Rugby Union RWC and Season 2011-12

Yes.

The Wallabies are through. GO Pumas!

So, the Wallabies managed to get through with the kind of 'get of jail free card' that England sometimes have (but not this time).  Sport can be unfair, and the rub of the green can mean that weaker side wins.

It is amazing, though, that the Springboks could be so physical, fast and dominant and still not score a Try.  In that sense, well done Oz for keeping them out.

Over these intervening four years since winning the RWC in 2007, SA have been more consistent and successful than their England runners-up.  Peter de Villiers has already resigned on the back of this 2011 QF defeat.   Morally does this leave Jonno with a leg to stand on?  I actually think MJ's a very honourable man, and probably has resignation in mind already.  If I were a betting man, I would probably err on the side of his contract not being renewed in 6 weeks' time.

But was the whole thing actually fair on Johnno?  I have always said it was wrong to employ a totally untried manager for England, even if he was a talisman as a player and captain.  It's clear that the England behind-the-scenes string-pullers have interfered all along (possibly capitalising on MJ's management inexperience).  My fear is that those who really need the Order of the Boot - RAndrew and the rest of the diseased, crisis-ridden board of the RFU - will squiggle out of the do-do again by using MJ as yet another scapegoat like Brian Ashton and Andy Robinson before him...

On balance, I think I'm in favour of keeping MJ in the interim (if he'll stay), on the understanding that the OAP players hang up their international boots, and that the board goes.

Give MJ the 2012 Six Nations (and possibly Autumn Internationals) to see if he can do better without the undue influence of RAndrew and co, and if not then appoint a younger, upcoming proven management/coaching 'leader', and  - if he can yet be recruited - Sir CW - as Director of Elite Rugby.

JWM,

there was no get out of jail card, just a combination of good solid defence, and an opposition making too many mistakes - and in the case of the Aussies, despite Cooper's many stuff-ups.

Similarly for the Irish and English, they essentially lost the games with mistakes, and silly penalties in the face of better on the day defence.

As is usual, so, so many in the printed and on-line media seem to take huge delight in crowing " We were right!" in predicting England's failure to win the world cup (or get beyond quarters). So pissesme off.

Now I'm no great fan of our recent playing efforts but FFS, more of a frenzy couldn't have been generated if we'd won the thing. 

Please can we get back to reasoned opinion (if opinion is needed) and reporting of what happened rather than sticking the boot in with capital letters. Lets face it, professional 'journalism' hasn't been covering itself in glory recently after all, people with glass houses and all that...

Same as other sports. England's cricket team has been marvelous this year and attracted a little good press but I'm sure would have received more column inches if they'd been tonked all Summer.  Vettel won the F1 championship but Jenson Button has driven stonkingly well this year, with some terrific wins in a good but inferior car to the Red Bull, and only Vettel is ahead. It's Hamilton who gets the headlines and editorials though for cocking up. Murray plays brilliantly to beat Nadal (his twelfth match win in a row) in the Japan Open having also won the Thailand Open last week. Where's that? Surely a big headine about 'Big in Japan' performances by the Brits could have been warranted?

I'm suspect the papers do like to report good news too shurely, but it seems there's nothing on the scale of a 'national failure' to bring on the front page headlines, as opposed to the wins reported in the back.

Aussies' get out of jail free card = Referee Bryce Lawrence, who - it is increasingly being spoken about - is likely to be hauled over the coals by the IRB for his appalling refereeing of the match, and quite possibly will not appear again at this level.

Hang on, do you really believe the IRB will publicly discipline a referee???

On the other hand it does look like Lawrence will hang up his boots shortly.

Now if only Barnes and Owen would do the same.

No, the IRB won't do it publicly.  But yes, he will hang up his boots - whether he likes it or not.

Now...

[Thanks to my Welsh friend martyn for those ]

Only two more sleeps. Much relies on our Zimbabwean and our Kiwi. Pocock can be relied on to play the joint down and Cooper, who admittedly had a shocker last week, has the capacity to put in a blinder at any time. Hope it's this week (and next!).

Heard a Kiwi commentator say that the ABs are basically employing the Hurricane's back line, which he thought was Not  A Good Thing. And how is Richie's ankle?

Ahh an Aussie on the thread at last, now your boys job tomorrow is to knock out the All Blacks and then the week after the Welsh will do you.    

Oz playing the boyos in a world cup final., now wouldn't that be something!

Just gotta win that one game in 25.1 years at Eden Park.

ABs v Wales. That'll do for me. Best two teams so far I think and it would be great for the Welsh to be the second northern hemisphere side to do it, but I think it would be a step too far.

Come on you Taffies!

Shocker! Referee ruins game with a bad decision. Still, Wales had ample opportunity to win and blew them all.

France's progress to the final mirrors that of England 4 years ago. The 'worst' of the major nations makes it through and anything can happen.

Let's hope it's NZ who go through and give them a tonking in the final.

"IRB Law 10.4 (j)Lifting a player from the ground and dropping or driving that player into the ground whilst that player's feet are still off the ground such that the players head and/or upper body come into contact with the ground is dangerous play, which may be punishable by a red card."

Brave decision in a World Cup SF, but in accordance with the Law of the game.  The TV pundits were going on about 'driving' into the ground, but they are are wrong.  Dropping - which is what Warburton did - is just as much included in this Law.  Having tackled well, he didn't need to pick him up.  A technically correct if unpopular decision.

I can't see past NZ or France winning this competition now.

Brave prediction Mark.

The Wallabies were never in it. Quade Cooper looked defeated from the start, and that's even before he kicked it out on the full at the starter's whistle.

Steve

Bah, stupid game anyway.

Like the new ID Steve.

My prediction is based on a number of calculations I have made factoring in form throughout the tournament so far, probability (RWC results history has some very distinct patterns), a bit of gut feel, and process of elimination based on who's still actually left in.

On Cooper - he played his double agent role meticulously well!

Mark

One more RWC game to go, and then back to the serious stuff.