The Rugby Thread

[RichC]

Russell should be part of the squad, no doubt on that I'm not sure he's a starter though but could be a great option to bring on for the last 20 depending how the game is going.

Agree about pushing it back, a home tour just doesn't really cut it for me. Money will talk though

[Buzzo]

Russell should be part of the squad, no doubt on that I'm not sure he's a starter though but could be a great option to bring on for the last 20 depending how the game is going.

Agree about pushing it back, a home tour just doesn't really cut it for me. Money will talk though

Agree on all of that. One thing that hopefully Gatland will be weighing up is how effective Russell could be with the sort of armchair ride a Lions pack would give him. He gets similar at Racing.

Starting on the bench would be ideal, and then it is up to Russell to show what he can do.

Yeah, I just don't see how an organisation that was set up to extensively tour the toughest Rugby playing nations for months can have a home tour? The entire point of the Lions is voided. Will be interesting to see what happens.

Boris is up for hosting every conceivable tournament in the UK the summer it seems.

[RichC]

They're great vote winners

[Mark3]

This Irish side frustrates the hell out of me and mainly Farrell, Catt and Easterby. We have no attacking patterns, our defence is passive and they are not picking our best players. The only positive thing is since O’Connell came on our line out has improved

Ye were as **** and error strewn as us but I still think good teams can strangle ye. Play open and lose and you’ll beat most sides. We had the game won and got careless again.

I can’t believe he picks Gibson Park who is **** and Lowe (who I had high hopes for) looks way out of his depth. I fully expect to lose to England next weekend - they will over power us as they always do.

The mad thing is - we should have beaten Wales with 14 men (we kicked it out on the full with a last min pen and a try wins the game), France again we could have won. I guess it’s fine margins in the 6 Nations and while I am really happy with recent successes I’m not optimistic under this coaching team - we’ve regressed a lot since Schmidt left

I think Ireland is a team in transition given the ages of a number of key players.
The succession plan isn't clear to me as yet and decision making at crucial times seems a bit off - Ringrose's kick charged down that led to Russell's try and Lowe's defensive work are two examples.
The positives include the lineout work done by Paul O'Connell bearing fruit, and who would have thought Jackie Kyle would be re-incarnated as a prop..?

[Irishnev]

I think Ireland is a team in transition given the ages of a number of key players.
The succession plan isn't clear to me as yet and decision making at crucial times seems a bit off - Ringrose kick charged down that led to Russell's try and Lowe's defensive work are two examples.
The positives include the lineout work done by Paul O'Connell bearing fruit, and who would have thought Jackie Kyle would be re-incarnated as a prop..?

Ringrose I really rate but this season he has been poor - his decision making is way off.

Lowe looked a worldie in the making for Leinster but international rugby where his team aren’t dominant all the time has highlighted big gaps in his defensive game. He looks out of his depth tbh

Furlong is a legend

[Zapater]

Agree on pushing the Lions tour back. Doesn't make sense from a preparation perspective. Northern Hem teams are playing regularly, the Boks haven't turned out in ages. Even though I have faith in the intensity of the Currie Cup, a squad needs time to train together and preferably a few matches together to give themselves a fair chance of winning.

[Irishnev]

[ame="https://twitter.com/cjstander/status/1371764641618087938"]https://twitter.com/cjstander/status/1371764641618087938[/ame]

I can respect his decision - deemed too small in ZA he was an absolute stalwart for both Munster and Ireland. Made of granite

[Buzzo]

Totally understandable. He is quite young though, only 30. I wonder if the physicality is beginning to take its toll?

[Irishnev]

Totally understandable. He is quite young though, only 30. I wonder if the physicality is beginning to take its toll?

He wants to go back to ZA to his family farm and go that while he isn’t broken. He puts in some amount of carries, tackles and hitting rucks - that surely grinds you down. He mentioned he loss the stomach for it - good to see him being honest and not taking the money for nothing

[Buzzo]

He wants to go back to ZA to his family farm and go that while he isn’t broken. He puts in some amount of carries, tackles and hitting rucks - that surely grinds you down. He mentioned he loss the stomach for it - good to see him being honest and not taking the money for nothing

Definitely true. I think most people out there do not realise the physical toll of a career in Rugby. I’d say on any level for a forward there are almost guaranteed physical issues from a career in the game. For test level you can multiply that intensity. Test level rugby is totally unforgiving, the collisions are massive. I think we are starting to see more players (Warburton, Barclay) put value in escaping their career in one piece, ahead of playing for as long as they can.

That ‘moment’ I’d imagine is when you walk into the pitch concerned about what the state of your body will be when you walk back off it.

[Irishnev]

Definitely true. I think most people out there do not realise the physical toll of a career in Rugby. I’d say on any level for a forward there are almost guaranteed physical issues from a career in the game. For test level you can multiply that intensity. Test level rugby is totally unforgiving, the collisions are massive. I think we are starting to see more players (Warburton, Barclay) put value in escaping their career in one piece, ahead of playing for as long as they can.

That ‘moment’ I’d imagine is when you walk into the pitch concerned about what the state of your body will be when you walk back off it.

He said he was training in the driving cold and wind in Feb in Limerick and had no stomach for it anymore. That was when he knew his time was up

[Zapater]

I really like him, fair call. He'll no doubt be playing for the Bulls within a year.

Definitely true. I think most people out there do not realise the physical toll of a career in Rugby. I’d say on any level for a forward there are almost guaranteed physical issues from a career in the game. For test level you can multiply that intensity. Test level rugby is totally unforgiving, the collisions are massive. I think we are starting to see more players (Warburton, Barclay) put value in escaping their career in one piece, ahead of playing for as long as they can.

That ‘moment’ I’d imagine is when you walk into the pitch concerned about what the state of your body will be when you walk back off it.

For sure, its close to an equivalent of being in a car accident each game.

[Irishnev]

[ame="https://twitter.com/lionsofficial/status/1372125564924989444"]https://twitter.com/lionsofficial/status/1372125564924989444[/ame]

[rodo]

who is this screwball

[ame]https://twitter.com/MarvinNMorgan/status/1371396185781645313[/ame]

[ChesterDave]

It reminds me of the stag do video guy, who I yesterday discovered, is one of the options on one of those sites where you can order a video message