Quote from: paul_e on September 18, 2015, 10:01:20 PMWe won't win the world cup, I'm certain of that, but if we get out of the group I'll be happy because it won't be a devastating shame but will probably be enough to see Lancaster get the boot which I see as necessary for us to be the team we can be for the '19 world cup where we should be clear favourites.Which is what we thought when Robinson got the boot. And Brian Ashton. And Johnno.
We won't win the world cup, I'm certain of that, but if we get out of the group I'll be happy because it won't be a devastating shame but will probably be enough to see Lancaster get the boot which I see as necessary for us to be the team we can be for the '19 world cup where we should be clear favourites.
Oh look we bring on loads of sarries players and suddenly we're playing the same shit that Sarries do.
Quote from: paul_e on September 18, 2015, 09:38:46 PMOh look we bring on loads of sarries players and suddenly we're playing the same shit that Sarries do.To be honest I thought they all had a positive impact on the game.
Quote from: Proposition Joe on September 18, 2015, 10:26:03 PMQuote from: paul_e on September 18, 2015, 10:01:20 PMWe won't win the world cup, I'm certain of that, but if we get out of the group I'll be happy because it won't be a devastating shame but will probably be enough to see Lancaster get the boot which I see as necessary for us to be the team we can be for the '19 world cup where we should be clear favourites.Which is what we thought when Robinson got the boot. And Brian Ashton. And Johnno.The one in bold was the mistake. We should have given him the 4years from 07 to 11 to build a solid base around the younger players, instead we had Johnno trying to learn how to be a coach at the highest level and being found out it was always a bizarre appointment. We've made largely the same mistake with Lancaster, a couple of years at Leeds and a year running the Saxons is nothing like enough experience to be a national team head coach. He got the job temporarily because when they booted Johnno the season had started and they needed someone for the 6N so rather than upset a club side they used the saxons coach. How foten does a caretaker turn out to be a good appointment when they're made permanent in any sport?The biggest problem England have though is that we've got a nice guy as the coach and another nice guy as the captain so as a team we're too nice, we're loyal to players who don't really deserve it, we're harshly critical of players who ruffle feathers and we doi a fucking terrible job of sticking up for ourselves. I want a nasty bastard or 2 in squad, you really need them in rugby, it's why player like BOD and McCaw are so good, they have skills but they also don't take shit and they're willing to get dirty.
Quote from: paul_e on September 19, 2015, 12:01:47 AMQuote from: Proposition Joe on September 18, 2015, 10:26:03 PMQuote from: paul_e on September 18, 2015, 10:01:20 PMWe won't win the world cup, I'm certain of that, but if we get out of the group I'll be happy because it won't be a devastating shame but will probably be enough to see Lancaster get the boot which I see as necessary for us to be the team we can be for the '19 world cup where we should be clear favourites.Which is what we thought when Robinson got the boot. And Brian Ashton. And Johnno.The one in bold was the mistake. We should have given him the 4years from 07 to 11 to build a solid base around the younger players, instead we had Johnno trying to learn how to be a coach at the highest level and being found out it was always a bizarre appointment. We've made largely the same mistake with Lancaster, a couple of years at Leeds and a year running the Saxons is nothing like enough experience to be a national team head coach. He got the job temporarily because when they booted Johnno the season had started and they needed someone for the 6N so rather than upset a club side they used the saxons coach. How foten does a caretaker turn out to be a good appointment when they're made permanent in any sport?The biggest problem England have though is that we've got a nice guy as the coach and another nice guy as the captain so as a team we're too nice, we're loyal to players who don't really deserve it, we're harshly critical of players who ruffle feathers and we doi a fucking terrible job of sticking up for ourselves. I want a nasty bastard or 2 in squad, you really need them in rugby, it's why player like BOD and McCaw are so good, they have skills but they also don't take shit and they're willing to get dirty.Was Brian Ashton the one who, to use a cliche, "lost the dressing" room during the World Cup in France? Where the players ignored his tactics and chose to play stick it up yer jumper rugby for the rest of the tournament? My memory is a bit hazy.Anyway, what irks me about all of them is that occasionally we get performances that look like we're finally on the right track, like Cardiff in this year's 6N, but then things just end up going sour again. Regression to the mean? Maybe England just produces limited players - perhaps not limited in terms of raw talent, but certainly lacking smarts and "footballing brains".
Georgia vs Tonga is just as close as I expected, should have been 10-10 at half time but for an incredibly harsh disallowed try for Tonga.