Hansen, so hot right now. Hansen.
The Sydney Bledisloe cup game pitted the reigning world champions NZ against, as always, Australia. NZ enter every RWC as favourite and this time round is no exception, they’re 13/10 with my turf accountant, taking up 43.5% of the book. Australia’s price is now 8/1, in from 9/1 after winning at the weekend, which is about 11% of the same book. Continue reading
When the machines rebel and create their backrow, this guy will be the prototype. “Give me your fush’n’chups, your chully bins and your Jandulls.”
One of the ironclad truths in rugby is “the older we get, the better we were”. It applies at all levels of the game and allows for sepia toned nostalgia and the swapping of tall tales and whenever old comrades meet up. Continue reading
Steve Hansen was right: New Zealand didn’t play that well in the Christchurch test. Some of that was forced on them by an aggressive, hard-nosed Irish performance, but they also made a number of unforced errors. Ireland didn’t perform cleverly or with the required level of concentration and aggression in a number of areas in the Auckland test [especially after the first half hour] and as a result handed New Zealand not just the result, but also the big performance. England caved in a similar way in Lansdowne Road in 2011, and let Ireland play close to their potential. Continue reading
Ireland are facing into a tough test match a long way from home on Saturday. They should park it at that and forget about everything else surrounding the game. It doesn’t really matter that the Kiwis are world champions: they always turn out top quality teams … and besides, they’re missing a significant number of the team that won the trophy. Continue reading
Fergburger lays the rule over international opensides.
Richie McCaw will be gutted. Continue reading
Digging Like a Demented Mole 