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Armchair Halfback

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Joined December 2019

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Armchair Halfback is the musings of a long time rugby tragic - a devotee and thinker about all things pertaining to the running game.

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Nice work Harry. And some Seamus Heaney too! Such intellectual heights! Loved the Irish attitude last week. The ability to thrive in adversity is a wonderful think. Great to see Faz getting value out of the whole squad.

Can Ireland limp over the line against hurting England, will France wallop Wales, and three wins for Scotland? 6N burning questions

Would have cost one tenth of the V price

Rugby News: Hansen's 'everybody hates England' taunt, why Brumby avoided Eddie's list but 'mum was right into it'

No contested scrums for Healy at hooker, only a theatre for inflicting pain on the Scots… 😂

Hansen stars as Ireland move one win away from Grand Slam with just England to play

Thank Geoff. Looking forward to any auspicious updates you can glean from the Rebels training paddock in the coming days. 😊

The Wrap: Rebels critics should know better, thrills and spills in Fiji, and string of close finishes leads to ladder logjam

Thanks Geoff. Happy days in Melbourne once again. Rebels really do have a different vibe this year, confident and creative rather than chaotic. The litmus will be against NZ sides, but fringe players from last year like Canham are beginning to look at home at this level, Ekuasi is a brilliant recruit and even Hawkes Bay resident & honorary Burn boy Stacey Illi looked really good.

The Wrap: Rebels critics should know better, thrills and spills in Fiji, and string of close finishes leads to ladder logjam

I’m loving it that I need to look up my rugby app to work out which you whipper snapper is tearing it up at the Brumbies: “Rees No Neck you say”? 😂

ANALYSIS: Unbeaten Brumbies hang on against Reds as O'Connor sends timely reminder to Wallabies

Ashton only played two years of super league so less of a transiton, Teo learnt rugby in Ireland and wasn’t great, I wouldn’t have regraded Hape as a cross code success.

Eddie Jones' answer is NRL backs, Peter V'landys should lend him a few

Hey JC – 80% of rugby is attitude and hunger. Vunivalu made just 15 metres over 4 carries last night against the Brumbies and he’s a brilliant NRL player.

Eddie Jones' answer is NRL backs, Peter V'landys should lend him a few

There’s actually lots of Rugby Au poaching going on atm, but they are poaching players from the NZ (union) ITM cup, not NRL. 😛

Eddie Jones' answer is NRL backs, Peter V'landys should lend him a few

Yes excellent point there Chippers. Tom Wright only played one season of NRL so less of a learning curve compared with five NRL seasons for Vunivalu who really hasn’t thrived in rugby. He’s an NRL superstar so a cautionary tale. I had some stats which a put in another similar reply which vamoosed, so apologies of it reappears and there’s double up.. 😛

Eddie Jones' answer is NRL backs, Peter V'landys should lend him a few

Yes, that’s where Eddie’s dreaming fails. Rugby Au simply doesn’t have the cash to pay the best NRL players. Also why ditch your NRL career to play a code where there’s no guarantee of success? Just ask Willie Carne, Will Chambers, Benji Marshall, Sam Burgess, Timana Tahu, Reece Robinson, Tepai Moeroa, Nathan Blacklock and others.

Eddie Jones' answer is NRL backs, Peter V'landys should lend him a few

Thanks Chippers – that’s a good point you make. Wright only played a handful of games in one season of NRL and the transition required for him is less than Vunivalu who played 5 seasons or NRL and amassed over 100 appearances. Sometimes you get great NRL players (Folau, Koroibete, Brad Thorn, Jason Robinson) who excel in rugby but these are more rare than Eddie Jones or others commentators might admit. Back to Vunivalu and last night’s Reds game. The other members of the Reds back three made (Daugunu) 84 metres and (Petaia) 92 metres. Vunivalu? Just 15 metres from 4 carries and just 2 tackles over 80 minutes. It’s not a criticism of Vunivalu, rather an illustration of code hopping challenges. 😁

Eddie Jones' answer is NRL backs, Peter V'landys should lend him a few

Eddie’s just attention seeking really. The only NRL player to end up in Eddie’s England team was Sam Burgess and that was a disaster. I hope you’re right about plenty who can adapt, but it’s learning new skills and a new culture. Pick the current top 500 rugby players – how many are former NRL/RL players? Probably none. I could add Tuivasa-Sheck to the list of current struggling code hoppers. In the Wallabies only Tom Wright is ex-NRL, but he would probably struggle to get a contract with a NZ super rugby franchise. Best rugby winger in the world is Cheslin Kolbe, that’s your template.

Eddie Jones' answer is NRL backs, Peter V'landys should lend him a few

Hey Harry, great to meet another Ange Capuzzo fan, we should hang out sometime… 😂

Have France peaked too soon, will Wales suffer worst year in history, where are England?: 6N burning questions

Nice work Tony, I guess the current challenges facing Vunivalu provides a cautionary tale when it comes to NRL talent being wooed to Raa Raa. Evening though he was a schoolboy rugby star and a is a fabulous athlete, Vunivalu has struggled with the Reds since he code hopped. The best rugby wingers nowadays are ones that can playmakers as as well as speedsters. For every code hopping success, there are plenty who fail to find their feet in rugby. And that’s not a criticism, simply the reality of two different games with different culture and different skill sets.

Eddie Jones' answer is NRL backs, Peter V'landys should lend him a few

It is a an interesting one. Ardie is a a generally good bloke and wonderful player – if it was Dane Coles on the other hand….. 😛

Savea CITED for throat-slit 'brain explosion,' faces prospect of lengthy ban

I could swear there was an apostrophe when his Dad Emile was playing, 😂 I see Dan’s in hot water for berating poor Keelan Giles for messing up his haircut.

Power rankings: The top 10 flyhalves in world rugby come from eight countries, but none of them are Aussies

Nice Harry – I’d swap Biggar & N’Tamack – Wales are poor at the moment and some of the blame for that lies with Dan. Bear in mind that (former coach) Pivac had a preference for Gareth Anscombe.

Power rankings: The top 10 flyhalves in world rugby come from eight countries, but none of them are Aussies

Nice work Harry. My impression with Eddie is that he often didn’t know who his best XV was – I think Borthwick has made a step in the right direction choosing Dombrandt and Ludlum in the back row plus the athletic Ollie Chessum in second row, and some enterprising selections on the wing. Not sure about the England backline, Marchant has never really fired at test level and I’m not a fan of the Smith/Farrell 10/12 axis I’d almost be inclined to pick Steward at 12 (aka J Barrett) and pick Freeman at 15.

Will England fix the Eddie malaise, which favourite will flop, who's going to be the top 10? 6N burning questions

I wish he’d finished the Monty Python /Life of Brian sentence. 😛

ANALYSIS: In just 30 minutes Eddie Jones managed what Castle and Rennie couldn't in three years

No need to be snarky. Just watch Fijian Drua and you’ll get the vibe. 😛 😛

'All parts of the game': World Rugby set to follow RFU's lead and lower tackle height

Handsome Harry! 😂

'All parts of the game': World Rugby set to follow RFU's lead and lower tackle height

I think KP has alluded to it, but prior to rugby becoming a power game, post professionalism, the standard method of tackling at all levels was below the waist. Rugby needs an attractive point of difference from NRL and this could just be the think to make rugby a faster, creative , offloading game.

'All parts of the game': World Rugby set to follow RFU's lead and lower tackle height

Monty’s coming home – another Burn boy for the Rebels. 😁

ANALYSIS: Why Eddie will bring back essence of Aussie sport to Wallabies - and the four tight-five forwards he needs

Ange Capuzzo, what a player!

ANALYSIS: Why Eddie will bring back essence of Aussie sport to Wallabies - and the four tight-five forwards he needs

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