Rugby World Cup 2015

[superheavyrhun]

Wales gave it a go, but were outsmarted by a tough team, in what I fear maybe a clean sweep of Southern Hemisphere sides in the semis. This World Cup has shown the Northern Hemisphere has a lot of catching up to do.

Could well be the case, Argentina v Ireland is where this sweep will be won or lost, and it is much closer than the Irish hope it will be. France are showing some character, but really NZ have to be a hugely strong favourite from their position at 24-6.

The All Blacks are putting in a performance that is a level above anything seen so far. That is what they can do, that no one in the Northern Hemisphere can approach. Australia are the only team that might compete on this form.

The all black jersey is very expensive but looks cool cost over £50. England is half that.

Yes, but why buy a jersey that you can only wear in the privacy of your own home?

[Master]

What are Argentina doing beating Ireland? This should not be happening.

[Britkid]

What are Argentina doing beating Ireland? This should not be happening.

You reckon? I would call it pick'em beforehand; and 15 minutes in an easy Argentine win. But kudos to Ireland they are showing spirit and are still very much in it.

[Britkid]

And now Ireland...

Some rightly suggested English rugby is in crisis; this weekend has shown it is the all of the Six Nations that are not up to scratch and need a rethink.

Argentina are the real deal, if they sort out the lineout and have a bit of luck, on this performance they could do the Aussies next week.

[Master]

Scotland could pull this off!!!!

[Master]

Maybe not.

[superheavyrhun]

Maybe not.

I think that the Six Nations teams in the quarters all had plenty of courage showing in their performances, apart from France, but I think Argentina have come on in leaps and bounds since joining the Rugby Championship, and they might give the Aussies a run for their money.

Scotland were brave, but like Wales they just couldn't hang on for the win.

[Britkid]

Maybe not.

I think that the Six Nations teams in the quarters all had plenty of courage showing in their performances, apart from France, but I think Argentina have come on in leaps and bounds since joining the Rugby Championship, and they might give the Aussies a run for their money.

Scotland were brave, but like Wales they just couldn't hang on for the win.

'Plenty of courage' really is not a defence anymore. In this era there should be at least parity with the Hemispheres; indeed money wise it should be argued Northern Hemisphere dominance. Something is very wrong with our rugby...

[X]

Money and numbers don't buy everything, Britkid

[Britkid]

Money and numbers don't buy everything, Britkid

As sadly we have found out to, ironically, our cost!

[Master]

Maybe not.

I think that the Six Nations teams in the quarters all had plenty of courage showing in their performances, apart from France, but I think Argentina have come on in leaps and bounds since joining the Rugby Championship, and they might give the Aussies a run for their money.

Scotland were brave, but like Wales they just couldn't hang on for the win.

Rugby body admits that ref was wrong and banned from semi final as punishment.

[X]

It does look like the referees call was wrong, but the Scots aren't covering themselves with glory with all their bleating.

They played very well (against a very shoddy Australia display. England and Wales would have likely won had the Wallabies performed like that against them)

However, the fact remains that Scotland had the game by the scruff of the neck. They had a throw from their own line out with three minutes to go. Any quality team would have thrown short, retained the ball and wound down the clock.

They botched their own line out badly, just as England did against Wales. It was that failure of execution that cost them the game, as they should not have ended up in a position where a tough decision may have gone against them at the death.

[X]

Six good and 6 bad things about the 2015 World Cup so far ........

- Australia's defence against Wales when two men down.
- Japan. Also the so called lesser teams being much more competitive
- Group A. It's about time the group stage became a real part of the knock out stages!
- Argentina's improvement. They are in the semis totally on merit
- at least 8 utterly thrilling games (so far!)
- the spirit in which the players still play the game

- ITV's very very poor coverage of the tournament
- Injuries, especially to Wales. 10 players out!!!
- No Northern Hemisphere teams in the semi finals at a NH World Cup.
- World Rugby throwing Craig Joubert under a bus and not backing him
- Unfair scheduling to Tier 2 nations. Japan having a 2 day turnaround between the Springboks and Scotland
- The disgusting media feeding frenzy when England went out

[superheavyrhun]

So, the All Blacks beat the Boks with what essentially came down to a great third quarter from NZ. South Africa were probably the better side for much of the game, but they just didn't have the cutting edge to put NZ to the sword. Good game, interesting at times, scrappy at times, but you've got to think the All Blacks are taking home the trophy again.

[Britkid]

A bit closer than I thought it would be. Fair dues to South Africa, after the Japan calamity they have finally shown their excellence, because they were struggling to get out of third gear before today.

I think New Zealand beat... Argentina in the final. I know Pocock is back for the Aussies, but I still think the Argentinians will scrape through in a brutal war, maybe by less than three points too.