The Rugby World Cup 2007 thread

[bongthom]

alright..i thought i had a bit too much in my wallet when i got back. how much?

good night though.....still amazed the zambian man wouldn't bet with me

[Marmite the Dog]

^ Just under 1500 Baht.

It's in my name 'cos I vouched for you and signed it.

[bongthom]

cheers marmers. send me yer ac number and i'll sort u out

[Marmite the Dog]

I didn't pay it - just vouched for you.

But, if you do want me to pay it and you transfer the dosh, that's ok with me.

[witbaas]

If this was played like American Baseball best of seven then I reckon England would be the winners...4-3 possibly

No, it's not baseball

and to Kiepie and his mates......
All Blacks getting grief counselling

5:00AM Sunday October 21, 2007
By Rebecca Lewis

Defeated all Blacks are being offered grief counselling by their "mental skills coach", Gilbert Enoka, to help them "work through" the devastating World Cup loss to France.
In the wake of the All Blacks' worst-ever Cup campaign, New Zealand Rugby Union chairman Jock Hobbs said it was "imperative" steps were taken to ensure members of the side "were able to move on mentally" and were not "isolated or left alone".
"Yes there has been some special care taken," Hobbs told the Yahoo!Xtra website.
Graham Henry's side - already under fire from many New Zealand rugby supporters who say they're too pampered and choke on the big occasion - will be encouraged to share how they are feeling with someone they trust and "to let the emotion run freely through these times".
Some players have already reacted badly to the shock World Cup exit with makeshift centre Mils Muliaina breaking down in tears and winger Doug Howlett taking out his frustrations on two cars during a drunken rampage in London.
Enoka told the Herald on Sunday that counselling would be available to the players "for as long as it takes".
He described how he and the team had in place plans for "riding and dealing with waves of emotion" and how it was important they got back to their families.
"The nest," he said, "becomes a major sanctuary."
Enoka - who said he needed to be called a 'mental skills coach' because he was not a licensed psychologist - told the Herald on Sunday of his methods to help the team move on - including spending more time with family and making sure they "take control" of their situation.
"We needed our men to get back to their families and feel the power that family and close friends give you as you work through such times," he said.
Sporting icons like Graham Lowe were sceptical about the move.
The former Kiwis coach said he preferred the way losses were dealt with in his day.
"[In my day] if you won you got more kisses and cuddles than you could imagine. If you lost you got a flogging with barbed wire," he said.
"I admit I'm 61 years old and I'm from the old school [but] one of the biggest problems in sport in New Zealand is there are too many academics and psychologists involved who think it's time for a month off work if they get a paper cut under their fingernail - they don't know what pain feels like."
Coach Graham Henry is supportive of the team's use of a grief counsellor and says it is nothing new for the All Blacks.
"As far as I'm concerned it's not an issue and I think people are taking things a little bit too far."
Meanwhile, All Black halfback Byron Kelleher has revealed that captain Richie McCaw took the field against France in the ill-fated World Cup quarter-final carrying a calf injury and after a viral infection.

[Bobcock]

Anyone else feel as depressed as I do today???

It's all over for another 4 more years.

I miss it already.

[CharleyFarley]

Well it is definitely better than EPL which has slipped even further down my list of 'want to watch sports'.
You almost have to laugh now, when you see a 'footballer' writhing around in agony after a little shoulder barge.
Latest: 'M Owen out for 6 weeks with broken toenail'

[AntRobertson]

Anyone else feel as depressed as I do today???

Yeah, I'm feeling oddly deflated. I lost a bit of interest after the AB's exit in the quarters, naturally, but it was nice to be able to schedule my weekends around the rugby. Oh well, end of year tours coming up I suppose.

[Marmite the Dog]

I lost a bit of interest after the AB's exit in the quarters,

At least you don't have to qualify for the next one, unlike Wales & Ireland.

[kingwilly]

Anyone else feel as depressed as I do today???

It's all over for another 4 more years.

I miss it already.

always.

thank god cricket season is heating up.

[Roc]

F#ck cricket,I'd rather watch paint dry!

[NickA]

^I will be round to paint your eyeballs in the morning

[witbaas]

Springboks show real style


By Will Greenwood
Last Updated: 1:50am BST 23/10/2007


South Africa have the bearing of champions. The night after they won the World Cup final, the Springboks were guests of honour at the International Rugby Board's annual dinner in Paris. You would have thought they might have been a bit dishevelled. They could have been forgiven for rolling in a bit wobbly, tired and emotional from their exertions from the night before. Nothing could have been further from the truth.
They were immaculate, controlled and worthy winners of the sport's ultimate trophy. Among the crowd at the dinner were some of rugby's greats. Men like JPR Williams and Gerald Davies. They were amazed by the size of the South Africans, awe-struck by the speed with which the game and the players' physicality has moved on.


Yet even though it is a thoroughly modern game, old school values were on show and the Springboks took time to talk to all of the former players when they were approached. Ten minutes, sometimes 20 were kindly given. Critics of the South Africans talk of arrogance, of a self-belief that often grates. There was nothing like that on show. In fact there was very little behaviour that would have given away that the team had just beaten the very best that the world had to offer over a period of six weeks.
Occasionally, one of the players would break into a couple of bars of the Basque anthem that has been played at many of the grounds this tournament. But that really was it. The team were humble and dignified. When Bryan Habana was crowned player of the year, and compared to Jonah Lomu, he begged to differ. Lomu was a legend, a one-off; Habana was just a wing with a bit of gas.
This modesty was evident in the way South Africa approached their games in the tournament. They were a team in which everyone knew their place, how they fitted in to that plan and what was required of them. However, they could also cover for the man standing next to them. If you want to see what the biggest change to rugby has been over the past few years, it is that players can now do a little bit of anything. It is not enough for the front five to get down and scrummage, or jump in the line-out. They now have to be able to run, pass and kick.
Did you see the massive South African Victor Matfield putting in crossfield kicks? A few years ago, he would have been laughed off the park. Now the old man of the Boks' pack, Os du Rant, is happy to find himself face-to-face with a young centre in the final moments of the game and tackle him without a problem.
Skills have been merged, and the South African side have been among the leaders in opening the game up. But they have done so by marrying this willingness to play an expansive game with discipline.
In the past, Butch James was often so hot-headed that he would lose his grip on the match. Now he is a cool customer who plays his game, directing the team with calm authority.
This calm steel runs through the team and nowhere is it more evident than in their mop-haired centre, the crazily youthful Francois Steyn. He backs himself when most of us would question the sanity of the decision. You could see his confidence when he teed up the penalty that all but took the game out of England's reach. The team knew he would hit it, you could see from their shoulders. Control yourself and control the game.
South Africa knew what they had to do and did it with icy precision. They backed their discipline, not giving away penalties that they knew Jonny Wilkinson would kick. Keep him out of the game and they would win. Keep to the plan, stay together and it was within their grasp.

On the field they had the backbone to win under extreme pressure. Off it, their shirt buttons were done up, their ties on straight, shoes polished. They looked like a team who were proud of what they had achieved. In short, they looked like world champions.

[William]

^ almost brings a tear to the eye

[bongthom]

^bladdy zambians....

[William]

^where's my Baht 10,000 winnings from our bet?

[witbaas]

^ almost brings a tear to the eye

Yes, all that's left in my country, I'm afraid - the Springboks....

[bongthom]

our bet?

i seem to recall you turned down my offers of a bet?

[ChiangMai noon]

^
bout time I sent you my bank details I guess.

Robertson is getting all antsy.

[Butch]

Yes, all that's left in my country, I'm afraid - the Springboks....

what do they taste like?

[bongthom]

bout time I sent you my bank details I guess.

i should have put a time limit on claims...

[witbaas]

what do they taste like?

the biltong is great