STW 2014/15 Rugby Thread

Looks like England will be without Morgan and Tuilagi for the Wales game. Wales have worries over Samson Lee and Liam Williams plus who will be back up hooker. If Hibbard gets crocked we’re screwed.

A post on shedweb claims that aecurity guards had to intervene after the Glos/Sarries game as several Saracens players had JP Doyle up against a wall & had to be pulled off him.
Disgraceful behaviour if true, can players be cited for such behaviour?
Lets hope Mr Doyle puts it into his match report.

In a complete non-shock London Welsh took another huge step towards the abyss.

Creative Billy 12T @CreativBilly12T · Jan 11

Hope you can see how I used my creativity to play terribly vs Sarries in order to engineer situation for Hook to prove he’s not shit.

More excellent wisdom from the answer to England’s No12 problem at CreativBilly12T

Not a bad kick at all 8)

Toulon look tasty today – could be a tough day for Ulster here

Is 1/2p playing?

Yes, slotted one pen.

Ulster making a fist of it now though

Sarries stuff Munster. Sat in the pub on the way to Sale V Clermont. The Clermont team look like a who’s who of rugby.. Gulp..

2 forward passes in the second Toulon try. 😯

How about the other 6?

How about the other 6?

Oof!
That’s a good effort by sale. Looking at the clermont team, there are few teams who could handle that. Johnathan Davies on the bench FFS. 😯

Oh well, that’s Sale’s European adventure over with – apart from the ritual humping by Munster next week.
Still, got to see Clermont play & see how good that back row is!

Looks like England will be without Morgan and Tuilagi for the Wales game. Wales have worries over Samson Lee and Liam Williams plus who will be back up hooker. If Hibbard gets crocked we’re screwed.

I think – perhaps unfortunately for England – this forces us into our “standard” forward orientated game and Wales are going to get a mauling.

I wonder who our centres will be – in my mind this 6N HAS to be to the world cup team playing together. The time for messing about is over. Burrell and Barrit, Tuilagi for Barrit off the bench in the near term and Tulagi to start for the W/C. Ford & Farrell to swap as appropriate. If Lancaster doesn’t choose Burrell he’s bonkers – he’s big, he plays and he scores.

Wingers though? Yarde and… Nowell?

I guess we’ll find out this week…

Another classic from Nigel 😆

Wow – what a start from Bath!

Somewhere in Wales Warburton shakes his head again.

https://amp.twimg.com/v/4d279d85-f263-4dc0-b5ff-81583aaf8af1

Just heard Lawes out needing ankle op. Big loss for England he’s really come on in the last year.
Lucky Kruis ban ends in time eh!!!

What we looking at for the first game?
Wales be something like

1/2p
Cuthbert
Davies
Roberts
North
Biggar
Webb
Faletau
Warb
Lydiate
Ball
AW Jones
Lee/Adam Jones
Hibbard
Gethin/James

James
Baldwin (dear god no injuries for hibbard)
Adam Jones/ Jarvis ( see above)
Spikey
Priestland/Anscombe
Scott Williams
Liam Williams

Oh well, that’s Sale’s European adventure over with – apart from the ritual humping by Munster next week.
Still, got to see Clermont play & see how good that back row is!

It got off to a very difficult start losing in the 81st minute to Munster in a game they should have won. The first game against Sarrys was also a very close affair but after that it was just about makig the games as difficult as possible for the big names. “A” string out on Saturday and they pushed Claremont hard but from where I stood they looked like they had a little in reserve and they probably could have added a few more points if they had gone all out.
The weather may have favoured us (It hailed incessentaly and was bitterly cold throughout)
Anyway given it was the group of death we didnt do too badly agains 3 great teams. I think Munster away will be a bit more “B” string!

As an aside their is a real buzz everytime Hailey catches the ball! I really think he is destined for greatness! Also a lot of rumours about Marc Jones and others moving to Bristol 🙁

Somewhere in Wales Warburton shakes his head again.

The whole of Wales (and my part of England) too perhaps. Trigger happy ref ruined that game if not the tournament. I still think Wales would have beaten a NZ team paralyzed by nerves.

Agreed on Lawes being a loss. Joseph had a good game against Toulose would like to see him get a chance too, not least as he’s an MTB mate of mines nephew.

Also a lot of rumours about Marc Jones and others moving to Bristol

I think He’s coming to Briz, as is Mr Henson. Not heard about any other Sharks players though.

I wonder who our centres will be

I think that question has been posed once or twice already?

JJ should be at 13. Not just because of his brilliance yesterday – he’s been consistently good. Barritt should be nowhere near the team. He’s a 12 but SL seems to think he’s the 2nd best 13 in England after Tuilagi as he’s played him there when Manu has been injured.

With Barritt at 13 it doesn’t really matter who’s on the wings. Burrell at 12 and JJ at 13 would work.

Marc Jones just confirmed coming to bristol.
As for centres, Burrell should be first on the list. Either Slade or JJ the other. Both deserve a chance.

Oh well good luck to him at Bristol. He has been an excellent player particulalrly over the last few months while Taylor has been injured. The players brought in to provide cover havent played well meaning he has played an awful lot and he is a very physical player so we have been lucky he has remained injury free.

Not heard about any other Sharks players though.

There was a rumour about Tuitopou but that seems to have disapeared.
Certainly spending big, lets hope they dont blow it!!!

lets hope they dont blow it!!!

I think you mean don’t blow it AGAIN!!!!
The side’s already wracked with injuries; Jones hasn’t played much. Lam injured. Rennie retired. That’s three of our best players. Despite the “high profile” tags, the only high profile-ish backs we have signed are Matthew Morgan and Dwayne Peel(who has been poor so far).

Big fan of Dwayne Peel so hopefully he will come good.

How old is Peel these days? He needs Henson outside him!! 😉

He needs Henson outside him!!

Sounds like it is quite likely to happen!

“I’m a big admirer of him as a player,” said Holley.
“He’s a good guy to work with and I’d love to work with him again.
“We’ll just have to see if it happens to fit for all sides – which includes Gavin, ourselves and Bath.”

34 I think. The view at Sale was that he was moving to be nearer home in his final season then may turn to coaching at Bristol (this is made up of various bits of info I have picked up so may not be fact!)

So Scott Andrew the Blues 4th choice tight head is picked ahead of the first choice Adam Jones? Nearing the end of my tether with Cementhead.

WALES 2015 SIX NATIONS SQUAD:

Forwards: Gethin Jenkins (Cardiff Blues), Paul James (Bath), Rob Evans (Scarlets), Aaron Jarvis (Ospreys), Samson Lee (Scarlets), Scott Andrews (Cardiff Blues), Richard Hibbard (Gloucester), Kristian Dacey (Cardiff Blues), Scott Baldwin (Ospreys), Alun Wyn Jones (Ospreys), Jake Ball (Scarlets), Bradley Davies (Wasps), Luke Charteris (Racing Metro), Dan Lydiate (Ospreys), James King (Ospreys), Sam Warburton (Cardiff Blues, capt), Justin Tipuric (Ospreys), Taulupe Faletau (Newport Gwent Dragons).

Backs: Mike Phillips (Racing Metro), Rhys Webb (Ospreys), Gareth Davies (Scarlets), Dan Biggar (Ospreys), Rhys Priestland (Scarlets), Gareth Anscombe (Cardiff Blues), Cory Allen (Cardiff Blues), Jamie Roberts (Racing Metro), Jonathan Davies (Clermont Auvergne), Scott Williams (Scarlets), Tyler Morgan (Newport Gwent Dragons), Hallam Amos (Newport Gwent Dragons), Alex Cuthbert (Cardiff Blues), George North (Northampton Saints), Liam Williams (Scarlets), Leigh Halfpenny (Toulon).

So Scott Andrew the Blues 4th choice tight head is picked ahead of the first choice Adam Jones? Nearing the end of my tether with Cementhead.

Cementhead is the right name, he’s not one for being open minded. He’ll do what the F he wants.

Cant see Wales beating this lot, England have at least two front 5’s better than Wales

England senior training squad:

Forwards:

Props: Dan Cole (Leicester Tigers), Alex Corbisiero (Northampton Saints), Joe Marler (Harlequins), Mako Vunipola (Saracens), David Wilson (Bath Rugby); Hookers: Dylan Hartley (Northampton Saints), Tom Youngs (Leicester Tigers); Locks: Dave Attwood (Bath Rugby), Graham Kitchener (Leicester Tigers), George Kruis (Saracens), Geoff Parling (Leicester Tigers); Back-rows: Calum Clark (Northampton Saints), James Haskell (Wasps), Nick Easter (Harlequins), ), James Haskell (Wasps), Chris Robshaw (Harlequins, captain), Billy Vunipola (Saracens), Tom Wood (Northampton Saints),

Backs:

Back three: Mike Brown (Harlequins), Alex Goode (Saracens), Jonny May (Gloucester Rugby), Jack Nowell (Exeter Chiefs), Anthony Watson (Bath Rugby); Centres: Brad Barritt (Saracens), Luther Burrell (Northampton Saints), Kyle Eastmond (Bath Rugby), Jonathan Joseph (Bath Rugby), Billy Twelvetrees (Gloucester Rugby); Fly-halves: Danny Cipriani (Sale Sharks), Owen Farrell (Saracens), George Ford (Bath Rugby), Stephen Myler (Northampton Saints); Scrum-halves: Danny Care (Harlequins), Richard Wigglesworth (Saracens), Ben Youngs (Leicester Tigers).

cloning Haskell was a good call too

Wales have home advantage and it will be the first game so both sides will be fresh if not totally polished in terms of preparation. I make England slight favourites.

Glad to see JJ get a call up. Main hope is for Ford to be first choice 10. Calling up Cirpiani is regressive, he’s old news.

Cips is old news? Who else would you suggest? Andy Goode is still at wasps, Freddy Burns is playing quite poorly at Leicester, Barf, Saracens, Northants and Sale called up. Can’t quite recall the name of the Exeter guy, but he’s not world class and other than that it leaves Newcastle, Irish and Welsh’s 10’s which lets face it, aren’t ever going to be there.

Anyway, it’ll be Fazlet 1st and Ford 2nd, with Barrett outside so no point worrying about any other kind of attack!

what sort of team you expecting?

I make England slight favourites.

The bookies don’t.
The exeter chap – Steenson – is Irish isn’t he?
No big surprises in the england team. It’s a crying shame that the likes of twelvetrees and Goode get selected and Slade and Daley get saxons places.
IMHO, that Saxons team looks really quite good!

@tinybits – Flood or Burns (appreciate he’s not having a great season and Leicester are struggling). They won’t pick Flood due to stubbornness over home players and Toulouse probably signed him on the basis he wouldn’t play internationals anyway. Chippy won’t play it will be Ford and Farrel, I suspect he won’t be in any match day squads and may get released back, that’s what I am hoping for.

@aa, are you asking me for an England side ? I’ve no real idea to be honest as long as Ford’s at 10. We’ll be solid and strong upfront. I’d like to see Eastmond and JJ get a run out together, perhaps against Italy.

Are we likely to see Dank Hole and Corbisero?