Posts by Paul Rowe
Last ←Newer Page 1 2 3 4 5 Older→ First
-
Haydn, that footage of Cullen at the 7s is incredible.
-
I guess the first thing Unions have to do to make the global season work is to be flexible about moving stuff. I would imagine that's not easy given the egos concerned (the egos of the local media, mostly).
It means that Rugby will cease to be a winter game in some parts of the world (such as Aus/NZ/SA where the season starts in early Feb).
Part of the problem for the clubs in England & France is that, as private concerns, they need games to make money. Obviously they'd rather players played for them, not the national teams as the clubs pay the wages. The balance has to give the clubs enough time to generate sufficient income, give the national teams enough time together to make games meaningful and the players 10 weeks off to recover.
Say:
January through June for club rugby/super 14, July & August for 3/6 Nations, September for recovery, October/Early November for more internationals, late November/December break.
Obviously, without rejigging the Super 14 that would put pressure on our NPC, so there would need to be compromise in there somewhere. Brits will kick up bobbsy-dye about playing the 6N in summer, but there won't be any football to compete with
-
A couple of thoughts:
Barron's suggestions are ideal, as long as he wants to turn the game into Rugby League (no slur on League, but their international game is meaningless).
Rugby's success in the English clubs was significantly accelerated by England winning the RWC in 2003, without the "shop window" the game would have struggled along as it had done.
It's not often I agree with Murray Deaker, but surely the IRB's job is to protect Test Rugby as the pinnacle of the sport. Their lack of action is playing into the hands of the English & French clubs who want control over the game. I still believe that a global season is essential to save Test Rugby and stop these B-team tours.
SANZAR isn't exactly free of the blame in this, they have steadfastly tried to keep the majority of Southern Hemisphere rugby money to themselves at the expense of the Islands and Argentina.
Lots more to say, but that's a start
-
I laugh at the Aussie optimism about their scrum
That is making an observation, not being over-parochial
Paul Rowe, only thing is tat they’ve beaten us before when we’ve totally annihilated them in the scrum; a certain WC semi-final springs to mind
LB the Aussies aren't talking up their chances in the game, but they are talking up their parity in the scrums which is utter bollocks based on what they have shown so far. If anything saves them it will be the ref looking out for the weaker pack, which has happened before. I won't be happy to eat humble pie if proved wrong, but I will show admiration where it is warranted.
I was at Twickers in 1999 (and received hate mail from Brits in my job at the NZHC subsequently). I had thought that we'd calmed down a bit since, but, on listening to wankers like Veitch on the radio, it doesn't look like we have.
-
I laugh at the Aussie optimism about their scrum, even after the AB scrum fcuking demolished the Boks on Saturday.
Al Baxter, Matt Dunning? Give me a break.
-
Oh, and Anne's idea for survivor - brilliant! Can we start with a celebrity version? There's a few z-graders wasting oxygen I'd love to see go all Lord of the Flies!
-
Clarkson is one of those guys, like Basil Fawlty, that you watch and cringe at the same time. He has his persona and it works for him, I mean, seriously, he is all over the media in the UK, for better or worse. I find, now that I'm older, the less seriously I take him, the more entertaining he is.
One of his lines from Top Gear, which will always stick with me:
"Buying a car because it's reliable is like marrying someone because they're punctual."
-
A friend was going to name her son "Holden", not cos she's Australian (she is), but cos of that famous book.
She ran it past my 11-year old nephews who agreed it was a nice name, but confirmed he would definitely get teased about it in later years.
-
Andrew, that hurtified.
Stephen , what's the problem? Nounerise is a perfectly cromulent word
-
Oh and watch the out for the pains of spelling!
When we lived in South London a colleague of my wife's named her child Aiden. She liked Hayden, but figured everyone would just call him 'Ayden anyway. Say it like chav, it's more funny.
I spent my entire school career with a nice chap named Owen Moore, which seems apt for me the older I get...
My sister named her third boy (is that karma?) Charlie D, which makes him Chuck D in my house.
My wife was also at school with Benson & Hedges, how about that?
My three kids all have three names, plus their mother's, plus mine (not double-barrelled or hyphenated). It's a bitch filling out passport applications.