JeffRo's Roar Profile

No I’m not, I would like scrums to be a contest to win the ball. Many times, a team has won the ball and hold it till there is a penalty.
I think it’s having more influence via penalties than is warrented.

UK VIEW: 'Utter heartbreak' for 'brilliant, cunning, courageous' Poms in WC semi 'undeservedly' won by Boks

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Oct

I would like to see the sanction of a penalty removed from scrums.
It is meant to be a mechanism to restart play.
Free kick is enough, or maybe the defending halfback has to bind, on one side of the scrum leaving a potential hole.
Teams now, after winning the ball( the point of a scrum) will now hang on till they get a penalty.
Not blaming the players, or officials, I just think the rules have two much of an impact, in this area of a game.

I’m not sure it was a ruthless call, Pollard is the Boks best 10, and ideal for the conditions and tenor of the match.
And ended up MoM!

'It's not for the ego': Boks coach defends 'brave, ruthless' sacrifice of No.10 that decided semifinal

I believe Warner and Marsh got their centuries off consecutive balls.
Has this happened many times before?

Joy of six: Warner savours Marsh's birthday ton more than his own as openers obliterate Pakistan

Cricket

Wayne Barnes to ref the final? Hope so, he is pretty good.
All Blacks all fit, didn’t note any concerns for Boks on that front.
All Blacks will have to think about scrums after the bench came on, England lost the game there.
Different styles and approaches to the game.
All Blacks will want go, go, go and bring the chaos, Boks, structure set piece control.
Feel very fortunate as a rugby fan to have my team to follow in the final, and being lucky enough to really enjoy the WC till the final game.

'What you live for': Boks beat England in World Cup EPIC to set up mouth-watering final against All Blacks

8 days recovery and prep for All Black, vs 7 for the Boks, shouldn’t make a difference.
A few weeks ago I would have said Springboks start as favourites, but I think it’s hard to call now.
Looking at a few bookies, all about even, from what I saw.

One side of the final decided, big step down from quarter final.
Be interesting to see if England can stand up for the weaker side of the draw, likely a Springboks vs All Blacks final.
All Blacks, not the best ever team NZ has produced, but they are getting the best out of what they have, gaining in confidence and execution

'Mature, clinical and getting better every time': All Blacks time run perfectly as they hone in on fourth title

Great article!
The role of Wallabies coach, while being a tough gig over the last decade or, certainly has has some qualities to attract top candidates.
Team at a low end, in the top 10, but could/should/would be top 5. So real room to improve.
In super rugby, a level below test footy, that’s, while maybe not the best anymore, but still a strong comp.
A Lion’s tour in two years and hosting the next WC.
I know, as roarers indicate, there are issues in union in Australia, but the next 4 years should be a fantastic time to be involved in the code in Australia.
And maybe add the Graham Henry/Steve Hansen criteria to the coach checklist-
No dickheads!

No crybabies, no league tragics, no Eddie Jones - the next Wallaby coach checklist

Certainly got a Pitbull, the problem with Pitbulls that other people get rid of is they tend to bite the children, chew the remote and leave a steaming dump in the middle of the lounge.

COMMENT: RA wanted a Pitbull to bring back some snarl to the Wallabies - Eddie rolled over for a tummy tickle

If your a coach at the WC, your role is to select and prepare your team to be as competitive as possible with the resources available. While Wallaby rugby is at a lower ebb, they could/should have got out of their pool. And looking England, would have had a chance to go another step.
With the quality of rugby and the stage it is on, it puts the sport in the headlines, generating interest and support.
Fiji, Portugal, Georgia are examples of this.
Judged in 4 years? What cop out, first job is to get the max out of current crop.
If that was done, then it is valid to plan a program to improve the playing resources.
WC isn’t a development tournament!!!!

Eddie Jones says he needs to 'give myself an uppercut' but '100 percent' committed to coaching Wallabies

He needs to clear up the talk around Japan. That is something people can’t forgive, lining up a one man lifeboat, while the troops go into battle.
It goes hard against the values of rugby people and people in general.

'He's got to be honest'- Wallabies legend's message to mate Eddie as ex-skipper says Jones 'never committed'

Felt like the semi finals this weekend, won by NZ and SA.
The other games were semi finals for 3rd/4th playoff. ( Although both England and Argentina are capable of an upset)
Real own goal by World rugby, having the top 4 teams on one side of the draw, they should have met next weekend.
I would imagine the feeling in France is deflation, not having the home side involved in the last two weekends.
And adding bitterness to the pull is seeing England in the semi finals after struggling past Fiji.

'Heartbroken': Springboks knock France out of RWC in dramatic, controversial QF as 'key moment' highlighted

If the Books take out the other major quarter final, it is likely a All Black/Springboks final, meaning between the two old rivals they would have won the last 5 WCs between them.
But can’t call tomorrows game, both teams can win.
Hopefully another great game.

WORLD VIEW: ABs pluck 'astonishing win from depth of their souls' while Irish face 'four more years of choking jokes'

I wonder if Ireland has missed there opportunity.
I know they have well regarded systems to bring players through, but was this the peak of their golden generation?

Fantastic game, 1st in a while for me that had me in the moment from start to finish.
The Irish were great and their ability to manipulate space was impressive.
I think it’s fair to be confident the ABs will contest the final, but while Argentina are maybe not where they were a couple of years ago, they have a wily coach and are capable.
After being the most critcised ABs coach for a long time Foster has the opportunity to make it WC wins for 3 successive ABs coaches.

37 phases and OUT! Whitelock the hero as All Blacks win epic RWC QF to break Ireland's hearts again

Only a couple of surprises on the bench with Christy and Coles.
But I guess they have the data to make more informed decisions.
Otherwise NZs strongest team.
Confident the All Blacks can win, not confident they will win, so looking forward to the match.

'Burdens that everyone carries': All Blacks star stood down for World Cup QF, Foster turns up heat on Ireland

Two issues for me that saw a pool stage exit ( from the tier 2 side of the draw).
1- basic player depth and quality.
Australian roarers, will have far more informed opinions around why Australian rugby isn’t generating enough quality players, but reasons aside, not enough player quality to win the W/C.
But enough to get out of the pool, and if that had been done, every chance of making the last 4.
2- Selection and coaching.
Only one team holds the cup aloft at the end of the tournament. I think the winner will be one of the “big” 4.
So how is success measured for the others?
I think success, for the teams that are unlikely to win, is doing the absolute best with the playing resources available.
And that’s where Eddie Jones has failed.
Didn’t select the best squad and I don’t think the group is well coached.
And while not being the best Wallaby group( or potential group) to go to the cup, it does feel like they under performed badly, leaving Australian rugby fans without the anticipation of quarter final and maybe semi final action to look forward too.

WALLABIES REPORT CARD: 'F--k mate, what didn't go wrong?'- Few pass marks and an F for Eddie in Pool C disaster

Not a great idea.
Blow heaps of cash, maybe one or two flyhalves, bugger off cause they see the 10 jersey is taken.
Cleary stays till next W/C, then back to the Panthers, back to square one.
Or he struggles to adapt.
Better to invest in the future.

Why the Wallabies shouldn't miss out on the next Joey and try to lure Cleary for 2027 World Cup

The madness of using this WC as a building block, could haunt Australian rugby for years.
With the home nations + France, NZ, SA, ARG and AUS, as the regular top 8 ( + 1 other), it has meant RWC pools are normally pretty easy to advance from, as there are two from the top 8, and then others.
Most RWCs have had pool of death, where 3 of the above 9 have to fight it out.
Dropping out of that company means there will be two strong teams to compete against.
According to WR, the draw for the next RWC will be closer to the event.
If the Wallabies can’t at least get to the top 8 in the rankings by then, the home WC may be a flop.

COMMENT: Eddie must be axed if he can't beat Wales - or the game will be in deep trouble in Australia

Sep

If the Wallabies don’t win against Wales and don’t get out of the pool, where does that leave Australian rugby?
With a Lion’s tour around the corner and the RWC cup in 27, the current tournament should be the start of a special period for Australian rugby.
It seems a hit and hope appointment of EJ, clearing the coaching staff and ending up at the WC with out the best( or 2nd best) 10, along with other odd selections, means it’s possible to completely blow the opportunity for rugby to gain some ground in Aus.

This is no time for X-factor: The Wallabies' challenge is to find a structure to out-structure super-structured Wales

Big moment at the end of the match as Fiji missed a penalty, meaning Wallabies got a bonus point.
They obviously need to beat Wales and if they do the bonus point secured against Fiji may be a tie breaker
That said, treating the world cup as part of a ” building and development phase” is just wrong. If your not choosing your absolute best squad for the pinnacle event of your sport, when do you select them?
Does Eddie stay, if Wallabies don’t make it out of group play?

The horror five minutes that put Wallabies' World Cup on life support as Eddie's huge 10 call falls flat

Change the name after every tournament, naming it after the winning team.
So currently in France they would be playing for the “South Africa are champions cup”!
Or out and out cash grab ” Microsoft/Apple/Tesla cup.

Should we change the name of the Webb Ellis Cup to recognise the competition's most iconic player?

Successful W/C team’s generally are experienced squads. QC May not be everyone’s favourite, but has experience.
And if Michael Hooper is recovered enough to get a couple of pool games, then leaving him behind, is a mistake. He has been a long term stand out player.
The W/C isn’t a time to blood new players.

Exclusive: Quade, Hooper to miss World Cup selection as Jorgensen rockets into squad

Aug

For the All Blacks, not their best game of the year, but maybe their most valuable.
For Wallabies, step forward as well.
Not closing the game out from a strong position is something they can build on, they weren’t far away from winning.

Mission accomplished: Foster 'stoked' with lessons learned and back ups tuned - but injury concerns raised

Needed changes from Foster, considering the WC Squad is named a day or two after Saturday’s match.
New front row, but a strong one, the old firm locking and one debut at blindside, so a strong pack.
Backline may struggle for cohesion, but I suspect they have trained as a unit for a few weeks.
Chance for the Wallabies to grab some much needed confidence maybe?
Last win for Australia in Dunedin was 2001 which I think was their last win in NZ.
Apart from the propping loss last week a settled side, with plenty to play for.
Expecting a good contest

Wallabies CONFIRMED: Tate to captain 'new era' as Eddie changes back-row, calls up rookie prop after Thor blow

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