England vs Springbokke
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@catogrande said in England vs Springbokke:
It’s not just the number of scoring chances or the percentage taken. There is also the multiple. 2x7 > 3x3. I was surprised, given SA’s forward pack that they didn’t go to the corner a bit in the first half. If one of those thee pointers had been even a five pointer…
Pollard left 6 points out there from missed penalties. I thought his 2 misses early in the 2nd half when Boks were on top gave England a lift.
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@catogrande I thought they got the corner vs post calls largely right. They got the one from 55 so it kinda balances out against the two 45m kicks missed.
Thinking about it the drop kick Steyn missed was a huge moment (duh). Frans Steyn forty meters out, you expect better.
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@sidbarret said in England vs Springbokke:
@stodders Nah, kept the momentum despite the misses. We lost momentum with the soft try and the "unnecessary" yellow
Didn't say you lost momentum. Just that it gave England a lift that kept them going. Boks had strangled them so hard I thought they were going to pass out!
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@sidbarret said in England vs Springbokke:
@catogrande also, have a good one, much to celebrate off the back of that game
Thanks mate. Already on my way. Tomorrow will be a long day
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Game of the weekend for me.
England were great for the first 40 minutes, and one scrum aside, brushed off the completely absurd claim from above that SA have the two best front rows in world rugby. That starting front row is average at best. Kolisi has massively picked up his ball in hand game, an absolute weapon. Man he loves a whinge to the ref though, I did wonder if the ref had been influenced by Erasmus claims though as he should have been dealt with much much firmer if you ask me. Still, doesn't stop him being a giant of a man.
Didn't understand SA not kicking to the corner to go for tries. That second half fresh front row is an awesome tactic which I expect to be copied by the rest of the playing nations. At least until world rugby gets it shit together injury wise and demands 80 minutes from every player. The forward dominance turned into possession, territory, penalties, but oddly enough ... insufficient points. You can call the England tries as soft as you want, but they were well worked moves / tactics straight from the EJ brain after his methodical research of the SA game.
Not sure where Farrel fits in the England team anymore.
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Re the scrums - even you had to laugh at the first three scrums with the English pack going as softly as they could trying to get the Boks off balance. It worked but it wasn't going to be sustainable strategy. On completed scrums they had the English pack on skates the entire game.
Re Kolisi - that's the type of player he's always been. The thing is that he has had some serious injuries since early 2019, (didn't play for 6 prior to the world cup that year, and had another big one in 2020) which is also when he came to prominence as an international player.
Re the English points - I wouldn't call them soft, rather it was clever play, but as a Bok supporter I'm disappointed that we fell into it so easily. The English were playing very deep to try and get around the rush, the reason teams don't normally play that deep is because against a drift pattern you are likely to get caught behind the ad line and be turned over. The Boks are a settled and experienced unit and should have adapted/had a plan b aganst this type of attack.
Re posts v corner - I don't mind going for points and in a game where we were able to get back on attack soon after I think it is best to punish the opposition's mistakes. The ones I think we got wrong was the 50m shot Pollard got and the two long ones that he missed. Where you need to do something spacial to cash in, I think it is better to try and cash in with tries, on the 22 bang in front? Take the points.
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From a neutral point of view, I am surprised that the referee gave only one yellow card to the English team. Ewels was lucky to be not red carded. I know his fault was not intentional, but we have seen red cards for identical offenses. Moreover, the referee should have awarded a penalty try when the SA maul was collapsed after a huge progression. However, congrats to England. They scored three good tries though they were well beaten up front.
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@majorrage said in England vs Springbokke:
….. and one scrum aside, brushed off the completely absurd claim from above that SA have the two best front rows in world rugby. That starting front row is average at best.
Unfortunately I can’t upvote @SidBarret response to this more than once. England gamed it right on the edge. Kudos to them. Once that trick was exposed for what it was, normal duty resumed
Rest of your post is spot on on point.
That bit of commentary aside, genuine congratulations to England and English fans. I felt a marginal call here or there could have given the Boks victory but it was the right result in the end. Some great tries against a team that prides themselves on their defense. Definitely going to be a force to watch if they keep building on this.
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I hope @Catogrande is recovering well. But I’m also hoping the boks are heading home thinking about how critical developing a more incisive attack is.
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@smuts said in England vs Springbokke:
I hope @Catogrande is recovering well. But I’m also hoping the boks are heading home thinking about how critical developing a more incisive attack is.
Thank you. My recovery was going well but due to recent self medication consisting mainly of Chenin blanc, I may be relapsing.
