Just back from the Sale – Munster game.
Fantastic afternoon, really thought we had a famous victory but fair play to a good Munster side to take it at the death.
Still the best game of the season from Sale, 1 to 15 put in a bloody good shift.

If the referee had paused another second before blowing up and continued with the advantage then we would have won. It was disappointing not to be awarded the try from the Munster yellow card.

Scotland squad for autumn games, not bad, building nicely I reckon. Could do with a centre and a ten otherwise the backs look good which has always been there problem. Strong back 3 options. John Barclay still not picked.

Scotland squad:

Forwards: Adam Ashe (Glasgow Warriors), Johnnie Beattie (Castres), Fraser Brown (Glasgow Warriors), Blair Cowan, Geoff Cross (both London Irish), Alasdair Dickinson, Ross Ford (both Edinburgh), Chris Fusaro (Glasgow Warriors), Grant Gilchrist (Edinburgh, capt), Robert Harley, Jonny Gray (both Glasgow Warriors), Richie Gray (Castres), Scott Lawson (Newcastle Falcons), Kieran Low (London Irish), Euan Murray, Gordon Reid (both Glasgow Warriors) Alasdair Strokosch (USA Perpignan), Tim Swinson (Glasgow Warriors).

Backs: Mark Bennett (Glasgow Warriors), Chris Cusiter (Sale Sharks), Alex Dunbar (Glasgow Warriors), Dougie Fife, Tom Heathcote (both Edinburgh), Stuart Hogg (Glasgow Warriors), Greig Laidlaw (Gloucester), Sean Lamont, Sean Maitland, Finn Russell, Henry Pyrgos, Tommy Seymour (all Glasgow Warriors), Duncan Taylor (Saracens), Tim Visser (Edinburgh), Duncan Weir (Glasgow Warriors).

TJ would have them down as world beaters!

Pretty happy with the Scotland squad alot of good young players with potential and there are still a few missing through injury just now that will hopefully be back for 6N. A fair bit of pace in the backs for the first thime in a while.

Matt Scott is a big miss in the centre but Bennett and Dunbar are both playing well.

Finn Russell and Tom Heathcote look like they could become quality 10s if they get the game time I would like to see them start.

Hooker is a bit of a worry Ford is doing ok in the loose just now but his throwing and hooking have not been great. Think Pat MacArther is unlucky not to be in the squad.

Not world beaters but alot to be hopefully about.

Wales squad some how Gav not included nor is Adam Jones or Hook

Forwards:

Gethin Jenkins (Cardiff Blues), Paul James (Bath Rugby), Nicky Smith (Ospreys), Richard Hibbard (Gloucester Rugby), Emyr Phillips (Scarlets), Scott Baldwin (Ospreys), Aaron Jarvis (Ospreys), Samson Lee (Scarlets), Rhodri Jones (Scarlets), Alun Wyn Jones (Ospreys), Jake Ball (Scarlets), Bradley Davies (Wasps), Luke Charteris (Racing Metro), Dan Lydiate (Racing Metro), James King (Ospreys), Sam Warburton (Cardiff Blues, capt), Justin Tipuric (Ospreys), Dan Baker (Ospreys), Taulupe Faletau (Dragons).

Backs:

Mike Phillips (Racing Metro), Rhys Webb (Ospreys), Rhodri Williams (Scarlets), Dan Biggar (Ospreys), Rhys Priestland (Scarlets), Cory Allen (Cardiff Blues), James Roberts (Racing Metro), Jonathan Davies (ASM Clermont Auvergne), Scott Williams (Scarlets), Hallam Amos (Dragons), Alex Cuthbert (Cardiff Blues), George North (Northampton Saints), Tom Prydie (Dragons), Leigh Halfpenny (Toulon), Liam Williams (Scarlets).

Halfpenny is selected, has had two good games I hear but Toulon must be a bit miffed. I am sure they would rather he sat out the internationals given he’s only played two games all season.

I’m sure they would. Its quite telling that most of the players who have been a success in France over the last few years dont play international rugby. Wilkinson, Macalister, Fatty and Thinny Armitage, Gateux lots of ex all blacks etc.

Surprised by inclusion of Prydie. Nice to see big bad Brad back.

James
Hibbard
Lee
AW Jones
Ball
?
Warbs
Faletau
Phillips/Webb
Biggar
North
Roberts
Davies
Cuthbert
Williams

@aa, agreed on the non-international players (love the Gateux btw), hsz to be a big factor with the rest and the lack of the games at the highest intensity, no summer tour etc

So there is a God ! No Chippy or Ashton in the England squad.

Forwards: J Marler (Harlequins), M Mullan (Wasps), K Brookes (Newcastle), D Wilson (Bath), D Hartley (Northampton), R Webber (Bath), D Attwood (Bath), G Kruis (Saracens), J Launchbury (Wasps), C Lawes (Northampton), C Clark (Northampton), J Haskell (Wasps), B Morgan (Gloucester), C Robshaw (Harlequins, capt), B Vunipola (Saracens), T Wood (Northampton).

Backs: D Care (Harlequins), L Dickson (Northampton), B Youngs (Leicester), O Farrell (Saracens), G Ford (Bath), S Myler (Northampton), B Barritt (Saracens), L Burrell (Northampton), K Eastmond (Bath), J Joseph (Bath), B Twelvetrees (Gloucester), M Brown (Harlequins), A Goode (Saracens), J May (Gloucester), J Nowell (Exeter), S Rokoduguni (Bath), M Yarde (Harlequins).

Thats a very strong squad almost everyone of them would add to the wales squad.

RWC ticket ballot results should be known on Saturday. 5 million applications and 950,000 tickets sold in Sep (650,000 applications for England Australia group match more than the 500,000 for the final 😯 ) plus 350,000 already sold through clubs.

Frankly not optimistic of getting much/any.

RWC Press Release

Oh lovely, Callum Clark is in the squad, hopefully The Hask will keep him out of the starting lineup…looks certain to get on though 🙁

Tidy looking squad given the players that are missing. Finally some backs that aren’t shit which is nice. Not sure why the bloke with the haircut from Exeter has done to warrant being picked mind.

The news about Clarke makes me loathe english rugby even more, unforgiveable allowing that moron anywhere near the squad. Really disappointing 🙁

thing about Clarke is he’s not that good so why bother?

I struggle to see why Clark is picked on form,and that’s before any of his baggage.Wonder if anybody in the NZ youth side he got sent off against will be there.

Wood,Robshaw, Vunipola for england surely with either Morgan or The Hask to bench. Clark to hold tackle bags.

Clarke? I’d have gone for Dave ewers personally as he’s more versatile (plays 8 and 6 and very well too). He’s better than Clarke, kvesic and Johnson.

Oh, didn’t see that Wood was in the squad….thought he was injured. Perhaps Clarke won’t make the bench then.

Just seen the Ulster and Toulon teams. Not a bad bench for the mercenaries. I fear a hiding.

Ulster: Louis Ludik; Tommy Bowe, Jared Payne, Stuart Olding, Craig Gilroy; Paddy Jackson, Paul Marshall; Andy Warwick, Rory Best (capt), Wiehan Herbst; Lewis Stevenson, Franco van der Merwe; Robbie Diack, Chris Henry, Roger Wilson.
Replacements: Rob Herring, Callum Black, Declan Fitzpatrick, Clive Ross, Nick Williams, Michael Heaney, Ian Humphreys, Darren Cave.

Toulon: Leigh Halfpenny; Delon Armitage, Mathieu Bastareaud, Maxime Mermoz, Bryan Habana; Matt Giteau, Michael Claasens; Alexandre Menini, Guilhem Guiardo, Carl Hayman (capt); Jocelino Suta, Romain Taofifenua; Juan Fernandez Lobbe, Steffon Armitage, Chris Masoe.

Replacements: Craig Burden, Fabien Barcella, Levan Chilachava, Bakkies Botha, James O’Connor, Ali Williams, Sebastien Tillous-Borde, Juan Smith.

Munster doing a number on Saffercens at the moment

I see Newcastle beat the Dragons.

I bet that was a high quality encounter!

RWC. I got France v Ireland in Cardiff (nice) and one QF England/Australia/Wales v Scotland/Samoa/South Africa so 2 matches out of 18 applied for. Better than nowt I suppose

One match applied for. Australia v Uruguay and got them …..woot woot. No chance of the main games so I set my standards low

I got England Wales & its an 8pm ko so not just pricey tickets but a days drinking to pay for…

Well I’ll put a tenner on Ulster for the Pro12GuinessCelticandItaly league thingy.

Nice one @poolman I think there where over 500,000 applications for that match !

Bath Toulouse is a decent wrestle so for.
How Watson didn’t make the England squad I don’t know.

Watson hasnt played much this season due to injury hence Henson as a stop gap 15.

They’ve moved him to wing (I think at englands request). Aguilla has been playing 15 more, and I think Henson was covering for him whilst he was away with the Pumas.
Toulouse got the win, and deserved it too. Henson got a little bit of time and aside from a single dodgy pass played very well, as he has done every time I’ve seen him (missed the Glasgow game!).

Applied for nearly 2k of tickets on the basis that I wouldn’t get much. And so it came to pass only got 2 ticket in the ballot.
Still they are for semi final 2! Cant really complain! Up in the gods.

Fair enough I’ve not watched them it was my impression that Agulla and Watson were injured and Arscott was shite so Henson was put in at 15 made a couple of nice touches so was kept at 15 for a few games until the opposition realised he had no pace and he was found out. He’s never been a 15.

Apparently Arscott is a very naughty boy, and had to leave exeter due to some indiscretions!
He was good at briz, but then thats the champs. My bath supporting colleague was moaning about gavs tackling in the Glasgow game.

Gavs defence in open spaces has never been good. He’s ok if people run at him in straight lines (although not that ok anymore tbh) but he hasnt the pace or agility when in open spaces. I remember watching him at 15 v SA once wales lost about 150 nil and he didnt tackle anyone all game!

Ospreys getting rinsed by Northampton. Some bloke called North keeps scoring.

£4.5k of applications for England games and final only. Got nothing. Still avoids me grimacing through very expensive tickets for matches mostly in the sarf as always (grrr).

@deadslow nice 🙂 don’t worry about being high up at Twickenham as there are no bad seats there, views great from everywhere.

Two of us applied for £3k each (pairs for each match), she got the French game and I got the QF. Bit grumpy as for 1999 as a denture holder we had priority and I saw all group games and both semis (inc epic NZ France match). This time got shafted as mine expire Oct 15 so no special access, my old head of sports at Uni is now President of the RFU so I had a good moan which made me feel better but made no difference.

Wow. George North just scored a beauty.

North is a special player. Scarlets making a game of it but losing players at an alarming rate. Hope Scott Williams is ok.

Nice to see Tiggers throw the toys out the pram at the end!!

North fails to deliver again
[video]http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=p9jccZom8OU[/video]

What are his tries/games stats for the Saints? Seriously bloody good player!

He’s basically the Welsh Chris Ashton when it comes to finishing prowess.