Egg Chasing WC

[Bubbles]

Well... there’s always next time.

[alexxxxx]

And this is why I don't like rugby. All penalties. South Africa don't even look like they even wanna score a try. 

[Bubbles]

3 minutes ago, alexxxxx said:

And this is why I don't like rugby. All penalties. South Africa don't even look like they even wanna score a try. 

south africa are like a gary rowett team

[alexxxxx]

Honestly this is such an awful sport dunno why people go and watch this every week it boggles the mind. 

[Turk Thrust]

18 minutes ago, alexxxxx said:

And this is why I don't like rugby. All penalties. South Africa don't even look like they even wanna score a try. 

Oops!

[AndyinLiverpool]

8 minutes ago, alexxxxx said:

Honestly this is such an awful sport dunno why people go and watch this every week it boggles the mind. 

Managed about 10 minutes before I couldn’t take any more. 
 

each to their own, I suppose. But as someone born and bred in the town of Rugby, I ducking hate the sport. 

[alexxxxx]

2 minutes ago, Turk Thrust said:

Oops!

Opportunist try tbh 

[dcfcfan1]

2 tries 

[Mr. P]

Rugby's rubbish anyway! ?

[Van der MoodHoover]

Didn't see that coming. Everything that was good about our performance last week turned to dust. How many unforced errors......

South Africa generally play a negative form of anti-rugby. But when you cough it up as many times as England did why do anything different. 

Ref was very curious at the scrums. But most bizarre, as we seemed to have got back into things we stopped doing those things and tried to do different things without success. 

A great shame but a good tournament. 

[CWC1983]

Didnt think SA had that performance in them but that was an absoloute tactical masterclass. 

Early pressure in rugby shapes much of the game and they didnt take their foot off Englands throat the whole game. 

England and France can take a lot of positives from performances of their youngsters in the tournament.  Scotland, Ireland, Wales may face a few seasons of transition. 

[LeedsCityRam]

Absolutely gutted but the Boks executed an absolute masterclass on us. We looked shaky early on & never truly settled. Can only remember one foray into their 22 & we only left with 3 points.

We go again.

[Comrade 86]

Still sulking. We didn't turn up really but intentionally or otherwise, the officials had an absolute mare. I counted at least a dozen infringements at the breakdown that Skeen, Poite and Garces apparently did not. Half of them right under Garces' nose. We know he understands how to ref the breakdown as he didn't miss a trick when Pocock and Hooper were trying it on. It rather leaves a bitter taste after what was a brilliant tournament. The rule book went out the window today it seems to the point that if you're English and the ball goes forward off your thighs, this is now deemed a knock on. The opposition can also shut off the ball, use their hands when they are off their feet, not release, not roll away, enter rucks and mauls from the side, all without any fear of getting pinged. As Dallagio said after the period of English pressure around 10 minutes into the game, Garces could have binned half a dozen players, so many infringements were there over the 25 phases and I'm not even counting players who were stood offside or even directly between our 9 and 10. When Farrell politely enquired of Garces why he'd not even issued a warning, let alone a yellow or two, Garces screeched, 'one penalty, I saw only one penalty'. I knew then we were done and I think the lads did too.

Losing Sinckler so early in the game also really hurt us. I've all sorts of respect for Dan Cole who in his prime, was as good a tighthead as anyone in the game, but he was rightly set aside tears back now so quite how he ended up as first replacement in a RWC campaign is beyond me. To be fair to Eddie Jones though, this was not his fault. We showed how we can play against the Kiwis but today we were like rabbits in the headlights. 

My last whinge concerns Ben Youngs. Matt Dawson wrote in his BBC column that he fancied Youngs to boss de Klerk! Great player that Matt was, he needs to stop bigging up his mates as it just makes him look stupid. Youngs can only really zip a ball off one hand and even then he always puts in a stride or two before he does so. His passing was absolutely atrocious today with twoone of his efforts thrown into touch and another missing Watson by about 5 yards! All game long, when we did have the ball and tried to go wide, he was so worried about getting smashed by the SA back row that he hardly once gave his 10 or centres a ball to run onto instead standing them up static for the SA back row to demolish. It was like watching a car crash in slow-mo. Grrrr.

Heyho, fair play to the Saffas. I can't say I'd want our lads to play that way as it's basically anti-rugby but having been robbed against the Kiwis 4 years back, I suppose it's swings and roundabouts. There's a Lions tour to SA in 2021 which I'm going to take my lad to, so we can exact our revenge on them in their own backyard. Despite 4 of my 5 wagers going south today, I have the small mercy that I've banked nearly 8 grand across the tournament so the cost of the trip is already covered. Right now though, I'd gladly give it all back if we could play that game again. 

Anyway, sorry for the long waffle chaps. Another bottle of wine now required to drown my sorrows, I think!

COE

 

 

[1967Ram]

Every cloud has a silver lining - I had South Africa in the work sweepstake. Obviously would rather we'd won the game though.

[LeedsCityRam]

@86 Schmokes & a Pancake, would definitely agree the officiating was poor. Not biased though as I've seen Garces have some absolute shockers in the past, he's just a very poor referee. And how Ben Skeen got the TMO gig after that ridiculous call late on in the Eng v Aus QF is beyond me. No surprise he didn't see any forward passes when looking again at the Boks' first try.

I don't think they're the reason we lost though. Like you say, Youngs started very badly & losing Sinckler was a real psychological bodyblow. Think Jonny May has admitted it affected the positive mindset of the team & against such a stubborn opponent, we just couldn't wrestle it back. What irked me is we knew exactly how the Saffas would play but seemingly had no real plan for it (in contrast to games v Australia & All Blacks)

The one potential chance was with about 30 mins to go - having got it back to 18-12, we had a bit of possession & a penalty 45 yards out. For me, that needed a kick deep in their 22 and a catch and drive from the line out (Farrell missed the penalty instead). We just didn't play enough in their half which we needed to given how big they are - had we moved them around constantly left & right in more dangerous areas, I'm sure they'd have run out of gas.

Guess it stings more given how well we've played throughout the tournament - I really thought it was our year. The only silver lining is that the majority of our starting XV are young enough to see another World Cup. Hope the Lions tour makes up for some of the disappointment for you ?

[StockholmRam]

This is a tough one as where we are today compared to 4 years ago is a massive difference. And most of that is down to Eddie.

However, we have seen England be at their very best and worst during his tenure. Umpteen points up v Springboks and Scotland only to be incredibly pegged back. The mindset of us this year has been a little jeckyl and hyde. Putting on the very best performance in my lifetime v All Blacks only to turn to dust a week later. 

Im happy compared to four years ago and yet terribly dissapointed by yesterdays final performance. 

Its an Eddie " thing" i have long worried about. A world cup final, chasing the game v a very dangerous and organised team required a change of plan and players. The one guy we could have turned to, the mercurial genius of Danny Ciprinani is inexplicably back home in England playing club rugby. Meh. This is what baffles me. 

Can you imagine the ABs without BB or Springboks without De Klerk. 

Its like the old England football thing not giving msny games to the likes of Le Tissier, Hoddle, Currie, Charlie George. 

[Van der MoodHoover]

Difficult to know the psychology of our players but I got up to double figures in terms of basic errors and then gave up as it clearly looked like "one of those days".

From youngs hurling passes out of play 3daly failing to field chip kicks to itoje being lifted under a kick off resulting in another knock on to george missing lawes with his throw. 

It was as poor as I'd seen us play in a while. 

And Eddie doesn't know why we lost. Okay. Should be an interesting post tournament review at hq.....

[Van der MoodHoover]

But just to add on the reffing at the scrums, there were 2 pens against England which looked the wrong way - one when the front rows popped up and it was the sa who stood first. The second for taking the scrum down when it was shown on tv that it was an SA knee that went down 1st.

And why, when the England pack marched through, had the penalty but had control of the ball was it brought back for the penalty. Where was the advantage?

All a bit odd, but it was our self inflicted errors that lost it.

[Comrade 86]

32 minutes ago, Van der MoodHoover said:

But just to add on the reffing at the scrums, there were 2 pens against England which looked the wrong way - one when the front rows popped up and it was the sa who stood first. The second for taking the scrum down when it was shown on tv that it was an SA knee that went down 1st.

And why, when the England pack marched through, had the penalty but had control of the ball was it brought back for the penalty. Where was the advantage?

All a bit odd, but it was our self inflicted errors that lost it.

That in particular annoyed the piss out of me. Je did the same midway through the seonf half when he finally pinged SA for going offside. A certain try called back for a penalty? I mean, really? We had at least 2 or 3 men over there and a converted try gives us the lead and a different game. An absolutely awful day's work from Garces. Shocking. As @LeedsCityRam has already pointed out though, if we'd shown our real form, all of this would still have been safely negotiated. I never want to see Youngs in an England shirt again. Imagine us with the likes of Aaron Smith, de Klerk, Genia or Murray sipping passes off the back and sniping. We'd really be a handful.

Heyho! I'll get over it! 

[Van der MoodHoover]

5 hours ago, 86 Schmokes & a Pancake said:

That in particular annoyed the piss out of me. Je did the same midway through the seonf half when he finally pinged SA for going offside. A certain try called back for a penalty? I mean, really? We had at least 2 or 3 men over there and a converted try gives us the lead and a different game. An absolutely awful day's work from Garces. Shocking. As @LeedsCityRam has already pointed out though, if we'd shown our real form, all of this would still have been safely negotiated. I never want to see Youngs in an England shirt again. Imagine us with the likes of Aaron Smith, de Klerk, Genia or Murray sipping passes off the back and sniping. We'd really be a handful.

Heyho! I'll get over it! 

We haven't had a half decent scrum half since Matt dawson imo.

And he wasn't brilliant but was a bit quicker and more spontaneous than youngs. 

The other problem position for me has been full back as Daly has not inspired and not only knocked on but lost a couple of high balls yesterday. His running lines are generally awful and he seems to have lost pace.