.

As a neutral

Red card seemed legit to me, in the laws the player without the ball has a lot more responsibility than the ball carrier. England player could've put his hands in the air stood more upright and moved his body side on, did the opposite to getting himself out of the way like that, which is a risky choice if it's uncontrolled and a head contact results. Mitigation that decreases the sanction for head contact usually (always?) comes from use of the arms by the player without the ball, either because the arms rode up in the tackle or the ball carrier ducked under the arms at the last moment. Going for the body check doesn't leave a ref much room for mitigation and lowering the sanction, and contact to the head starts at red.

Rassie and Nienaber are going to go into the bunker and watch that Ireland v England match a few times.

England despite the fight in the first half were just awful. They created zero opportunities anywhere all huff and puff with fuck all outcome. JVP is a completely failed experiment,a Ben Youngs lite. With Farrell at 10, might as well pick a bunch of tin cans outside him such is the creativity/threat he offers.
I really dont know where England go from here, there is no direction, too few international standard players, basic skills comlpetrly absent. Watson was the only England player who offered any threat/hope, and everything he did, he created himself.

I thought England had bottomed out in their sheer shitness in 2015, i was wrong.......and i completrly agree, it was a red card.

EnergiseR2 wrote: ↑Sat Mar 18, 2023 8:09 pm I thought the big news of the day was Scotland being offside again towards the end, Gardner giving them the decision and they then go on to score. It was daylight robbery but par for the course

Terrific consistency from Gardner, ignoring the italian sealing off after the 1st tap and go (pre bound = fine but then straight to ground = penalty). Allowing for a grandstand finish by letting things go.

Followed by his southern hemisphere colleague applying the law correctly to send Steward off.

ASMO wrote: ↑Sat Mar 18, 2023 8:30 pm England despite the fight in the first half were just awful. They created zero opportunities anywhere all huff and puff with fuck all outcome. JVP is a completely failed experiment,a Ben Youngs lite. With Farrell at 10, might as well pick a bunch of tin cans outside him such is the creativity/threat he offers.
I really dont know where England go from here, there is no direction, too few international standard players, basic skills comlpetrly absent. Watson was the only England player who offered any threat/hope, and everything he did, he created himself.

I thought England had bottomed out in their sheer shitness in 2015, i was wrong.......and i completrly agree, it was a red card.

Yep !

If Arundell had been sent off, you'd have stuggled to tell the difference, for all the ball he saw.

There are a number of exciting backs in England, but there's a distinct lack of an attacking structure to bring them into, to best utilize their talents. Eddie has cast a long shadow on the team, & the muppets in the RFU, who let him away with it should walk the plank before what will probably be a disappointing RWC.

When does Scabnose start taking blame?

I like to see England play with today’s intensity in the forwards and without Owen Farrell in the backs.

Openside wrote: ↑Sat Mar 18, 2023 7:54 pm

C69 wrote: ↑Sat Mar 18, 2023 6:59 pm As a neutral I must say the complaints about the officiating has been somewhat distasteful.
PD hang your head in shame, you and OS and the more feral England supporters should be proud of your teams efforts.

As a neutral

I am dripping almost moist with neutrality

I'm sure I'm in the minority here - I certainly was in the pub and from what I can see online too - but I have no problem whatsoever with Steward's red. He ran into contact and at the last second took evasive action that was not evasive and instead just twatted an opponent hard in the head. Don't think it was deliberate but it was incredibly clumsy, very stupid, and obviously dangerous. Clear red IMO.

Ireland were very nervy and some distance off their best. England got stuck into them a bit but not so much to explain all the errors - I think the occasion got to them a little bit. England showed a lot of grit and competed well. That is as positive as I'm going to be about them; they were utterly devoid of ambition, totally lacking in guile, and seemed opposed to the very idea of trying to create space and make breaks. An appalling lack of bravery. Wales were totally outclassed by a very good France side but they always tried to attack them and cause them problems with their skills; England simply decided to kick and clap, or run head first into people. An absolute waste of everyone's time. I cannot see anything but a repeat of the 2011 World Cup for England at this point.

Ireland - congratulations on a deserved Grand Slam.

Ymx wrote: ↑Sat Mar 18, 2023 9:09 pm When does Scabnose start taking blame?

Put a pin in this post for this time next year !

EnergiseR2 wrote: ↑Sat Mar 18, 2023 9:35 pm

Big D wrote: ↑Sat Mar 18, 2023 8:46 pm

EnergiseR2 wrote: ↑Sat Mar 18, 2023 8:09 pm I thought the big news of the day was Scotland being offside again towards the end, Gardner giving them the decision and they then go on to score. It was daylight robbery but par for the course

Terrific consistency from Gardner, ignoring the italian sealing off after the 1st tap and go (pre bound = fine but then straight to ground = penalty). Allowing for a grandstand finish by letting things go.

Followed by his southern hemisphere colleague applying the law correctly to send Steward off.

When you put it like that I can only wholeheartedly agree

This
So obviously this

sockwithaticket wrote: ↑Sat Mar 18, 2023 6:44 pm Sheehan just doesn't look like a hooker at all. You could drop him in the centre and no one would bat an eye. Someone Like Marchand is in outstanding physical condition, but there's still no doubt he's a front row player.

Very tall for a hooker.

I thought ireland were shyte to be honest. It feels underwhelming.
England didnt offer much.
Sexton wasnt great. I think we are looking at a dodgy world cup again. An old sexton and ross byrne. We are screwed.

Mr Tim Buktoo wrote: ↑Sat Mar 18, 2023 10:11 pm I thought ireland were shyte to be honest. It feels underwhelming.
England didnt offer much.
Sexton wasnt great. I think we are looking at a dodgy world cup again. An old sexton and ross byrne. We are screwed.

I think Ireland have peaked.

EnergiseR2 wrote: ↑Sat Mar 18, 2023 10:26 pm Great day out so well worth it

Well deserved, enjoy your victory.

C69 wrote: ↑Sat Mar 18, 2023 11:04 pm

EnergiseR2 wrote: ↑Sat Mar 18, 2023 10:26 pm Great day out so well worth it

Well deserved, enjoy your victory.

that first half against the French will live long on the memory, Total Rugby.

Mr Tim Buktoo wrote: ↑Sat Mar 18, 2023 10:11 pm I thought ireland were shyte to be honest. It feels underwhelming.
England didnt offer much.
Sexton wasnt great. I think we are looking at a dodgy world cup again. An old sexton and ross byrne. We are screwed.

Yeah, kept going for the big play but that wasn't working and kept England in the game. Should have just focused on the basics.

Uncle fester wrote: ↑Sat Mar 18, 2023 11:14 pm

Mr Tim Buktoo wrote: ↑Sat Mar 18, 2023 10:11 pm,
I thought ireland were shyte to be honest. It feels underwhelming.
England didnt offer much.
Sexton wasnt great. I think we are looking at a dodgy world cup again. An old sexton and ross byrne. We are screwed.

Yeah, kept going for the big play but that wasn't working and kept England in the game. Should have just focused on the basics.

Getting anywhere this Autumn will require Ireland to play what's in front of them; & after three games of only playing the 1st half, the last two games have been them containing & absorbing in the 1st, & then pushing on in the 2nd.

The two things I'm happy to see, as an Irish fan this 6N are the increase in depth, & the mental resilience.

There's still plenty to do, but we're in better shape than we were before the last RWC.

What a dick.

Gumboot wrote: ↑Sun Mar 19, 2023 3:33 amWhat a dick.

Yup. Somewhere back in this thread we had a small exchange about him. This confirms it.

Guy Smiley wrote: ↑Sun Mar 19, 2023 3:29 am

Did one of the Irish rugby lads make a joke about women's rugby once upon a time or something?

Why is he so bitter? Probably needs to sort himself out if he wants to be taken seriously by people as a pundit.

Well done Ireland. Best team in the competition and a scarily disciplined and skilful outfit. No real surprise it was a bit of a struggle yesterday, an awful lot of pressure and rugby is played so much in the top two inches, but you were never going to throw it away

C69 wrote: ↑Sat Mar 18, 2023 9:29 pm

Openside wrote: ↑Sat Mar 18, 2023 7:54 pm

C69 wrote: ↑Sat Mar 18, 2023 6:59 pm As a neutral I must say the complaints about the officiating has been somewhat distasteful.
PD hang your head in shame, you and OS and the more feral England supporters should be proud of your teams efforts.

As a neutral

I am dripping almost moist with neutrality

Made I chuckle

How’s Sexton?

Knew that he was injured as he wasn’t writhing around on the ground holding his head.

Slick wrote: ↑Sun Mar 19, 2023 8:18 am Well done Ireland. Best team in the competition and a scarily disciplined and skilful outfit. No real surprise it was a bit of a struggle yesterday, an awful lot of pressure and rugby is played so much in the top two inches, but you were never going to throw it away

Even before the red card, and despite Ireland playing like a steaming bag of shit, I felt we would come good eventually, mainly because England didn't offer much of an attacking threat. If England had peak Vunipolas, peak Tuilagi and Marcus Smith running at us, I think England would've had at least 1 try on the board and we'dve had to dig really deep to pull ourselves out of it before the red.

But fair play to England, not the result they'd have wanted obviously but their pack were lightyears ahead of where they were a week ago, and made Ireland look very ordinary/shit for 70mins. Sprinkle some creativity into the backline and the English have a decent side that on their day can beat anyone.

Congrats Ireland.

Now if you can have an implosion in the world cup that would be great.