Have you heard the one about the Irishman, the Welshman and the Scot? They’ll be picking England’s next rugby coach… Continue reading
Author Archives: dementedmole
Mr Rugby in the Green and Pleasant Land
Sports broadcasting changed with the introduction of Sky and the Premiership in the early 90s. Sport was packaged as entertainment, with an array of pundits and experts. Personalities were focussed on and things changed. Continue reading
The Art of Substitution
Being the head of a national rugby team is less about coaching and more about management than any other level of the game. In that role, the Mole considers that substitution is a key consideration and that Declan Kidney and Phillippe Saint-Andre both scored high on this weekend. However, Warren Gatland seems to do so every week. Continue reading
Dumper Dumps/Dumped – Part The Fourth
Where was I? Fingers pointing at McGahan? Maybe there were a few too many fingers pointing at him when some of them should have been pointing at his colleagues … and who knows if their appointments were even his call. Continue reading
Scotland v France Match Preview
The Six Nations creates its own reality. Teams that routinely finish with a high winning percentage but do not win Grand Slams aren’t “great” – think turn of the century England and noughties Ireland – while average teams that win a Grand Slam – think Mike Ruddock’s Wales – have greatness thrust upon them. These examples should be qualified. Both the England and Ireland sides in question finally got over the line and won a Grand Slam, earning greatness. Wales won a total of 4 games from 20 in the two seasons both before and after their 2005 Grand Slam. Continue reading
Dumper Dumps/Dumped – Part The Third

McGahan lost a serious chunk of the Munster fanbase in the course of eighty minutes. It mightn't have been fair, but it happened.
However, the arc of McGahan’s tenure, and the feeling with which he was regarded by Munster fans, changed unalterably over the space of eighty minutes. Continue reading
Dumper Dumps/Dumped – Part The Second

Declan Kidney giving the game away in a typically outspoken pre-match press conference. Somebody needs to put a zip on that guy's lip. He's all mouth.
Declan Kidney’s Rotund Shadow
Declan Kidney is basically George Smiley, firstly. Old Smiley has returned to prominence over the last year as a result of Tomas Alfredson’s cinematic reprise of Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy; Gary Oldman plays him a little on the reptilian side compared to Alec Guinness’ ‘Declan Kidney in a British Warm’ portrayal from the BBC series of the late 1970s, so it mightn’t leap out at you if you’ve neither read the book nor seen the Guinness version. A highpoint in broadcasting. Continue reading
Dumper Dumps/Dumped – Part The First
Has Dumper become the dumpee? Or has the poker-faced Aussie dumped an expectant Munster at the altar? Regardless of the circumstances, we’ll plow on with the obituaries and speculation; after all, this is the internet. What do you want, sources? I’m afraid you’ll be a long time finding them. Try Fergburger. Or don’t. Continue reading
Provincial Success ≠ International Success
While Irish fans [in particular] might be a little bit too much in love with the Heineken Cup as a format – I’d argue that they’re not, and that it’s a brilliant, hard-fought competition of an extremely high standard – the fact remains that it is the second tier of professional rugby in the northern hemisphere, below only international competition. Continue reading
Who’s The Boshiest Of Them All? England vs Wales Preview

Sometimes it's not the sheer amount of BOSH, but the correct application of it, as Dr. Roberts indicates, and he's er... a man you must believe.
Maybe the most heated rugby rivalry in the Six Nations Championship takes centre stage and top billing in round three. England and Wales are both on course for a Grand Slam (shudder the thought) and Saturday evening’s game should not only be a competition between which nation’s legendary ex-player can provide more inept BBC Commentary (we’ll take Guscott over Davies in that contest) but also a competition to see which backline is the boshiest (where we plump for the Welsh).
England have been deeply unimpressive in the tournament so far, arguably outplayed by more physical teams with the inability to convert physical dominance into points – Scotland can’t score tries, Italy couldn’t kick snow off a snowy rugby ball – and were rescued by a pair of blockdowns by Charlie “Dan Akroyd” Hodgson. But scoff as we might about the English, they’ve survived two away trips and come up smelling of Orc and now have a chance to bring the much fancied Welsh crashing back down to earth in Fortress Twickers.
Last year, England were reveling in their two victories over Australia (one down in the southern hemisphere in June 2010 and a really whomping at HQ in November) and were really starting to believe their own press – turns out we can learn something from the Martin Johnson team after all – and put a hurting on a Welsh side on the opening Friday night in Cardiff on the way to a Championship only marred by their blitzing in Lansdowne.
Scotland showed last weekend that a defense more aggressive than the Irish could stultify the big hard-hitting runners in the Welsh backline, but conversely the Welsh showed themselves to be extremely clinical when the cracks started to appear against a 14 man defense by creating intense pressure in the tight before leaving the Big Bopper, JJV Davies or Cuthbert (who had a fine game) running against an extremely stretched Scottish backline.
Meanwhile the English backrow looked deeply unconvincing and was outplayed by the more dynamic and aggressive Scots, in particular by Rennie and Denton, and will be coming up against another of strong point of the Welsh team. If the English choose their own Welshman at No8 Ben Morgan, things could be interesting, but the combination of the relentless Faletau, Lydiate, the re-born Ryan Jones, Tiporuc or God’s-gift-to-mankind Sam Warburton will dominate the pedestrian Dowson-Robshaw-Croft axis. If the Welsh has perpetrate turnovers in key areas, they have shown that they have the game intelligence to capitalize on pressure and produce scores. Assuming post-magnet Rhys Priestland has his kicking boots, this means penalties and more than likely tries.
Bookies have the Welsh as narrow favourites but logic suggests that the Welsh are more than three points better than the English. Welsh by 7.




