• Help Support The Rugby Forum :

What's your squad look like?

Russell can tackle and defend better than a lot of guys bigger than himself.

He chooses to spend less time in the gym and more time on his laptop studying the likes of Pollard and that worked out pretty well at the weekend.
 
Russell can tackle and defend better than a lot of guys bigger than himself.

He chooses to spend less time in the gym and more time on his laptop studying the likes of Pollard and that worked out pretty well at the weekend.
I'm going to say his apparent comparative lack of bulk helps with his dexterity shifting the ball around the body. Certainly nothing wrong with his defensive ability either.
 
Shame the Scottish team can't defend as well as their fans

:p
 
Shame the Scottish team can't defend as well as their fans

:p
Fierce ones us Scots 😂

We need a harder hitting pack, the second rows have been a bit lacking in heft and a bigger 8 would be better.

Hope Cummings has a good stint from the bench he's a great athlete
 
1000020110.jpg


Class of 2025
 
'The selection of eight foreign-born players in Farrell's original squad sparked debate around the selection of those born in the southern hemisphere. Lions great Willie John McBride said their selection "bothered" him, and after the additional call-up of tighthead prop Finlay Bealham – who was born in Australia – former England scrum-half Danny Care said their presence did not sit well with him when those players never dreamt of playing for the Lions.
"Both your starting wingers are going to be lads that never, ever once in their childhood or even their mid-twenties dreamt of wearing a red Lions jersey," Care said on the BBC Rugby Union Weekly podcast in reference to New Zealand-born James Lowe and South Africa-born Duhan van der Merwe.
"It is what it is, it's the rules, and why not. If you're James Lowe or you're Duhan van der Merwe or you're [Jamison] Gibson-Park, you go, 'Oh, I'll play for the Lions, yeah.'
"We're not going to change it, but it just doesn't… I think there's a lot of people that feel the same but can't say it." '



The thing is we all know how really those players shouldn't be eligible for Ireland/Scotland in the first place.
 
"Irish citizens shouldn't be eligible for Ireland" - Mike Tindall's burner.

Those opinions scream privilege and lack of awareness to me to be honest.
 
For the millionth time I will also add Bealham and Hansen are not qualified on residency grounds and have been eligible for an Irish passport since the day they were born.
 
I think there's often a double standard with people from predominantly immigration heavy nations vs emigration heavy nations.

Danny Care is from a country that no one needs to leave due to lack of opportunity. Willie John McBride was from a community that was largely similar, certainly in comparison to the other half of the people. There's just a lack of understanding of life from them.

Obviously there's no issue with Maro Itoje. But let's say his dad is a world class boules player, the argument here is that a man who has lived for decades in England, gained citizenship and raised an English captain shouldn't be allowed to represent them. Starting to get into words ending with -ism here...
 
Just cut off all switching via residency as soon as you become a pro player, would stop 99% of these think pieces in an instant.

Easy, done, make sure my WR consultancy fee cheque is in the post
 
Just cut off all switching via residency as soon as you become a pro player, would stop 99% of these think pieces in an instant.

Easy, done, make sure my WR consultancy fee cheque is in the post
I mean even then, if you commit five years to one place I think you've earned it. That's not a project or whatever you want to call it, just life circumstances changing. Happens the world over in every industry.

Nation switching should be kicked. And I wouldn't be against being tied by 20s World Championship appearances but it's in a fine place as is.
 
I feel we've had this conversation before, and definitely have different POVs on it - I completely disagree, but different strokes for different folks
Fair fair. I just can't back a system where playing for a rugby team has a more restricted entry threshold than gaining citizenship for most countries.

That's pretty much where my logic begins and ends.
 
The thing is we all know how really those players shouldn't be eligible for Ireland/Scotland in the first place.
Please don't think that you're speaking for everyone.
"A few loudmouths" =/= "Everyone"
I think there's often a double standard with people from predominantly immigration heavy nations vs emigration heavy nations.
Worth noting then, that Australia, New Zealand and South Africa are absolutely immigrant heavy nations - it's just that the mass of their immigration wave (from Europe) happened more than 2 generations ago
Just cut off all switching via residency as soon as you become a pro player, would stop 99% of these think pieces in an instant.
As always, it depends on whether rugby wants to be an olympic sport or not
 
Last edited:

Users who are viewing this thread

Latest posts

Top