Its wasnt just the stupid non catch attempt non-tackle but also the gutless tackling when he came on including 2 missed tackles in the run up to the try, usless prick

Exactly. And everyone knows he can’t tackle. So they bring him on at the end of a close match.. imagine how Stephen Jones feels after having such a heroic game… Ah, bolloks.

I’ve had to have a couple of days to calm down too.

I just couldn’t believe it – they had other options. They could have moved philips into the centres and brought on ellis, they could have played with 14 men – but no, lets bring on mr-cant-tackle-for-shit and put him in a key position. Seriously WTF were they thinking. It was inevitable that he would f*** it up the minute one of the boks ran at him.

and breath.

Speaking as someone who always thought of him as one of the shrewdest operators, I have been really unimpressed by Geech. He has a gameplan which would have worked, but hasn’t used the players to make it work.

Simply put there was a wrong selection made for a crucial game. ROG shouldn’t have been anywhere near that game. Hooks should have been on the bench.
The gouging was what it was, a bloody cheating SA. Cant expect much else from them. I knew it be tough, the team knew it be tough, which of you are kidding yourself it would be any different. As it stands I believe the SA’s had a game plan and didn’t mind losing that one. They took so many key players out that mounting a good side for the last one would be nye on impossible.
I t would be nice mind if the remaining members of the team pulled together and beat the holy crap out of them on Saturday!

So many what ifs!

What if the Lions management had bigger balls and had subbed Vickery earlier in this 1st match (or even better not picked him in the 1st place)

What if the Ref/TJ (both equally culpable) had shown red to Burger.

What if there has been a conclusive angle on the SA try.

What if ROG hadn’t had a ‘rush of blood’

We can’t go back and change it, we aren’t in a position to make those choices and who would want to be the ref in his 1st big match that sends off the talismanic Burger for something he didn’t see in the 1st few minutes.

What we can do is ask that these things are dealt with correctly afterwards and I don’t believe that the punishment has been severe enough for Burger and the behaviour of the the SA coach has been inappropriate and also deserves censure by the IRB.

As for giving them a seeing to in the last game, yes on the pitch by playing rugby, not by thuggery.

Whens this weekends team announced… eek ….. please not Keith Earls at 13…..

I think it has been Thursdays at 12.30? Or it might be Wednesdays..?

I don’t think Earls will feature, plenty of options before it gets that bad.

Options for 13….BOD gone home, Roberts inhjured?, Bowe injured, then Darcey and Flutey and Earls… two of them look likely to play eek!!!

Have Flutey and Jones played together yet?

I hope Vickery has remembered how to scrummage, I do fear a pasting in this one.

Lions: Kearney; Monye, Bowe, Flutey, S Williams; S Jones, Phillips; Sheridan, Rees, Vickery, Shaw, O’Connell, Worsley, M Williams, Heaslip.
Replacements: Ford, Hayes, Alun-Wyn Jones, Wallace, Croft, Ellis, Hook.

South Africa: Kirchner (Bulls); Ndungane (Sharks), Fourie (Lions), Olivier (Bulls), Nokwe (Cheetahs); M Steyn (Bulls), Du Preez (Bulls); Mtawarira (Sharks), Ralepelle (Bulls), Smit (Sharks), Muller (Sharks), Matfield (Bulls), Brussow (Cheetahs), Smith (Cheetahs), Kankowski (Sharks).
Replacements: B du Plessis (Sharks), Steenkamp (Bulls), Carstens (Sharks), Sykes (Sharks), Spies (Bulls), R Pienaar (Sharks), F Steyn (Sharks).

How do you reckon they’d go against the All Blacks?
(Ducks)

I have the same feeling about this as I did before Hatton – Pacquiao. i.e. I am not sure I want to look!

I dunno what Fitzgerald did wrong, I thought the back 3 looked great last week. Mind you, the inclusion of Worlsey, Flutey and the two Williams suggests that that they are dishing out caps for those unlikely to get another.

Still, should be another good Test match.

Redbikes – All Blacks have just drawn a 2 Test Series to the French and are in the unusual position of being the worst team in the Tri-Nations on current form.

We’ll find out whether the ABs are worst in Tri Nations in a few weeks time….

Looks like I’ll be going out with the family on saturday then, based on that selection.

Tri-Nations should be awesome this year. Springboks fresh from beating the Lions, Aussies have their best side in years, All Blacks chippy as f*ck because for the first time in ages they are slight underdogs.

Doesn’t look that bad.
No place for Ronan then?

Ronan is the official tackle bag, stress ball and punch bag combined this week.

He’s not going to be in good shape by the weekend.

BTW, I’ve been watching the 1997 test games on ESPN, and I’ve worked out that O’Gara developed his tackling technique partly from ‘I’m, here, I’m there, oh look I’m nowhere near the tackle’ technique of Guscott, and the ‘You don’t really want me tackle you, do you?’ technique of Arwel Thomas. (I know he wasn’t on the 1997 Lions tour, before anyone points that out). He just distilled it into his own unique style.

Strangely enough, since posting 3 hours ago, I’ve seen the local news, and they showed the Lions training.

O’Gara’s face was very bruised, so either his team have been showing what they think of him or he may have been concussed on saturday. (I doubt he could have been so bruised and not been concussed.) It may explain such poor play…..

Shane you gem shove it right up all those stupid internet experts who said you were washed out

form is temporary class is permanent

I think SA have been a disgrace with this tour. Deliberately injuring the best lions players.

No more lions tours to SA, no more invites for SA to the British isles for tours.

They need to know that their behaviour is not acceptable

Well it could have been so much better 2-1 to the boks is probably what we all expected. Its just so annoying that we could have won that series with some decent refereeing Bryce Lawrence and Christophe Berdot were just not up to the pressure they should not have put such inexperienced referees in charge of such important games.

Shane you gem shove it right up all those stupid internet experts who said you were washed out

form is temporary class is permanent

You are sooooooo gay. Good to see him playing well though.
Well done also to Vickery and Monye who silenced many critics today.
Some critics will be having humble pie for breakfast tomorrow methinks.

Bizare decision to put Phillips at 12 and bring on the meercat rather than put Hook to 12, great game though

Phillips is my new rugby hero. I always knew he was good, but he was amazing in that game. Great game, great win.
Good to see the boks doing the usual – losing so play dirty as they can.

Spikey Mikey had a cracker of a game. I hold my hand up and admit I havent always rated him but he hasnt put a foot wrong in the tests. It was quite amusing to see him dumped to the ground by Brousow jump up start to go for Brousow and then clock that the ref was right on the scene a year ago he would have belted Brousow and got carded.

A player who has come in for a load of critiscm on this forum who did well today is Worsley we all know he is about as quick as cold treacle but until he got injured he did exactly what he specialises in tackled like a mad man didnt give an inch and if my eyes didnt decieve me actually nicked the ball on the ground twice. Also Shaw what a tour for him he seems to have found the fountain of eternal youth forchrisakes hes 35 thats antique by todays rugby standards hes been playing top flight rugby without much of a break for 16 seasons.

MArtyn Williams was good too as was shne