British and Irish Lions Team Talk/Gossip/Rumours Thread

Swiwi

danthefan wrote: »

You're a Kiwi right? By halfback you mean scrum half only? Then I'd tend to agree that the position is up for grabs but I'm not really sure if there's any uncapped players around who'd be good enough. It's not a vintage batch of SHs in the B&I Lions nations at the moment so you'd think if anyone was good enough to tour they'd have been noticed.

At outhalf it would take something bizarre for Sexton to not get picked imo.

Translations:

Half-back = scrumhalf
1st five = flyhalf/outhalf
2nd five = inside centre
Centre = outside centre

Yes, I was talking about scrumhalf!

Swiwi

This explains why NZ calls its 10 & 12 "1st-five eighths" & "2nd-five eighths"

http://www.rugbyfootballhistory.com/positions.html

errlloyd

If the front is the font row and the fullback is the back, this is it.

So basically in the formation, a "half back" is halfway back.

A "Five eighth" is five eights of the way back

A "Three Quarter" is three quarters of the way back

And a full back is fully back.

jacothelad

The Lions in Sydney:

The Lions have played 40 games in Sydney at an average of more than 3.6 games on each tour. Sydney has featured in every single one of the Lions’ 11 tours to Australia. a

A total of 12 of the 40 fixtures have been Tests, with the Lions triumphing on eight occasions for a 66 per cent win rate.

It’s the Wallabies who have enjoyed the first and the last laugh, though, thanks to victory in the first-ever Test in Sydney in 1899 and the most-recent encounter in 2001.
The city will feature twice on the Lions agenda in 2013, with the Waratahs waiting on June 15 before the third and final Test takes place at the Allianz Stadium on July 6.
P 40 W 30 D 2 L 8
1888: New South Wales 2 Lions 18
New South Wales 6 Lions 18
Sydney Juniors 0 Lions 11
New South Wales 2 Lions 16
Sydney Grammar School 2 Lions 2
University of Sydney 4 Lions 8

1899: New South Wales 3 Lions 4
Metropolitan 5 Lions 8
Australia 13 Lions 3
New South Wales 5 Lions 11
Metropolitan 8 Lions 5
Australia 10 Lions 11
Australia 0 Lions 13
Combined Public Schools 3 Lions 21
1904: New South Wales 0 Lions 27
New South Wales 6 Lions 29
Metropolitan 6 Lions 19
Australia 0 Lions 17
Australia 0 Lions 16
New South Wales 0 Lions 5

1908: New South Wales 0 Lions 3
New South Wales 0 Lions 8
Metropolitan 13 Lions 16
New South Wales 6 Lions 3
1930: New South Wales 10 Lions 29
Australia 6 Lions 5
New South Wales 28 Lions 3
1950: New South Wales 6 Lions 22
Australia 3 Lions 24
Metropolitan 17 Lions 26
1959: New South Wales 18 Lions 14
Australia 3 Lions 24

1966: New South Wales 6 Lions 6
Australia 8 Lions 11
1971: New South Wales 12 Lions 14
1989: New South Wales 21 Lions 23
Australia 30 Lions 12
Australia 18 Lions 19
2001: New South Wales 24 Lions 41
Australia 29 Lions 23

thomond2006

Sean Maitland coming to Glasgow and is SQ. Potential tourist?

Glass Prison 1214

thomond2006 wrote: »

Sean Maitland coming to Glasgow and is SQ. Potential tourist?

not for me, i reckon there is just too much talent in the back three as it is

Swiwi

Glass Prison 1214 wrote: »

not for me, i reckon there is just too much talent in the back three as it is

Well, he was seriously being talked about as an AB bolter in 2011 after a raging S15. Injury cut down his involvement this year, but a decent wing/fullback with a nose for the tryline is good value. I would replace Trimble with him in the Irish team, no questions asked. With Gatland as coach, who knows. Worth a bet at Paddy Power as a bolter, I would imagine.

Tox56

Swiwi wrote: »

Well, he was seriously being talked about as an AB bolter in 2011 after a raging S15. Injury cut down his involvement this year, but a decent wing/fullback with a nose for the tryline is good value. I would replace Trimble with him in the Irish team, no questions asked. With Gatland as coach, who knows. Worth a bet at Paddy Power as a bolter, I would imagine.

Don't think Trimble has a hope of getting on the Lions, he'll have difficulty holding down a place at Ulster from Gilroy, so probably not the best comparison. Zebo will probably be moving ahead of Trimble in the Irish pecking order soon anyway.

Swiwi

Tox56 wrote: »

Don't think Trimble has a hope of getting on the Lions, I think he'll have difficulty holding down a place at Ulster from Gilroy, so probably not the best comparison.

True! But he gets picked often enough for Ireland in recent times.

I think Maitland is a very very good outside back, but not yet tested as international level. I am sure he would have toured with the NZ Maoris in Europe next month. Glass Prison 1214 is very sanguine about the outside back talents in Europe, but I think Maitland is potentially up there with the best on offer.

buyer95

I wouldn't write off Tomas ' Leary's chance of getting into the Lions selection. By all accounts he has been a revelation at L.I.

Cpt_Blackbeard

buyer95 wrote: »

I wouldn't write off Tomas ' Leary's chance of getting into the Lions selection. By all accounts he has been a revelation at L.I.

Apparently he has been very good for the Not-Nots, but I haven't seen him play. I'd love for him to have a great game for Ireland and silence both his critics and his own demons.

Teferi

Have been watching LI, I think the new environment suits him. Been playing quite well.

Cpt_Blackbeard wrote: »

I'd love for him to have a great game for Ireland and silence both his critics

Criticism of his form has been valid.

jamiedav2011

Cpt_Blackbeard wrote: »

Apparently he has been very good for the Not-Nots, but I haven't seen him play. I'd love for him to have a great game for Ireland and silence both his critics and his own demons.

He'd need a fair few good games for Ireland to regain the confidence of the Irish rugby public tbh. Been rightly criticised for constant poor performances.

Fireball07

Teferi wrote: »

Criticism of his form has been valid.

That's fair enough but I think he was decent enough last season for Munster and we do miss him this season.

That said, I don't blame him for moving, he needed to re-invigorate himself. Delighted that it seems to be working out for him.

Cpt_Blackbeard

Teferi wrote: »

Criticism of his form has been valid.

I didn't say it wasn't, but much much of the criticism thrown his way did border on abuse; I'm in no way innocent from it either. Would it not be great for him to put it behind him and remind the Irish public that he was a deserving Lion pick?

Teferi

Cpt_Blackbeard wrote: »

I didn't say it wasn't, but much much of the criticism thrown his way did border on abuse; I'm in no way innocent from it either. Would it not be great for him to put it behind him and remind the Irish public that he was a deserving Lion pick?

Just making sure you're not circling the wagons needlessly

Would love for him to find his Lions form again.

Swiwi

thomond2006 wrote: »

Sean Maitland coming to Glasgow and is SQ. Potential tourist?

Thomond, I would say he will be decked out in Scottish colours come 6N time. Then all & sundry can judge for themselves whether he is Lions material or not. Right decision for him IMO: virtually guaranteed to feature regularly for the Scots, and the carrot of Lions & RWC 2015 to play for.

http://www.stuff.co.nz/sport/rugby/international/7855889/Sean-Maitland-joins-Glasgow-on-three-year-deal

CatFromHue

Swiwi wrote: »

Thomond, I would say he will be decked out in Scottish colours come 6N time. Then all & sundry can judge for themselves whether he is Lions material or not. Right decision for him IMO: virtually guaranteed to feature regularly for the Scots, and the carrot of Lions & RWC 2015 to play for.

http://www.stuff.co.nz/sport/rugby/international/7855889/Sean-Maitland-joins-Glasgow-on-three-year-deal

I'm in the wait and see category with him at the moment. I do hope it goes excellently for him but there will be a step up from Super rugby to International rugby (as there is from HEC to Intl) and areas he may be weak in will be exposed.

The wing for the Lions is one of the most competitive places too with Ashton, North, Visser, and Bowe all in the driving seat if you ask me.

Hagz

Am I the only one who watched the The Rugby Club - Lions Special today? Half decent watch. It was a rugby club show devoted to just the Lions. Anyway, it was pretty interesting. Scott Quinnell thinks Howley should be backs coach, whereas Shaggy and the others think Schmidt is the best candidate. The gist of it was that Sexton is favourite for the 10 shirt, O'Driscoll and Warburton are the panel's favourite for captaincy, though they said they'd prefer a squad captain with a captain being picked specifically for each test.

Teferi

Hagz wrote: »

they'd prefer a squad captain with a captain being picked specifically for each test.

Has that ever happened before?

Cpt_Blackbeard

Hagz wrote: »

Am I the only one who watched the The Rugby Club - Lions Special today? Half decent watch. It was a rugby club show devoted to just the Lions. Anyway, it was pretty interesting. Scott Quinnell thinks Howley should be backs coach, whereas Shaggy and the others think Schmidt is the best candidate. The gist of it was that Sexton is favourite for the 10 shirt, O'Driscoll and Warburton are the panel's favourite for captaincy, though they said they'd prefer a squad captain with a captain being picked specifically for each test.

Shaggy didn't come off well at all on it. He talked about how the provinces made a slow start to the season/HEC; pretty much ignoring Ulster and Connacht. When asked on his input he only really talked about people who he had actually played with/for: Schmidt for backs coach; Hines as the French-based player who should tour. He came off pretty clued out to any rugby being played outside of Dublin; I'd liken him to a less devisive Sheahan.

Hagz

Cpt_Blackbeard wrote: »

Shaggy didn't come off well at all on it. He talked about how the provinces made a slow start to the season/HEC; pretty much ignoring Ulster and Connacht. When asked on his input he only really talked about people who he had actually played with/for: Schmidt for backs coach; Hines as the French-based player who should tour. He came off pretty clued out to any rugby being played outside of Dublin; I'd liken him to a less devisive Sheahan.

It's difficult because he can't just not talk about players/coaches he has history with. In terms of out-half, Sexton is the best option. In terms of backs coach, Schmidt is the best option. In terms of captain, O'Driscoll is right up there for favourite with Warburton. But it does come off as kind of biased. I suppose that's just the unfortunate situation he's in. Anytime he talks about Leinster players/coaches he's going to sound a little biased. In terms of the Irish clubs, I wouldn't think much of it tbh. None of the panel really went into detail about the clubs. Greenwood only talked about Saracens for instance.

All in all though I thought he had a lot of interesting things to say. Like how he noticed a change in BOD and ROG after the 01 tour and how highly he rates Australian rugby. The one moment where I actually raised an eyebrow though was when he mentioned the return of D'Arcy in the same breath as the return of O'Connell. I'd rather not talk about him in the same post as Sheehan, although I will admit that I prefer Quinlan. It'll be interesting when BOD is in that role.

irishbucsfan

I thought the most interesting thing was when he spoke bout the 05 tour

Tox56

Cpt_Blackbeard wrote: »

Shaggy didn't come off well at all on it. He talked about how the provinces made a slow start to the season/HEC; pretty much ignoring Ulster and Connacht. When asked on his input he only really talked about people who he had actually played with/for: Schmidt for backs coach; Hines as the French-based player who should tour. He came off pretty clued out to any rugby being played outside of Dublin; I'd liken him to a less devisive Sheahan.

Connacht won against Zebre but got 0 points at home v Harlequins, I wouldn't exactly call that a lightning start. He did mention Ulster but you could see in his face as soon as he said it he realised he made a mistake, it's a live show and mistakes happen, he doesn't have some agenda. He suggested Hines and Byrne from Clermont for French-based players and pretty much the whole panel almost universally agreed Schmidt was the right man for the job. I can't say I'm surprised at your point of view but I think he is one of the more insightful analysts Sky have, even if his accent can be a little irritating at times.

Hagz

Hagz wrote: »

Am I the only one who watched the The Rugby Club - Lions Special today? Half decent watch. It was a rugby club show devoted to just the Lions. Anyway, it was pretty interesting. Scott Quinnell thinks Howley should be backs coach, whereas Shaggy and the others think Schmidt is the best candidate. The gist of it was that Sexton is favourite for the 10 shirt, O'Driscoll and Warburton are the panel's favourite for captaincy, though they said they'd prefer a squad captain with a captain being picked specifically for each test.

I think that's a far better call alright. I think that the Lions squad will unlikely have players who fit 2 let alone all of these categories

1 - A recognised Leader / Captain
2 - Likely to remain fit / be available for every Test
3 - Be a sure-fire starter for Test 1

Squad leader throughout, pack leader and captain on each Test day imo.

jacothelad

Deleted User wrote: »

I think that's a far better call alright. I think that the Lions squad will unlikely have players who fit 2 let alone all of these categories

1 - A recognised Leader / Captain
2 - Likely to remain fit / be available for every Test
3 - Be a sure-fire starter for Test 1

Squad leader throughout, pack leader and captain on each Test day imo.

Warburton hasn't been playing well enough to be selected for Wales let alone the Lions.

Swiwi

jacothelad wrote: »

Warburton hasn't been playing well enough to be selected for Wales let alone the Lions.

And O'Driscoll had a very average tour to NZ, especially the 3rd test.

The number 1 requirement of a captain is that he is guaranteed his starting spot by virtue of form. The Lions do not want a John Smit situation.

IMHO it is BOD vs Jonathan Davies for the outside centre spot - if BOD can show his NZ form was an aberration rather than a worrying trend, then he is a proven performer at the highest level and would get the nod from me. Form is temporary and class is permanent, so I hope BOD has a fantastic 6N.

If his form doesn't merit first-team selection, he would still make a great squad captain, if such a thing exists.

cgpg5

If you were to go down the route of selecting a captain who will be certain to start the three tests (as things stand) surely Rory Best has to be the leading contender?

roycon

Warburton hasnt dropped off in form at all. hes been plagued by injury because he throws himself into everything but for me he's the first name on the team sheet and the first captain. I suspect Jonathon davies and odriscoll will both get a run at some stage but it depends whos playing inside them. roberts will start if hes fit i imagine

i really hope tuilagi doesnt travel. hes a complete loose canon. jumping off boats and beating up his team mates. we dont need that

jacothelad

roycon wrote: »

Warburton hasnt dropped off in form at all. hes been plagued by injury because he throws himself into everything but for me he's the first name on the team sheet and the first captain. I suspect Jonathon davies and odriscoll will both get a run at some stage but it depends whos playing inside them. roberts will start if hes fit i imagine

i really hope tuilagi doesnt travel. hes a complete loose canon. jumping off boats and beating up his team mates. we dont need that

Well, I disagree. He was absolutely anonymous against Ulster and completely outplayed by Henry. It has been the same in the other games in which I have watched him this season. In Wales, Tipuric has been a far more effective player at 7.

I totally agree.