The Big Bopper Jamie Roberts - Sings A Good Anthem, Runs a Good Line
Wales have a lot to be happy about in the aftermath of their World Cup.
True, they came home with a 4-3 record, but this is cup rugby. If you don’t win them all, it’s better to come home with a 4-3 record than a 4-1 record: playing seven games is a better result than playing five.
The report card, and indeed the history books will show one thing: New Zealand won their second World Cup in 2011 and there won’t be an asterisk beside that fact. The rest of us will remember that New Zealand basically didn’t lose the World Cup, a World Cup that was theirs to win, played at home with a final where the referee lacked the bottle to spoil the party. Continue reading
A question of what might have been for the French, but over what period of time? To lose a final against the host nation and outplay them over the course of the 80 minutes suggests that France almost got things right. As Greavsie used say, “It’s a funny old game”. Continue reading
It's just hijinks, sir
While there’s no doubt that ill-discipline and off-field shenanigans were the defining features of England’s RWC11, an awful lot of ink has been spent documenting these misdeeds and scolding the bold boys of St Boshingtons First XV. Continue reading
The Third Best Team In The World - Officially!
Australia – the third best team in the world! Continue reading
The Mole fancied this Boks team, long on experience and short on expectations, to make a big dent in the tournament, lining up against their age-old rival New Zealnd in the semis to give them a big fright. Continue reading
I wanna be a superstar
Tommy Bowe: Could have put a nail in Australia’s coffin with a flourish if he hadn’t missed the summer through injury as he looked to tie up in the last few yards. Or he could have put in a cross kick. Bowe caused the Welsh a bit of trouble and was denied two tries against the Italians by dodgy refereeing decisions. Continue reading
Nice barnet
Gordon D’Arcy: Fell asleep on the blindside of a ruck and created an uphill struggle. Nuff said. D’Arce rolled back the years against the Italians but that’s not a cast iron midfield. Continue reading
I'll have a monkey on the jolly at the next in Lingfield.
Conor Murray: It seemed that Murray made the plane only because Tomas O’Leary had one howler too many against France and three scrum halves were needed in the party. Once selected, he continued his meteoric rise and became first choice scrum half before the end of the tour. At times against the Welsh, he seemed a bit off the pace, no doubt a consequence of exposure to a higher pace of game than he was used to. Murray offered a physical presence with a well rounded skill set and was a definite plus from the tournament. Continue reading
Stephen Ferris: Bueller… anyone, Bueller? The injury plagued Ulster man rivals Luke Fitzgerald and the camera shy Donncha O’Callaghan for media utterances. It was his form in this World Cup that created the headlines. Ferris is a very talented athlete who hasn’t consistently produced at the international level. In this tournament he showed good ball skills as well as some feats of power that few players could match. His tackle on Genia was iconic while his hit on Castrogiovanni brought the battle to the Italians. The Welsh stopped him with some great tackles and stopped Ireland. Continue reading
Digging Like a Demented Mole 