Bledisloe II - Have a stab at the teams.

NTA

<blockquote class="ipsBlockquote" data-author="mariner4life" data-cid="610388" data-time="1472432220">
<div>
A lot of the reffing was mystifying, but please don't fall in to the trap of "we lost, so he was harsher on us" (i know you're not, but your getting dangerously close)
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</blockquote>
 
Only because I see the things that went against us. And I'm not likely to replay the game at any point so fuck the ABs ;)
 
Agree about the Coles thing. It wasn't a "forearm", just a shitty cleanout that looked even worse on replay. Fardy was on the deck, and right next to an AB player, so what the fuck else was meant to happen? Coles not try to secure the ball?
 
But the ruck was messy as fuck all game, and particularly the number of "planes landing" from both sides. Poite let that happen because, judging by what I've seen of the T14, that's how the game is done in France.

No Quarter

<blockquote class="ipsBlockquote" data-author="taniwharugby" data-cid="610344" data-time="1472426592">
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I see a clip about of Phipps chucking Fekitoa's boot away is doing the rounds! :mocking:
 
Thought was funny! :good1:
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<img src="https://memecrunch.com/meme/67N3T/austin-powers-who-throws-a-shoe-honestly/image.png?w=500&c=1" alt="image.png?w=500&c=1">

NTA

<blockquote class="ipsBlockquote" data-author="mariner4life" data-cid="610388" data-time="1472432220">
<div>
And at the risk of upsetting Nick, i believe it was at the instigation of the Wallabies, and I'm disappointed in us for getting involved at all. 
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Why would it upset me? Its the truth.
 
The problem is we took the niggle onto the front foot and away from the contest, instead of waiting for our chance to put on a legal hit. Niggle is good - if you do it right. Mostly if you back it up, which we didn't.
 
I didn't see last week's game, but it sounded like we pussied out completely. Now we've got it wrong the other way trying to toughen up. Coleman's yellow card was stupid, though I have seen some stats to suggest he was our hardest working forward.
 
That's good news, because our lineout was no worse than last week by the same stats, so means Simmons is goneburger for now.

NTA

<blockquote class="ipsBlockquote" data-author="antipodean" data-cid="610360" data-time="1472429234">
<div>
Disagree.
 
At best it's a penalty. I'm always reticent to jump on a twitter/ reddit jerkathon on the basis of a single frame. I don't see why a player should be thrown under the bus to assuage the drooling retards. Is anyone having a cry about this?
 
 
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</blockquote>
 
 
Just for contrast:
 
<a data-ipb='nomediaparse' href='https://cdn.streamable.com/video/mp4-mobile/9ms8.mp4'>https://cdn.streamable.com/video/mp4-mobile/9ms8.mp4</a>

barbarian

I don't understand the referee appointment process at all.
 
At the World Cup last year, you more or less saw who were deemed to be the best referees. In top spot was Owens, with Garces and Barnes equal second (Semi refs) and then Joubert who did a quarter along with those other three.
 
So with a World Cup final replay rolling around, you would think they would appoint one of the best four referees in the world for both matches. It's not like there is any bigger matches around, and these guys aren't tied up anywhere.
 
But for some unknown reason we don't get that. We get two blokes from outside the top 4. I'm not going to whinge about Poite, other than to say he had a bad game, the ruck and scrum was a mess and the match suffered as a result.
 
Why didn't we get top refs for these matches? The most important two games of the year (for the Wallabies anyway).
 
And if you're about to say 'the Boks vs All Blacks is more important', fair enough, but check out who they have given that game to- Angus Gardner. He's a good ref but wasn't even at the World Cup and clearly IMO not in the same class as Owens, Barnes and Garces.
 
Why these top 4 or 5 guys aren't doing every game is beyond me.

barbarian

<blockquote class="ipsBlockquote" data-author="NTA" data-cid="610399" data-time="1472433290">
<div>
The problem is we took the niggle onto the front foot and away from the contest, instead of waiting for our chance to put on a legal hit. Niggle is good - if you do it right. Mostly if you back it up, which we didn't.
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</blockquote>
 
I think it worked for us. We muscled up in the forwards and stopped a lot of the progress of the ABs in tight.
 
The niggle didn't cost us the game at all - it was our midfield/wide defence. We could cope in tight but as soon as they found space out wide we were torn to shreds.
 
It was a pretty ugly match all round, and I think both sides have cases to answer on that front. And the officials.

mariner4life

that kinda brings up something i saw in the game that i was surprised we didn't see more of. Read was brought down by Aussie jumpers all over him in the lineout a couple of times. I hate that shit, having been dropped from a great height a few times thanks to some over-zealous opposition jumpers. The one time i thought Poite saw it he actually just got them for closing the gap. 
 
 
Yea Nick, last week was a complete bottle job, so it was clear this week they were determined to "front" if nothing else. As you say, the problem was how. Pushing, mouthing, niggling and blatant stupidity is much less effective than driving the shoulder in to a few tackles/clear outs. Of course, one is much easier to do than the other...

barbarian

<blockquote class="ipsBlockquote" data-author="mariner4life" data-cid="610405" data-time="1472433945">
<div>
Yea Nick, last week was a complete bottle job, so it was clear this week they were determined to "front" if nothing else. As you say, the problem was how. Pushing, mouthing, niggling and blatant stupidity is much less effective than driving the shoulder in to a few tackles/clear outs. Of course, one is much easier to do than the other...
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</blockquote>
 
It wasn't one sided though. Regardless of who started it, some of the ABs were more than willing participants - Dane Coles especially, Aaron Smith as well. 
 
Our focus and intensity were way better in the forwards this week. I much prefer that with a touch of dickhead play than what we dished up last week. Obviously you'd like zero dickhead play at all, but beggars can't be choosers.

NTA

The reason Kepu grabbed Aaron Smith was he'd shoved him at the edge of a ruck I think. Should have just shoved him back. Yappy dickhead halfbacks.

reprobate

<blockquote class="ipsBlockquote" data-author="barbarian" data-cid="610403" data-time="1472433711">
<div>
I don't understand the referee appointment process at all.
 
At the World Cup last year, you more or less saw who were deemed to be the best referees. In top spot was Owens, with Garces and Barnes equal second (Semi refs) and then Joubert who did a quarter along with those other three.
 
So with a World Cup final replay rolling around, you would think they would appoint one of the best four referees in the world for both matches. It's not like there is any bigger matches around, and these guys aren't tied up anywhere.
 
But for some unknown reason we don't get that. We get two blokes from outside the top 4. I'm not going to whinge about Poite, other than to say he had a bad game, the ruck and scrum was a mess and the match suffered as a result.
 
Why didn't we get top refs for these matches? The most important two games of the year (for the Wallabies anyway).
 
And if you're about to say 'the Boks vs All Blacks is more important', fair enough, but check out who they have given that game to- Angus Gardner. He's a good ref but wasn't even at the World Cup and clearly IMO not in the same class as Owens, Barnes and Garces.
 
Why these top 4 or 5 guys aren't doing every game is beyond me. 
</div>
</blockquote>
your general point is absolutely spot on. the good ones don't need the rest, and bad ones don't get better by refereeing more important games, they just fuck up more visibly.
 
gardner is generally good though, he's worth his spot.

mariner4life

No one said it was one-sided Barb, stop reading what you want to read.
 
And for all your application, "focus" (i call bullshit on that) and intensity in the forwards they were still smashed in contact (on both sides of the ball) and lost the ruck battle. And the missed tackle count was off the charts again. They did scramble well, especially your 2 opensides, but they were putting out fires.

jegga

<blockquote class="ipsBlockquote" data-author="Tim" data-cid="610382" data-time="1472431819"></blockquote>
 
That was beautiful, I love how they still bring up Meads and Catchpole even the chances of them actually seeing Meads tear off Catchpoles leg and beat him to death with it right in front of the referee who did nothing about it are slim to none.

Rancid Schnitzel

Just had a quick look. Are these proper rugby fans or just the tools who grew up with their dads screaming cheats at the screen every game? I remember having to experience this with one such father back in 96-97. He declared the ABs were cheats before kickoff and then proceeded to say the same thing about 50 times during the game. It was like watching a 2 year old trapped in the body of a 50-year old man. I wonder what happened in 1998? Did the evil bastards just stop cheating or did the Wallabies maybe just improve their ability to play the game? Willis.
 
This GandG lot were probably the same arseclowns who were telling us to suck it up about the ref in 2007.

Hooroo

<blockquote class="ipsBlockquote" data-author="barbarian" data-cid="610403" data-time="1472433711">
<div>
I don't understand the referee appointment process at all.
 
At the World Cup last year, you more or less saw who were deemed to be the best referees. In top spot was Owens, with Garces and Barnes equal second (Semi refs) and then Joubert who did a quarter along with those other three.
 
So with a World Cup final replay rolling around, you would think they would appoint one of the best four referees in the world for both matches. It's not like there is any bigger matches around, and these guys aren't tied up anywhere.
 
But for some unknown reason we don't get that. We get two blokes from outside the top 4. I'm not going to whinge about Poite, other than to say he had a bad game, the ruck and scrum was a mess and the match suffered as a result.
 
Why didn't we get top refs for these matches? The most important two games of the year (for the Wallabies anyway).
 
And if you're about to say 'the Boks vs All Blacks is more important', fair enough, but check out who they have given that game to- Angus Gardner. He's a good ref but wasn't even at the World Cup and clearly IMO not in the same class as Owens, Barnes and Garces.
 
Why these top 4 or 5 guys aren't doing every game is beyond me. 
</div>
</blockquote>
I really like Gardner as a ref. I hear what you are saying though. I would say that retaining the Bled ranks higher than beating SA at the moment. Especially if SA aren't allowed to play all their best players due to quotas and rubbish

barbarian

There's a crazy element on G&G, just as there is here. The post-game threads aren't the most healthy environment, and tend to be taken over by dickheads.

antipodean

<blockquote class="ipsBlockquote" data-author="barbarian" data-cid="610403" data-time="1472433711">
<div>
And if you're about to say 'the Boks vs All Blacks is more important', fair enough, but check out who they have given that game to- Angus Gardner. He's a good ref but wasn't even at the World Cup and clearly IMO not in the same class as Owens, Barnes and Garces.
</div>
</blockquote>
 
IMO Angus is much better than Barnes. The pity for the Wallabies is they don't get to have him out in the middle.

barbarian

<blockquote class="ipsBlockquote" data-author="mariner4life" data-cid="610412" data-time="1472434997">
<div>
And for all your application, "focus" (i call bullshit on that) and intensity in the forwards they were still smashed in contact (on both sides of the ball) and lost the ruck battle. And the missed tackle count was off the charts again. They did scramble well, especially your 2 opensides, but they were putting out fires. 
</div>
</blockquote>
 
I'm not saying they played great rugby, just better than last week. Defence is an issue for sure, but at least they were willing in what they did. The worst part about last week was them being so utterly passive.
 
It's clutching at straws, I know. But I need something at this point.

barbarian

<blockquote class="ipsBlockquote" data-author="antipodean" data-cid="610419" data-time="1472435275">
<div>
IMO Angus is much better than Barnes. The pity for the Wallabies is they don't get to have him out in the middle.
</div>
</blockquote>
 
True. I like Gardner a lot, but he is untested at this level and I'd rather see him on a Arg vs NZ or Arg vs SA game before he steps up to a Boks/Blacks. 
 
I like Barnes, as I feel he is the most suited to the SH style of rugby. And he performed well at the World Cup, especially in the Semi Final.

Bovidae

The IRB High Performance Match Official Manager (what a mouthful!) is Joel Jutge, another Frenchman. He makes the ref appointments, and I assume they like to give all of the elite panel top level games. I'm happy the ABs don't have Barnes for the RC.
 
Garces did the Arg-SA game. We've got Joubert for the NZ-Arg game.

jegga

<blockquote class="ipsBlockquote" data-author="Rancid Schnitzel" data-cid="610416" data-time="1472435113">
Just had a quick look. Are these proper rugby fans or just the tools who grew up with their dads screaming cheats at the screen every game? I remember having to experience this with one such father back in 96-97. He declared the ABs were cheats before kickoff and then proceeded to say the same thing about 50 times during the game. It was like watching a 2 year old trapped in the body of a 50-year old man. I wonder what happened in 1998? Did the evil bastards just stop cheating or did the Wallabies maybe just improve their ability to play the game? Willis. 
This GandG lot were probably the same arseclowns who were telling us to suck it up about the ref in 2007.</blockquote>
 
These sort of meltdowns always remind me of that scene in the Simpsons where they go to Australia and the guy from the state dept explains that the yanks briefly gave a shit about Australia and the Aussies are fucked off that it didn't last. 
Between 1998 and 2003 there were hordes of Aussie fuckwits who thought the narrow edge they had over us was a permenant state of affairs and despite pointing out to them their history of bledisloe rugby was extraordinarily one sided and normal transmission was likely to be resumed they went full fishwife and denied this was going to happen . They seem to have either jumped off the bandwagon or retreated to g and g and gone all Kearns. 
My favourite was an arseclown that posted as JPO, he's a source of tedium on planet rugby now.

The Silver Fern

Bledisloe II - Have a stab at the teams.