Six Nations-Players to Watch

[gingergenius]

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (Bullitt @ Jan 11 2010, 12:54 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}></div>

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (gingergenius @ Jan 10 2010, 10:39 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>

I rarely believe anything the media say about anything. I've watched Foden and he's done that several other times. And from the highlights I watched of last week I saw Foden do nothing apart from gift Irish a try, Balshaw style.[/b]

So anyone who's ever given away an intercept try should now be compared to Balshaw?

That'll include Reihana, Armatidge, Catt, Lewsey, Robinson, Cohen, Catt, Greenwood, Wilkinson, Certer, Giteau, Mortlock, O'Driscoll, Michelak, Spencer, Mehertens, anyone and everyone who JdV has ever played against...

Thinking about it, when has Balshaw actually given away a try through an intercepted pass? I can think of many positional howlers, charged kicks and O'Gara-esc tackles that led to conceeding, but never an intercept pass.
[/b][/quote]

Mate, you're going off on a tangent. You (not me) cited last week's match as a fine example of Foden's amazingness. Gifting a try is what his main contribution to that match was - he certainly didn't get an assist in any of the other tries. So picking hairs about how people gift tries (still 5 points anyway) is irrelevant - just cite better examples next time.

 

[Bullitt]

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (gingergenius @ Jan 11 2010, 01:18 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}></div>

Mate, you're going off on a tangent. You (not me) cited last week's match as a fine example of Foden's amazingness. Gifting a try is what his main contribution to that match was - he certainly didn't get an assist in any of the other tries. So picking hairs about how people gift tries (still 5 points anyway) is irrelevant - just cite better examples next time.[/b]

Didn't make the trip up to Franklins Gardens did you? Basing your assertion on the 15 seconds of highlights ITV showed?

 

[feicarsinn]

I will not have O'Driscoll's name bad mouthed on this thread! I want proof he had a pass intercepted Mite or else!

 

[Ozzay]

Tom James is hes given a fair crack.

 

[gingergenius]

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (Bullitt @ Jan 11 2010, 01:25 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}></div>

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (gingergenius @ Jan 11 2010, 01:18 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Mate, you're going off on a tangent. You (not me) cited last week's match as a fine example of Foden's amazingness. Gifting a try is what his main contribution to that match was - he certainly didn't get an assist in any of the other tries. So picking hairs about how people gift tries (still 5 points anyway) is irrelevant - just cite better examples next time.[/b]

Didn't make the trip up to Franklins Gardens did you? Basing your assertion on the 15 seconds of highlights ITV showed?
[/b][/quote]

4 minutes. But they show the important bits of the match, which are what determine the results. Anyhoo, I don't see why I should have to trek it to Northampton to see why someone should play for England when we established a fullback last year who was brilliant at the job. Good, sustainable international sides don't develop overnight, so I see no point in disrupting the successful parts of the team for a player who is, yes, exciting, but also undeniably a gamble, when there were so many other areas where England need to improve.

If we had someone banging on the door with no question marks over vital parts of their game for the position they are in - like Courtney Lawes - then by all means they deserve a shot at the team. I've never seen Ashton cock anything up yet either. But finding a new solution to a problem solved is a waste of time.

 

[Ozzay]

Armitage was your best 6N player last year, i was suprised he didn't get picked for the lions!

 

[elgringoborracho]

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (Thingimubob @ Jan 11 2010, 01:40 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}></div>

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (elgringoborracho @ Jan 10 2010, 09:49 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>

France: Barcella, Servat, Harinordoquy, Dusautoir, Michalak, David, Bastareaud, Poitrenaud, Fall

Some come backs expected with Basta and Harinordoquy not having played with Les Bleus in a while (Bastareaud scored an unbelievable try against Biarritz this weekend, he's definitely back in form), and Michalak and Poitrenaud could also be called back since Dupuy will be missing at 9 and Poitrenaud is having an interesting season. David to finally show the rest of the world that he is a world class center, quick and immensely powerful.
Fall had a very promising debut against Samoa in the autumn, I hope he'll be given a chance to confirm our hopes, provided he's not injured come the 6N
Barcella, with Servat and possibly Marconnet to give a hard time to their counterparts!

6N>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>any other competition of any other sport. :bana:[/b]

I thought the FFR banned Bastereaud from playing for les Bleus for a while after his little trip and story telling? I swear I read they wouldn't play him for a year or something.
[/b][/quote]

Yeah he got banned for the AIs, mainly so he wouldn't play against NZ, which they probably wouldn't have liked. But I reckon he'll have the right to play in the 6N

 

[DonBilly]

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (elgringoborracho @ Jan 11 2010, 11:25 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}></div>

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (Thingimubob @ Jan 11 2010, 01:40 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (elgringoborracho @ Jan 10 2010, 09:49 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>

France: Barcella, Servat, Harinordoquy, Dusautoir, Michalak, David, Bastareaud, Poitrenaud, Fall

Some come backs expected with Basta and Harinordoquy not having played with Les Bleus in a while (Bastareaud scored an unbelievable try against Biarritz this weekend, he's definitely back in form), and Michalak and Poitrenaud could also be called back since Dupuy will be missing at 9 and Poitrenaud is having an interesting season. David to finally show the rest of the world that he is a world class center, quick and immensely powerful.
Fall had a very promising debut against Samoa in the autumn, I hope he'll be given a chance to confirm our hopes, provided he's not injured come the 6N
Barcella, with Servat and possibly Marconnet to give a hard time to their counterparts!

6N>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>any other competition of any other sport. :bana:[/b]

I thought the FFR banned Bastereaud from playing for les Bleus for a while after his little trip and story telling? I swear I read they wouldn't play him for a year or something.
[/b][/quote]

Yeah he got banned for the AIs, mainly so he wouldn't play against NZ, which they probably wouldn't have liked. But I reckon he'll have the right to play in the 6N
[/b][/quote]

Lievremont recently confirmed that Bastareaud can be selected for the 6N in principle. With Mermoz and Marty out for the first rounds of the 6N this makes it more likely.

 

[feicarsinn]

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (gingergenius @ Jan 11 2010, 09:52 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}></div>

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (Bullitt @ Jan 11 2010, 01:25 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (gingergenius @ Jan 11 2010, 01:18 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Mate, you're going off on a tangent. You (not me) cited last week's match as a fine example of Foden's amazingness. Gifting a try is what his main contribution to that match was - he certainly didn't get an assist in any of the other tries. So picking hairs about how people gift tries (still 5 points anyway) is irrelevant - just cite better examples next time.[/b]

Didn't make the trip up to Franklins Gardens did you? Basing your assertion on the 15 seconds of highlights ITV showed?
[/b][/quote]

4 minutes. But they show the important bits of the match, which are what determine the results. Anyhoo, I don't see why I should have to trek it to Northampton to see why someone should play for England when we established a fullback last year who was brilliant at the job. Good, sustainable international sides don't develop overnight, so I see no point in disrupting the successful parts of the team for a player who is, yes, exciting, but also undeniably a gamble, when there were so many other areas where England need to improve.

If we had someone banging on the door with no question marks over vital parts of their game for the position they are in - like Courtney Lawes - then by all means they deserve a shot at the team. I've never seen Ashton cock anything up yet either. But finding a new solution to a problem solved is a waste of time.
[/b][/quote]

Agree completely. I feel one of England's biggest problems over the last few years has been a lack of consistancy in selection. Players seem to only get 3-4 games in the side before being cast aside which means they're never going to settle as a team and play to the sum of their parts. Look what Ireland and Wales have achieved over the last few years with settled teams and talent pools arguably no larger than England's.

 

[Bullitt]

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (gingergenius @ Jan 11 2010, 09:52 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}></div>

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (Bullitt @ Jan 11 2010, 01:25 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (gingergenius @ Jan 11 2010, 01:18 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Mate, you're going off on a tangent. You (not me) cited last week's match as a fine example of Foden's amazingness. Gifting a try is what his main contribution to that match was - he certainly didn't get an assist in any of the other tries. So picking hairs about how people gift tries (still 5 points anyway) is irrelevant - just cite better examples next time.[/b]

Didn't make the trip up to Franklins Gardens did you? Basing your assertion on the 15 seconds of highlights ITV showed?
[/b][/quote]

4 minutes. But they show the important bits of the match, which are what determine the results. Anyhoo, I don't see why I should have to trek it to Northampton to see why someone should play for England when we established a fullback last year who was brilliant at the job. Good, sustainable international sides don't develop overnight, so I see no point in disrupting the successful parts of the team for a player who is, yes, exciting, but also undeniably a gamble, when there were so many other areas where England need to improve.

If we had someone banging on the door with no question marks over vital parts of their game for the position they are in - like Courtney Lawes - then by all means they deserve a shot at the team. I've never seen Ashton cock anything up yet either. But finding a new solution to a problem solved is a waste of time.
[/b][/quote]


I'm not denying that Armatidge did a lot to make the shirt his own last season, however what you said is "[Foden] an't even be sure to be in the same postcode when the ball lands" & "a clown at fullback" which is simply not true. Foden is excellent under the high ball and is worthy of being competition for the 15 shirt. Also, those highlights didn't show you the several try-saving tackles he made during the match - One of which on his opposite number.

And for that matter, Armatidge dropped several high balls (you know, the one thing "experts" always accuse Foden of) and should have been binned during the closing moments of game for coming off the try line swinging a punch at Geraghty (when he squatted down was lining up the final conversion) unawares... He got frustrated and completely lost the plot on several instances during the game. For an "established international" - Which is a big call after only 7 tests - That sent him down a few rungs in my estimation.

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (gingergenius @ Jan 11 2010, 09:52 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}></div>

Anyhoo, I don't see why I should have to trek it to Northampton to see why someone should play for England when we established a fullback last year who was brilliant at the job.[/b]

That sounds like a microism of the entire England problem.

Change a few things here...

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (Martin Johnson)</div>

Anyhoo, I don't see why I should have to trek it to [Anywhere] to see why someone should play for England when we established a [player] last year who was average but a close friends of mine or other management.[/b]

 

[gingergenius]

Ok well we'll agree to disagree about Foden's skillset, this is going nowhere.

Also, Armitage was well down everyone's (but my own, I've yapped about him for 3 years) list but got his chance through injuries to others. He never played with Johnson, plays for Irish who are not an establishment club... all he's done is play pretty well in all of his 11 caps. So you can't fault him - he was given a chance, and he took it. I agree a lot of the selections made have been senseless, but that's not to say everyone in the team didn't deserve to be there.

 

[King_D'Arcy]

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (feicarsinn @ Jan 11 2010, 10:56 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}></div>

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (gingergenius @ Jan 11 2010, 09:52 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (Bullitt @ Jan 11 2010, 01:25 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (gingergenius @ Jan 11 2010, 01:18 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Mate, you're going off on a tangent. You (not me) cited last week's match as a fine example of Foden's amazingness. Gifting a try is what his main contribution to that match was - he certainly didn't get an assist in any of the other tries. So picking hairs about how people gift tries (still 5 points anyway) is irrelevant - just cite better examples next time.[/b]

Didn't make the trip up to Franklins Gardens did you? Basing your assertion on the 15 seconds of highlights ITV showed?
[/b][/quote]

4 minutes. But they show the important bits of the match, which are what determine the results. Anyhoo, I don't see why I should have to trek it to Northampton to see why someone should play for England when we established a fullback last year who was brilliant at the job. Good, sustainable international sides don't develop overnight, so I see no point in disrupting the successful parts of the team for a player who is, yes, exciting, but also undeniably a gamble, when there were so many other areas where England need to improve.

If we had someone banging on the door with no question marks over vital parts of their game for the position they are in - like Courtney Lawes - then by all means they deserve a shot at the team. I've never seen Ashton cock anything up yet either. But finding a new solution to a problem solved is a waste of time.
[/b][/quote]

Agree completely. I feel one of England's biggest problems over the last few years has been a lack of consistancy in selection. Players seem to only get 3-4 games in the side before being cast aside which means they're never going to settle as a team and play to the sum of their parts. Look what Ireland and Wales have achieved over the last few years with settled teams and talent pools arguably no larger than England's.
[/b][/quote]

It's also become a tradition of England's over the last few years in the 6N to introduce some seemingly unorthodox "winning formula". Like bringing talented rugby league players into the side, or snatching up non-English premiership players before they can play for their own countries, or bringing middle-aged centers out of retirement. These are all just quick-fix solutions and none of them have paid off.

 

[Bullitt]

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (King D'arcy @ Jan 14 2010, 01:34 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}></div>

It's also become a tradition of England's over the last few years in the 6N to introduce some seemingly unorthodox "winning formula". Like bringing talented rugby league players into the side, or snatching up non-English premiership players before they can play for their own countries, or bringing middle-aged centers out of retirement. These are all just quick-fix solutions and none of them have paid off.[/b]

Who can forget Mark Van Gisbergens 15 second cap...

 

[Charles]

New-ish players to watch: Fall, Domingo, Guirado

New and possible bolters: Estebanez, Porical, Tchale-Watchou, Lapandry

 

[Jockstap]

For Ireland - Sexton, Healy, Cronin, O'Brien and a back in form Trimble.

 

[An Tarbh]

given how comfortable Earls looked against the Springboks it's hard to see either Horgan or Trimble dislodging him despite Sky's claim to the contrary.

As for Armitage, after his perfomance yesterday at HQ he's not looking that safe a bet to be picked for the opener against Wales now.

 

[stormmaster1]

For England, i don't think we should replace Shaw with Lawes (unless Shaw's fomr is rubbish at the moment). We should replace Borthwick with Lawes. Shaw and Lawes would complement each other well.

Foden needs to get a chance, but i wouldn't start him over armitage.

Coles: throw him in early and see if he sinks or swims, or give him more time at tigers and with saxons to develop. not sure which is the best call.

I think the players to watch for England will be Moody and Flutey. The 2 players who can inject some dynamism in the pack and get the backline moving a little more.

 

[gingergenius]

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (An Tarbh @ Jan 25 2010, 12:35 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}></div>

As for Armitage, after his perfomance yesterday at HQ he's not looking that safe a bet to be picked for the opener against Wales now.[/b]

I'm Armitage's biggest fan, but this is true. Foden has clearly been in form, but what made Armitage better was his kicking/ highball game, which is usually excellent. But I watched the Irish vs Leinster game, and the 1st 20 mins for Armitage were shocking. He dropped 2 or 3 catches, had a kick charged down, and made a meal of an admittedly nasty hit by Horgan.

That's not enough to drop him, but he needs to fix up quickly, because whatever his flaws may be, Foden really is banging on that door.

 

[Olyy]

I reckon Foden will be on the bench for Wales, then start against Italy,

It's not like Johnson to mix things up before a big (or any, really) match, same with Ashton/Lawes

 

[erwanseb]

Newcomers/Young players for France:
Fall, Lapandry, Palisson, Bastareaud