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Tokyo Calling - Rugby 2019

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    It's becoming even more painful!

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      Sturgeon slightly enthused by events!

      http://twitter.com/NicolaSturgeon/status/1106986498296037376

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        Boooo.

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          Ridiculous game. England were so dominant for the first 35 minutes or so it was embarrassing but what guts from Scotland to get back into it and lead. Astonishing effort and a dramatic climax.

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            I got so excited today that I bought an 1840 Welsh language bible off ebay.

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              Top effort by the throughother 32 today- mullered by both Afghans and Taffghans

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                An observation on the pundits for Wal-Ire. Peter Stringer looked about 24 years old. Botox?

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                  I was at Twickenham yesterday, at first slightly disappointed that there was nothing to play for. Then I thought it was going to be a rather tedious England procession. Then....

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                    Without descending into cliche the atmosphere was extraordinarily healthy, with England fans really enjoying the reaction of the Scots supporters as they made the incredible comeback. 82,000 plus and not a hint of trouble, before, during or after the game when there were still thousands on the streets of Twickenham until at least 10.00pm when we set off home. Impressive really.

                    Hell of a lot of tweed around, though.

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                      Oh Tweedledee, oh Tweedledum
                      The tune Proud Edward's Army loved to hum

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                        Six months is a long way off but the Wales - Australia pool D game in the World Cup now looks pivotal. Winners of that game get a quarter final against the runner up of England/France/Argentina and then a semi final against probably Ireland or South Africa, while the losers get the winners of pool C and then New Zealand in a semi. One route looks distinctly preferable.

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                          Great day yesterday, lovely to share it with my son who has now seen a Grand Slam clinched live at the age of 12 when I had to wait until I was 37.

                          Watching the the game back now, the armchair ride we had is far more obvious than it was in the stadium. From being pushed in to touch receiving the kick off right through until they got the consolation try Ireland just got everything wrong. We put in a proffesional performance which may have lacked the comeback drama of the victories over England and France but was impressive for the comfort with which we controlled the game.

                          I'm not sure what, if anything, can be divined about the World Cup from any of the tournament but it's been a hugely enjoyable one. We are going to miss Gatland, Edwards and McBryde hugely though.

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                            Well done Mon General. Hope you get gibbed at the WC

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                              Going back to rugby in Coney Island, a good report here and the photo shows it looks great...but weird :

                              Last edited by Ray de Galles; 17-03-2019, 20:54.

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                                Nice report - thanks Ray.

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                                  That's an amazing photo. Also love the one from the Glendale Raptors V Toronto Arrows game:


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                                    What size are the RWC squads? For some reason I've got 31 stuck in my brain and that seems really small seeing as a match day squad is 23. Iirc Wales went with an 18-13 split last time.

                                    If my numbers are correct then all bar a handful of spots must have been decided by Gatland but with the obvious caveat of injuries. I'm still hoping that Rhys Webb comes back from France as he would make a noticeable difference to the team.

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                                      Yeah it would be nice to have a scrum half who knows part of his job is to get the ball out of the scrum. Davies seems to think it should be left to Moriarty to deal with even when the scrum is wheeling or under pressure.

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                                        Definitely 31 in the squad, AE. Agree on Webb, there was a scrum close to the Irish line on Saturday where I turned to my mate and said "Webb would snipe and score here". Everyone seems to think he's back next season and will be available.

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                                          Originally posted by Ray de Galles View Post
                                          Definitely 31 in the squad, AE. Agree on Webb, there was a scrum close to the Irish line on Saturday where I turned to my mate and said "Webb would snipe and score here". Everyone seems to think he's back next season and will be available.
                                          Good news on Webb that. Gareth Davies is a decent bench player but not a starter imho.

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                                            Originally posted by ooh aah View Post
                                            Yeah it would be nice to have a scrum half who knows part of his job is to get the ball out of the scrum. Davies seems to think it should be left to Moriarty to deal with even when the scrum is wheeling or under pressure.
                                            Faletau did all of that for the scrum half when the scrum was under pressure and despite winning a Grand Slam he's been missed as has Webb. We're so much more than the sum of our parts.

                                            As for England they've choked yet again. It's amusing to watchuncle Eddie struggle. Hopefully Gatland will get the All Blacks job and won't be tempted by England. If he doesn't get that job I hope France chuck him a wad of cash as he'd work wonders with them or Argentina also. Just not England.

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                                              This excellent piece on one of my favourite rugby blogs points out Davies value for his defensive work (particularly against Farrell and Sexton) which may outweigh some of his attacking failings - which are about distribution really because he's great on the break. In a team built on defence he may continue to be preferred even if Webb is available (though I'm sure Webb could do the same if he's got the time to reacclimatise pre-RWC).

                                              There's lots of other good stuff in that article, some I've been banging on about all tournament (the need for simple line outs, Beard's emergence as a vital disruptor of mauls, Foxy's immense defensive leadership) and some I hadn't noticed like covering the space behind the receiver after kicks.
                                              Last edited by Ray de Galles; 18-03-2019, 20:34.

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                                                Looking forward to reading that. Beard is the new Charteris in the maul for sure.

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                                                  The video that the BBC opened their coverage with on Saturday was pretty special. It confirms that, that even at the age of 70, JPR *still* looks like the hardest bastard on the planet ;

                                                  [URL]https://twitter.com/attackingscrum/status/1107930501271244800?s=21[/URL]

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                                                    Shaun Edwards has yet to sign a contract with Wigan and may yet stay with Wales.

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