Off Topic Other Sport

South Africa assistant Stick accuses Lions of 'destroying the dignity of the series'

I see your South African cousin is stirring it up Stick...!!

 

So the 2nd Test between South African & the British & Irish Lions is nearly upon us and the war and battle of words off the pitch heats up before a ball is passed...!! The SA coach, Rassie Erasmus, played the ref card saying they got no help or support from the assistants and went on to post a 1 hour long rant picking out points to back up his words. Sour bloody grapes if you ask me...!! Gatland did start the war of words before the first Test questioning the VAR ref being a homer South African, and we did get two huge calls when the SA's did score against us, but hey ho, that's life...

I actually feel better about this Test than the first and i think we will actually run out a 8-12 point winner with the stress being put on the SA's forwards once again. I think that the SA's will try and make it as bruising a match as possible but it was the Lions forwards who won the battle of the scrums and line outs which surprised me in the 1st Test, so a repeat of that form will be enough for me i think...

Lions to win by 8-12 points...!!

 

Stick, this transferred from racing thread:

Say, seems like last time, wrong thread again, but looking at the latest and 'final'(?) R's squad, seems it is a bit on 'overload'? A fair number of good players will be warming their bums on the bench for long spells, that's not so good? The club seems to have more shekels than I ever thought they had; i.e. what a wage bill! Glad they got that player from Fulham you think so highly of, and am flabbergasted they signed that Moses defender, who is most definitely injury-prone?
Seldom contribute to the QPR thread on the forum, as I just don't feel exactly 'comfortable' with it.

 

Odubajo is in on a free but I have to tell you that he has been mightily impressive in the pre season games, he even score a scorcher against Man U.
So many positives going into this season and particularly Warburton signing a new deal and Eustace turning down Swansea.
The wage bill is under tight control so don’t worry about that. We have two players not given squad numbers that we need to move on but other than that our business is done. We look very good especially going forward and I think we will be top six.

 

I was pretty pleased when he signed for Wednesday but has been more of a liabilty than an asset. No argument that he's talented its whether he can show it consistently. Hopefully he'll come good for you boys

 

He looks quality going forward but his defending leaves something to be desired

 

Many thanks, Stick, for putting me right on things. I did watch the two big friendlies, and thoroughly enjoyed them; loads of good goals and excellent entertainment. Yes, I do remember that 'scorcher' from Moses Odubajo, very impressive. Let's hope he stays fit and well!

 

So both sides have landed a blow, but which side has that final knockout punch in them to decide this years South Africa v British & Irish Lions tour...?? The fact that the Lions looked strong at the end of the first Test but out of breath come the end of the 2nd Test shows in the current betting market with the SA's a -3points handicap winner which is fair i would say...

The Lions can not be dragged in to the 2nd Test tactics of a slow paced, forward based game where the only option to make ground was in the kicking game, something we could not cope with at all. The game plan has to be changed and looking at what Gatland put out he means business...!!

Owen Farrell, Taulupe Faletau, Anthony Watson, Rory Sutherland, Tadgh Beirne, Chris Harris and Stuart Hogg are all out of the squad completely, which shows he's not gonna die wondering what the rest of the squad can do with Finn Russell, Adam Beard and Sam Simmonds coming in to the squad for the first time. So we have fresh legs, can we quicken the game up though... The SA's have had to change their line up also mainly due to due to injury as the pocket rocket, long lost cousin of Kim Wilde, Faf De Klerk is out along with the excellent du Toit...

The one thing i took from that 2nd Test was the constant harassment of the referee from both side trying to gain an advantage one way or another, just no need for it, and i hope they clamp down on it for this Test. It completely dominated the match for very long periods turning a 40min 1st half in to a 60min bore-a-thon...!!

I can't see it being a high scoring match up so the kicking will be very important both for territory and 3 point kicks, so can see it being a 18-12, 20-15 sort of final score hoping that we come out on top...

It hasnt been the Test series that we all expected but a Lions win against the current World Champions will be hugely received in any way it is gained...


Lions to take it by 5pts...

 

I used to love rugby union but Bore-a-thon is how I’d describe most rugby test matches these days. 2 big sets of forwards indulging in an arm wrestle and lots of aimless kicking. The video ref analysis from a millions angles just adds to the borefest together with the increasing histrionics between players and officials. The great Nigel Owen used to admonish rugby’s posers by pointing out they weren’t playing soccer and whilst rugby can’t yet rival the round ball game for cheating it’s heading that way. The authorities could shift the emphasis away from complete reliance on muscle mass by cutting the number of substitutes allowed to a maximum of 3 so that teams can’t swap their whole pack between 45-60 minutes. Over time we could then just see a few plays involving the backs.

 

Yesterday's Test highlighted what a joke sport has become...no continuity; stop/starts; coaches and drinks on the pitch; too many substitutions; long scrum formations; discuss this, explain that. Furthermore, technology will progressively kill the game as referees and linesmen become its pawns instead of controlling it. The open, flowing game I grew up loving is dead. Very sad.

 

The video ref should only be asked to get involved as a last measure, and i agree, the multiple angles slows the game right down to nothing more than add to the confusion of what actually happened. The ref got 2x calls off the top of my head spot on, the knock on for the SA try and the low shot from the SA player to a Lions player who was on the ground. Yet all the 4th official did was cloud the water of what actually happened and spent countless going back and forth when the ref already knew what had happened...!!

And, the issue of multiple substitutions is that you will have a number of players who have played 60min of a high physical contact sport and will be starting to flag, as one naturally would do, and then this fresh 18stone forward comes on and is faster, quicker and a lot more alert than you and you are expected to live with him...!! To counter-act that the authorities have deemed the front-row players must be replaced with like-4-like as it is a specialised scrummaging position so the numbers of subs allowed has increased...

This all came after the World Cup of 2003 when the Australian scrum could not handle our mighty pack and so the game went to non-contested scrums and basically stopped our pack from total dominance. We may have gone on to win the cup but the game would have probably not gone the way it did with the dramatic ending it had...!!

This is why so many great sporting results happen at the death of the game as one or both of the teams/players etc are out on their feet as they are knackered so mistakes happen. But the coaches and managers of the teams/players want it all and it seems at any cost...!!

The whole world of Professionalism in sport has a lot to answer for now-a-days..

 

So the magical, super talented magician of Barcelona one Lionel Messi is set to leave the Catalan football club after some 21 glorious years wining everything in front of him and propelling his standing to one of the greatest of all time. He wants us to believe that this closure of his time to Barca shouldnt really be happening as it's the fault of La Liga cutting down on the spending of the astronomical wages that some of these footballers are earning.

Messi wanted to leave Barca last summer, but stayed. They then offered him a new contract, just your £123m a season for 5 years, to which he agreed to in principle, ( well you'd have to give it some thought wouldn't you...!! ) then he offered to half his wage to stay at the club, so just the £61.5m a season then...!!

If the club really meant that much, and he must have earnt and be worth at this very moment more than the whole of Barca itself, then cut it right back. Cut it right back to to say, and i am being generous here, £5m a year. That would show the rest of the footballing world that it's all about playing the game first, and these clubs would survive longer.

I don't know the full accounts of Barca but it sounds like they need to do some cutting back on wages, and they arnt the only club who need to do this. The game has gone from the normality of the working man to become a monster where you can't get your head around the figures that get banded around nowadays...

Thanks for the memories Messi, but jog on, go to PSG who will gladly pay for your loyalty and that £100m a year contract you need to survive in this world...!!

 

What a start to the Premier League programme:

Brentford 2 - Arsenal 0

Wow, holy cow!! Well done newly-promoted "Bees"!

 

Shame i am at work but wouldn't want to watch it anyway with how it's shaping... How have England thrown this Test away...?? Started off this morning by removing the very dangerous Pant to leave just the 3 wickets left to take to bowl em out. Step forward Shami & Bumrah to post an unbeaten 89 run partnership...

If then to prove the point both of our openers are rubbish, they both go for ducks, and now with Root back in the hutch we are 75-5 and very little hope of getting to the close without defeat...!!!

Test match cricket at it's best unless you are the rubbish ones on the wrong end of the result...!!!

 

Butler will get a right ole cheer when he gets to his 100, balls faced that is...

 

Bollox... 96balls and out...!!!!!

 

Jamie Carragher did something similar when playing at Highbury many moons ago, He was pelted with a few pound coins while attempting to take a thrown in, saw the coins bounce off him to the floor, picked one of em up and tossed it back in to the crowd...!! I think he got a fine for doing so, not totally sure, but it was funny when he did it...

 

BOOOOMMM...!! Take that Kohli, India all out for 78...