Six Nations 2023 General Discussion

c.p.w.g.w · 12-02-2023 5:56pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120232677#Comment_120232677

like the first few scrum penalties were a joke, also Genge got away with a no arm "tackle" and some of his scrummaging was far from legal, suppose being in the ref's ear speaking English definitely helped i'm sure

Faugheen · 12-02-2023 6:00pm

Easy to give out about the referee but Italy made a lot of silly errors when they were getting some momentum behind them.

Encouraging though. They’re definitely getting better.

bluedex · 12-02-2023 6:01pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120232665#Comment_120232665

You do. Clear and obvious pen for Italy but England not being reffed at all in this game. An awful display of officiating.

stephen_n · 12-02-2023 6:06pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120232397#Comment_120232397

I had to Google it, I thought it was Ireland and Wales and was the millennium Quelch but there you go.

All_in_Flynn · 12-02-2023 7:00pm

I don't think Genge can scrum very well legally. He constantly looks under pressure and then just resorts to driving in. Gets away with it all too often.

thebaz · 12-02-2023 10:43pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120232524#Comment_120232524

smaller nations rarely get a good deal in international rugby

Akrasia · 12-02-2023 11:20pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120232298#Comment_120232298

Not too many international refs speak Irish...

Akrasia · 12-02-2023 11:26pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120233721#Comment_120233721

He's a young inexperienced ref. Hopefully he improves. Today's performance was pretty poor. Italy got some calls, but England were consistently fouling and got away with 90% of them

ersatz · 12-02-2023 11:31pm

I don't know what happened Italy in the first half but they were a different team in the second, even the way they held up in the scrum was night and day. Serious bollocking in the dressing room.

randomname2005 · 13-02-2023 6:44am

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120233933#Comment_120233933

Or good coaching. Leinster were getting destroyed in the scrum in the hc comeback final, and it all changed at half time. Coach might have identified something they could do to help keep it solid

AbusesToilets · 13-02-2023 12:29pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120234513#Comment_120234513

Force Genge to drive straight basically. Amazing how he consistently gets away with boring in when under pressure. Ref was atrocious at scrum time.

A2LUE42 · 13-02-2023 1:22pm

I was getting annoyed with the commentator praising England's line speed when it was clear that they were miles offside for a lot of the game and it was ignored by the ref.

phog · 14-02-2023 7:10pm

https://twitter.com/_AlexBywater/status/1625541113401511936?t=8sb1-LdA5iEr9f7_cbGAcA&s=19

Wales rugby is really in trouble, the regions have been in bother for a number of years but that now has led to a very poor national team too.

Hopefully they'll get the finances sorted as the Pro14 and the 6Ns need strong Welsh teams

sydthebeat · 14-02-2023 7:19pm

WRUs reaction is to stick their fingers in their ears and go nah nah nah.

The sooner the amateur game and the professional game split there the better for all welsh rugby

Cosmo Kramer · 14-02-2023 7:36pm

They've dug their own hole in Wales, I can't say I have much sympathy. They got away with it for the last 10 or 12 years because they've had a core group of 25 or so really good players who have done really well for them at international level and papered over the absolutely massive cracks underneath the national team.

But without the structures in place they were bound to hit a fallow period eventually and now it has arrived. The biggest surprise for me is that Gatland has come back for this period, he should have had the sense to be long gone out of Welsh rugby by now.

They need a complete rebuild from the bottom up, but it's more likely that the WRU will just try to tough it out and hope another generation of good players emerges of their own accord in the next few years.

lawrencesummers · 14-02-2023 8:42pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120240835#Comment_120240835

They were on strike for the first two games, another one wont make any odds

lawrencesummers · 14-02-2023 8:43pm

Watching back the eng v italy highlights the english defense on their own try line is just embarrassing.

Cosmo Kramer · 23-02-2023 7:24pm

Wales rearranging the deckchairs again this weekend, nine changes from the team that took a hammering against Scotland. Two 20 year old centres in the team.

Wales: Leigh Halfpenny; Josh Adams, Mason Grady, Joe Hawkins, Louis Rees-Zammit; Owen Williams, Tomos Williams; Gareth Thomas, Ken Owens, Tomas Francis, Adam Beard, Alun Wyn Jones, Christ Tshiunza, Justin Tipuric, Taulupe Faletau.

Replacements: Bradley Roberts, Rhys Carre, Dillon Lewis, Dafydd Jenkins, Tommy Reffell, Kieran Hardy, Dan Biggar, Nick Tompkins.

Former Former Former · 23-02-2023 8:04pm

I can't believe Leigh Halfpenny is their best option at FB

lawrencesummers · 23-02-2023 8:50pm

Gatland has one card left to play and thats to try and fill his team with bluster, because he cant fill it with excellent players, it should be easy enough to motivate a welsh side at home against England but he is probably going down the line of saying people are questioning their commitment and welshnes after threatening strike etc etc.

I expect a big welsh backlash, a massive performance, a noisy home crowd and an english win.

sydthebeat · 24-02-2023 12:28pm

England by about 18

i cant see emotion being enough for the welsh, they're a bit of a raggle taggle group of yung' un's and auld lads.

england will smother and suffocate the life out of them in the most boring form possible.

24-02-2023 1:08pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120283001#Comment_120283001

Yeah, this is exactly how I feel about this game too. I know normally you get a reaction, but I don't even know if that's applicable here. The Welsh players must feel a bit besieged by the events of the past few weeks, and it was really telling for me how little support they got through this from the wider Welsh public.

Before even going into how chaotic their 2023 has been so far with a new coaching ticket, and a lot of changes for each game, the last week in particular must have been extremely mentally exhausting on them.

They can't be well prepared for this, and while you'll see a bit of heart from them, if England click at all then they should be comfortable.

Dubinusa · 24-02-2023 2:35pm

The last couple of matches between France v Scotland have been highly entertaining. They've also been relatively close. If Scotland beat France, their buttons will be up.

I reckon they have a chance. They beat France and who knows?

Quin_Dub · 24-02-2023 2:35pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120283001#Comment_120283001

I don't think England will win by that much - I think it's a one score game either way , with England the more likely , but if Wales score first and get the crowd behind them then I think they might have a shot.

Oddly enough I think the likely English game plan somewhat helps Wales.

The legs have gone from AWJ and the rest of the old heads in the Welsh pack and as such they struggled hugely against the pace that Ireland and to a somewhat lesser extent Scotland brought.

England seem to have reverted to slow grinding rugby of one out runners , kicks to the corner and mauling. AWJ in particular is expert at messing up mauls and slow ball.

It probably won't be enough , but I suspect that Wales will be far more competitive against the English game plan than they were against the speed of Ireland and Scotland.