Union is at best the ninth biggest sport in Australia and dropping rapidly.

Merely a reversion to the status quo in this country after the Super League debacle.

Read this last night. makes the final even less appealing. www.thisislondon.co.uk/standard- ... h-rugby.do

Read this last night. makes the final even less appealing. www.thisislondon.co.uk/standard- ... h-rugby.do

Quote ="dids858"Read this last night. makes the final even less appealing. www.thisislondon.co.uk/standard- ... h-rugby.do'" I fancy Leicester to win but I might back SAracens. Had a decent sized bet on Leicester ante-post so it would be a win-win situation (nobody mention the draw!). Won't be able to watch the final myself as I'm going to a pre-Champions League party. According to his close mate Mark O'Meley, Willie Mason will be playing in the centres at Twickenham Sunday. If that's true I think his performance will depend on the amount of time he spends on the pitch. Remember, this is a 31 year old bloke who's never played rugby union. If he plays most of the game I can see him coming unstuck and embarrassing himself, whereas if he's used sparingly I reckon a couple of barnstorming runs will have the union journos' quills exploding.

Quote ="dids858"Read this last night. makes the final even less appealing. www.thisislondon.co.uk/standard- ... h-rugby.do'" I fancy Leicester to win but I might back SAracens. Had a decent sized bet on Leicester ante-post so it would be a win-win situation (nobody mention the draw!). Won't be able to watch the final myself as I'm going to a pre-Champions League party. According to his close mate Mark O'Meley, Willie Mason will be playing in the centres at Twickenham Sunday. If that's true I think his performance will depend on the amount of time he spends on the pitch. Remember, this is a 31 year old bloke who's never played rugby union. If he plays most of the game I can see him coming unstuck and embarrassing himself, whereas if he's used sparingly I reckon a couple of barnstorming runs will have the union journos' quills exploding.

Inside centre would suit him as he starts to learn the game, wasn't that where Sarries stuck Andy Farrell?

You're not asked to do anything too technical usually, just get over the gainline and recycle the ball. Anyone runs at you, put them down and then get off the tackled player. Much like being a league back-rower really.

I think he'll be told to just carry it up the middle in atack but he'll need to be helped out in defence. Do you think his positioning might be a bit suspect? I can see him putting a big shoulder in if he's on the field long enough. Wonder if anyone has told him that's a no-no in union.

I didn't realise tackling was illegal, though I have suspected it for many years.

Sad and witheringly pathetic. www.stuff.co.nz/dominion-post/sport/rug ... urned-down

Sad and witheringly pathetic. www.stuff.co.nz/dominion-post/sport/rug ... urned-down

Quote ="Catalancs"Sad and witheringly pathetic. www.stuff.co.nz/dominion-post/sp ... urned-down'" The only accurate statement in there from the Union gang is the last sentence "Given we're going to have hundreds of thousands of people watching those games from all over the world we need it be right," she said yesterday She won't get far in Union circles suggesting that hundreds of thousands on people will be watching the Union World Cup rather than the traditional audience that stretches into the billions

Quote ="Catalancs"Sad and witheringly pathetic. www.stuff.co.nz/dominion-post/sp ... urned-down'" The only accurate statement in there from the Union gang is the last sentence "Given we're going to have hundreds of thousands of people watching those games from all over the world we need it be right," she said yesterday She won't get far in Union circles suggesting that hundreds of thousands on people will be watching the Union World Cup rather than the traditional audience that stretches into the billions

It flies in the face of those who say union has changed. It can't be creating a good image within the local community either.

Leicester by 3.

Quote ="Catalancs"Sad and witheringly pathetic. www.stuff.co.nz/dominion-post/sp ... urned-down'" And they say union has no problems with RL now,what a joke.

Quote ="Catalancs"Sad and witheringly pathetic. www.stuff.co.nz/dominion-post/sp ... urned-down'" And they say union has no problems with RL now,what a joke.

Why are Saracens so bloody negative?
Can't see Leicester getting back into this so League 2 play-off final for me.

ps Toby Flood



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So a sixth name goes on the trophy.
Those two missed penalties around ten minutes into the second half.


Amazing defence from S.A.racens at the end there but Leicester just didn't look like getting the try.
And why on Earth did Leicester change their game?? They looked like a second-rate S.A.racens, trying to methodically grind down the opposition. What happened to the Leicester who score tries for fun??
Toby Flood was upstaged by young Owen Farrell and while I lost my match and ante-post bets I'm more than happy for his dad Andy.

On the whole a rather cagey and ultimately dull game which had me flicking between it and the football.

But according to the spiritual heirs of Josef Goebbels in the RU press this one try kickathon was edge of the seat excitement.

Everyone is entitled to his or her own opinion. Penalties are an integral part of union and so it often leaves me shaking my head when people moan that there were no tries without actually having seen the match.
I always find the best way to judge a game and form an honest opinion is to sit down and watch the thing.
As I said, I was disappointed with how negative both teams were. It suited Saracens down to the ground and Leicester only really have themselves to blame.
Mark McCall 1-0 Richard Cockerill.

[url=http://www.guardian.co.uk/sport/blog/2011/may/31/rugby-union-end-of-season-awardsGuardian rugby union end-of-season awards[/url

Most Memorable Games
England v Australia. One of the great England performances, capped by Chris Ashton's super-soaraway try.

International player of the season
Chris Ashton. Ignore the swallow dives and marvel instead at his support running instincts and ever-improving all-round game.

Best newcomer(ish)
Sonny Bill Williams. He has the ability to attract a whole new audience to the sport.

Try of the season
Dan Carter (Crusaders v Sharks, Twickenham). Sonny Bill's off-load, Carter's slick finish. The best things in sport always look deceptively simple.

Rugby league can be proud and rightly so





Most concerning aspects of the season
1 Big-name players behaving like idiots
2 Decline in refereeing standards
3 Rise in abuse of match officials

All three sadly and worryingly true.

1. Such is professionalism.
2. Well, when they make it so complicated for them...
3. They can't try and poach new audiences, most of whose previous sorting experience is football, and expect them to conform to their idea of how to behave at a match. Double-edged sword if ever I heard of one.

And now Brian Kennedy saying that he wants to "do right by Stockport County"- so if it works for him, he sells Edgeley for housing and turfs County out to share with Woodley Sports or Alty?

And now he's eyeing up Salford Reds and Barton.

They will have to watch themselves will the Reds.

You only have to see what he did to Stockport FC to see this.

However- don't Salford City Council own the stadium? Or at least a major share?

I think it is the council but whether they do indeed own the stadium or not, one of the key factors here is that it isn't owned by Salford. I can see the sense it would make, at least financially, to have sport being played there year round. However I can also see the danger and why some Salford fans are uneasy at the prospect of sharing with Sale Sharks. Like most things these days the stadium and complex will be looked at as a business. If Sale Sharks can bring more revenue in than Salford then I think they could supersede The Reds in the Barton pecking order.
Whether Brian Kennedy is partly to blame, totally to blame or innocent when it comes to events at Edgeley Park doesn't really matter. He and by association his rugby union club have gained a certain reputation which will live on for many many years.

Aren't Sale's crowds better than Salford's at this moment.

Let's hope the good people of Salford get behind their team to make sure the blighters don't get any ideas.

I think Sale Sharks got around 7,500-8,000 on this season. Salford are way off that.

Thought as much mate.

[url=http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/sport/rugby_league/3615202/Crusaders-launch-a-bid-for-Mike-Phillips.htmlMike Phillips to rugby league?[/url

USA 8-87 England Saxons
England scorers:
Brown 2, Johnson, Young, Sharples, Penalty, Hodgson, Kitchener, Trinder, Benjamin 3, Twelvetrees
Con: Clegg 11


Is the Churchill Cup valid?

I don’t want to depress myself but I am sure that if I searched through the on-line and printed press I would find many many mentions of the plucky US team and the ‘sublime’ skills of the English players – all of which continues to validate the international sport of Rugby Union (as similar scorelines in the Union World Cup will)

Whereas a similar result in a full international between England and France in Rugby League leads us to drop the fixture... I can’t express the frustration I feel when our sport continuously talks itself down