Rugby Today

09/04/2021

20/02/2021

Hand Off vs Elbow Off
Keep it clean 😁

18/02/2021

The Six Nations thus far has been full of drama and talking points. Red cards have dominated the headlines, with a sprinkle of worthwhile rugby scattered amongst the highlights. France have emerged as the clear favourites heading into round 3.
Wales have tenaciously ground out a couple of close encounters with the help of two red cards. In the first game versus Ireland, Peter O Mahoney’s red was a straight forward call, he knew his intent upon approaching the ruck and after looking at the big screen, the ref’s call wasn’t contested. The Scottish red card was somewhat harsher, Zander Fagerson must be feeling pretty aggrieved, there was no intended malice and the jackal was falling downwards into the clear out zone. Player safety and the protection of the head area, is rightly, the present focus of World Rugby and the referees. It is an issue that has to be taken seriously, as recently demonstrated by the presentation of early onset dementia by a number of ex top class professionals, led by England World Cup winner Steve Thompson. The Jack Willis incident at Twickenham throws contention into the developing rule changes. Should the straight clean out become further policed, the croc(odile) roll could well be coached to become more common place. We witnessed last weekend the perils of that scenario, the very opposite of player welfare was the result. The promising Willis will be out for the foreseeable with a horrendous knee injury. Following that incident, there has been call from some this week to ban the croc role. This has clear implications, if we outlaw the efforts to clear the ruck entirely, the jackals’ role will dominate the game. A role, that for many has risen too far already, frequently stunting the free flow play that we all love to enjoy. It is a very emotive topic and opinion is divided as to which side of the fence one sits, players past and present will sometime soon (very hopefully) get to chew the fat over some cold ones at their local club. On one hand we have; “rugby is going soft, you know what you sign up for”, on the other; “player safety at all costs is the paramount importance”. It’s a fine line and its hoped that a balance can be struck to maintain the competitive nature and ferocity of the sport, whilst eliminating the dangerous aspects from it. The sport of rugby centres around the ruck, the pending rule changes are crucially important.

Other-wise the rugby has been mediocre, only France appear as if they want to play dynamic attacking rugby all of the time and it would seem that they have the ability and togetherness to pull it off. There has been video footage of jubilant scenes following the Ireland victory surfacing on social media, they are a bonded outfit. Shaun Edwards has added a steely reserve to the famous Gaelic flair, the Rugby world outside of France has long feared this moment in time. The time when they no longer implode on their own emotions. The genius has never been in question, only their ability to control it. Edwards’ is infamous for his no-nonsense approach. Les Bleus with that lethal combination of mental toughness and young talent could ominously be a formidable force for some years to come. Wales are slowly showing some glimpses of form under Wayne Pivac and are demonstrating a determined desire to win. Rees Zammit being the highlight, the fact that Welsh loose-head prop Wyn-Jones has been in the frame for both Mom awards, winning one, is an indication of their lack of attacking endeavour so far.
England have looked off the pace. The Saracen contingent have been particularly out of sorts. The lack of regular, competitive games must be weighing heavily (pun intended). Billy V should perhaps consult a local locksmith, regarding a timing device for his refrigerator. Joking aside their performances have been a far cry from the side that so brutally put aside the Allblacks in the world cup semi-final. They look a tired team and Eddie will no doubt be looking at ways to get their mojo back. The absence of Sam Underhill has had a huge impact on how they play the gain line, plan B hasn’t yet materialised. Ireland too seem set in a rut, reliant on their trusty servants Murray and Sexton in the halves. International rugby is tough and it can be monotonous to maintain such high standards. Unearthing the elite modern player is one thing, maintaining Ferrari performance levels, presents another set of challenges altogether.

Its rest week this week and all the respective coaching staffs’ will have plenty to fill their work rotas. Wales host England, this is set to be a gritty encounter from what we’ve witnessed up until now, both teams defend well, a little bit of magic from one of the Gloucester wingers’ Zammit or May, perhaps could be the difference. Italy host Ireland in Rome, Sexton and co will have to be at their best, Italy have shown promising spells, however even with Gli Azzurris confidence growing, Ireland should have enough experience in their locker for the final quarter. The tie of the round is likely to play out in Paris, where the in-form hosts welcome the much improved Scots. Scotland are unfortunate not to be entering the game 2 and 0. This match-up will test the rugby barometer as to how far this French team have truly come. Scotland will extend them and with some fair weather it should be a cracker of a game.

In Rugby.

08/12/2020

England Autumn Champions. What have we learned?
Prior to the final against France, the English rugby fans were praising Eddie Jones, England can win all ways was the fans call. Just one game later, after facing a very young and energetic, French third string team and the same fans are calling for his head. “Stale”, “one dimensional”, “boring”, “predictable” were the echoes bounding around the social media platforms on Sunday evening. The fickleness of life, right there in a nutshell, rugby mastermind to the dole queue in eighty minutes.
The young French team with nothing to lose and everything to prove, demonstrated vividly what energy and desire bring to the arena. To be brutal, other than the five minutes after half time, presumably with Eddies Aussie twang still ringing in their ears’, England did look tired and bereft of ideas. The dependable Farrell missed some sitters at goal and overall the team looked jaded in comparison to the high standards that they’ve set themselves over the past two years.
Take nothing away, this young French side defended like their lives depended upon it and you couldn’t help but feel the growling presence of Shaun Edwards lurking in the background. There was a stint midway through the first half, whilst they were camped on their own try line, defending wave after wave, when they were literally throwing their bodies on the line. The tight head prop crumpled under one such collision and exited the fray. Now that the French seem to have this steely grit that they’ve often been lacking and add that to their natural urge to play expansive rugby, Le Bleus look like they are going to be formidable in the next few years ahead.
The tactical side of the game, combined with the advancements in athletic strength and conditioning have certainly made the game less of a spectacle. The rule makers have a task ahead of them, in order to solve the modern dilemmas of the game. The beakdown jackal and the constant resetting of scrums are the biggest issues of contention. It’s disappointing that turnovers are celebrated like tries, at the same time it’s a purists dream. The scrum needs contest for the game to remain Union in its essence, yet its mind numbing to watch. Conundrums that require a lot of thought, for whatever amount of thought that goes into amending or improving the laws, much, much more thought will go into bending those laws. The players and coaches will always dance on the line of right and wrong, flourishing in the grey areas.
Japan lit up the last World Cup by playing a brand of rugby that excites everyone, none rugby and all. Yet we all knew, despite our best hopes, that, that brand of rugby would never win the tournament. The referees, coaches and the governing bodies need to align to steer the game in the right direction. It’s ever so slightly beginning to lean back towards the kick and clap era, the one that professionalism led us away from. Winning is one thing but it shouldn’t be at the expense of the game we love to watch. We want to see the likes of Jason Robinson, Shane Williams, Brian O’ Driscoll, Christian Cullen, Beauden Barrett, Cheslin Kolbe, et el in full flight, not Samson Lee and Jeff Probyn head-butting the mud for seven scrums in a row.
The modern era has brought us incredible athleticism, which in turn has helped to engineer solid, organised defences able to compete without compromise. We’re now at a pivotal point in the sports’ history, the introduction of the TMO has added further contention into the mix. Next steps are crucial to prevent us from evolving into a sterile, predictable version of the sport that we love.

26/11/2020

Eddie the rugby Einstein or Aussie chancer?
On a recent podcast Dylan Hartley regaled a very unorthodox story of how Eddie Jones once picked the England International Team. Hartley approached Eddie on a Thursday prior to the weekends’ fixture and reminded him that the team hadn’t been notified of the starting squad. “Oh have I not” was Eddies reply. He then tells Hartley he’ll let everyone know at the scheduled team meeting later that day. OK great. Upon arriving at the meeting the players were presented with their squad shirts laid out in team formation across the meeting room floor. Eddie told everyone to go and stand by the shirt that they thought that they deserved on the weekend. The players were a little confused as to whether or not they contest a contentious position, Hartley himself felt uncomfortable as to whether he or Jamie George should both stand on the number two shirt or not. In the end the team gradually decided the positions amongst themselves, Hartley stood on the two shirt and George on the twenty three and so on. Once all had shuffled into place, Eddie promptly declared that, that was the team for Saturday. “Chancer” is the knee jerk opinion to such a story. Think into it a little deeper and is it a mind play master class. Do the players that are assigned to the finishers numbers then hold an envious desire for that starting shirt? Maybe? It wasn’t long after that, that Jamie George made the number two shirt his own. Look at football, at the best ever managers, they are experts at psychological warfare. Keeping players hungry, on their toes, full of desire and any other adjectives that you might care to think of, that is what the greatest managers excel at.
This takes us to Englands last two matches versus Georgia and Ireland. It’s obvious that the Georgia game was specific in tactics. The Georgians hulking pack are world renowned for their love of scrummaging and rolling mauls. England targeted the scrums, dominated the set piece and scored three tries from driving mauls. It seems that Eddie may be hardening every aspect of his teams arsenal. The Ireland game, was a little less obvious, take a closer look at the stats and it looks very much like it was a tackling drill, England 208 tackles Ireland 76, that’s a very rare statistic; the winning team making three times more tackles. England dominated the gain line defence and essentially gave Ireland the ball and said try and break us down. Eddie has talked publicly recently, how football teams transition out of defence into attack, far better than rugby. Then we saw Jonny May do just that on Saturday, with a fantastic solo effort on the counter attack.
The way Wales are playing at the moment, I think you’ll see yet another side of England on Saturday. They don’t have anything to fear from this Wales side that are still finding their feet under Wayne Pivac. The question is which side of England will we see? I feel that they’ll attack through phases, something that we haven’t really seen from them yet. For me the question is will it be throwing caution to the wind or a more all rounded tactical display. That depends on how much respect they show this Wales team, a team that is lacking form and belief. Can they break them down in clinical fashion and provide Youngs' with the front foot service that all scrum halves prefer? No matter their inexperienced crop of new players and perceived lack of form, a Welsh team playing at home in the heart of the valleys will never be an easy proposition.
Personally I don’t think Eddie leaves anything to chance, he’s methodical and extremely thoughtful. He started his English journey with the goal of making England comfortably the best team in the world. He’s made big strides, but his Journey is less than halfway. I for one trust in Eddie.

25/11/2020

The mind games have started… England forwards coach John Mitchell has accused Wales of targeting certain England players during their recent encounters. The big kiwi threw out the accusations in a press conference prior to the game in Llanelli this Saturday afternoon. Pot, Kettle ?

25/11/2020

RIP Christophe one of the games legend wingers.

21/11/2020

England, welcome Ireland to Twickenham today, in what promises to be a feisty encounter. Will the Irish be able to resist England’s youthful and experienced pack? This is the England eight, minus Courtney Lawes, replaced by the ever dependable Joe Launchbury, which blitzed the All Blacks in the World Cup semi-final. For Ireland the Lions’ stalwart Peter O’ Mahony moves to the open side from his customary six berth, to fit in CJ Stander. The pair have an exhausting afternoon in front of them, competing at the breakdown against the decade younger Tom Curry. The promising Caelan Doris retains the eight spot, he’s up against Vunipola, it's poised to be a good match up, with Billy still searching for some previous form. It will be a really tough contest up front where centurion Cian Healy will be butting heads with that coiled spring Kyle Sinckler.
It’s in the half backs where England have the tools to press the home advantage. Sadly all good things must come to an end and it seems that the great Conor Murray, Johnny Sexton partnership could be nearing its end, they’re both injured today and alas the great servant to the game, Sexton is in his mid thirties. Seeing them play together again will surely be a scarce sight. For the time being Farrell Snr is putting his trust in ex-Hurricane Gibson-Park and Ross Byrne at nine and ten to guide Ireland around the park, against the certain intensity that will be imposed by the likes of Underhill and Itoje.
Out in the backs it’s a huge blow for the Irish to have Robbie Henshaw also sidelined with an abductor strain. They look strong elsewhere with the tough Bundee Aki partnering Chris Farrell in the centres, with the veteran Keith Earls out wide. The English are arguably at full strength with probably only Anthony Watson missing in an ideal world. England will be hoping for good weather after last weeks’ driving maul fest against Georgia in the wind and drizzle. It's been a while since Jonny May has weaved his magic, so on a dry pad he'll be looking to shine.
On balance, given Irelands’ Injury woes and England being at full strength in favourable conditions, it looks like an England win today. The defensive oppression of Underhill and Co. will be too much for the internationally inexperienced Irish halves. Youngs and Farrell boast well over 150 caps between them, that will be key today, with both teams' excellent backrows applying constant pressure. We predict an explosive first half hour with England stretching away by twenty points plus.

04/11/2020

Alun Wyn Jones the record test cap, Wales captain, is not good enough for the British and Irish Lions. That's the verdict of the popular podcast host Jim Hamilton. The former Scotland International said on a recent podcast that regularly attracts many of the current and ex stars of Rugby Union, that Jones' is not good enough on merit and there are lots of locks currently in much better form, including England newcomer Jonny Hill. Agree or Disagree ?

30/10/2020

England return to long awaited action versus Italy in Rome this weekend, following last weeks’ late cancellation, after the Ba-Ba debacle.
Eddie has kept the squad, in the main, to his tried and tested warriors. The great servant to the game Ben Youngs gets his well deserved 100th Cap and the man in the middle of the set piece, Jamie George picks up his 50th Cap after making ex captain Dylan Hartleys’ spot firmly his own over the past few seasons. Mako and Sinckler, shunt down either side of him, forming an experienced solid front row. Baby Rhino Ellis Genge is certain to bring some enthusiasm to the game in the last twenty.
The giant newcomer Jonny Hill gets the nod in the engine room alongside Maro, following the retirement of George Kruis from International rugby. World Cup final trio Underhill, Vunipola and Curry complete a formidable back three in an established well capped pack.
Jack Willis gets a well deserved call-up, he will hope to get enough game-time, to make an impact from the bench. His turnover stats this season have been nothing short of staggering. Time will tell if he can convert those impressive numbers, as the game tempo increases another notch.
Elliot Daley is injured, giving George Furbank another bite at the international cherry, after his baptism of fire in Paris. It remains to be seen whether that outing has left lasting first degree burns or whether it has peeled back the curtain, showing him a glimpse of what is needed to excel on the biggest stage. Manu Tuilagi is in the infirmary once more with an Achilles tear, George Ford too is out injured. This means a shuffle in the mid-field, Captain Farrell eases into the ten slot, with the experienced Henry Slade and Jonathon Joseph making up the centre field partnership. Worcester’s Ollie Lawrence will expect a run off the bench at outside centre, he has all the athletic potential to be a long term replacement for the ageing and injury prone Manu.
Out on the wings there is pace to burn with Jonny May and Anthony Watson filling those berths. The game promises to be fast and explosive with that amount of talent sitting out on the edges. Expect fast rucks and quick ball, with this line up, bad weather is far more likely to slow the ball, than the Italians.
The emerging global talent pool is truly brimming at the moment. The All Blacks seem to have unearthed another gem in the shape of Caleb Clarke, he’s prematurely being touted as the next Lomu, following his barnstormer debut in match two, Bledisloe III in Sydney promises to be a cracker. Ireland take on France in Paris and Wales welcome Scotland to Cardiff. These are crazy times that we find ourselves in, only Sydney will have the crowds and the normal buzz of match day, for the rest us it’s some social distancing at the local rugby club.

21/04/2020

The Gallagher Premiership has tabled a bold proposal that would only allow the current top four clubs to bid for the title, in order to complete the current season. Rugby Today understands that Premiership Rugby have been asked to consider the option of dividing the league into three groups, once the post-covid, green light has been given for matches to resume. The proposal put forward would see; Exeter Chiefs, Sale Sharks, Northampton Saints and Bristol Bears competing in semi-final playoffs to establish who would reach the showpiece final at Twickenham.
Below that quartet, Wasps, Bath, Harlequins and London Irish would then battle it out for Heineken Champions Cup qualification places. Finally leaving Gloucester, Worcester, Leicester and Saracens in the bottom group to play a series of games that are little more than good old fashioned "friendly’s".
This formula will not find favor with the clubs in mid-table where only nine points separate fourth place from ninth. Wasps are in fifth just outside the playoff spots, only trailing fourth-placed Northampton by two points with nine rounds of the regular season still to be played.
League officials still fervently hope that there is time to finish all nine rounds of the league by playing twice a week in July, thus ruling out the need for bringing in an amended option to determine the 2019/20 champions and the 2020/21 European qualifiers.
However, a leading Premiership official said: “One argument that has been put forward is that; as we know who’s been relegated (Saracens) from the Premiership. Why don’t the top four play off for the final as usual? Then the middle four compete for the other European qualifying places and the bottom four can play against each other to generate some revenue, once we are allowed to start playing matches again. No club is going to be happy in these unprecedented times but all options need to be looked at.”
Another point of debate is the arrival at clubs of players that have already signed for the 2020/21 season. Those deals come into play on July 1, meaning that the players who are moving can play out the remainder of the current season with their new clubs. Third place Bristol are bringing in world-class talent including; Fiji’s Semi Radradra from Bordeaux and England prop Kyle Sinckler from Harlequins – while second-placed Sale have signed centre Sam Hill from Exeter, current Premiership leaders.
Once again this all hypothetical as it hasn’t yet been made clear how the social distancing issues are going to be addressed. Rugby will be a way down the kick start pecking order.

20/04/2020

Steve Hansen the former All Blacks coach is rightly calling for the Rugby World to pull together.
"The rugby world must set aside self-interest and come together to help the sport make it through the Coronavirus crisis" Hansen told reporters via video link from his home. World Rugby announced last week that it had created a relief fund of some $100 million to assist unions as they grapple with the financial impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. Hansen said the future of the game was at risk if unions did not look out for each other at this testing time.
“We have an opportunity now to start with a blank page because you have got everybody putting self-interest to the side. They know they could be gone if they don’t do the right thing, so it’s a great opportunity to bring everybody together — north, south, individual countries — and do what it is right for the game. It’s been a long time coming. There has been a lot of self-interest and if we don’t do the right thing, we could lose the game and that would be a tragedy. We have lost our way in rugby a little bit and we haven’t been working well enough together.”
Let’s hope that Hansen is right and that this pandemic carries with it some silver linings and that Rugby can build a stronger, more unified foundation.

19/04/2020

The Nations Cup is back on.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/rugby-union/52339817

World Rugby boss Sir Bill Beaumont says he is confident a revised Nations Championship will be launched in the aftermath of the coronavirus pandemic.

18/04/2020

https://www.facebook.com/RugbyAU/videos/227645568454008/

16/04/2020

What does the end of lockdown mean for rugby? It is becoming increasingly apparent that with the end of lockdown looming, life as we knew it is not going to be forthcoming any time soon. There is precedent, to date countries that have lifted restrictions have done so with tight measures in place. Social distancing of two metres seems standard practise, as does wearing a facemask in public. Under these likely guidelines playing rugby will be impossible. Recent press releases have mentioned the possibility of health passports or certificates for those tested positive for Covid anti-bodies. Therefore there is a very real possibility that documentation may be required in order to participate in any close proximity activity. A good majority of team sports require physical contact as a necessity, rugby is right up there with a high level of germ transfer.
The Southern Hemisphere season has just begun on the calendar, so if this reality materializes, the pitfalls of players' certification might first be tested there. The Northern Hemisphere season looks likely to be brought to a premature close, as playing back to back seasons with restrictive measures in place wouldn’t appear to be at all practical. Six months will have passed down under before the European season gets under way again, plenty of time to assess any ramifications that player certification might bring.
A rugby health passport will bring with it a new set of challenges for clubs already under the financial cosh. It’s not just the economics, the practical repercussions will be far reaching too. Player and referee availability will be compromised. This is before we’ve even thought about the sports’ entire infrastructure. Then there are spectators’, will fans require a certificate to watch, will matches be played behind closed doors? Indeed the more thought that is applied, the more the worm can keeps on gushing. It may be that rugby is far down the pecking order of push starts, the entire country will soon need a tow rope to get it moving. How things develop remains to be seen. With a potential vaccine some months away, rugby as we knew it, is but a distant thought.

15/04/2020

New Compilation of Eben Etzebeth
Eben Etzebeth Worlds Best Lock - You Decide
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wA6IZumWbco

Découvrez notre montage vidéo consacré au 2ème ligne Champion du Monde avec les Springboks, Eben Etzebeth ! Source : TOP 14, Champions Cup, World Rugby, Supe...

14/04/2020

DAN CARTER - Vision, Acceleration, Tactical Awareness, Skills Pass and Kick, Defense. The Goat ? You decide.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rqTb6gC2kD4

Dan Carter ONZM is a New Zealand rugby union player. Carter plays for Racing 92 and New Zealand's national team, the All Blacks. He plays at fly half and wil...

11/04/2020

The Rumour mill was wrong yet again...Jonny May rejoins Gloucester

11/04/2020

Christian Cullen Best Attacking Fullback Ever. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0YLmjatpa6k

Considered the greatest fullback of a generation, fullback Christian Cullen dazzled for the All Blacks from 1996-2002. Here are the best bits from his Tri-Na...

09/04/2020

https://www.facebook.com/worldrugby/videos/1088583518162975
The King Carlos Spencer still killing it in lockdown.

09/04/2020

Go Jonny Go

Jonny May Top 10 Crazy Tries / Crazy Speed Show 2020 Watch in HD! Music: https://youtu.be/Ji6DuevDUCM • Made by Korol Pavel (KOROL) Rate, comment and subscri...

09/04/2020

Kyle Sinckler AKA Bullet . Best prop in the world ?

It can be argued that Kyle Sinckler is the best prop in the world. He has skills that no other prop can match. Whether it's a cheeky offload or massive hit, ...

09/04/2020

TOP 10 Best Rugby Players 2020 | RUGBY HD Watch in HD! • Made by Korol Pavel (KOROL) Rate, comment and subscribe.. Thanks for Watching! ---------------------...

09/04/2020

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3pKzpy-ajfY
Kyle Sinckler AKA The Bullet . The Worlds Best Prop ??

It can be argued that Kyle Sinckler is the best prop in the world. He has skills that no other prop can match. Whether it's a cheeky offload or massive hit, ...

09/04/2020

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LE04sV4W44A
TOP 10 Players 2020 . YES !!

TOP 10 Best Rugby Players 2020 | RUGBY HD Watch in HD! • Made by Korol Pavel (KOROL) Rate, comment and subscribe.. Thanks for Watching! ---------------------...

09/04/2020

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CxPIrUnDEkY
Go Jonny Go

Jonny May Top 10 Crazy Tries / Crazy Speed Show 2020 Watch in HD! Music: https://youtu.be/Ji6DuevDUCM • Made by Korol Pavel (KOROL) Rate, comment and subscri...

09/04/2020