Top 14 Day 4

[Big Ewis]

Johan Goosen looks like he's got potential, but was largely a non-factor barring that drop goal from 50m. That took guts, he's a young FH with guts and one huge boot (got a huge kick into touch too). He did get baptised by Camille Lopez though..



Welcome to ze Top quatorze.

 

[Big Ewis]

beautiful Clermont try on 80m. I've made this a romantic video, keep with it you'll see.

 

[LeinsterMan (NotTigsMan)]

100% correct. Tigs, right now was really not the time to make that post !!...

well I couldn't have posted next week, otherwise it would have looked silly. My point still stands.

TBH flood has proved his worth as a 10 at tigers, and I don't remember him missing major overlaps at tigers often so it might have been the game play of Toulose? I don't know only watched 1 game so far but they tend to have both him and Macalister look to kick.

Also flood has more medal in on his shelve than Montpellier have on there's.

 

[gaston le gaff]

The very fact that he twice kicked the ball away, with both times a 4 against 2 in favour of Toulouse when a try was going begging, no one is talking about medals cups or anything else just very bad play and nothing else so your point has no point at all!!!! he was solely reponsible for kicking the ball away nothing to do with anyone else and no one else to blame. So he has more medals than Montpellier well done sir, but lost that game which they could have won hope he does not use the same excuse to his teammates!!! uh sorry boys screwed up but come see my medals!!!!!!!!

 

[Tony Manx]

Also flood has more medal in on his shelve than Montpellier have on there's.

Steady there boy, steady.....bit below the belt!! They were only médailles anglais!!!!

 

[Big Ewis]

well I couldn't have posted next week, otherwise it would have looked silly. My point still stands.

TBH flood has proved his worth as a 10 at tigers, and I don't remember him missing major overlaps at tigers often so it might have been the game play of Toulose? I don't know only watched 1 game so far but they tend to have both him and Macalister look to kick.

Also flood has more medal in on his shelve than Montpellier have on there's.

...there's something fishy about this, but I'll just go with it. You win this argument, but just you wait you sniveling seventh musketeer..

And yeah Toulouse suck considering what they've got, but Toby Flood was supposed to bring an answer exactly to that. Put order in that back line, activate it when needed, and set the tempo. He looked good during Day 1, but has had some very flat performances since, and that last one was really sub-par. I still like him and am sure he'll offer Toulouse something worthwhile.

 

[TRF_stormer2010]

I don't know where to put my head. Between the Boks refusing to play rugby in Aus and Racing getting schooled...

At least WP is looking like they are willing to play some actual rugby and are unbeaten after 5 rounds of Currie Cup. If only the test side took notes. With my lluck though we'll get anal retentive again when we put on our Stormers jerseys.

 

[Big Ewis]

Rougerie on the wing, a success. What, a focking, player. What a player. Can you believe that double yesterday gave em 88 total tries, that's the most ever in the Top 14 by one man. Never would've thought he'd have more than Clerc or Nalaga. Hope he can make it to 100 although it's a long shot. He's 34.

 

[Big Ewis]

Brilliant pass by Dupuy.

 

[TRF_stormer2010]

Giteau to RM92?

Article from Planetrugby.com

Racing Métro are preparing to make Matt Giteau the first million euro rugby player as they try to prise him away from Toulon.
The Australian playmaker has been the best player in the Toulon team over the last two seasons, running the show from both fly-half and inside centre.
That would make any move to bitter rivals Racing, a body blow for the current European champions, who are desperate to keep hold of the 31-year-old.
Currently believed to be earning around €600,000, Giteau would need a considerable pay rise to leave the club because of tax benefits he would lose by moving away from Toulon.
However Racing, who last week confirmed fly-half Jonathan Sexton would return to Leinster at the end of the season, are keen to bring in the Australian to take over as their first-choice fly-half according to the Midi Olympique, offering him €1M a season to convince him to come.
Giteau is not the only fly-half on Racing's radar, with Dan Carter and Rémi Talès also possibilities, however with Giteau's versatility, he and Talès could both be brought in by the Parisian club.
The timing makes this move all the more intriguing, with Racing president Jacky Lorenzetti and Toulon boss Mourad Boudjellal currently engaged in a war of words over salary cap breaches.
Meanwhile another Australian star could soon be on his way to France, with Quade Cooper apparently considering a lucrative offer with a French club, believed to be Lyon, after negotiations with the ARU stalled.

Ewww! An Aussie in the squad?!? No, thanks.

 

[gaston le gaff]

This is all media hype at the moment as Sexton has confirmed he is leaving the media have taken control and everyone from Carter to Trinh-Duc have been cited as possibles. Giteau being offered a million, not sure about that but lets read the rubbish that the media will print over the next month or so. Midol or Rugbyrame being the biggest culprits, what they do not know, they make up and then apologise 2 weeks later or quote "as printed in the Modol"

 

[FrenchFan]

that is true. I disagree Michalak isn't a creator quite firmly, but I do understand when you say he can be all dance, but sterile. I do not think he exercised that exclusively yesterday though. But I also am 100% certain he will go back to his old ways again eventually and it's not long before he throws errant passes or turns all febrile. And nobody thinks he can replace Giteau; even if he could keep a good level, Giteau is just simply a wiz.
But in the meantime, if he continues to play with punch and accuracy along with the excellent penalty kicking, he's a very nice second flyhalf to have, as a substitute or a maestro on the road in away games.
In terms of creation, he did create yesterday in spaces and timeframes that don't usually allow creation. He still has some of his old genius in him, that's undeniable. Whether he can be his team's metronome consistently, and insure a high level of creation throughout 80min is a different story. I'm not treading on that ground.

P.S.: "Chef d'orchestra", what language is that, modern latin ??

Michalak is on his way out of Toulon. No longer up to the standard. I watched him play and he is not up to it. Doesn't have the legs any longer. Used to be much quicker over 10-15 m. He's a liability in defense.
They keep him as cover for Giteau and with Wilko's retirement. He's got this season to see thru on his contract and he's out.

 

[Big Ewis]

Michalak is on his way out of Toulon. No longer up to the standard. I watched him play and he is not up to it. Doesn't have the legs any longer. Used to be much quicker over 10-15 m. He's a liability in defense.
They keep him as cover for Giteau and with Wilko's retirement. He's got this season to see thru on his contract and he's out.

These two things are true...
It's funny, I believe he's in the group of 30 currently. As I was taking a shiit some time ago, I was making a Top 10 best flyhalves in the Top 14 in my mind (because I get really bored taking shiits...) and I came up with this roughly, in no order:

1 Camille Lopez
2 Talès
3 FTD
4 Wisniewski
5 Plisson
6 Giteau
7 Urdapilleta
8 Sexton
9 Flood
10 Pierre Bernard
------
11 Brock James

I do believe all those guys are better than Michalak atm, over a full season. Interesting to see he's one of France's FH's when he isn't even in the Top 10 in the league...

 

[FrenchFan]

Johan Goosen looks like he's got potential, but was largely a non-factor barring that drop goal from 50m. That took guts, he's a young FH with guts and one huge boot (got a huge kick into touch too). He did get baptised by Camille Lopez though..



Welcome to ze Top quatorze.

un beau tampon he he

did you see his drop from 60 odd metre?!

 

[FrenchFan]

yeah, thought he looked very good ball in hand, made good decisions, served his back line with accuracy, quickness and moved very quickly. Repositioned himself well on a few plays. It's not his fault everybody on the Toulon squad decided to knock on for eighty minutes ! He was doing his job, and with good invention on a few of those dimes, and was as usual very good from the boot scoring points (except the last one, but that's rare from him). I did miss the opening 20 min.
Why, what am I missing ?

Was wondering what game you were talking about :huh: I thought he was awful.
Toulon were stale largely because of Michalak. His passing consisted in flicking short passes left or right to inject pace but it didn't do anything. There's very little alternative in his game, very few attempts to kick over or thru the defense which would have been an option.

 

[FrenchFan]

These two things are true...
It's funny, I believe he's in the group of 30 currently. As I was taking a shiit some time ago, I was making a Top 10 best flyhalves in the Top 14 in my mind (because I get really bored taking shiits...) and I came up with this roughly, in no order:

------
...

1 Camille Lopez: back from long injury. New club. Let's see
2 Talès: too old. Too slow.
3 FTD: best 10 in the league
4 Wisniewski: good start. Early to say.
5 Plisson: haven't seen SF play. No comment yet
6. JM Doussain: in the right environment I believe Jean Marc has something to offer as 10. Great to have him on bench, can cover both 9 and 10.
Now atm until PSA departs to Pole Emploi, Jean Marc is better off here.
10 Pierre Bernard: good league player, no more.

 

[Big Ewis]

un beau tampon he he

did you see his drop from 60 odd metre?!

56m, yep ! But he's got a long way to go still - will need to see more of him.

Was wondering what game you were talking about :huh: I thought he was awful.
Toulon were stale largely because of Michalak. His passing consisted in flicking short passes left or right to inject pace but it didn't do anything. There's very little alternative in his game, very few attempts to kick over or thru the defense which would have been an option.

you can put it this way, sure. I say he made the effort to keep ball in hand, look for ambitious solutions in stead of systematically kicking in empty spaces behind the opposing back three, and managed some creative passing in extremely narrow spaces and often created out of nothing, no momentum. And Toulon actually ran if you remember the game:





It's just as we've all seen the mighty RC Toulon had its worst game in months, and at home, maybe in a year or more. One word: knockon. Michalak isn't responsible for his entire backline being victims of the occasional but severe knockon plague. Michalak, Mignoni weren't responsible of that last weekend. The latter even called this match a mere "accident", which I agree with. Yes Bordeaux were good, but Toulon made a comical number of unforced errors.

My comment about Michalak not being in the Top10 for me is largely due to his inconsistency. He was lightning-quick and accurate on Saturday, but who knows next week, and the week after. He made his tackles, but is a liability on defense, and in the scope of the xv de France I'd rather have any of FTD, Talès, or Camille Lopez who just baptized Johan Goosen as seen above. Lopez against Racing, by the way: 11/11 tackles. Even Wisniewski and Bernard are more reliable on defense and they're not contact 10's. Plisson is on defense, like everything in his game, a work in progress, but he will not be an average 10 when he's done evolving.

Don't forget Michalak's last time ruling the world, it wasn't so long ago. November 2012. I know things have changed, and I of course don't want him for France, but just sayin..

 

[FrenchFan]

beautiful Clermont try on 80m. I've made this a romantic video, keep with it you'll see.

That Clermont move is the try of the weekend IMO. What a cracker.

Also Benito Masilevu solo try

 

[FrenchFan]

56m, yep ! But he's got a long way to go still - will need to see more of him.



you can put it this way, sure. I say he made the effort to keep ball in hand, look for ambitious solutions in stead of systematically kicking in empty spaces behind the opposing back three, and managed some creative passing in extremely narrow spaces and often created out of nothing, no momentum. And Toulon actually ran if you remember the game:

It's just as we've all seen the mighty RC Toulon had its worst game in months, and at home, maybe in a year or more. One word: knockon. Michalak isn't responsible for his entire backline being victims of the occasional but severe knockon plague. Michalak, Mignoni weren't responsible of that last weekend. The latter even called this match a mere "accident", which I agree with. Yes Bordeaux were good, but Toulon made a comical number of unforced errors.

My comment about Michalak not being in the Top10 for me is largely due to his inconsistency. He was lightning-quick and accurate on Saturday, but who knows next week, and the week after. He made his tackles, but is a liability on defense, and in the scope of the xv de France I'd rather have any of FTD, Talès, or Camille Lopez who just baptized Johan Goosen as seen above. Lopez against Racing, by the way: 11/11 tackles. Even Wisniewski and Bernard are more reliable on defense and they're not contact 10's. Plisson is on defense, like everything in his game, a work in progress, but he will not be an average 10 when he's done evolving.

Don't forget Michalak's last time ruling the world, it wasn't so long ago. November 2012. I know things have changed, and I of course don't want him for France, but just sayin..

His passing with his sideway flicking of the ball is prone to cause knock-on because he throws the ball more than pass it. His timing is poor.

 

[Big Ewis]

That Clermont move is the try of the weekend IMO. What a cracker.

Also Benito Masilevu solo try

fk that was annoying to watch when it happened...Toulouse are mediocre the whole match, okay in parts...and they work to be tied with less than 10min to go and this just happens, like it was nothing. All of a sudden a whole 15-man defense you can beat by running straight...so fkng frustrating. Fickou is too tall, he'll look clumsy, slow to react and easy to overtake for a low-center of gravity winger like Masilevu. I hope to never see Fickou on the wing again, that match was enough of an experiment.