The Silver Fern

This is the 7th Lions v ABs series I've watched ('66, '71, '77, '83, '93, '05, '17) and I think this is probably the tightest my sphincter has been since the 4th test match in 1971. My ticker might not be able to handle this one. I get anxiety attacks even opening this bloody thread. If I don't have a paramedic on standby I might have to go into an isolation tank until the game is over and then look for the result. I thought this was supposed to be fun?!

Terry Jones: Monty Python star dies aged 77

https://www.bbc.com/news/entertainment-arts-51209197

Dementia, a rare form. Hits close to home. Very sad.
Rest In Peace, Terry.

@Chris-B. said in All Blacks vs. B&I Lions test #1:

@dogmeat As they used to shout on the Basil Brush Show...."Who's that?"

Love that guy.

Boom-boom!

An all-time great as a player and skipper, obviously, by my memory after the Cavalier debacle in ‘86 was that Lochore was the guy who held the fern closest to his chest and helped rescue the ABs, much like Jock did a decade later. People forget how divisive the early-to-mid 80s were, when politics got in the way and supporters were turning their backs on rugby. Lochore was a great servant to the game and the union. And of course, I always loved how he remembered everybody in the Wairarapa, I remember being with family in Masterton in the late 80s and he knew everybody, a national hero who was at heart a smalltown heartland lad. RIP.

The Gambler Who Cracked the Horse-Racing Code

Bill Benter did the impossible: He wrote an algorithm that couldn’t lose at the track. Close to a billion dollars later, he tells his story for the first time.

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/features/2018-05-03/the-gambler-who-cracked-the-horse-racing-code

@ACT-Crusader said in FIFA Womens World Cup:

There’s some pretty brutal footage from international women’s football games. The hair pulling, kicking, biting, elbows.

“I went to a NHL game and a womens soccer match broke out.”

Ifuckinknewit!

EAT LESS RED MEAT, SCIENTISTS SAID. NOW SOME BELIEVE THAT WAS BAD ADVICE

The evidence is too weak to justify telling individuals to eat less beef and pork, according to new research. The findings “erode public trust,” critics said.

THE NEW YORK TIMES

Public health officials for years have urged Americans to limit consumption of red meat and processed meats because of concerns that these foods are linked to heart disease, cancer and other ills.

But on Monday, in a remarkable turnabout, an international collaboration of researchers produced a series of analyses concluding that the advice, a bedrock of almost all dietary guidelines, is not backed by good scientific evidence.

If there are health benefits from eating less beef and pork, they are small, the researchers concluded. Indeed, the advantages are so faint that they can be discerned only when looking at large populations, the scientists said, and are not sufficient to tell individuals to change their meat-eating habits.

[...]

AMAZING STATS:

Both the Springboks and the Wallabies have played 101 Rugby Championship matches.

Of those, each side has won 42 matches, lost 57 and drawn 2.

Even more bizarre is that, in all of that time, the Wallabies have conceded 2,472 Rugby Championship points to South Africa's 2,473.

In the 'points for' column, the Boks have a slight advantage having amassed 2,197 points to Australia's 2,147.

That's an average 24-22 defeat for both sides - thanks in main to the All Blacks' dominance over the years.

http://www.sport24.co.za/Rugby/RugbyChampionship/you-have-to-see-these-springbok-wallaby-stats-20170906

Missing Woman Mystery Solved

@act-crusader said in Springboks v Wallabies - Bloemfontein:

Nothing separating these two (mediocre) teams....

Wobblies have conceeded one point less. Still keeping their edge.

@salacious-crumb said in Wallabies v Boks - Perthfontein:

@Salacious-Crumb said in Wallabies v Boks - Perthfontein:

AMAZING STATS:

Both the Springboks and the Wallabies have played 101 102 Rugby Championship matches.

Of those, each side has won 42 matches, lost 57 and drawn 2 3.

Even more bizarre is that, in all of that time, the Wallabies have conceded 2,472 2,495 Rugby Championship points to South Africa's 2,473 2,496.

Updated.

AMAZING STATS:

Both the Springboks and the Wallabies have played 101 102 103 Rugby Championship matches.

Of those, each side has won 42 matches, lost 57 and drawn 2 3 4.

Even more bizarre is that, in all of that time, the Wallabies have conceded 2,472 2,495 2522 Rugby Championship points to South Africa's 2,473 2,496 2523.

Fixed again.

In the selection process?

“...principles such as honesty and sportspersonship...”

Oh ffs. Same ol’ lame ol’ politically-correct claptrap New Puritanism that has infected all levels of contemporary academia and media. These researchers and news orgs can’t help themselves, they want mind & behavioral control.

@Crucial said in All Blacks v BI Lions Test #2:

Murray Kinsella's pre-game analysis

Analysis: The key areas for the Lions if they are to win in Wellington

We’ve looked at the areas where Warren Gatland’s side need to be better against the All Blacks.

Scoreboard.

Zoning board meetings are the best!

@Salacious-Crumb said in Wallabies v Boks - Perthfontein:

AMAZING STATS:

Both the Springboks and the Wallabies have played 101 102 Rugby Championship matches.

Of those, each side has won 42 matches, lost 57 and drawn 2 3.

Even more bizarre is that, in all of that time, the Wallabies have conceded 2,472 2,495 Rugby Championship points to South Africa's 2,473 2,496.

Updated.

@nzzp said in England vs All Blacks:

Great tussle, but this was England's chance. We're going to face a game like this in knockouts next year and need to play this well. With the weather and the Twickenham factor, it's a good win. Played poorly and won,

Spotted them 15 points, on their turf, played mostly like shit, got the W. I’ll take it.

@act-crusader said in All time Blues XV:

Spencer full stop. No other 10 in Blues history comes close. Mertz was better though....

Oh, really?

#TwistsTheKnife

Folau targetted eight groups, including atheists and adulterers, as going to Hell. I haven’t repented yet. I guess that means I should be twice as outraged and incensed and offended as LGBTQers. Strangely I’m not feeling it. Fwiw there are plenty of Christians and Muslims who believe the same, but society only preaches tolerance and diversity, they don’t actually follow the practice.

The Zamboni driver for the Win!

I guess some people have the sick putrid taste of three-day old vomit out of their mouths already, but not me.

Wayne Barnes move aside a little and make room for your good new buddy. Romain Poite, you just made "The List."