Rugby 2020: No Gatland or Schmidt

[Tony C]

[Satchmo Distel]

Idiocy of making bans over time not games

[Antepli Ejderha]

Idiocy of making bans over time not games

This. He should have been banned for international matches only. A proper punishment.

[Vicarious Thrillseeker]

This. He should have been banned for international matches only. A proper punishment.

He'll never play an international again. I don't think he's that fussed.

[Ray de Galles]

This farcical decision also means Tuilagi serves no ban for his premeditated assault on North at Twickenham

[Sporting]

Football bans used to be for a period of time as well. Wonder when that changed.

[Janik]

They often still are in non-league. But I don't remember length of time bans in the Football League or Premier League/Football League. I do recall that bans often started 14 days after the offence that prompted them, and that players would be playing with their ban pending. But once the ban started, it was the next x many games from date y, rather than from y for this many days.

[Janik]

This farcical decision also means Tuilagi serves no ban for his premeditated assault on North at Twickenham

I wonder if 'decision' is really the appropriate word here. One can well imagine the list of options presented only had one 'choice' on it, i.e. that there was nothing in their regulations that allowed them to suspend the running of bans and then restart them later even in extraordinary circumstances, so the only option was to rubber stamp that both suspensions had already been served.

[Ray de Galles]

I did ponder the word "decision" for a while but was swayed by this passage in the BBC report that states one has been taken (though it is admittedly a turgid, confused bit of writing) ;

"Six Nations has decided all bans should apply immediately after hearings and Marler's will end as planned on 7 June.

The Premiership will not resume before 27 June at the earliest so Harlequins player Marler will serve his entire ban while on lockdown.

It is understood the disciplinary panel wanted to ensure consistency for players facing bans during an unprecedented situation where rugby was suspended because of the coronavirus pandemic.

These are viewed as exceptional cases and no precedent has been set by these rulings."

[Sporting]

They often still are in non-league. But I don't remember length of time bans in the Football League or Premier League/Football League. I do recall that bans often started 14 days after the offence that prompted them, and that players would be playing with their ban pending. But once the ban started, it was the next x many games from date y, rather than from y for this many days.

[1970] "Some weeks previously, Best had incurred the wrath of the Football Association for kicking the ball out of referee Jack Taylor’s hands at the end of a League Cup match against Manchester City and been suspended for a month."

"But Osgood's 1970/71 season would be interrupted not long after the victory over West Ham which is pictured above. After picking up six yellow cards in a year - back when they were much harder to come by - he was handed an eight-week ban from playing football."

[Janik]

Before my time, that. Which would be why I didn’t know of it.

Eric Cantona’s ban for kicking a racist in the head was up to a specific date as well though, come to think of it. As was Luis Suarez one for having a nibble of Chellini. Both were atypical situations with bespoke bans created to deal with them. Standard Football bans are x-many competitive games*, whereas Rugby standardly goes for bans of a certain number of weeks.

* - which can work against a player in International Football if their country is playing host to the next tournament, as happened to Swiss player Benjamin Huggel. He got a six match ban for his part in a fight at the end of a World Cup qualifying play-off in 2005. Switzerland went out in Round 2 the following summer, i.e. only four games had gone. But the Swiss were co-host at Euro 2008 so spent the next two years only playing friendlies - Huggel still had two games of suspension left that he couldn’t clear for over two years!

[Antepli Ejderha]

French rugby is officially cancelled, that's going to have a knock on effect on European Rugby.

Beaumont looked in trouble until Wales backtracked and backed him over Pichot, a missed opportunity to drag rugby forward. Result isn't in yet but it seems certain.

[Antepli Ejderha]

Beaumont wins, rugby stays in the dark ages.

[Vicarious Thrillseeker]

Beaumont wins, rugby stays in the dark ages.

Big opportunity missed.

[Antepli Ejderha]

Yep, we could have had a global season and the game developed across more nations, instead the status quo remains. Wales fucked up by appearing to change their mind.

[Rogin the Armchair fan]

Grounding against the base of the post no longer a try. Good decision that, as some teams had taken to exploiting that and deliberately driving towards them, where it's virtually impossible to defend.

[Antepli Ejderha]

All summer rugby tours of for sure, the autumn ones still look like going ahead but might be replaced with a Four Nations. Talk of the Six Nations being moved but I'll believe it when I see it.

Pichot quits world rugby which is a huge shame, the game is in a mess and this current crisis was a major opportunity.

[Vicarious Thrillseeker]

Here's your chance to vote for the best Welsh try ever. All sixteen, readyto view. Pity Jiffy's against Scotland in 1988 isn't here.

I know mine - it's the only one that actually made me cry when it was scored.

[Antepli Ejderha]

Here's your chance to vote for the best Welsh try ever. All sixteen, readyto view. Pity Jiffy's against Scotland in 1988 isn't here.

I know mine - it's the only one that actually made me cry when it was scored.

Looking forward to watching these, I've not seen the list but it's got to be Scott Gibbs against England at Wembley.

Which one made you cry VT?

[Vicarious Thrillseeker]

You named it, AE - I was overcome.

[Antepli Ejderha]

I've voted, some cracking tries in there.

[ooh aah]

Indeed, although one of my favourites (only partly because I was there) Ryan Jones against Scotland in 05 wasn't included, which in my view was more worthy than Gethin's charge down the following week.

[Sporting]

Looking forward to watching these, I've not seen the list but it's got to be Scott Gibbs against England at Wembley.

Imagine if Neil Jenkins had done a Don Fox!

[Ray de Galles]

Shane 2010 v Gareth Davies 2015 is like Sophie's Choice! I'm going for the latter because I was there but that could be the final if you're judging on context.

[Ray de Galles]

Imagine if Neil Jenkins had done a Don Fox!

Jenks?! That is too wild a fiction to even begin to imagine.

"Who would you want to kick this in world rugby?"