Rugby World Cup 2011

I look forward to seeing us choke in the finals.  Again.

With all the morning kickoffs, I look forward to numerous late mornings for work.

 

Quietly confident for Wales to reach the semis, then capitulate under one of the favourites (though, judging by last nights footie, Gatland should give Robbie Earnshaw a callup at fly-half

 

 

Sonofabitch ...

 

Probably the All Blacks. If not, Australia. I maybe bias as I lived there for a few years and am half Aussie, but they are a young and exciting team, with fantastic backs, the best scrum-half and a much improved pack.

France is the only northern hemisphere team with half a chance. If they show up. England is improving but not there yet. Still, I'll be there 9:30 Saturday morning.

Even if France doesn't do us again either Dan Carter or Richie McCaw will get injured in the first game and we'll be fucked. It'll be Tana Umaga all over again.

 

There's no way an All Black captain will hold the cup aloft in 2011. No way in hell.

Hey, chin up, Bucho. The All Blacks are playing well. Yes, they usually do, but they were ruthless in the tri-nations, and only narrowly lost to Auz. Plus, you cannot overstate the positive effect of playing at home. They seem too experienced to let the pressure get to them.

Let me keep my expectations in the gutter you bastards. It's the only way to get through this.

Supporting England, was going to go see a match in Palmy but $77 for a lowest tier game is too much.

I expect the Tongans to batter fuck out of the ABs in the first match, Ritchie and Dan to get crocked and the Nations hopes plummet.. but then the ABs pull it off anyway.

I want the ABs to win just to see the whole country go mental, but secretly I want England to win just so I can wind up my workmates

Just driven past twenty cars in pamy, all of them completely covered in Tongan flags, full of folk who are all face painted up and leaning out of windows/sunroofs.

Everyone that passed them beeped and waved and smiled.

Suddenyl the RWC is alive for me:)

 

Bring it on!

Fuck, Fiji VS Namibia was a fantastic game!  And fuck you, France.

Cars, vans and trucks with Tongan flags out in force in the inner Auckland suburbs too, along with many of the black silver fern flag, the light blue Fiji flag and plenty of St George's Cross flags. And in the central city the Rising Sun of Japan is well-repped.

 

The ABs were average against Tonga. No signs of championship potential yet.

 

Fiji vs Namibia and France vs Japan were both very entertaining games. Argentina vs England looked like two sides trying to lose. For two countries who're great at football, in a stadium with no wind, they couldn't kick for shit. Fiji's kicker Seremaia Bai put them both to shame. That guy is sharp.

AWFUL. Johnno's passion has not been passed to the squad. The only spark came from Ben Youngs and, briefly, Matt Stevens. Wilkinson created nothing.
Uggh.

Bucho, NZ have played better but there were some great patches. Sonny Bill Williams' handling skills were awesome.

I have a bad feeling one of his famous offloads is going to fuck New Zealand at the worst possible time.  He's not exactly flavour of the month anyway so if that happens he'll be roasted in the media.

 

On the other hand him changing his shirt is already my wife's sporting moment of the decade (plus 90% of the female audoence I would imagine).

England were woeful, and what's with all the missed kicks in an enclosed stadium?

 

I flat out fucking LOVED Japan.  Attitude, passion and skill and they had our ancient enemy, The French, rocking back for a good while.  JK must be proud as anything.

 

It was a great first full day actually.  All the 'minor' sides really stepped up to the mark and gave it a bloody good go.  Romania had this glacier like inevitability (not quick but Scotland couldn't stop them) and I genuinely thought Scotland may have stuffed it but that try finally seemed to wake them up).

 

Fiji/Namibia was class entertainment.  In fact, until the last game of the day, every game was very enjoyable.  And as the pundits kep banging on "that's what the World Cup is all about".

 

South Africa/Wales should be a belter. C'mon the Taffs!

 

Re: flags etc Levin was full yesterday of ABs flags on cars and houses, Tongan flags, Fijian and a few Japanese ones.  Only one cross of St George.  My CoSG flag has mysteriously dissapeared and been replaced with a MASSIVE All Blacks flag.  The wife assures me that this is not deliberate but she has a sly glint in her eye when she says it that makes me doubt her veracity.

 

I'll say one positive from the England game: Their away strip looks fucking badass. I mean, Nike fucked them a little by not making shirts with numbers that'd stick for more than two and a quarter minutes, but you can't go wrong with black.

Another great day!  Love how the "minnows" have all stepped up to the plate (at least early doors anyway)

Wales/SA was an absolute belter.  Saffers very lucky to walk away victors on that one.

Wales getting robbed by serial villain Wayne Barnes stung.

 

Another thing that stung - although thankfully not me personally - was the mammoth cock-up made by Auckland's public transport authorities on opening night. In the weeks leading up to the cup they ran a massive public notice campaign saying "Leave your cars at home and take busses and trains to ease the traffic load" and then when people heed the advice and turn up to the bus stops and train stations the transport companies are woefully underprepared for it!

 

On the positive side, you're dead right Andy, a lot of these games have been more entertaining than expected because many of the underdogs have really been putting up some great fights and keeping the scores close for long stretches of the matches.

USA played like fucking champs.  Was super proud of their performance on what can't have been an easy day for them.  Second (third?) the love for the smaller teams going balls out.  Japan were incredible, too, but it was clear they just aren't used to playing that calibre of opponent for a full 80 minutes too often.  Heart only takes you so far, no matter how much of it you got stored away.

Something went very wrong for Ireland but you're right USA did a great job and you can't take that away from them. Japan should be very proud of their performance too, though you could see just how tired they were toward the end. 

 

Some of you know I am an Irishman living in Wales so it's been a pretty rough start up in here.

ScotlNd are poor at the mo, coming into last quarter, still only 9-3 and a Scotland pen just missed.

Amazing result for Canada.

Samoa were a lot of fun to watch today. Not a great game overall because of the imbalance, but some nice, expressive Poly style running.

 

Canada looked great because they were in black. Also because they played really well with a lot of heart. I'm bummed for Tonga and the massive support base they have in my neck of the woods though. They weren't expected to make it past France and the ABs anyway, but they expected to have more to celebrate against the Canucks.

 

It's just going to make me cheer harder for them when they play The Frogs.

Alessano Tuilagi tore shit up. But I think you mean he eats fourTEEN Weet Bix for breakfast. Even I do five and I'm not a quarter the athlete he is.

Re the brief discussion above concerning the performance of the "minnows" nations, I was going to take exception to the classification of Wales as a minnow. Not because there is a personal point for me, but because I just don't see Wales and Ireland as being in that class of teams you don't expect to do well. Having taken a quick butchers at the Six Natons historical results I was surprised that a few isolated instances aside, Wales haven't done that well in the Northern hemisphere championship since the 70s.

Weird how perception can be all over the place. I could have sworn they were a bigger force than that, hence my genuine lack of surprise they did so well against the Boks.

I, for one, *never* write off Wales.  They have a alot of history in the game.  And they're clinically insane.  Good combination.

 

Fantastic work from Canada in my old stomping grounds . . . they never backed down an inch, tough little fuckers.  Also, those beards were some straight up viking gangster shit.

Yup - did not mean to imply Wales were minnows in the slightest.  Was more the Japans/Romanias/Namibias etc that used to get done 100+ in the pool stages.

I'm devastated I bothered watching all of the Scotland match. D.d.d.d.d.d.dulll.

 

Despite their two wins Scotland have not impressed me in the slightest.  I can't say how they'll do against the English (the 'Derby' element always adds spice) but I can see the Argies mullering them.

I'm feeling like I could take on Australia myself. That was absolutely stunning. O'Connell was a monster.

 

When Tommy Bowe took off near the end there I almost passed out. Sensational. The atmosphere must have been incredible.

 

I don't doubt a Wales/Ireland quater final, always may favourite match.

 

I'm speechless.

Oh Danny Boy . . . The pipes, the pipes are calling . . .

Sinne Fianna Fáil,
atá faoi gheall ag Éirinn,
Buíon dár slua
thar toinn do ráinig chughainn,
Faoi mhóid bheith saor
Seantír ár sinsear feasta,
Ní fhágfar faoin tíorán ná faoin tráill.
Anocht a théam sa bhearna baoil,
Le gean ar Ghaeil, chun báis nó saoil,
Le gunna scréach faoi lámhach na bpiléar,
Seo libh canaig amhrán na bhfiann!!!

That was amazing. That Saturday night I was at a family gathering and by the last ten minutes almost everyone - about 40 people - were crowded inside where the TV was watching the closing minutes of that game. I don't think anyone there was even Irish but everyone was cheering on the lads in green. It wasn't even an anti-Aus thing, it was just rousing to see the underdogs lifting so well to meet a mighty foe and rise above them.

 

It was great to see Georgia making things difficult for the English for a good while too, but to be honest I was happy to see England stretch out eventually. The competition is a lot more interesting with a strong England in it than an England which struggles to play coherent rugby like they did against The Pumas.

 

One thing this tournament is doing really well, and I guess this is an IRB thing, is having the orchestra and choirs doing the anthems. Normally for international rugby and league we have pop singers sing the anthems unaccompanied and it comes off so chintzy compared to FIFA or the Olympics with their orchestrated anthems, but the RWC has gone one better than that with these uplifting choral performances.

yip - stunning game and result.  Sunday wasn't too shabby either.  I struggled watching England (especially towards the end when passes weere jus being flung with a wing and a prayer) and swore a lot.

Canada held on for a while which was all good but they got nailed by penalties (much as England will if they don't sort their shit out).

 

Loving this tournament though :)

 

O'Driscoll said himself that they could have been in Dublin with the support they were getting. They played a phenomenal game and the crowd responded to it. Just so chuffed for them, especially the old guard who may not have another World Cup in them. Whatever happens there's a high point right there.

 

Good weekend of games.  But is it just me, or does every time they play that little trumpet piece at a kick-off, your first thought is that Alberto del Rio is going to drive a Ferrari onto the pitch and interrupt the game with his "My name . . !" schtick?

that Japan Tonga match was a ripper!  Fast FAST paced rugby.

And in other news:

 

Apparently if Jeses was to reyrun today, "logically" he'd be an All Black.

 

http://www.stuff.co.nz/sport/rugby/fan-central/5664694/Jesus-is-an-All-Black-painting-on-show 

Yep.  I'll say my goodbyes now.  ;)