Rugby

[firehazard]

Seems that way at the moment Niall, a weak scrum aint helping much...

Indeed so. Lots of talent in the backs, but the pack looks very ordinary. They're badly missing Pocock at no. 7, who's been out injured since before the Lions tour. And they felt they got a couple of bad decisions against England - they held their own for the first 50 minutes, and at half-time I was thinking they'd go on to win. Be very interesting to see how they go against the rest of the NH teams.

And I bet they'll be a lot stronger come the RWC in two years' time.

[Welshie]

O dont trust em Ozzies one bit, dont forget both Wales & England have to face em at the group stage in the World Cup!

Absolutely gutted for Eli Walker, pulled hamstring and he's out!
Cheers
Aled

[Niall]

Irelnad v Samoa
Ireland: R Kearney; T Bowe, B O'Driscoll, G D'Arcy, F McFadden; P Jackson, C Murray; J McGrath, R Best, M Ross; M McCarthy, D Toner; P O'Mahony, C Henry, J Heaslip.

Replacements: S Cronin, C Healy, D Fitzpatrick, P O'Connell, S O'Brien, E Reddan, I Madigan, D Kearney.

[firehazard]

O dont trust em Ozzies one bit, dont forget both Wales & England have to face em at the group stage in the World Cup!

I know, it's quite scary already!

Sorry for Eli Walker, real shame.

Wales v. SA should be the game of the weekend.

And Ireland v. Aus next week could be very interesting.

[Welshie]

Yep i reckon its going to be a good weekend of rugby, i'm looking forward to seeing the Welsh language rugby programme "Johnathan" (presented by Johnathon Davies!) on S4C tonight with a chilled bottle of Rose! Then loads of household chores Sat morning, plus hopefully a bit gardening, to gain bbrownie points, before a few cans of beer and several hours of rugby in front of the TV!
Cheers
Aled

[Welshie]

Well done to the home nations that won. Some good rugby played.
However Wales, same old same old, good game, well played and another honurable loss against a big SH name. We better win the next three or i am going to be well cheesed off! Hope all those injured are OK (although Johnathon Davies is out). Secondly Scrum 5 the BBc Wales rugby programme interviewed Joos Van DerWesthasen, now a very sick man. Puts rugby very firmly in its place.
Cheers
Aled

[firehazard]

Yes, Wales pushed SA close, but again fell just short of a SH scalp - they need to break through that barrier. Though I reckon that Jonathan Davies' injury was a big blow to them, maybe things would've turned out differently otherwise.

Big win for Ireland, albeit against a poor Samoan team.

France weren't that far away from a famous win against NZ, but again came up short.

England: good first half against Argentina, at half-time I expected them to go on and score 40+ points. But they were very poor in the second half - for the second week in a row, only kept up the performance for half the match. Twickenham crowd got typically restive. They'll need to play a whole lot better against NZ next Saturday to avoid a massive defeat. Hard to see anything except an All Black victory, to be honest.

Anyway, we had fun at Twickenham, though it was bloomin' cold. A few pics:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/15437467@N07/sets/72157637546973356/

And agree about van der Westhuizen, Aled. Puts it all in perspective. It's a terrible disease.

[Welshie]

Cracking pics again FH, we play em next week so lets see how we cope. They beat us quite comfortably last year!
Cheers
Aled

[Niall]

Glad to see Ireland win even if it was "patchy". However, next week against Aus is the big one as I think we have no chance against NZ.

First half England Fiji in the RLWC was absorbing stuff. I felt some of the hits from the comfort of my sofa. Also found myself cheering fro england which is a first in any sport

[firehazard]

... Also found myself cheering fro england which is a first in any sport

Blimey, Niall, that's something I never thought would happen!

Injuries mean England are looking very short on front-row and wing resources for the NZ match on Saturday. Scrum could be a big problem.

[Niall]

... Also found myself cheering fro england which is a first in any sport

Blimey, Niall, that's something I never thought would happen!

Injuries mean England are looking very short on front-row and wing resources for the NZ match on Saturday. Scrum could be a big problem.

Haha. I was surprised myself. Ah well, I will be supporting them on Sat evening against France also

[Welshie]

Lots to look forward to this weekend, with some big games for all four of the home nations. The RL World Cup has been very disappointing from a Welsh perspective, if i was Wales RL i would of gone into the professional RU clubs, and looked for a couple of "on the fringe or squad players" and borrowed em for 12 months, (not the done thing i suppose but hey....)
Adam Jones is out a big loss for Wales this autumn again!
Cheers
Aled

[firehazard]

...
Adam Jones is out a big loss for Wales this autumn again!

He really is a big loss. Unlucky.

[soulfinger]

Today, I had the unexpected pleasure of being given a free ticket for the Rugby League World Cup Final at Old Trafford next Saturday. I think the correct phrase is "Winner, Winner, Chicken Dinner!".

[Welshie]

Nice one Soulfinger, go and enjoy. I must say when the Super League RL final was held in Cardiff, the supporters were a great crowd and had a whale of a time. Drank quite a few pints with some RL supporters.
Enjoy
Aled