You can’t keep politics out of sport because sport is politics
Despite the Australian winter sports about to head into their respective off seasons, the debate surrounding sport's role in society is fiery as ever.…
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I think alot of it is down to policing of rules by referees.
For some reason they no longer penalise players for deliberately obstructing kick chasers.
If they cut down on this will start to see more of a contest for the ball.
Alternatively players can take matter into their own hands and drop a shoulder into repeat offenders as a friendly warning
The NRL is going stale, so let's blood some new coaches to freshen things up
They deserve to be exactly where they are, despite the effort in NZ the diabolical first week has been the hallmark of the wallabies for the last decade, being a lack of consistency. A spirited performance every now and then may be fine for the second tier nations but to get back to the pinnalce of the late 90’s early 2000s they need to win consistently, stop dropping games against smaller nations, stop chasing leagies looking for a paycheck and don’t make excuses when beaten by the ABs.
Wallabies deserve to be alive in Bledisloe battle
Clyde the current system has benefitted the rsa teams more than anyone else, even before the conference system the RSA teams stuggled as much if not more to make the finals due to the extensive travel
Cheetahs and Kings officially join European Pro14 comp
I cant fault you Marius for your pride in the springbok jersey (cant understand the support for the crusaders) but i think you fail to give Australian rugby enough credit, whilst rugby union may be hamstrung by politics agendas in South Africa. In Australia the struggle for Rugby Unions is survival.
In Australia we have entities intent on or happy to see the end of rugby union altogether (Namely Rugby league and to a lesser extent AFL). In NSW alone the Waratahs are up against 10 rugby league teams vying for attention and the players for their squads, in QLD the reds have 3 nrl teams up against them. Despite this both can call themselves super rugby champions.
When Super rugby was first created the unwanted were cast off to the frozen wasteland of a Canberra winter and from that came a team that sprouted icons like Gregan, Larkham, Roff, Finegan all of them super rugby and world cup champions.
All this happened in a time where rugby union was and is still considered one of the lesser followed versions of winter sports in Australia. The other rugby nations should be concerned if RSA manage to get their act together but maybe think what would happen if AUS got their act together. The Kiwis have shown that the size of the player pool is irrelevant so its a matter of time if or when a larger nation figures this out as well and how they can channel this into their own success. So far the closest nation is england which with their resources is a terryfying prospect for the southern hemisphere teams.
I enjoy the friendly banter and am happy to leave you with the though that RSA teams have won the fewest super rugby titles, have had the fewest teams to win a title and have won the most wooden spoons (despite the best efforts of the Australian teams of late). Best of luck to the lions and crusaders and hope the aussie teams can pick themselves up off he canvass next year.
Cheetahs and Kings officially join European Pro14 comp
For its faults S15 was much better than S18 which is why they have reverted back to that format. I think its overestimated the influence that John O’Neill or the ARU have/had which is a reason they’re in this mess in the first place
Cheetahs and Kings officially join European Pro14 comp
In 2015 the stormers were in the finals instead of the crusaders who had more points than them. The basket case applies to more than just one conference with having a bad season.
Cheetahs and Kings officially join European Pro14 comp
On the flip side Pinetree having a conference that avoids playing Kiwi teams all regular season is a massive advantage of which RSA has reaped the benefits.
Even with the perceived advantages of Super 15 the Kiwi teams still dominated, NSW and QLD were able to take advantage of it and the RSA teams werent.
For its flaws the Super 15 format was as fair/even as the comp would be.
Cheetahs and Kings officially join European Pro14 comp
It was Sanzars call in the first place to expand the Super Rugby Comp. An RSA team could have easily joined the Pro 12 as opposed to adding another 3 teams into the Super Rugby comp and causing this carnage
Cheetahs and Kings officially join European Pro14 comp
Along with the fact they get to play in the same timezone and consistent 7 day turnaround for games. Kings and Cheetahs will be exposed to a bigger audience and more opportunities on a club level (ie potential to qualify for challenge cup). With a bigger audience they’re likely to attract more sponsors, more funds and more players. When the bigger RSA clubs start to see the potential benefits how long before they start turning their attention to the NH market.
Cheetahs and Kings officially join European Pro14 comp
As childish as demanding six Super rugby teams SJ? only when they get them, turn around and move two of them to the Northern hemisphere and leave Super Rugby teams with even further to travel now that Argentina and Japan are in the comp. Could have quite easily moved a saffa team to the Northern hemisphere without blowing up the the Super rugby comp
Cheetahs and Kings officially join European Pro14 comp
Love the Trbojevics brothers, just when you wonder how you could replace the stewart brothers these guys come along with a third brother on his way as well
Forget the rot, let's celebrate all that's great about the NRL
What are you talking about Wild eagle, we have Juniors. Theyre called the St George Illawarra Dragons
I hate the new Manly because I can't hate them
How could anyone hate the Lyons/Beaver combination of the 90s, was a beautiful thing to watch
I hate the new Manly because I can't hate them
If the GF is between Melbourne and Manly (fingers crossed) neutral supporters would have a hard time backing which team they want to lose
I hate the new Manly because I can't hate them
If the sea eagles can string together a consistent performance for at least 70 minutes in a game they will be causing the storm and other contenders alot of headaches, the game coming up between them in round 21 will be a cracker
Good luck trying to knock the Storm over from here
Soooo… they did play juniors together?
Sure the roar will be terrified with your dumping
What if the Melbourne Storm salary cap scandal was never discovered?
If manly actually shows up for 80 minutes instead of 60 give them the trophy.
Giving me a coronary every week watching them
Six contenders but the Storm, Sharks or Sea Eagles will win in 2017
Between 2006-2010 the storm built combinations, systems and a skill set that is the foundations of their success today.
During this time the storm were systematically rorting the salary cap.
Arguments from both sides can be made but the hard truth is that the current success of the storm was built on by the foundations of a team that shouldnt have legally existed.
As such feel that their success will always feel tainted.
Four myths about the Storm salary cap scandal
If the NRL abandoned the salary cap within a few years at least three or four teams would go under. Dont think NRL would be too fussed if one team wen t other as it would give them the chance to relocate a side but removing the salary cap would cause too much chaos
What if the Melbourne Storm salary cap scandal was never discovered?
Manlys saving grace is that it could be more for match fixing not salary cap rorting hence why the police are involved. If it is the case police and NRL will go after individuals as opposed to clubs
What if the Melbourne Storm salary cap scandal was never discovered?
Not necessarily, The Nrl has come down hard before on clubs that grossly go over the cap.
The bulldogs in 2002 only lost 4 games, including a 17 match winning streak but when it was revealed they were breaching the cap had 37 competition points stripped and a likely grand final appearance, fined $500,000 and 2 executives jailed for 7-9 years for fraud, theft and forgery.
The eels in 2016 were docked the twelve competition points they accrued for the season, as well as fined $1 million and stripped of the 2016 NRL Auckland Nines title, they were also forced to keep their wooden spoons. The entire board was also sacked.
What if the Melbourne Storm salary cap scandal was never discovered?
So were the dragons, their game plan in 2010 was a dominant forward pack and kick penalties whenever they were in range
What if the Melbourne Storm salary cap scandal was never discovered?
Cronk and Smith played Juniors together before their debuts in the NRL. It is likely that the spine would have existed but Inglis or Slater would have had to have left the club earlier than 2010/2011
What if the Melbourne Storm salary cap scandal was never discovered?
It was essentially effective salary cap rorting based around a core group of players. When the punishments had been served the core group was relatively intact.
The only real difference would be that their 200 and 2009 premierships would be intact with another potential title in either 2010 or 2011
What if the Melbourne Storm salary cap scandal was never discovered?
I think alot of it is down to policing of rules by referees.
For some reason they no longer penalise players for deliberately obstructing kick chasers.
If they cut down on this will start to see more of a contest for the ball.
Alternatively players can take matter into their own hands and drop a shoulder into repeat offenders as a friendly warning
The NRL is going stale, so let's blood some new coaches to freshen things up