Friday, February 22, 2013

Hard core rugby organizers in Texas

Craig Coates and Johnny Smith have been involved in rugby in Houston and Texas A & M for many years.

They put together an outstanding rugby organization at A & M and then went on to form the Texas Collegiate rugby league and their own company to aid the Texas rugby community.

Please visit their sites.
http://www.t5andahalf.com/
http://www.ustream.tv/channel/t5-1-2-rugby-development-group
http://www.alliedrugby.com/

The quick reason I want to bring them to your attention is that with very little money they have begun to broadcast local collegiate and youth rugby games on their Ustream channel.
I know they have a different game every Monday night at 8pm.

I can't find their schedule on their site but I have an email which I shall find with the games to be shown.

Until then please go to the site and watch Craig and Johnny push Texas rugby into 21st century .....at last.
Why USA rugby or Texas Rugby Union does not promote and sponsor this endeavor is beyond me.
The first stage for increasing awareness is to get it on TV. The internet is a good place to start, but we need more.

There is talk of Russia and Romania having a professional league before the USA.

Heck the Japs have been paying big bucks for quality players for years. The pro league over there is brilliant.
The quality of rugby at club level is light years ahead of US.

Once again, just my opinion.

USA Eagles vs Ireland June 8

Get your seats now for this historic occasion.


http://www.bbvacompassstadium.com/usa-mens-rugby-vs-ireland-june-8th

This should be a sell out.

Lost Afternoon Rugby Luncheon June 7

5th Annual Lost Afternoon Rugby Luncheon

June 7, 2013

The Lost Afternoon Rugby Luncheon is the brainchild of Scotsman Malcolm Douglas who holds fond memories of similar events in the UK.  The concept is to bring together the rugby community once a year in the spirit of the game to renew friendships, relive past glories, and explore ways in which to move the game forward. Initially we had 3 goals.

·         Demonstrate to USA Rugby that Houston wanted another test match.  Last year Houston broke the attendance record for a domestic Test match when 17,214 people saw the USA play Italy.


·         Support Youth Rugby Initiatives with donations to Houston Youth Rugby Association, Inc. (a non-profit 501c(3)


·         Have a great time.

It's called the "Lost Afternoon" for obvious reasons: once you get together with your mates in such an atmosphere, the typical 90-minute luncheon turns into three hours - or more - so you might as well stick around and fully enjoy the experience!  The extended time also provides the opportunity to hear from multiple speakers, watch some great action on the big screens, and still have plenty of time to "network."  It's not unusual for guests to even book rooms or suites in the host hotel to continue well into the evening, especially those traveling from out-of-town.

Royal Sonesta Hotel

2222 West Loop South

Houston,TX 77027 
Buy your tickets now. They will sell out fast.
The Irish and USA National teams will be in town on the evening of their historic game and who knows which Internationals may show up.





http://www.lostafternoon.org/

George Hook will be one of the speakers.
Whilst he is a great speaker, he was not a very adventurous coach.
Back in 2004 I had the misfortune of having to listen to him babble on about how to play rugby the Irish way in order to get my coaching credentials.
I sat at the back of the class and read a book.

Thursday, February 21, 2013

Hong Kong 7s draw March 22-24


The official draw for the biggest ever Hong Kong Sevens was held in

Hong Kong on the 21 February 

- Hong Kong to host biggest ever IRB Sevens tournament
- 28 teams to compete across two competitions
- 12 regional teams to battle in World Series core team pre-qualifier

The IRB has confirmed the pool draw for round six of the HSBC

Sevens World Series, the 2013 Cathay Pacific/HSBC Hong Kong

Sevens, on 22-24 March.

The draw took place at Hysan Place in Hong Kong and also included

the core team pre-qualifier draw alongside the main 16-team

competition which features the 15 core sides and Asian Sevens

Series champions and hosts Hong Kong.

The hosts will play matches with Spain, Fiji and Canada in Pool D,

while USA Sevens champions South Africa meet reigning Rugby

World Cup Sevens champions Wales, Argentina and Australia in Pool

A.

Current Series leaders New Zealand were drawn alongside USA,

France and Kenya in Pool D, while Samoa, Scotland, England and

Portugal make up Pool C.

So far this season, five different teams have won the five

tournaments. Fiji won the Series opener in Australia, Samoa lifted

the Dubai Sevens title, New Zealand won in South Africa, England

won in Wellington and South Africa were crowned champions at the

most recent tournament in Las Vegas.

As the Series heads to Hong Kong, New Zealand top the table with

96 points, ahead of South Africa (76), Samoa (71) and Fiji (66).

With the addition of the core team pre-qualifier, the Cathay

Pacific/HSBC Hong Kong Sevens remains the largest tournament on

the HSBC Sevens World Series with 28 teams.

The 2013 tournament marks the largest field ever hosted in the 38

-year history of the Hong Kong Sevens and the first increase in the

number of participating teams since the 24-team format was

adopted in 1984.

The HSBC Sevens World Series pre-qualifier being played in Hong

Kong will comprise 12 teams, including two regional champions from

all six Rugby regions recognised by the IRB.

In the pre-qualifier, the participating teams will be playing for the

right to advance as one of the top four teams from that competition

to the London Sevens at Twickenham in May 2013. Those four

teams will be joined by Hong Kong, who earned an automatic

exemption to the London Sevens as Asian champions.

In London, these five teams will pair off against the bottom three

placed teams on the Series standings in an eight-team final

qualification tournament after the penultimate Series event in

Scotland. The top three teams from the London Sevens qualifier will

gain core team status on the HSBC Sevens World Series in

2013/2014.

Core team pre-qualifier:

Pool E: Tonga, South America 1, Tunisia, Chinese Taipei
Pool F: Japan, Georgia, South America 2, Jamaica
Pool G: Russia, Zimbabwe, Cook Islands and Mexico


*The South American teams will be known after the CONSUR

Sevens Championship in Rio de Janeiro on 23-24 February.




Super 15 22nd and 23rd Feb Rd2

All times Houston

Tomorrow, Fri 22 Feb
Highlanders v Chiefs    00:35       
Rebels v Brumbies        02:40       
Bulls v Stormers        11:10       

Sat 23 Feb
Hurricanes v Blues        00:35       
Reds v Waratahs        02:40       
Cheetahs v Sharks        09:05       
Southern Kings v Force    11:10       

The best picture on internet last year was www.kostatz.webs.com
He will give you a password when you make a donation.
I don't know how he does it, but it is almost as if you were watching on TV.
He must have state of the art computer equipment.
I donate $5 a month. I am really grateful for the quality of the coverage. But a single payment of $5 for whole season should suffice
Click on donate and you'll go through Paypal.
If you don't have a paypal account, I'm sure there is a way of donating via credit card.

Once again Wiziwig and vipbox are the 2 main places to watch for free.
If you have Direct TV, check to see if it is available.
I'll find out soon and post.
One of the satellite companies usually coverage. This is the way Kostatz gets his feed as he lives in Lake Tahoe.

Another good site is on vipbox.tv
It is a 24/7 rugby channel out of New Zealand
http://www.vipbox.tv/rugby/136237/1/rugby-tv-24x7-live-stream-online.html

You can find the schedule here;
http://www.skysport.co.nz/

go to rugby channel.
Lots of replays here. So, if you miss a game go here.
It doesn't get any better.


Super Rugby 2013 Round 2 is sure to be a cracker with last weekend's Australian conference only matches barely enough to whet the appetite.  There are seven matches in Super Rugby 2013 Round 2 and despite being a tipster of some repute, several of these matches are tough to call. The early rounds are often tight with local derby matches and all teams are relatively fresh before the lack of depth of some squads is exposed.

Highlanders vs Chiefs

The Super Rugby 2013 action kicks off in Dunedin at the flash new Forsyth Barr Stadium infront of a packed crowd of students back from the University holidays.  The Highlanders have been bolstered by the old All Blacks stars like Tony Woodcock and Ma'a Nonu to add some experience to their team.  This match will be a typical tussle between the galant Highlanders who play with plenty of mongrel and the Super Rugby 2012 champions.  Both teams are missing players, with All Blacks hooker Andrew Hore suspended and fellow All Blacks Tamati Ellison and Brad Thorn also missing.  The Chiefs have been hit by a backline especially ravaged by injuries and when you consider that they won't have gamebreakers like Richard Kahui, Sonny Bill Williams, Sona Taumalolo, Robbie Robinson and Andrew Horrell then they may struggle.  In saying this, they have some exciting young players who excelled at ITM Cup level like Bundee Aki, Gareth Anscombe and Tim Nanai-Williams who will keep the Highlanders on their toes.  The battle between the Number 9s will be awesome, while John Hardie must rise to the challenge of All Black Sam Cane and get to the breakdowns or else the Highlanders may not see much possession.  The Highlanders need to get back to nailing their set pieces like they always used to, this will enable Ben Smith and new skipper Hosea Gear a chance to cut loose at the back.
Teams
Highlanders
1. Tony Woodcock , 2. Brayden Mitchell , 3. Ma'afu Fia , 4. Jarrad Hoeata (vc) , 5. Josh Bekhuis , 6. Joe Wheeler , 7. John Hardie , 8. Nasi Manu , 9. Aaron Smith , 10. Lima Sopoaga , 11. Hosea Gear (c) , 12. Ma'a Nonu , 13. Phil Burleigh , 14. Kade Poki , 15. Ben Smith
Replacements :16. Liam Coltman , 17. Bronson Murray , 18. Elliot Dixon , 19. Tim Boys , 20. Fumiaki Tanaka , 21. Hayden Parker , 22. Buxton Popoalii
Chiefs
1. Pauliasi Manu, 2. Hika Elliot, 3. Ben Afeaki, 4. Craig Clarke (c) , 5. Brodie Retallick, 6. Liam Messam, 7. Sam Cane, 8. Fritz Lee, 9. Tawera Kerr-Barlow, 10. Aaron Cruden, 11. Asaeli Tikoirotuma, 12. Bundee Aki, 13. Tim Nanai-Williams, 14. Patrick Osborne , 15. Gareth Anscombe
16. Rhys Marshall, 17. Ben Tameifuna, 18. Michael Fitzgerald, 19. Tanerau Latimer, 20. Augustine Pulu, 21. Charlie Ngatai, 22. Lelia Masaga


Players to watch - Aaron Cruden, Liam Messam, Lima Sopoaga, Ma'a Nonu, Brodie Retallick, Joe Wheeler, Hosea Gear.
My pick - Highlanders by 5

Rebels vs Brumbies


Both of these teams won last week and so they are fighting for the top of the table in the Australian conference. The Brumbies were the more impressive side last week and should win, but the Rebels have that handful of stars who will make life tough for the visitors. This game also threatens to be quite close, although I think if the impressive Jesse Mogg has anything to do with it, then the Brumbies should win.
Teams
Rebels
15. James O'Connor , 14. Lachlan Mitchell , 13. Mitch Inman , 12. Rory Sidey , 11. Richard Kingi , 10. Kurtley Beale , 9. Nick Phipps , 8. Gareth Delve (c) , 7. Scott Fuglistaller , 6. Scott Higginbotham , 5. Luke Jones , 4. Hugh Pyle , 3. Laurie Weeks , 2. Ged Robinson , 1. Nic Henderson
Replacements : 16. Shota Horie , 17. Paul Alo-Emile , 18. Cadeyrn Neville , 19. Jarrod Saffy , 20. Nic Stirzaker , 21. Alex Rokobaro , 22. Tom English
Brumbies
1. Ben Alexander , 2. Stephen Moore , 3. Dan Palmer , 4. Scott Fardy , 5. Sam Carter , 6. Peter Kimlin , 7. David Pocock , 8. Ben Mowen (c) , 9. Nic White , 10. Matt Toomua , 11. Clyde Rathbone , 12. Christian Lealiifano , 13. Andrew Smith , 14. Joe Tomane , 15. Jesse Mogg
Replacements , 16. Siliva Siliva , 17. Scott Sio , 18. Fotu Auelua , 19. Colby Faingaa , 20. Ian Prior , 21. Robbie Coleman , 22. Tevita Kuridrani


Players to watch - Stephen Moore, Hugh Pyle, James O'Connor, Scott Higginbotham and Jesse Mogg.
My pick - Brumbies by 10 or more.


Bulls vs Stormers

The battle between two traditional heavyweights the Bulls and the Stormers will be a great match. The Stormers are the most fancied South African side, up against the Bulls team which has lost some of the players which made it such a great side in the past. The Stormers will be missing Schalk Burger, but should be too strong for the Bulls. The Bulls offer limited attack and both teams have massive forward packs, so this will be a tight match.
Overall the Stormers have a winning percentage over the Bulls of 56% and the Bulls have lost 39% of their matches against the Stormers. There was also a 19-all draw between the teams in 2000 in Cape Town.
In Pretoria the Bulls have hosted the Stormers nine times and won four times. That means that the Bulls have also lost 56% of their matches against the Stormers at home.
The average score when the Bulls play the Stormers in Pretoria is Bulls 28 Stormers 22.
Worryingly for the Bulls is that the Stormers have won their last two matches against the Bulls at Loftus and the last time they lost in Pretoria was in March 2009.

The Bulls have named a team which heavily relies on experience. They have depth this year as well as experience.
Bulls loosehead Morne Mellett and Stormers inside centre Damian de Allende will be making their Super Rugby debuts.
The 2013 Stormers have experience and a little bit of flair with the addition of Elton Jantjies and a couple of other new additions such as Jaco Taute and both have been named in the starting line up.
On paper the Stormers look to be the slightly stronger team.

Teams
Bulls
Zane Kirchner, Lionel Mapoe, JJ Engelbrecht, Wynand Olivier, Bjorn Basson , Morne Steyn, Francois Hougaard, Pierre Spies (c), Dewald Potgieter, Deon Stegmann, Juandre Kruger, Flip van der Merwe,Werner Kruger, Chiliboy Ralepelle, Morne Mellett.
Replacements: Willie Wepener Frik Kirsten, Grant Hattingh, Arno Both, Jano Vermaak, Louis Fouche, Francois Venter.
Stormers
15. Jaco Taute , 14. Gio Aplon , 13. Jean de Villiers (captain) , 12. Damian de Allende , 11. Bryan Habana , 10. Elton Jantjies , 9. Nic Groom , 8. Duane Vermeulen , 7. Rynhardt Elstadt , 6. Siya Kolisi , 5. Andries Bekker , 4. De Kock Steenkamp , 3. Pat Cilliers , 2. Deon Fourie , 1. Steven Kitshoff
Replacements : 16. Martin Bezuidenhout , 17. Frans Malherbe , 18. Don Armand , 19. Nizaam Carr , 20. Dewaldt Duvenage , 21. Gerhard van den Heever , 22. Joe Pietersen


Players to watch - Deon Fourie, Jaco Taute, Siya Kolisi, Elton Jantjies, Bryan Habana, Juandre Kruger, Morne Steyn, Pierre Spies.
My pick - Stormers by 5.

Hurricanes vs Blues

Interestingly, the Blues start Saturday night's game against a team which was in a similar position to them last year. This is year two of the new era for the Hurricanes against the Blues who are in the first year of a new cycle. The Hurricanes were one of the best attacking teams last season, while the Blues have plenty of gamebreakers. The Hurricanes are favourites for this game, but the Blues have had a promising preseason and so this game could be high scoring. Watch for some bargains in the Blues, while the Hurricanes players like Dane Coles, Beauden Barrett, Victor Vito, Julian Savea and Andre Taylor could score plenty of points.
There are four players in the Blues team for this weekend that will be making their Super Rugby debut but Piri Weepu will win his 100th Super Rugby cap and Rene Ranger will play in his 50th Super Rugby match.
The Hurricanes on the other hand have a similar look to the team that played last year but with a few changes such as Ben Franks coming in to the starting line up.
Blues coach John Kirwan said earlier this week that the Blues are a work in progress and it will take time for them to become the team they once were.
The Hurricanes and the Blues are both in a rebuilding phase but the Hurricanes are building on last year's progress while the Blues are starting from fresh. The Hurricanes will also have home advantage.
Teams
Hurricanes
1. Ben Franks,2. Dane Coles,3. Ben May,4. Jeremy Thrush,5. Jason Eaton,6. Victor Vito,7. Karl Lowe,8. Brad Shields,9. TJ Perenara,10. Beauden Barrett,11. Julian Savea,12. Tim Bateman,13. Conrad Smith (c),14. Alapati Leiua,15. Andre Taylor
Replacements : 16. Ash Dixon,17. Reggie Goodes,18. Mark Reddish,19. Faifili Levave,20. Chris Smylie,21. James Marshall,22. Reynold Lee-Lo
Blues
15. Charles Piutau ,14. Frank Halai,13. Rene Ranger ,12. Francis Saili,11. George Moala,10. Chris Noakes,9. Piri Weepu ,8. Peter Saili,7. Luke Braid,6. Steven Luatua,5. Ali Williams (C),4. Culum Retallick,3. Charlie Faumuina,2. James Parsons,1. Tom McCartney
Replacements :16. Quentin MacDonald,17. Angus Ta'avao,18. Liaki Moli,19. Brendon O'Connor,20. Bryn Hall,21. Baden Kerr,22. Jackson Willison

Tough game to pick for me. Bookies have given Blues a 6pt start.
My pick - The Hurricanes by 2
Players to watch - Julian Savea, Andre Taylor, Conrad Smith, Beauden Barrett, Alapati Leiua, Dane Coles, Victor Vito, Charles Piutau, Frank Halai, Francis Saili, Steven Luatua, Keven Mealamu.

Reds vs Waratahs

The Reds were disappointing last week and will be missing James Horwill and Will Genia. These local derbies are tough encounters and it will be interesting to see the new look Waratahs playing a new brand of rugby. The Waratahs will have more potential than in the past with the performance of Israel Folau a talking point. I think the Reds will miss the direction of Genia and Horwill and so far Quade Cooper hasn't done anything to suggest that he can fill their leadership shoes.
The Waratahs have a new playing style for this Super Rugby season and they have a couple of new players. The highest profile new player in the Waratahs line up is code hopper Israel Folau.
Folau is a dangerous player with the ball but has had little time in Rugby Union so the Reds may put him under pressure in certain situations.
The Reds will still be without their star No.9 Will Genia this week and last week the Brumbies nullified Quade Cooper by making sure the Reds got little playable ball. The forwards know they will have to step up this week.
Last week the Waratahs had a bye which gives the Reds a significant advantage as they will be up to speed in Super Rugby while the Waratahs will be less familiar with each other and their new game plan.
Bookies have given Waratahs a 1 pt start. I think that is about right given they are playing away. I normally say the team playing at home is worth 5 pts. So, the fact that Tahs only have a 1 pt start suggests bookies believe Tahs have a good chance.

Teams
Reds
1. Greg Holmes,2. Saia Faingaa,3. James Slipper (c),4. Ed O'Donoghue,5. Rob Simmons,6. Eddie Quirk ,7. Liam Gill,8. Jake Schatz,9. Ben Lucas,10. Quade Cooper,11. Digby Ioane,12. Ben Tapuai (vc),13. Chris Feauai-Sautia,14. Dom Shipperley,15. Mike Harris
Replacements : 16. James Hanson,17. Albert Anae,18. Adam Wallace-Harrison,19. Jarrad Butler,20. Nick Frisby,21. Jono Lance,22. Luke Morahan
Waratahs
15. Israel Folau ,14. Drew Mitchell ,13. Adam Ashley-Cooper ,12. Tom Carter ,11. Tom Kingston ,10. Bernard Foley,,9. Brendan McKibbin ,8. Wycliff Palu ,7. Michael Hooper ,6. Dave Dennis (c),5. Kane Douglas ,4. Sitaleki Timani ,3. Sekope Kepu ,2. Tatafu Polota-Nau ,1. Jeremy Tilse
Replacements:16. John Ulugia ,17. Benn Robinson ,18. Paddy Ryan , 19. Mitchell Chapman ,20. Lopeti Timani ,21. Matt Lucas ,22. Ben Volavola

My pick - Waratahs by 2.

Players to watch - Sitaleki Timani, Drew Mitchell, Israel Folau, Tatafu Polota-Nau, Digby Ioane, Saia Faingaa.

Cheetahs vs Sharks

The Cheetahs are always entertaining with their attacking style of play but their defence has let them down in recent seasons. The Sharks should win this game given that they are one of the favourites for the overall title, but derby matches can provide the underdogs with the incentive they need. The Cheetahs have enough quality players to keep the Sharks honest.
Just about every statistic from the Cheetahs and Sharks history points to the Sharks winning.
Both teams have said how well their preparations have gone in the pre-season and both teams have lost high profile players to injury.
Last season the Cheetahs finished in 10th place while the Sharks reached the final.
Since last year the Cheetahs have lost Sias Ebersohn (Western Force), flanker Ashley Johnson (London Wasps), lock George Earl (Scarlets), prop WP Nel (Edinburgh) and centre Andries Strauss.
There have been a couple of new signings in former Boland flyhalf Elgar Watts and former Bulls centre Johann Sadie but no new big name players.
The Cheetahs will be aiming to improve on last year's final position but they shouldn't threaten too many of the bigger teams.
The Sharks have recruited Butch James and lock Franco van der Merwe for this season and have lost Ross Skeate and Steven Sykes and Frenchman Frederic Michalak.
Overall the Sharks have not lost too much but they do have a lot more experience having reached the final. They should worry a lot of teams and should be challenging for the South African Conference title if not the Super Rugby title.
Bookies have given Cheetahs a 6 pt start which is about right.
Teams
Sharks
Louis Ludik, JP Pietersen, Paul Jordaan, Francois Steyn (captain), Lwazi Mvovo, Patrick Lambie, Cobus Reinach, Ryan Kankowski, Marcell Coetzee, Jacques Botes, Franco van der Merwe, Anton Bresler, Jannie du Plessis, Craig Burden, Tendai Mtawarira.
Replacements: Kyle Cooper, Wiehahn Herbst, Pieter-Steph du Toit, Jean Deysel, Charl McLeod, Meyer Bosman, Odwa Ndungane.
Cheetahs
Hennie Daniller, Willie le Roux, Johann Sadie, Robert Ebersohn, Raymond Rhule, Johan Goosen, Piet van Zyl, Philip van der Walt, Lappies Labuschagne, Frans Viljoen, Francois Uys, Lood de Jager, Lourens Adriaanse, Adriaan Strauss (captain), Trevor Nyakane.
Replacements: Ryno Barnes, Coenie Oosthuizen, Waltie Vermeulen, Boom Prinsloo, Sarel Pretorius, Elgar Watts, Ryno Benjamin.

My pick - Sharks by 7.

Players to watch - Adriaan Strauss, Johan Goosen, Lappies Labuchagne, Craig Burden, Marcell Coetzee, JP Pietersen, Patrick Lambie, Franc Steyn.

Kings vs Force
This is probably the best chance the Kings have for victory. The Force are the other rank outsider in the competition and this game is being played in South Africa. The Kings have had to draw on players from far and wide in an attempt to have a competitive team. Given their recent results, the only thing they are favourites for is the wooden spoon. The Kings are a new entity and they will be looking to set their own standards in the coming months.
They have a host of players who will be making their Super Rugby debuts and realise it will not be easy, but Kings coach Matt Sexton said his team had done as much as they could in preparation for their debut.
"Whatever we could do, we've done as far as preparation goes," Sexton said.
Mixed in with the newbies, are a host of players that have played a fair amount of Super Rugby, including Kings captain Luke Watson, who has played 82 matches at this level for The Sharks and the Stormers, Steven Sykes (69 for The Sharks), Andries Strauss (40 for The Sharks and Cheetahs) and Bandise Maku (33 for the Bulls and Lions).
"We have a number of experienced players who have played a lot of Super Rugby, but on the flip side there are some who have not," said Watson.
"We all have to start somewhere and we have no doubt in the ability and commitment of those guys who will be pulling on a Super Rugby jersey for the first time."
No one really knows how good or bad the Southern Kings are. We have no statistics as they are brand new to Super Rugby but we do have some stats on the Force in South Africa.
The Force have already played one match this season so they are match fit and they have Super Rugby experience.
The last three teams to enter Super Rugby all lost their opening matches so a good result for the Southern Kings would be to do better than any one of the last three debutants.
Kings have maybe half a dozen decent players of Super XV level quality. I include Luke watson in that group although he is in his twilight years.


Teams
Southern Kings
15 SP Marais, 14 Sergeal Petersen, 13 Ronnie Cooke, 12 Andries Strauss, 11 Marcello Sampson, 10 Demetri Catrakilis, 9 Shaun Venter, 8. Luke Watson (c), 7. Wimpie van der Walt, 6. Cornell du Preez, 5. Steven Sykes, 4 David Bulbring, 3 Kevin Buys, 2 Bandise Maku, 1 Schalk Ferreira
Replacements : 16 Edgar Marutlulle, 17 Jaco Engels, 18 Daniel Adongo, 19 Jacques Engelbrecht, 20 Johan Herbst, 21 George Whitehead, 22 Hadleigh Parkes
Western Force
To follow. At the time of writing the Force had not released their team.


My pick - Force by 14.

Players to watch - Luke Watson, Bandise Maku, Ronnie Cooke, Alf Mafi, Nick Cummins (if playing), Angus Cottrell.


Well after first 3 games this tipper has not done well.
Chiefs played great rugby and beat Highlanders 41-27.
If you can't spare the time to watch the full replay on the 24/7 channel, here is the highlights

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hQ9eRqWE9dg&feature=em-uploademail&noredirect=1

Brumbies did beat Rebels 30-13
Bulls beat Stormers 25-17. A really bad call by ref and TMO allowed one converted try for Bulls.
But, once again, Stormers have a problem unleashing their backs. This pundit thinks they are one of the best in league.
Next game is Hurricanes vs Blues...should be interesting.

6 Nations Feb 23 and 24th

 All times Houston CST

Sat 23 Feb
Italy v Wales        08:30       
England v France        11:00

Sun 24 Feb       
Scotland v Ireland        08:00



More weekends    
Sat 9 Mar

Scotland v Wales        08:30       
Ireland v France        11:00       
Sun 10 Mar
England v Italy        10:00       
Sat 16 Mar
Italy v Ireland        08:30       
Wales v England        12:00       
France v Scotland        14:00

Big Johns at 6150 Wilcrest just south of Harwin will once again be showing all games for free.


Wales will be aiming to build on a superb win in Paris when they take on Italy in Rome on Saturday and are fancied in the betting to pick up another away victory.
The Welsh had gone 8 games without a win before their 16-6 victory over France a fortnight ago, but they put that poor run aside to pick up a well-deserved result against a French side who had been looking to bounce back after a shock loss to their opponents this weekend, Italy. Interim head coach Rob Howley was delighted with the result, and who can blame him given how his side had fallen into a slump while he's been in charge. The win will have given them a huge confident boost going into what historically has been a bit of a dogfight, where bar one big win in 2005, they've had to really battle for the win.

Italy were unable to match their superb win over the French when they look on Scotland in Edinburgh. The Scots play a very different brand of rugby to the French and a more attacking approach left the Italians, who looked a bit jaded for much of the match, unable to keep with the pace set by the home side. Following up the herculean Rome efforts on a cold Edinburgh afternoon was always going to be challenge, and with the Italian players, who'd shone so well the week before, struggling with some basic errors, the Scots received plenty of possession and made the visitors pay dearly. Back on home soil the Italians will once again call upon their passionate home support to lift their team and make it an uncomfortable 80 minutes for the Welsh.

On the team news front, Wales start with an unchanged 15 that took the field in Paris, with the only changes coming on the bench, where fit again Sam Warburton and Alun Wyn Jones must both make do with a likely appearance as second half substitutes. Italy have been dealt a severe blow with captain and talisman Sergio Parisse earning a 30 day ban for abusive language towards the referee in his club Stade Francais's match last weekend. Fit again veteran flanker Mauro Bergamasco has been recalled to the squad by Jacque Brunel and could step into a re-arranged back row to cover for the unavailable Parisse.
Italy: 15-Andrea Masi, 14-Giovanbattista Venditti, 13-Tommaso Benvenuti, 12-Gonzalo Canale, 11-Luke McLean, 10-Kristopher Burton, 9-Edoardo Gori; 1-Andrea Lo Cicero, 2-Leonardo Ghiraldini (capt), 3-Martin Castrogiovanni, 4-Antonio Pavanello, 5-Francesco Minto, 6-Alessandro Zanni, 7-Simone Favaro, 8-Ratu Manoa Vosawai.
Replacements: 16-Davide Giazzon, 17-Alberto De Marchi, 18-Lorenzo Cittadini,19- Quintin Geldenhuys, 20-Paul Derbyshire, 21-Tobias Botes, 22-Luciano Orquera, 23-Gonzalo Garcia.
Wales: 15-Leigh Halfpenny, 14-Alex Cuthbert, 13-Jonathan Davies, 12-Jamie Roberts, 11-George North, 10-Dan Biggar, 9-Mike Phillips; 1-Gethin Jenkins, 2-Richard Hibbard, 3-Adam Jones, 4-Andrew Coombs, 5-Ian Evans, 6-Ryan Jones (captain), 7-Justin Tipuric, 8-Toby Faletau.
Replacements: 16-Ken Owens, 17-Paul James, 18-Craig Mitchell, 19-Alun Wyn Jones, 20-Sam Warburton, 21-Lloyd Williams, 22-James Hook, 23-Scott Williams.

Pete says wales by 10



 England will be hoping to move one step closer to a possible Six Nations title and Grand Slam when they welcome an out of form France to Twickenham on Saturday.

Two rounds into the tournament and the fortunes of these two sides couldn't be more contrasting. While England remain the only unbeaten side in the competition and now hot favourites to take this seasons championship, the French have been utterly disappointing in back to back defeats and remain the only side out of the six without a win and rooted at the bottom of the six nations table. Philip Saint-Andre's side were caught cold by a passionate Rome display in week one, and just when most expected them to extend Wales 8 match winless streak a fortnight ago in Paris, they produced one of those performances that reminds us all how much they blow hot and cold, and slipped to a dismal 6-16 loss in Paris. Questions are being asked, as one would expect – how can a side who completely destroyed Australia only a few months ago, go on to lose to two teams who really were there for the taking. A turnaround is needed, and fast. French rugby fans can be a fickle bunch at the best of times – a loss to old foes England will have Les Bleus fans calling for some serious action to be taken within the international set up, be it at a player or coaching level.

England had to work their socks off to come away from Dublin with the win and showed real metal when resisting the Irish attacks when down to 14 man after James Haskill's yellow card. The belief that the big victory over New Zealand at the end of 2012 has given this side is plain to see. They're playing some good rugby and look a well-drilled team who feed of the mistakes of their opponents. There's still the nagging feeling however that the side who can really crank up the pressure in the forward battles will be the one that has the best chance of bringing out the worse of this England side. Only the French feel like the team who have the fire-power in their pack to do to England what the likes of South Africa managed to do in recent months, and that's put them on the back foot with big hits and general strong play in the forward exchanges. Whether France are capable of lifting themselves out this mini-slump remains to be seen, but no England side has taken a French challenge lightly in the past and it would serve Stuart Lancaster's side well to continue in that mindset thru to kick-off on Saturday afternoon.

Lancaster has been able to name the same match-day squad for Saturday, and although his starting line-up will only be revealed later in the week, it seems very likely he'll stick with the same 15 that started against Ireland a fortnight ago. For France, head coach Philip Saint-Andre can be expected to freshen up his starting 15 as they attempt to somehow recover their 6 nations season after the double loss in the opening two weeks. Team news from the French camp has been limited at the time of writing,


England have maintained a decent record at Twickenham against the French, winning 6 of the 8 clashes on English soil since the turn of the century, and ignoring the world cup loss, have won the last 3 six nations games against France, including a narrow 24-22 win the last time these sides met.

Pete says England by 5


England : 15-Alex Goode, 14-Chris Ashton, 13-Manu Tuilagi, 12-Brad Barritt, 11-Mike Brown, 10-Owen Farrell, 9-Ben Youngs; 1-Joe Marler, 2-Dylan Hartley, 3-Dan Cole, 4-Joe Launchbury, 5-Geoff Parling, 6-Courtney Lawes, 7-Chris Robshaw (captain), 8-Tom Wood.
Replacements: 16-Tom Youngs, 17-Dave Wilson, 18-Mako Vunipola, 19-James Haskell, 20-Thomas Waldron, 21-Danny Care, 22-Toby Flood, 23-Billy Twelvetreees.
France : 15-Yoann Huget, 14-Vincent Clerc, 13-Mathieu Bastareaud, 12-Wesley Fofana, 11-Benjamin Fall, 10-Francois Trinh-Duc, 9-Morgan Parra; 1-Thomas Domingo, 2-Benjamin Kayser, 3-Nicolas Mas, 4-Christophe Samson, 5-Yoann Maestri, 6-Yannick Nyanga, 7-Thierry Dusautoir (captain), 8-Louis Picamoles.
Replacements: 16-Dimitri Szarzewski, 17-Vincent Debaty, 18-Luc Ducalcon, 19-Jocelino Suta, 20-Antonie Claassen, 21-Maxime Machenaud, 22-Frederic Michalak, 23-Florian Fritz


Scotland and Ireland meet in Sunday's 6 nations match in Edinburgh, and the home side look good value on the handicap market.

They Scots put in an impressive 80 minutes when defeating Italy 34-10 two weeks ago, finally getting their recently adapted more expansive gameplan to work for them as they recorded a first win in this seasons six nations. Italy had arrived in Edinburgh in bullish mood following their success over France the week earlier, but they couldn't match the intensity showed by the Scots, who rain in 4 tries on their way to a 24 point winning margin. Their backline hasn't looked this dangerous for a very long time – there's bags of pace from Hogg, Maitland, Scott and Visser, and their pack looked far more settled after being bullied a touch by England a week earlier. It bodes well that this is probably the most confident a Scottish camp has sounded pre a 6 nations match for many seasons, and Ireland will have to be at the top of their game if they want to come away with the win.

Ireland just couldn't break England down in Dublin, with the 6-12 scoreline testament to strong defensive displays from both sides. That game took it's toll however, with a number of players leaving the field injured and some not recovering in time for this weekend. A win would have left the Irish in pole position for six nations glory, however they now need to get back to the style of rugby employed against Wales in the opening round and put the Scots under early pressure – not an easy task given the momentum is firmly with the home side his weekend.

Interim Scottish head coach Scott Johnson makes just one enforced change, with Edinburgh prop Geoff Cross coming in for Euan Murray, who's unavailable this weekend. In contrast, Irish coach Declan Kidney has made a total of 6 changes to his starting 15. In the backline Ulster 10 Paddy Jackson is preferred to start at flyhalf in place of the injured Jonanthan Sexton, with uncapped Luke Marshall starting in the midfield and Keith Earls coming in for the injured Simon Zebo on the wing. Tom Court starts at prop in place of the suspended Cian Healy, and there's a recall for Donnacha O'Callaghan in the second tow.
Ireland have won on two of their last 3 visits to Edinburgh and also picked up a comfortable win in Dublin last year when these side last met. But Scots were being coached by Robinson and he was a joke. Johnson not that better, so its difficult.
If you watch the Glasgow are playing right now you'd think Scottish national side could emulate.
Glasgow are playing a wonderful offload game which is producing great results and plenty of tries. Will  Scotland play attacking rugby?

Looking at the two line-ups I can't help but feel the loss of several key Irish players to injury or suspension does open the door for Scotland just that bit more. They're fielding a pretty much unchanged side that has a great balance about it, and the home ground factor does give them that litle bit of an added advantge. I don't feel that this is the sort of match where either will dominate, and it could be similarly close affair to the last two games between Scotland and Ireland in Edinburgh
 Teams:

Scotland: 15 Stuart Hogg, 14 Sean Maitland, 13 Sean Lamont, 12 Matt Scott, 11 Tim Visser, 10 Ruaridh Jackson, 9 Greig Laidlaw, 8 Johnnie Beattie, 7 Kelly Brown (c), 6 Rob Harley, 5 Jim Hamilton, 4 Richie Gray, 3 Geoff Cross, 2 Ross Ford, 1 Ryan Grant. Replacements: 16 Dougie Hall, 17 Moray Low, 18 Jon Welsh, 19 Alastair Kellock, 20 David Denton, 21 Henry Pyrgos, 22 Duncan Weir, 23 Max Evans.

Ireland: 15 Rob Kearney, 14 Craig Gilroy, 13 Brian O'Driscoll, 12 Luke Marshall, 11 Keith Earls, 10 Paddy Jackson, 9 Conor Murray, 8 Jamie Heaslip (c), 7 Sean O'Brien, 6 Peter O'Mahony, 5 Donnacha Ryan, 4 Donnacha O'Callaghan, 3 Mike Ross, 2 Rory Best, 1 Tom Court. Replacements: 16 Sean Cronin, 17 Dave Kilcoyne, 18 Declan Fitzpatrick, 19 Devin Toner, 20 Iain Henderson, 21 Eoin Reddan, 22 Ronan O'Gara, 23 Luke Fitzgerald.

Pete says Scotland by 2



Rabo, Aviva and Top 14 games Feb 22-24

All times Houston CST

Rabo Direct 12 Celtic league

Tomorrow, Fri 22 Feb
Cardiff Blues v Connacht Rugby    13:30       
Glasgow Warriors v Ulster        13:35       
Ospreys v Edinburgh        14:00   
  
Sat 23 Feb

Leinster v Scarlets                      13:45  
      
Sun 24 Feb

Benetton Treviso v Munster        08:00       
Zebre v Newport Gwent Dragons    08:05       


French Top 14

Tomorrow, Fri 22 Feb
Castres v Toulon        13:50       

Sat 23 Feb

Agen v Mont-de-Marsan    08:00  

Biarritz v Racing Metro 92    08:00       

Grenoble v Clermont Auvergne    08:00       

Montpellier v Bordeaux Begles    08:00       
Toulouse v Bayonne        08:00       

Perpignan v Stade Francais        13:40       


Aviva premiership


Tomorrow, Fri 22 Feb
Gloucester Rugby v Worcester Warriors    13:45       

Sale Sharks v Harlequins                       14:00       

Sat 23 Feb
Exeter Chiefs v London Welsh    09:00       
Northampton Saints v Bath        09:00       

Leicester Tigers v Saracens        14:00       

Sun 24 Feb
London Irish v London Wasps    06:05   

Good sites to watch include
Wiziwig.tv
vipboxsports.eu
vipbox.tv
frombar.tv
Cricfree.tv

Wiziwig has great info on their site and is trustworthy.
The rest. Please have adblocker program software.
And, as a rule I wouldn't click on links when a pop up says you need an upgrade on anything.
I haven't even checked the mobile apps.
If you follow common sense you should not get into trouble.
Remember 90% of these sites are here week in week out. I don't think they are here to infect your computer.  


Tuesday, February 19, 2013

6 nations lotsa squad news

I like to take a look at the squads to see how many players are lost from each club.
As I play Superbru, I need to know which teams are significantly weakened.

WALES SQUAD vs Italy

Leigh Halfpenny, Alex Cuthbert, Jonathan Davies, Jamie Roberts, George North, Dan Biggar, Mike Phillips; Gethin Jenkins, Richard Hibbard, Adam Jones, Andrew Coombs, Ian Evans, Ryan Jones (C), Justin Tipuric, Toby Faletau.

REPLACEMENTS: Ken Owens, Paul James, Craig Mitchell, Alun Wyn Jones, Sam Warburton, Lloyd Williams, James Hook, Scott Williams.

wales 35 man 6 nations squad
Captain Sam Warburton will lead the side as they prepare to defend their 2012 RBS 6 Nations title and will be joined in the squad by uncapped Blues back-row colleagues Josh Navidi and Andries Pretorius.

Second row duo James King (Ospreys) and Andrew Coombs (Dragons) have also been called into the squad for the first time alongside Ospreys wing Eli Walker.

Wales' interim head coach has named an experienced contingent in the front row which is bolstered by the return of Jones (Ospreys) and Mitchell (Exeter Chiefs), who feature alongside Gethin Jenkins (Toulon), Paul James (Bath), Scott Andrews (Blues) and Ryan Bevington (Ospreys). Matthew Rees (Scarlets), Ken Owens (Scarlets) and Richard Hibbard (Ospreys) are all named at hooker.

Ian Evans (Ospreys), Lou Reed (Blues) and Josh Turnbull (Scarlets) who all featured in the Autumn squad remain in the 35-man group and are joined by King and Coombs. Former Wales Under 20 second row, King, 22, has impressed for the Ospreys this term domestically and in Europe and will vie for a second row berth with Dragons forward Coombs. The 28-year-old, who can also play in the back row, has caught the eye of the Welsh management this season. Injuries to Luke Charteris (Perpignan), Bradley Davies (Blues) and Alun Wyn Jones (Ospreys) have ruled them out of initial selection.

In the back row, captain Warburton is named alongside experienced Ryan Jones (Ospreys), Toby Faletau (Dragons), Justin Tipuric (Ospreys) and Aaron Shingler (Scarlets). Former Wales Under 20 captain Navidi is rewarded for his performances this season with his first call-up to the National squad as is 27 year-old Blues captain Pretorius. Born in Nelspruit, South Africa, Pretorius will add fire-power to the back row options and qualifies on residency.

In the backline Mike Phillips (Bayonne), Lloyd Williams (Blues) and Tavis Knoyle (Scarlets) will contest the number nine jersey. They will be joined at half-back by Dan Biggar (Ospreys) and James Hook (Perpignan), with Rhys Priestland (Scarlets) unavailable for selection due to injury.

The experience in the backline continues with Blues trio Alex Cuthbert, Jamie Roberts and Leigh Halfpenny all named alongside Jonathan Davies, George North Scott Williams and Liam Williams (all Scarlets). ASM Clermont Auvergne full-back Lee Byrne returns to the squad after missing out during the Autumn campaign. Eli Walker continues the trend of players progressing through the WRU elite pathway structure having starred for Wales Under 20 last year and he is rewarded for his recent form with a first call-up.


The players called up are forwards:  Jon Welsh, Dougie Hall, Tom Ryder, John Barclay (all Glasgow Warriors), Alasdair Dickinson and Richie Vernon (Sale Sharks) and Grant Gilchrist (Edinburgh Rugby), backs:  Sean Kennedy, Alex Dunbar, Peter Horne, Peter  Murchie (all Glasgow Warriors), Tom Heathcote (Bath Rugby) and Nikki Walker (Worcester Warriors).
The Scotland team to play Ireland is due to be announced on Wednesday.

Scotland squad
Backs
Max Evans
Stuart Hogg
Peter Horne
Ruaridh Jackson
Greig Laidlaw
Sean Lamont
Sean Maitland
Peter Murchie
Henry Pyrgos
Matthew Scott
Tim Visser
Duncan Weir

SCOTLAND - FORWARDS   
John Beattie
Kelly Brown
Geoff Cross
David Denton
Ross Ford
Grant Gilchrist
Ryan Grant
Richie Gray
Dougie Hall
Jim Hamilton
Robert Harley
Alastair Kellock
Moray Low
Pat MacArthur
Euan Murray
Alasdair Strokosch
Ross Rennie

SCOTLAND - UNAVAILABLE PLAYERS   
Kyle Traynor
Scott Lawson
John Barclay
Rory Lawson
Lee Jones
Nick De Luca
Joe Ansbro


Italy
Leonardo Ghiraldini     Hooker     26 December 1984 (age 28)     50     Italy Benetton Treviso
Davide Giazzon     Hooker     16 January 1986 (age 27)     7     Italy Zebre
Martin Castrogiovanni     Prop     21 October 1981 (age 31)     93     England Leicester Tigers
Lorenzo Cittadini     Prop     17 December 1982 (age 30)     18     Italy Benetton Treviso
Alberto de Marchi     Prop     13 March 1986 (age 26)     6     Italy Benetton Treviso
Andrea Lo Cicero     Prop     7 May 1976 (age 36)     100     France Racing Metro
Michele Rizzo     Prop     16 September 1982 (age 30)     5     Italy Benetton Treviso
Joshua Furno     Lock     21 October 1989 (age 23)     6     France Narbonne
Quintin Geldenhuys     Lock     19 June 1981 (age 31)     35     Italy Zebre
Francesco Minto     Lock     20 May 1987 (age 25)     4     Italy Benetton Treviso
Antonio Pavanello     Lock     13 October 1982 (age 30)     15     Italy Benetton Treviso
Robert Barbieri     Flanker     5 June 1984 (age 28)     27     Italy Benetton Treviso
Paul Derbyshire     Flanker     3 November 1986 (age 26)     18     Italy Benetton Treviso
Simone Favaro     Flanker     7 November 1988 (age 24)     18     Italy Benetton Treviso
Alessandro Zanni     Flanker     31 January 1984 (age 29)     71     Italy Benetton Treviso
Sergio Parisse (c)     Number 8     12 September 1983 (age 29)     93     France Stade Francais
Manoa Vosawai     Number 8     12 August 1983 (age 29)     10     Italy Benetton Treviso
Tobias Botes     Scrum-half     26 April 1984 (age 28)     10     Italy Benetton Treviso
Edoardo Gori     Scrum-half     5 March 1990 (age 22)     21     Italy Benetton Treviso
Kristopher Burton     Fly-half     4 August 1980 (age 32)     20     Italy Benetton Treviso
Luciano Orquera     Fly-half     12 October 1981 (age 31)     31     Italy Zebre
Tommaso Benvenuti     Centre     12 December 1990 (age 22)     25     Italy Benetton Treviso
Gonzalo Canale     Centre     11 November 1982 (age 30)     79     France La Rochelle
Gonzalo Garcia     Centre     18 February 1984 (age 29)     25     Italy Zebre
Alberto Sgarbi     Centre     26 November 1986 (age 26)     24     Italy Benetton Treviso
Tommaso Iannone     Wing     16 September 1990 (age 22)     1     Italy Benetton Treviso
Luke McLean     Wing     29 June 1987 (age 25)     43     Italy Benetton Treviso
Giovanbattista Venditti     Wing     27 March 1990 (age 22)     11     Italy Zebre
Paolo Buso     Fullback     28 July 1986 (age 26)     1     Italy Zebre
Andrea Masi     Fullback     30 March 1981 (age 31)     74     England London Wasps

France
vs Italy team
15 Yoann Huget
14 Wesley Fofana
13 Florian Fritz
12 Maxime Mermoz
11 Benjamin Fall
10 Frédéric Michalak
9 Maxime Machenaud

8 Louis Picamoles
7 Fulgence Ouedraogo
6 Thierry Dusautoir
5 Yoann Maestri
4 Pascal Papé (c)
3 Nicolas Mas
2 Dimitri Szarzewski
1 Yannick Forestier

Replacements: 16 Benjamin Kayser, 17 Vincent Debaty, 18 Luc Ducalcon, 19 Romain Taofifenua, 20 Damien Chouly, 21 Morgan Parra, 22 Francois Trinh-Duc, 23 Mathieu Bastareaud

England vs Ireland
Stuart Lancaster has named the following team to play Ireland this Sunday at the Aviva Stadium in Dublin. Kick-off is at 3pm.

15. Alex Goode (Saracens, 7 caps)
14. Chris Ashton (Saracens, 30 caps)
13. Brad Barritt (Saracens, 12 caps)
12. Billy Twelvetrees (Gloucester Rugby, 1 cap)
11. Mike Brown (Harlequins, 12 caps)
10. Owen Farrell (Saracens, 13 caps)
9. Ben Youngs (Leicester Tigers, 29 caps)

1. Joe Marler (Harlequins, 6 caps)
2. Tom Youngs (Leicester Tigers, 5 caps)
3. Dan Cole (Leicester Tigers, 36 caps)
4. Joe Launchbury (London Wasps, 5 caps)
5. Geoff Parling (Leicester Tigers, 13 caps)
6. James Haskell (London Wasps, 46 caps)
7. Chris Robshaw (Harlequins, capt, 13 caps)
8. Tom Wood (Northampton Saints, 14 caps)

Replacements
16. Dylan Hartley (Northampton Saints, 43 caps)
17. David Wilson (Bath Rugby, 23 caps)
18. Mako Vunipola (Saracens, 5 caps)
19. Courtney Lawes (Northampton Saints, 16 caps)
20. Thomas Waldrom (Leicester Tigers, 4 caps)
21. Danny Care (Harlequins, 38 caps)
22. Toby Flood (Leicester Tigers, 54 caps)
23. Manusamoa Tuilagi (Leicester Tigers, 17 caps)

England Senior training squad (25)

Chris Ashton (Saracens)
Brad Barritt (Saracens)
Mike Brown (Harlequins)
Danny Care (Harlequins)
Dan Cole (Leicester Tigers)
Owen Farrell (Saracens)
Toby Flood (Leicester Tigers)
Alex Goode (Saracens)
Dylan Hartley (Northampton Saints)
James Haskell (London Wasps)
Joe Launchbury (London Wasps)
Courtney Lawes (Northampton Saints)
Joe Marler (Harlequins)
Geoff Parling (Leicester Tigers)
Chris Robshaw (Harlequins)
David Strettle (Saracens)
Manusamoa Tuilagi (Leicester Tigers)
Billy Twelvetrees (Gloucester Rugby)
Billy Vunipola (London Wasps)
Mako Vunipola (Saracens)
Thomas Waldrom (Leicester Tigers)
David Wilson (Bath Rugby)
Tom Wood (Northampton Saints)
Ben Youngs (Leicester Tigers)
Tom Youngs (Leicester Tigers)

Ben Morgan (Gloucester Rugby) will stay in camp for ongoing treatment on an ankle injury.

The following players have this evening been released to return to their Aviva Premiership clubs:

Mouritz Botha (Saracens)
Freddie Burns (Gloucester Rugby)
Lee Dickson (Northampton Saints)
Ben Foden (Northampton Saints)
Will Fraser (Saracens)
Jonathan Joseph (London Irish)
Matt Kvesic (Worcester Warriors)

Thursday, February 14, 2013

Super 15 Aussie Division preview.

There are 2 games this weekend in Super15. They are both from Aussie conference.
They are running one weekend ahead of the the rest of tournament because of the interruption when the LIONS tour begins.

 The 2013 British & Irish Lions tour heads back to Australia after a gap of 12 years and will visit many of the same places as the original Lions did way back in 1888. Those first Lions were in Melbourne to enjoy the centenary celebrations of the settlement of Australia in 1788. There were around three million people living in Australia then compared to today's population of around 23 million.
1st game June 5 vs Waratahs.
They actually play a game vs Baah Baahs in Hong Kong on June 1.

Australian Conference quick preview.

 The ‘unknown unknowns’ around the British and Irish Lions Series, both in terms of the impact on Super Rugby squads in the lead-up, and the possibly injury fall-out in the aftermath, makes the Australian conference something of a lottery.

To the point where I’m not sure we’ll see two Australian finalists in 2013.

I think most pundits have it right so far tipping the Reds and Brumbies to fight it out for top spot, and I expect them to be the top two in the Australian conference, but again in no particular order.

For both teams, the first month to six weeks will have a big bearing. The Reds cannot sit back and wait for the return of Will Genia, and must start securing competition points from the outset. Similarly, the Brumbies can’t take their time to work out their preferred style of play in 2013.

Both teams to be firing from the start, which is going to difficult, given they play each other in round one, and they also need to maximise their returns when playing the other Australian teams.

All eyes are focused and pens are poised on the performance of the Waratahs. If Michael Cheika is able to achieve even half of what he’s said he wants to, the flood of commentary and push for sainthood could become unbearable.

That said, just as New Zealand needs a strong Blues, Australian rugby needs a strong Waratahs. In the toughest sporting market in Australia, there is no worse sight than a quarter-full Sydney Football Stadium. ‘Tahs fans have to want to come to the rugby.

I expect improvement from both the Melbourne Rebels and Western Force, but they’re both probably a few years off finals calculations. Of the two, the Rebels are well equipped to give the ‘Tahs a fright, and on their day, they’re capable of beating anyone.

A pass mark this year would be for both to be playing attractive rugby, drawing big crowds in Melbourne and Perth respectively, and doing Australian rugby a favour by knocking off some inter-conference heavyweights.


This courtesy of the Roar.com.au
Western force
The boat that is the Western Force was properly rocked during the off-season. Upper management apparently decided enough was enough and opted to relaunch the struggling franchise.
Former Wallaby, Michael Foley, was appointed as head coach and they made a shrewd move by also hiring David Wessels, a top-notch defence coach. To me Foley’s appointment was quite ironic if you take into account the disastrous season he just had at the Waratahs. Nevertheless, he has a tremendous track record otherwise.
Other changes saw the release of many players, but also the loss of some key playmakers – backs Cameron Shepherd and Napolioni Nalaga left for Europe, whilst the Rebels contracted centre Rory Sidey. The retirement of Nathan Sharpe came as no surprise, and combined with David Pocock opting to move to the Brumbies, created a gaping hole.
Foley’s talent search resulted in the signing of accomplished halfback Alby Mathews and a few Super Rugby novices like flanker Chris Alcock, midfielder Jayden Hayward and fly-half Sias Ebersohn – hopefully Sias left his old kicking boots in Bloemfontein.
Also adding strength to the team are the welcome return of Sam Norton-Knight and Hugh McMeniman, who could be rather inspirational if he manages to stay injury free and on the pitch long enough.
There will be some fierce competition in the front row with Tetera Faulkner and Salesi Manu to put pressure on Pek Cowan, Kieran Longbottom and Salesi Ma’afu. Newfound duo Angus Cottrell and Lachlan McCaffrey will also be keeping regulars Richard Brown, Matt Hodgson and Ben McCalman honest around the fringes. The right combinations are going to be key, or else Foley will be eating his words after boasting to have the best back-row in the competition.
Due to the departure of two captains, the Force have handed the reigns to Matt Hodgson – I suppose that’s if he can first cement his place in the starting fifteen.
At this stage, it is difficult to estimate how well the backline will perform, but I’d definitely keep my eye on Nick Cummins who’s really came into his own this past season. The Honey Badger had a great 2012 and with sufficient support from the new recruits, he might be able to convert more of his trademark line breaks into tries.
Even though Will Tupou experienced a very quiet first season, he survived the switch from league and is probably itching to show his true worth. I for one am really looking forward to seeing what he’s capable of.
To top off their attempted resurrection, the Force will be unveiling their new home ground, the vastly improved nib Stadium on 23 March against the Cheetahs. With more than 10,000 season tickets already sold, it is evident that the fans are as excited and optimistic as the players and coaching staff. Apparently we are to expect a more attractive and fun game, but the proof of the pudding will be in the eating.
The pre-season fixtures against the Brumbies and a select Tonga XV will be a stern test for this unpredictable side and perhaps give some insight into their future. Getting off to a good start will not be easy as their first four matches of Super Rugby are played away from home; only time will tell whether this will make or break them.
I reckon they’ll have another frustrating season with a mountain just too big to climb. My prediction for the Western Force is last place on the Australian log and 13th overall.
Here’s a question for you. Will Sias Ebersohn’s move to the Force revive his career or will he end up like former Cheetah teammate Sarel Pretorius did at the Waratahs and spend most of his time on the sideline?

Waratahs
The Brisbane-based Waratahs are another team that will try to pick up the pieces and start rebuilding after a shockingly poor 2012.
It’s a worrying fact that they’ve almost had a coach a year since the departure of Ewen McKenzie at the end of 2008 when they made it to the final. Michael Cheika was appointed as head coach to replace Michael Foley who left to take the reign at the Western Force.
Cheika has been very tight-lipped about the captaincy, apparently waiting to see who will step up and earn the respect for the role. My money was on Benn Robinson who has made his desire very clear, but the latest news from the camp revealed that the responsibility to lead the Waratahs in their first pre-season friendly against the Rebels had fallen on the shoulders of scrumhalf Brendan McKibbin.
The announcement of their 2013 squad revealed the loss of only a few prominent players and some exiting new signings. The Waratahs managed to poach outstanding open-side flanker Michael Hooper from the Brumbies as well as contracting talented speedster Israel Folau who switched from Rugby League to Aussie Rules and now wants to play Super Rugby. Reportedly, Rocky Elsom had been released in order to get himself fit and healthy after a lengthy run with injuries.
I’m sure that they’ll depend largely on Berrick Barnes’ skill to dictate games with the boot as well as front-foot ball via guys like Tatafu Polota-Nau, Dave Dennis, Sitaleki Timani and Michael Hooper. A close eye should also be kept on the nippy little Brendan McKibbin around the fringes.
It is hard to understand why they fell apart so badly if you add the names in the backline to the above. I mean, Adam-Ashley Cooper, Rob Horne, Drew Mitchell – those are world-class performers. Maybe their promise to take a more attacking approach this season will allow for some sparks and entertaining matches.
After already getting the news that hooker Damien Fitzpatrick would probably miss most of the Super Rugby season after suffering a setback to the knee injury that has already kept him off the field for a year, the Waratahs were dealt another blow. The ankle injury Kane Douglas picked up in a touch rugby match played during the Wallabys’ logistics training camp left coach Michael Cheika fuming as the lock will be sidelined for at least half of their pre-season training.
With international capped players in every position, one can by no means say that the team is inexperienced. To me they lack imagination and confidence, none of which can be turned around in such a short space of time; but I don’t think they’ll just give away any points.It pains me to say it, but I don’t think they’re going to be up to scratch this year either. My prediction for the Tahs is a 12th place finish.

Rebels
This will be the Rebels’ third season of Super Rugby and by winning only seven matches in the past two years, it’s clear that they haven’t made an impact yet. At least head coach Damien Hill decided to stick around for another year and this type of stability might just see them make it in the long run.
Where they previously shopped for recognized names, they were rather moderate this time around and opted to draw in young talent from far and wide. The recruitment of experienced Reds flanker, Scott Higginbotham, got everybody to sit up straight, for in combination with Luke Jones and captain Gareth Delve, the trio could make quite a nuisance of themselves.
With Stirling Mortlock and Adam Freier having moved behind the scenes and the loss of crowd favorites Mark Gerard and Julian Huxley, one might wonder if they haven’t lost too much experience. However, I think getting Rory Sidey on board will strengthen the midfield considerably and I can’t want to see him and the likes of Kurtley Beale and Cooper Vuna run off an in-form and injury free James O’Connor.
If the Rebels can create pressure up front and get momentum going, we might see some magic in the backline. The tight five are a bit light in experience and it will take some doing to keep them calm in order to grind out the hard yards. Composure will be of the utmost importance and we all saw what they could do when they completely surprised the Crusaders last year.
Although I suspect that they might ruffle a few feathers this year, I just don’t see them playing consistently enough to compete with the big guns yet.
My prediction for the Melbourne Rebels is an 11th place finish.


From The Roar
Reds

The Queensland Reds should remain top of the Australian Super Rugby conference for most of the year, with no other Australian teams quite reaching that ‘elite’ status yet. However, Australia’s best Super Rugby title hope could win another championship if Quade Cooper can leave behind his unwanted baggage and resume the form that saw him the obvious first choice at flyhalf for the Wallabies in season 2011. Also crucial to the Reds’ relevancy this year will be the returns of Will Genia and James Horwill. Both are set to return during the season, Horwill sooner than Genia. If both fail to regain top form the banana benders may be in a bit of trouble. Unfortunately the loss of Wallaby back-rower Scott Higginbotham is another major disappointment, and players such as Liam Gill will have to step up to fill  the void. All in all, it should be an interesting season for the tumultuous Reds.
Prediction: fifth (first in conference)

Brumbies

The Brumbies will look to follow up their ultimate choke in 2012 with a finals appearance in 2013. They have all the tools to do so, especially considering the presence of the new arrival, Wallaby breakdown king David Pocock.  The nation’s capital let out a collective sigh when Wallaby rookie of the year Michael Hooper returned home to NSW to play with the Waratahs. But not for long, as the lineage of great Brumbies sevens continued as they signed David Pocock from the Western Force.
Pocock is a master at the breakdown and should create much more phase play and many more opportunities to score. The Brumbies should make Pocock a better player also, as the offensive weapons they possess aren’t exactly rivalled by his old side the Force’s. A full season for Christian Lealiifano will also work wonders, as he looked a surefire first-choice 10 for the Wallabies until he went down mid-season.
 Other rising stars returning include Sam Carter, Scott Fardy, Zack Holmes, Jesse Mogg, Joseph Tomane, and I don’t have enough space to mention everyone. They are all another year older, and their further integration with veterans such as Ben Alexander and Stephen Moore should create a great atmosphere around the club.
Prediction: seventh (second in conference)

Waratahs

This off-season, the Waratahs had as many disappointing departures as they did encouraging additions. The top recruit would go to either hometown hero Michael Hooper, Wallaby rookie of the year, Israel Folau, the tremendously talented tri-coder, or head coach Michael Cheika, who has previously experienced success with Leinster, winning the 2009 Heineken Cup. All three have enormous potential and futures with the club. However, the Waratahs did lose plenty of good players this off-season, with Chris Alcock, Rocky Elsom and Daniel Halangahu just a few of them.
How well the Waratahs’ youth do this season will be part-and-parcel of how many games they win. Brendan McKibbin wasn’t given captaincy of the side, and the Waratahs will be hopeful he can continue his good form into 2013 and can lead by example on the pitch. There’s no doubt the Waratahs have a good group of players, with Wallabies future and present scattered through the forwards and the backs.
What Michael Cheika will need to help them do this year is forge an identity, preferably one that uses their young, quick, up-tempo style to their best advantage. If he can do that, there’s no reason the Waratahs can’t contend right now. Prediction: eighth (third in conference)

Rebels

Despite the two big Wallaby stars on hand, James O’Connor and Kurtley Beale, the Rebels’ squad has deteriorated from their inaugural incarnation. They have lost many high-profile names such as Julian Huxley, Mark Gerrard, and even Stirling Mortlock, whose contribution will be missed. Another one missing is Cooper Vuna, who first cracked the Wallaby squad last year. His shoulder injury is expected to keep him out for the year. However, a welcome in will be Wallaby eighthman Scott Higginbotham from the Reds. He can hope to bolster the Rebels’ pack, and work in union with players such as Gareth Delve and Cadeyrn Neville to form the basis for a potentially very damaging running forwards squad. Another decisive factor for the Rebels’ success will be how well new leaders stand up after the loss of many years of Super and Test rugby. If James O’Connor and Kurtley Beale, two of the bigger stars around the club, can become quality leaders as well as play the style of rugby they were brought in to play, then the young Rebels may be able to shock a few in 2013.
Prediction: 10th (fourth in conference)

Force

Let’s face it: the Western Force is an all-round depressing rugby club.
Depressing to talk about, depressing to watch play, and during this off-season, it was equally if not more depressing to watch them squirm. The Force lost yet another franchise player this off-season, with one-man team David Pocock taking his talents to the nation’s capital. Last year it was James O’Connor, and it is becoming increasingly apparent that not many stars want to pay in the glitz and glamour of rugby haven Perth. The Force will need to solve this problem quickly by creating a positive, reputable attitude, solid in their convictions and sure of their squad.
And while it may take a while, especially to get some wins on the board, the Western Force may be able to entice some Test players to their squad with a good, esteemed attitude. And no one counts out the Force from breeding their own. Players such as local product Kyle Godwin are said to be future Wallabies, and after being elevated from the extended playing squad to the senior playing squad, the Force will definitely be looking to get plenty of games in him. However, it will be a long road to the finals for the struggling Force. And I dread to think of where that road will take them this season
Prediction: 14th (fifth in conference)

Orrible Punt
Brumbies

2012 season – 7th – Won 5/8 at home by 24-19 and 5/8 away by 27-23

The Brumbies, who won 2 and lost 3 finals between 1997-2004, were another of the sides (like the Hurricanes) that were supposed to struggle in 2012. As several coaches have discovered to their cost, ‘player-power’ is a reality in Canberra and the Brumbies are no strangers to getting rid of a coach before their contract expires.  World Cup winner and 2-time IRB coach of the year Jake White did a great job of gelling a collection of willing rookies and senior players and perhaps just as crucially, a successful coaching team with highly respected Canberra men in Laurie Fisher and Stephen Larkham.

The side sat 5 points clear of their conference with 1 game remaining, but lost 16-30 at home to the Blues in the final match, which saw the Reds pip them to a post –season berth. Having come so close it has to be seen as blown opportunity, but overall they exceeded expectations.

Unsurprisingly given White’s background, many pundits picked up on the fact that the 2012 Brumbies style of play was at times in the pattern of South African rugby. Signing a big lock in 20 year old, former Lion Etienne Oosthuizen adds a bit of that traditional power to the side.

The Brumbies 10 wins did come against sides ranked 8th or below in the table and they certainly profited from the Reds injury crisis that saw them struggle in the 1st half of the season. On the other hand, they were not been beaten by more than 7 points in their losses against the top 7 sides.

They may have had a preferable schedule last season compared to certain other sides (with no Stormers or Crusaders to play), but still picked up more wins than expected.

There was a steel in the team and they possessed the 2nd best defence, conceding 331 points.  Resilience was also shown after losing Toomua and Lealiifano. Normally the loss of a player of Hooper’s calibre would be lamented but they are replacing him with the world class Pocock. The return of Clyde Rathbone was a surprise, but with a record of 8 tries in 26 Tests and 15 in 49 Brumbies appearances he is going to have the respect of his peers. Sometimes these comebacks after retirement go awry, but having scored a couple in the warm up games and impressed, there is every chance his story is going to be mentioned a lot in 2013.

A strange trend that may prove useful for betting this season was that 7/8 home games saw 1st half highest scoring and 7/8 away games saw 2nd half highest scoring.


Record against non-conference opposition: won 1/8 away to Sharks, won 4/8 away to Stormers, won 3/8 away to Highlanders, won 3/10 away to Blues, won 7/8 home to Bulls, won 6/9 home to Crusaders, won 6/10 home to Hurricanes.

 Players out:

Jerry Yanuyanutawa, Anthony Hegarty, Ben Hand, Michael Hooper, Kimami Situati, Cam Crawford

Players In:

Etienne Oosthuizen, David Pocock, Clyde Rathbone

Force

2012 season – 14th – Won 2/8 games at home by an average score of 20-25 and 1/8 away games by 18-31

The Force finished 7th or 8th between 2007-9 and 14th,13th,12th in 2006,2010 and 2011.

With just 3 wins last season and 9 defeats in their last 10 games, they recorded another low placing, just 2 points above the Lions.

The Western Australian expansion team have long suffered from having their shining lights poached by other Australian sides, see Matt Giteau, Drew Mitchell, James O’Connor, David Pocock etc. Queenslander and head coach Richard Graham announced he would be joining the Reds in the 2013 season and was then removed from his duties immediately by the Force, so it’s not just the players that the side have difficulty in retaining.

With inaugural captain Nathan Sharpe hanging up his boots at the end of the season, the fore-mentioned coaching change and a very public failure to sign Will Genia – there hasn’t been much to shout about in Perth.  The fallout with Willie Ripia before the 2012 season started meant the team were not only a player down but also very likely dealing with team morale issues.

It would have been expected that Napolioni Nalaga would contribute more than 2 tries last season and he has returned to Clermont. When you look at the stats for the Force, it’s clear how important Sharpe and Pocock were to the team. The lock carried 156 times and won 84 lineouts whereas the flanker has 206 tackles, 125 runs, 36 pick and drives.

Attempts were made to lure Michael Cheika but instead it is Michael Foley looking to reignite the Perth side, along with Steve Meehan. There are interesting selection options at scrum-half with Brett Sheehan / Alby Mathewson and at flyhalf with Sias Ebersohn / Kyle Godwin. The issue may be out wide, where bar the ‘honey badger’ Nick Cummins there doesn’t look to be too many players capable of breaking the gain line. It may also take time for the backline recruits to settle, which could be tough given they begin with 4 away matches.

The main angle for betting on Force games last season revolved around the halves. They trailed at halftime in 14/16 matches and conceded 43 tries in the opening 60 minutes of games. However they outscored teams in 9/16 matches after the break , scoring 22 of their 30 tries then and only conceding 6 tries in the last quarter. Looking back over their short history, they’ve not yet had a season where they’ve scored more tries in the 1st half than 2nd yet and in the 2 of the last 3 tournaments, over 70% of their scores came in the final 40 minutes.

Record against non-conference opposition: won 2/2 at home to Cheetahs, won ¼ at home to Crusaders, won 1/3 at home to Sharks, won ½ at home to Highlanders, won 1/3 away to Bulls, won 0/4 away to Hurricanes, won 0/2 away to Chiefs

Players Out:

Salesi Manu, Ruan Smith, Elvis Taione, Oliver Atkins, Nathan Sharpe, Anare Kolivau, David Pocock, Josh Holmes, Justin Turner, Ben Seymour, James Stannard, Gene Fairbanks, Rory Sidey, Napoioni Nalaga, Jordan Rapana, Samu Wara, David Harvey, Cameron Shepherd

Players In:

Heath Tessmann, Chris Alcock, Hugh McMeniman, Alby Mathewson, Sias Ebersohn, Jayden Hayward, Junior Rasolea, Chris Tuatara-Morrison, Ed Stubbs, Sam Norton-Knight

Rebels

2012 season – 13th – Won 3/8 at home by 26-30 and 1/8 away by 19-35.

The Rebels won 3 games in 2011 and with an average score of 18-36. Last season they won 4 matches and the average score was 23-33 so there was progress. The performances at home saw the Crusaders bested, the Bulls given a scare and a rate of 26-30 (up from 20-33 in 2011) but on the road, wins were still hard to pick up. 2011 saw the Rebels average 15-38 with just a win over the Force whereas last year it was 19-36 with the Force the sole victims again.  The fact that the defence conceded 50 less points from 2011 (520 down from 570) was also a small sign that the team may be heading in the right direction.

If you were looking for trends then 11/16 of their matches saw the 1st half as highest scoring and their games against non-conference teams leaned towards being high scoring, with an average of 63 points. This dropped to 48 when just looking at their Australian conference clashes.

Similar to the Force, their stats for the final 20 minutes of games were pretty good – scoring 32% of their tries then and only conceding 15% (3rd best percentage in the league). The obvious point would be that like the Force, this may have had a lot to do with the fact that games were already decided by that point and indeed, they conceded over 30 tries between 21-60 minutes in matches over the season.

With the retirement of Stirling Mortlock and departure of Julian Huxley, Mark Gerrard, Adam Freier, Alister Campbell and others – the side will have a younger feel about it. There are opportunities for new players to step into the gaps left by those founding players. In Kurtley Beale, James O’Connor and Scott Higginbotham they have some Wallaby star power and Damien Hill will be hoping his new loose forward can develop a playing relationship with those creators, similar to the one he had with Genia at the Reds. Hill will also be hoping that the first 2 players mentioned are in the headlines for the right reasons rather than for off-field incidents.

Danny Cipriani received plenty of attention when he moved to Melbourne but it has been former Gloucester forward, Gareth Delve, that has had the far greater influence on the team. He been named captain and certainly set an example last year, making 189 tackles. I wouldn’t rule out the possibility of him being considered for a Lions place or call up if there is injury.

Given their poor away record so far,  of only 2 wins from 16 attempts (both against the Force), it is going to be important to start strongly against the Force in round 1 and in the other home matches. I don’t seem them troubling the Brumbies, Reds and ‘Tahs for the conference but they should secure 4th in the group.

Record against non-conference opposition: lost 1/1 away to Cheetahs, lost 1/1 away to Blues, lost 1/1 home to Stormers, lost 1/1 home to Highlanders

Players out:

Rodney Blake, Jono Owen, Adam Freier, Luke Holmes, Heath Tessmann, Adam Byrnes, Alister Campbell, Tom Chamberlain, Ryan Hodson, Michael Lipman, Hugh Perrett, Danny Cipriani, James Hilgendorf, Lloyd Johansson, Stirling Mortlock, Mark Gerrard, Julian Huxley

Players In:

Shota Hurie, Chris Thomson, Scott Fuglistaller, Scott Higginbotham, Rory Sidey, Kimami Sitauti, Angus Roberts, Alex Rokobaro, Jason Woodward

Reds

2012 season – 3rd – Won 7/8 at home by 26-17 and 4/8 away by 19-26

The Reds picked up finishes of between 10-14th in the seasons 2004-9. Ewen McKenzie took them to a 5th place finish in 2010 and a successful final the following year – playing an attractive brand of rugby along the way.

The 2012 season was almost derailed by a number of injuries to playmakers and speculation over Genia’s future (it’s no co-incidence that his form improved greatly when the matter was resolved). A narrow 11-6 home win over the Rebels was followed by a 3 game away trip to the Sharks, Bulls and Force that saw 133 points conceded. The Reds averaged a score of 27-18 in 2011 but that changed to 22-22 last season – although the last 5 games did see it rise to 28-18. The recovery after the early away tour saw 7 wins from 9 games with the turning point being the win over the Chiefs, when they overcame a 8-22 deficit to win 42-27.

The team were quick starters in matches, scoring first try in 13/16 games and reaching 10 points quickest in 12/16 contests. They only conceded 3 of their 39 tries in the opening 20 minutes of games and scored 92% of their tries in the opening 60 minutes, with 42% coming in the 20 minutes after halftime.

Looking at player movements, only Jono Owen has been brought in, while 8 players have left. It may be that the Reds are happy with the core group they have and certainly the likes of Cooper ,Genia, Ioane, Horwill and Gill etc make for a very strong first choice XV.  However last season showed what happens when injuries hit and there is also the addition of Lions distractions now.

Record against non-conference opposition: won 3/7 home to Hurricanes, won 8/9 home to Bulls, won 7/9 home to Blues, won 6/9 home to Sharks, won 0/7 away to Highlanders, won 4/9 away to Chiefs, won ¼ away to Cheetahs, won 2/7 away to Stormers.

Players Out:

Guy Shepherdson, Blake Enever, Van Humphries, Jarrad Butler, Scott Higginbotham, Sam Lane, Dallan Murphy, Joelin Rapana, Nathan Eyres-Brown, Peter Hynes.

Players In:

Jono Owen 

Waratahs

2012 season – 11th – Won 2/8 at home by 24-27 and 2/8 away by 20-24

The Waratahs lost a qualifying final to the Blues in 2011 after finishing 5th and both sides went on to disappoint in the 2012 season. From 2002 onwards the ‘Tahs finished outside of the top 5 only twice. The 11 losses last year surpassed the 9 defeats from 13 games in 2007. In the previous 4 seasons, the New South Wales side had only lost 17 of 57 games so not many would have predicted the slump.

The injuries to Drew Mitchell, Lachie Turner, Rocky Elsom and Dan Vickerman may have robbed the side of senior players but the issues (like at the Blues) seemed to go deeper than that. The Sydney-based media were clearly not happy with certain officials at the team and the coach looked to be on borrowed time.

Michael Foley was actually reappointed for 1 more year, after he submitted that the poor performances of his players could be explained by fatigue from an excessive workload (World Cup duties / International duty). That didn’t last long and after chairman Ed Zemancheff quit his role in July, Foley soon followed and ended up signing a 3 year deal with the Force.

That left the door open for Michael Cheika to join, having also been linked with the job in Perth. Bringing experience from both Leinster and Stade Francais, as well as an understanding of the Sydney rugby scene – having played over 300 games for Randwick, he said in September:

“My immediate goal is to establish our identity loud and clear, inside and outside of the team; who we are, how we are going to play the game and what we are prepared to do to earn the respect of our teammates, our supporters and our competitors, as individuals and as a team.”

8 of the 11 losses last season came by less than 6 points and 3 of them by a single point. Games are of course decided by small margins, but more often than not, they failed at the basics – be it restarts, handling errors, or game management. More simply, they didn’t look like a team that knew how to win games. The Waratahs only outscored teams in the 2nd half twice and even then, one of those games was still lost.

There were stories that senior players requested lighter training at the start of 2012 with the belief that it would help the team in the latter stages of the competition. Foley later acknowledged this was an error and I can’t see Cheika repeating the policy. If anything it will be a reversal and the players will be worked harder than usual.

Michael Hooper is going to be an excellent addition to a very competitive pack but it’s the former league and AFL man – Israel Folau who will be the focus of the media. He scored 36 tries in 52 games  for the Storm and 37 in 38 Broncos matches, along with 5 in 7 for Australia and 5 in 5 for Queensland in Origin footy.  His impact in preseason suggests he is going to receive comparison to Sonny Bill Williams rather than say Willie Mason on the League to Union convert scale.

It’s clear the Waratahs management desire more fans through the gates  and it is even rumoured that Cheika’s  contract is incentivised by supporter numbers rather than the traditional win / loss ratio. If Folau, Betham, Mitchell et al are provided with some quick ball from what is close to being the Wallaby pack then I’d expect attendances to increase and the win rate to shoot up.

Record against non-conference opposition: won 2/8 away to Hurricanes, won 2/9 away to Bulls, won 1/11 away to Crusaders, won 4/5 home to Cheetahs, won 5/8 home to Blues, won 6/8 home to Chiefs, won 3/6 home to Stormers.

Players out:

Joshua Mann-Rea, Dean Mumm, Dan Vickerman, Chris Alcock, Rocky Elsom. Jono Jenkins, Tevita Metuisela, Richard Stanford, Sarel Pretorius, Daniel Halangahu, Brackin Karauria-Henry, Atieli Pakalani, Nathan Trist.

Players In:

Oliver Atkins, Mitchell Chapman, Michael Hooper, Israel Folau, Michael Hodge, Peter Bentham, Cam Crawford

Australian conference betting

Reds – 3.0 (Ladbrokes, Sporting Bet)

Brumbies – 3.3  (Sky Bet)

Waratahs – 4.0 (Bet Victor)

Rebels – 13.0 (William Hill, Sporting Bet)

Force – 21.0 (Sky Bet, Paddy Power)



There won’t be too many (other than optimists in Melbourne and Perth perhaps) that disagree on it being a choice of 3 for the Australian conference.

It would be a surprise if the Waratahs didn’t improve on that 2012 record of 4 wins and with a new coach, big name recruits and a proper preseason – they will feel that those close defeats last time around can be turned around. They do have to adapt to Cheika’s methods though and there were 13 of the team in the last Wallabies squad – a relevant point given how the Lions tour may disrupt the season. At a bigger price, backing a ‘Tahs revival would have proved attractive but the 4.0 isn’t for me. Next season will be  a different matter though.

The Reds have won 13/16 conference games in the last 2 seasons compared to 10/16 for the Waratahs (3/8 last season) and the Brumbies with 8/16 (6/8 in 2012). However, they don’t have a match against the Kings whereas the other 2 sides do and start the season without Will Genia. The Queenslanders also have 8 representatives in the Australian squad , which is 5 more than the Brumbies. Having won the Super Rugby crown in 2011, the Reds should be respected and bar Higginbotham have the vast majority of that side still on the books. The attention that will surely be directed towards Cooper could prove a distraction and I am interested how Richard Graham will get on and whether Ewen Mckenzie ends up leaving for the Wallabies by the end of the year.

It will be the Brumbies that get my seal of approval / kiss of death. They should be the team least effected by the International call ups and will have benefited from another preseason under Jake White and that impressive coaching team.

Last season they proved they were tough to beat and the foundations are there for another good year. 3 consecutive losses against the Reds would be a concern but with no Genia to contend with in round 1 (nor Higginbotham who scored 2 tries last season), there is a great chance to improve upon that head to head record. The Brumbies carried for over 600m in the Brisbane match, but were punished for 26 turnovers and only scored a single try. At home, it was the difference of a missed Holmes penalty that separated the sides. I think they will be highly motivated from just missing out and go one stage better in 2013

Watch rugby on internet

   
 Recommended places to watch on internet



wiziwig.tv....good policies and info on site

All others it is advisable to have some forrm of adblock on computer.

I have adblock plus add on for Firefox.

I don't use ipad, iphone etc so know nothing about the apps necessary to view these sites.

These sites are flash and I believe the hand held computer/phones do not support flash.

vipboxsports.tv

vipbox.tv

frombar.tv

cricfree.tv

Super 15 Join Superbru competition

Come join my Super Rugby prediction game on SuperBru! It's free and loads of fun. Just click here:

http://www.superbru.com/superrugby/pool.php?p=11049445
Pool name: Fly/Orka

Pool code: yoyoviva

First game in 14 hrs at 2.30am Houston time

Super15 Friday15 and Sat 16


 Super15

Friday
    Melbourne Rebels     v     Western Force     08:40 GMT  02.40am Houston

Saturday
Brumbies     v     Reds     08:40  GMT  02.40am Houston



 
Recommended places to watch on internet



wiziwig.tv....good policies and info on site

All others it is advisable to have some forrm of adblock on computer.

I have adblock plus add on for Firefox.

I don't use ipad, iphone etc so know nothing about the apps necessary to view these sites.

These sites are flash and I believe the hand held computer/phones do not support flash.

vipboxsports.tv

vipbox.tv

frombar.tv

cricfree.tv

Aviva Premiership 16/17th Feb


Saturday 16th February
    Bath     v     London Irish     14:15    
    London Welsh     P-P     Sale     Postponed    
    Saracens     v     Exeter     15:00    
    London Wasps     P-P     Gloucester     Postponed    
    Worcester     v     Northampton     15:00    
    Harlequins     v     Leicester     17:15    

Sunday 17th February 2013
    London Wasps     v     Gloucester     13:00    
    London Welsh     v     Sale     15:00



 Recommended places to watch on internet



wiziwig.tv....good policies and info on site

All others it is advisable to have some forrm of adblock on computer.

I have adblock plus add on for Firefox.

I don't use ipad, iphone etc so know nothing about the apps necessary to view these sites.

These sites are flash and I believe the hand held computer/phones do not support flash.

vipboxsports.tv

vipbox.tv

frombar.tv

cricfree.tv

RaboDirect Pro12 15/16th Feb

Friday 15th February 2013

    NG Dragons     v     Glasgow     19:05    
    Ulster     v     Zebre     19:05    
    Edinburgh     v     Cardiff Blues     19:30    
    Connacht     v     Ospreys     19:45
 
Saturday

    Connacht     P-P     Ospreys     Postponed    
    Edinburgh     P-P     Cardiff Blues     Postponed    
    NG Dragons     P-P     Glasgow     Postponed    
    Ulster     P-P     Zebre     Postponed    
    Leinster     v     Treviso     17:00    
    Scarlets     v     Munster     18:30    

All times GMT
Deduct 6 hrs for Houston.

 Recommended places to watch on internet



wiziwig.tv....good policies and info on site

All others it is advisable to have some forrm of adblock on computer.

I have adblock plus add-on for Firefox.

I don't use ipad, iphone etc so know nothing about the apps necessary to view these sites.

These sites are flash and I believe the hand held computer/phones do not support flash.

vipboxsports.tv

vipbox.tv

frombar.tv

cricfree.tv


6 Nations squads

France squad:
Forwards: Vincent Debaty (Clermont), Thomas

Domingo (Clermont), Benjamin Kayser (Clermont), Dimitri

Szarzewski (Racing-Metro), Luc Ducalcon (Racing-Metro), Nicolas

Mas (Perpignan), Yoann Maestri (Toulouse), Christophe Samson

(Castres), Jocelino Suta (Toulon), Antonie Claassen (Castres),

Thierry Dusautoir (Toulouse, capt), Yannick Nyanga (Toulouse),

Louis Picamoles (Toulouse)


Backs: Maxxime Machenaud (Racing-Metro), Morgan Parra

(Clermont), Frdric Michalak (Toulon), Franois Trinh-Duc

(Montpellier), Mathieu Bastareaud (Toulon), Vincent Clerc

(Toulouse) Benjamin Fall (Racing-Metro), Wesley Fofana

(Clermont), Florian Fritz (Toulouse), Yoann Huget (Toulouse)

French Top 14 15/16th Feb

Top 14
Friday
Toulouse v Perpignan    Fri 15 Feb 13:50 Houston time

Saturday
Toulon v Montpellier             Sat 16 Feb 09:00 Houston time
All these at 11.30am Houston time
Clermont Auvergne v Mont-de-Marsan
Grenoble v Agen
Racing Metro 92 v Bayonne
Stade Francais v Bordeaux Begles
Biarritz v Castres                 Sat 16 Feb 13:40 Houston time

 Recommended places to watch on internet

wiziwig.tv....good policies and info on site
All others it is advisable to have some forrm of adblock on computer.
I have adblock plus add on for Firefox.
I don't use ipad, iphone etc so know nothing about the apps necessary to view these sites.
These sites are flash and I believe the hand held computer/phones do not support flash.
vipboxsports.tv
vipbox.tv
frombar.tv
cricfree.tv