Italy’s Mauro Bergamasco, left, is tackled by Ireland’s Brian O’Driscoll in their Six Nations rugby union international match at Croke Park, Dublin, Ireland, Saturday, Feb. 6, 2010. (AP Photo/Peter Morrison)
Nick Mallet is a sophisticated man: he speaks several languages. He is bright: he was a Rhodes Scholar. He has been a very good coach: his Springboks in 1998/199 won 17 straight Tests, a South African winning sequence record. He is, however, a very poor coach of Italy.
He has set his team a goal of losing by no more than 15 points. That margin or preferably fewer points represents, Mallet has told his team, a sort of victory for Italy.
And to consolidate this negative team ambition, Mallett has imposed a style of play on Italy that ensures that his team can’t win Tests but will invariably lose in as ugly a fashion as possible.
This ‘losing ugly’ style makes Italy a difficult team to play expansive and attractive rugby against, as Ireland found on Saturday at Croke Park. They did, though, win 29 – 11 and this score reflected in a curious way a sort of double loss by Italy.
Ireland went past the 15-point mark and were never in any danger of losing the Test. Given the extremely negative nature of Italy’s play and the fact that this was the opening match of the Six Nations tournament, I thought Ireland were quite impressive.
There was nothing in the England-Wales match to suggest that these team will stop Ireland’s unbeaten run which now extends to 12 Tests, a national record for Ireland.
As well as being difficult for oppositions to play attractively against (the All Blacks and the Wallabies have struggled to put Italy away comprehensively in Italy), Italy plays (if such an active verb can be used in this context) the most unwatchable rugby that can ever have been inflicted on spectators by any team.
Every ball is kicked away. We don’t know if the backs can run and pass and make breaks because they never try these rugby basics.
They cheat at virtually every scrum. Against the All Blacks last year Stu Dickinson had a rare off day and let them away with this. On Saturday the French referee Romain Poite did not tolerate the boring-in tactics from the Italian front row and penalised them frequently, and correctly.
The worst aspect of their play, even worse than the never-ending kicking (with no one actually chasing the high balls), is the way the Italian halfbacks allow the ball to sit at the back of the ruck for more than 10 seconds. You feel like screaming out, ‘Use it! Damn you!’.
The sooner referees start applying a use-it or lose-it call, giving teams like Italy (and other ‘sitters’ like England and Wales to only a slightly lesser extent) five seconds maximum to play the ball, the better.
Italy, too, like all the European teams play their first five-eighths mainly in the quarter-back position, directly behind the half rather than almost in line with him. The result of this senseless positioning is that most of the European teams, even Ireland and Wales – teams that actually try to run the ball – have to kick away possession quite often from turnovers rather than launching wide attacking raids.
Talking about senseless play, Alun Wyn Jones, the Wales second-rower lost the Test against England at Twickenham when he stuck out a leg to trip the English hooker Dylan Hartley right in front of the referee Alain Rolland. The score was 3-3 at the time just five minutes before half-time with Wales looking like a side that could continue its run of victories at the home of English rugby.
Ten minutes later when Jones came rather shame-facedly back on the field the score was 20 – 3. Even though Wales came back strongly and scored 14 unanswered points, the game was effectively lost by an action that Brian Moore (who is turning into an excellent commentator) called a ‘half-witted’ and ‘silly cheap shot.’
England’s lineout was good, with Steve Borthwick doing a Victor Matfield in organising no fewer than six steals against the throw. The scrum was barely adequate, though. Jonny Wilkinson kicked too much and poorly and his positioning was in the European disease mode which made it virtually impossible for England to have any fluency in their backline.
England were an improvement on the side that performed so poorly against the southern hemisphere teams at the end of last year. But this was an improvement from someone on a life-support system to someone who is off it, for the time being.
Whether Saturday’s performance reflects an actual improvement or that Wales seems to be on another slippery slope to rugby mediocrity remains to be seen.
By far the best thing about England was their playing strip which reflected the strip used back in 1910 when Twickenham hosted its first Test. The off-white of the jerseys, with real collars, the band of blue around the waist of the white shorts and the blue socks looked terrific. The current jersey, with its red slash on the white, looks as if the England players have had their throats slit and blood is streaming out of the wound on to their jersey.
What a pity that Wales didn’t wear their 1910 playing kit, the famous scarlet jersey, the black shorts and the scarlet socks. The current outfit, a sort of Miami Vice red, with no collar, white shorts and green socks with a curious white pattern on them, looks like a dog breakfast.
Is it a coincidence that Wales played in a similar dogs breakfast fashion?
soapit
Guest
with respect to gower people pull in rugby league half backs who get the defence pushed back ten metres from the ruck every time and wonder why they stand too deep as a rugby 5/8. plus they're used to standing and passing rather then running forward and engaging a defence but thats another issue.
Wavell Wakefield
Guest
'Sure they are ranked 9th but the game as a whole is in much better shape and heading in a much better direction then it was 5-10 years ago.' Yes, I would firmly agree with this, but the improved domestic fortunes (not in the HC) hasn't panned out in the test arena, and worryingly Scottish development has been matched and overtaken by Ireland and Wales. I also think that if Scotland and Italy played each other 10 times, five at home and five away, each side would win their home games. How does that compare with Scottish rugby in the early 1990s? The removal of rucking can't be to blame for all the Scottish woes.
Wavell Wakefield
Guest
Mallett has reduced losing margins has he? What are the stats?
Wavell Wakefield
Guest
'The Aussies aren’t perfect but they are bred into having a go. It’s so obvious when you watch a match.' Ye heavens, no.
Wavell Wakefield
Guest
I totally agree with what you (and Barnes) say about Gower, Spiro. He stands far, far too deep. Jonny Wilkinson also stands far too deep, and it was noticeable that when Wales were making their 2nd half comeback he descended even deeper. Also, when Wilkinson does attack he attacks on his own, and is far too narrow visioned. Personally I think that the flat playing Toby Flood would aid the England backline (as he did last 6N). It may turn out that Wilkinson was simply lacking confidence with Flood at 12 (which may be the case given that Flood was turned over twice). Perhaps Flutey will help release the outside backs, but I have a sneaking suspicion that Wilkinson is not the man to take England forward regardless of who plays 12. We do have to remember, however, that whereas the Irish and Welsh backs have been playing regular test rugby together, the English team has not experienced uninterrupted selections since the previous 6N.
Pajovic
Guest
Anthing that involves that one eyed clown from the Times Stephen Jones isn't worth reading. LD basically insisted that every Wasp should be picked, IM couldn't say much due to his posiion as Lions coach and his unwilling ness to offend any of the players he coached (which is fair enough) and JG sounded like he hadn't watched a GP game in months. It was God-awful. Look at the review Stephen Jones gave Tait, who was clearly effective against the Welsh a duff score. Jones picks players, ie, in this instance Haskell and then just runs with them regardless of form. he is now drooling all over Lawes (who is an exciting prospect). I can't stand the man. His hatred of all things irish, Kiwi and rugby league is bordering on the offensive. As for Cipriani, he cannot kick a tactical ball to save his life, cannot pass and cannot tackle. Melbourne can have him.
Derm
Roar Guru
Far and away the most exciting? Have to disagree with that one. I thought the second half dreary bar a couple of breaks - particularly Lamont's late breaking run. Scotland may have chosen to run with ball in hand and make the game more dynamic, but they failed to cross the French line at critical times, and not all of it was down to good French defence. Equally their defending against the French for the two tries they scored was pretty inept too. The first try scored by Basteauraud was so predictable in its pulling in of the backline into tackles at the ruck, that Basteauraud was practically able to walk over the line. Equally the Scottish defence, particular at 6 and 12 was very poor in not communicating with each other and drifting across to cover the run of Harinorduqouy and the pass to Basteauraud. No one laid a glove on him as he ran in. The second half between England v Wales had much more excitement to it - for this neutral observer anyway, in that Wales made a game of it and were able to get points on the board from boot and hand - Hook's try the best of the match. France were treading water for a lot of the second half - maybe saving themselves for next week. If they were trying to score, then like Ireland against Italy failing to score in the second half, they'll need to up a few gears. The French scrum certainly looks the most complete of the 6 Nations. They drove the Scots backwards on a number of occasions for quite a few metres each time. Ireland could be in the doghouse if that happens next week. I'd agree that if England's backline improves - Wilkinson standing more shallow, and the return of Flutey - it is going to make them tough to beat. They should dispense with Italy easily next week - who have got their first-up match out of the way. Unless Mallet tells them to spend 5 minutes on each ball behind the scrum (was there anything more excrutiating to watch? If the pundits and bookies are right and Ireland lose against France in Paris, England should be in very buoyant mode by the time they meet the Irish in Twickenham. Was it just me or was the Frnech/Scotland match not full of reset scrums that seemed to serve no purpose? Owens may be a good ref, but he struck me as far too patient, and should have started pinging a lot quicker.
Mr cheese
Guest
I think his name is Nigel Owens but that is a different matter. I would be interested to ask you a question about him, Spiro. Do you really think he had an excellent game ? After the match, on the BBC discussion programme, somebody asked if it made any sense to have a referee who addressed the players only in English. If the French don't speak English very well, it's pretty difficult. Plus, Owens speaks with the Welsh accent which they probably don't catch. In Rugby, they have video technology and lots of backroom staff. How much dinero would it cost to teach the refs a few words of la langue francaise ? "A vaincre sans peril, on triomphe sans gloire..."
Mr cheese
Guest
The last sentence should probably be: "I predict there WOULD be a huge improvement in England's back play if this happened." You use the word "would" rather than "will" in a conditional sentence. Anyway, I am a little surprised that there are apparently plenty of people in the colony who take an interest in what is laughably called "Northern Hemisphere Rugby". I thought people down there were more interested in Rugby a XIII. Best wishes, M Fromage
Spiro Zavos
Expert
I have just watched the Scotland - France match, on delay in Australia on ESPN. This was far and away the most exciting and interesting match of the round. Full marks to Scotland for trying to play a ball-in-hand game. They made more lines breaks than France but were unable to convert the breaks into points when they were in the red zone, unlike France. And the reason for this? Take it away Jonathan Davies, a union and league great and now an excellent match analyst. Scotland were guilty of standing too deep when moving the ball along the line after the initial penetration. I couldn't have made the point better myself. France looked a complete side, with a strong scrum. secure lineout, a great loose forward trio and fast, big and skilful backs. If France brings this game to Paris next week against Ireland, the match will be a cracker. The Scotland-France match was very well refereed by Nigel Owen. He got good co-operation from the players at the ruck and the ball generally came out quite quickly, especially when France were on the drive. When a referee knows what he is doing and understands what is happening at the rucks, rugby becomes a free-flowing game, as the Scotland-France match was.
Mart
Guest
But it's a fair point .... Eng (particularly) haven't looked good in the backs for a while apart from flashes (Ire and France in recent 6Ns). They miss the spark that someone like a Cipriani could bring (a la Giteau to the Wallabies) for me. He may make mistakes but he has a go (here's hoping he comes to the Rebels !). On Sat you could almost telegraph 3 plays ahead the Eng backs moves. Having said that someone above makes the reasonable point that (for whatever reason) Eng haven't been able to field a settled side for some time now so if the current crop gets a decent run / some luck who knows - the breakaway try at the end was well executed after all. If you want some interesting debate from a NH / Eng viewpoint, look at the Times website - ahead of Sat they had Barnes / Jones / Dalaglio / Guscott / McGeechan discussing the 6N teams and esp Eng. No holds barred and some very good points made (probably after the 16th bottle of red was drained) ..... And I like the "new" Eng all white kit - and even the purple change kit ! Now if only we could get rid of the "O2" (or indeed any) sponsors logo.....
Colin N
Guest
"Barnes himself was one of the last (only?) English five-eights to stand flat when required." How about Wilkinson between 2000 and 03? Hodgson whenever he played? Flood played flat last season. I probably need to study the game again, but I thought Wilkinson stood flat against Wales. The problem comes when the forwards don't generate quick(er) ball, therefore it doesn't matter where you stand as a fly-half, you are unlikely to score tries.
Pajovic
Guest
More generic non-specific hemisphere babble. Try comparing countries instead of hemispheres. I think you will find it slightly more effective and you can back your points with specific examples. Jameswm 'but it’s probably more obvious in the club games' wow astounding analyses. Did you perhaps stop to think that player resources are spead amongst a larger number of clubs in the NH?
Matt
Guest
The number of young kids and teens playing the game in Italy has exploded since their inclusion in the six nations and the media coverage has greatly increased. Give it time. It took the French ten years to win their first game in the competition didn't it?
Jameswm
Guest
I always laugh at the NHers who think the SH players are equally as negative. The skills of the NH players have improved, but when behind and a player up, or presented with a 5 on 3, they still invariably don't know what to do. It's an instinctive thing. The Aussies aren't perfect but they are bred into having a go. It's so obvious when you watch a match. I'll see if I get the chance to tape an England match and show you what I mean, but it's probably more obvious in the club games.
Mick
Guest
I would like Italy to improve and actually have a chance of winning, a full house at the San Siro with Italy still in the game with 5 minutes to go would be insane
Spiro Zavos
Expert
Wavell Wakefield is perturbed that I should call the quarter-back alignment of five-eighths a 'European disease.' But he might have noticed a little verbal jousting by Stephen Jones and Stuart Barnes in a Sunday Times forum. Jones made the nonsensical remark that Craig Gower seemed to have solved Italy's five-eight problem. 'He stands too deep,' Barnes said (rightly) dismissing Gower as an efficient five-eights. Barnes himself was one of the last (only?) English five-eights to stand flat when required. He could make a backline hum but was overlooked on most occasions for the predictable, limited Rob Andrew who stood as deep as Jonny Wilkinson in the pocket on most occasions. WW is right when he says that this European disease has caught on in Australia and South Africa particularly. One reason why I don't rate Matt Giteau as a five-eighth is because of his tendency to hide behind his pack in the quarter-back position. But there are Australians like Berrick Barnes who understand that there are times, especially from turnovers, when a five-eights standing flat can capitalise on the situation. Alan Gaffney has brought some of the Randwick flat backline techniques to Ireland. But in the heat of the game Ronan O'Gara still tends to go back to the quarter-back position, unfortunately. The RFU could do worse than hire someone like Bob Dwyer who is suffused in the Randwick flat backline theory (as practised by Mark Ella), to act as a national coach going around the country giving master classes on the theory of backplay. I predict that there will be a huge improvement in England's backplay if this happened.
brad
Guest
Spiro. Englnad have thankfully done away with the red sash and now have afull white jersey (still no collar). try to remember the autumn internationals, no ugly sash there remember.
True Tah
Guest
Mr cheese you dont know a lot about Italian rugby, there are more Argies than Aussies in their side. And rugby is a lot more popular in Italy than it ever was in Romania.
mattamkII
Guest
Chris, Scottish teams currently hold 1st and 3rd places in Magners League Their 7 national team is solid Their development program has lifted child (24%) and adult (9%) since it began The national is more competitive now than it was in the early 2000's Other than that, Scottish rugby is headed in the wrong direction? Sure they are ranked 9th but the game as a whole is in much better shape and heading in a much better direction then it was 5-10 years ago.