Gazing at life through a haze of opiates, I’m intensely relaxed about not getting a proper blog post up, and just giving you the matches.
But I will add an emphatic TSK!* that the Cardiff and Ulster matches have yet again been scheduled at the same time.
*This is more vehement than a PFFT!
6N Blog Meet Update
The Heidelberg Tourist Information Bureau has posted this:
Falcon tries to decide whether to deliver a TSK! or a PFFT!
And this.
And as a reminder, here’s the info.
On the telly this week
Friday 3rd January
| Cardiff 14 – 16 Scarlets | 19:35 | Premier Sports 2 |
| Ulster 38 – 17 Munster | 19:35 | Premier Sports 1 |
| Sales 48 – 10 Harlequins | 19:45 | BT Sport 1 |
Saturday 4th January
| Treviso 19 – 38 Glasgow | 13:00 | Premier Sports 1 |
| Gloucester 29 – 15 Bath | 15:00 | BT Sport 2 |
| Dragons 25 – 18 Ospreys | 15:00 | Premier Sports 1 |
| Zebre 41 – 13 Cheetahs | 15:00 | Freesports |
| Leinster 54 – 7 Connacht | 17:30 | Premier Sports 2 |
| Edinburgh 61 – 13 Southern Kings | 19:45 | Premier Sports 1 |
Sunday 5th January
| Wasps 31 – 35 Northampton | 15:00 | BT Sport 2 |
Ovally Balls 
Cricket tension is unbearable, which is why I’m assuming there is such a paucity of comments here. England have battered away and have reduced South Africa to 237/7 with 18 over to go. They should get those three wickets, as we’re now into the tail proper (even if Vernon Philander would disagree). 9 overs since a run was scored!
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About all I know of cricket is the apparently oft used phrase ‘England batting collapse’
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Is one of those due yet?
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‘So I could be a Welsh club coach or a drug dealer. I’ll keep the blog posted.’
why not do both?
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“Of Course I Still Love You”
Clearly inspired by the Culture books. As is his neural lace thingy. Although, that wasn’t always a good thing in the books.
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Testing…
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Where is this Wisting available? Netflix or elsewhere?
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Its on BBC4 here, Mr Tester.
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Yos, Big Phil’s LinkedIn page is, fair play, mightily impressive. He’s the genie out of the lamp, and the Os would be daft not to consider a dream team with him directing rugby and AWJ player-coaching. Probably pre-empting CMWs thinking there.
Which signings do you think AWJ was having a dig at? The Os seemed to be shipping out rather than recruiting – he can’t mean North and Scott Williams I assume?
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Ah. Is BBC4 on normal tv or is it an online / streaming thing?
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Normal TV and also on iPlayer.
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Johnnie Beattie retired – only 34! Thought he was older. He seemed to be a player who had all of the skills, but perhaps not the application? Which also brings me in mind of Simon Taylor, although I think he was more injury-hit.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/rugby-union/51025724
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And the Big Man is officially back!
https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/rugby-union/51026974
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Kitson must have noticed that Haskell has been homaging Gervais throughout his changeover to mediacrat.
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Have to say I find Gervais singularly unfunny. Just get the feeling that he’s incredibly pleased with himself, and we’re all just here to see how clever he is.
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It’s not a dig at any player. He acknowledged that the players are busting a gut, but it’s obvious they’re short on quality, particularly when team Wales players are team Walesing. They haven’t replaced players who’ve left and have recruited in the wrong areas, their overseas signings have been way down on what they were – even when they stopped flashing cash at Jerry Collins and the like, they identified and signed really good value overseas players like Hassler, Arhip, Ardron, Fotuali’i who could pick up the slack during international periods. They’ve got that massive Moldovan who is shit, some Angie back row who couldn’t get a game in ProD2, Lesley fucking Klim… In two years they’ve gone from having Welsh international Sam Davies to Luke Price as the backup 10 – how can it not be obvious that you’re not going to get away with playing someone of that quality, especially in a RWC year? Remember when they had Sam Lewis to cover 7 when Tipuric was away? Now they have Sam Cross and the human tortoise that is Olly Cracknell. Hopeless identification of talent and where they need depth to cover those who are away for long periods.
He’s taking the biggest stick he could find in Swansea market and waving it in the direction of those who’ve been in charge of recruitment at the Ospreys, and those in charge of those with responsibilities for recruitment. No other player in Wales could get away with saying ‘this place is a shambles’, but he’ll have shamed the top of the hierarchy into making changes by going public on their fuckwittery.
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The new DAnny MacAskill vid – it was apparently filmed at the gym at Scotstoun, the Glasgow Warriors ground, which is owned by the council
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Also, ScrumV has finally become watchable by dropping the shit banter-lite approach, binning Jiffy, Charlo and the rest of the gravy squad (sadly Holley remains), having match highlights which actually show more rugby than just the tries and by giving Squidge (of Squidge Rugby off of the internet fame) a platform to show how rugby works rather than listen to inane bang numbers it’s on bollocks.
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Yos, there is a similar feeling among Glasgow fans, the team stuck together for a while but now they are maturing age-wise the star boys are begining to move on. Treacle was never really replaced, Finn was replaced with Hastings, or rather they overlapped, no one has been brought in to replace Hoggy and there is wonderment over who is going to be brought in to cover for Jonny Gray, although the rumour is that his older brother is on his way home. Nakarawa won’t stay beyond the end of the season, word is the stumbling block over his move to Sale was his asking price of 65K per week, but if he is looking for that sort of wedge, he won’t be in Scotland next season, that is for certain.
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65K per week? That’s 3 million a year.
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@ticht
It’s always going to be an issue for teams with smaller budgets to keep their best players indefinitely, but you can paper over the cracks a bit if you’ve got people with a good eye for the kind of players you need that come in at a lower price and are a bit below the radar. Scottish rugby have done a pretty amazing job by identifying players like Mata, Nakarawa, Matawalu, Nel, Toolis, D.T.H. etc. but you have to keep on finding gems every year. That’s probably the hardest part.
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Johnnie Beattie Scotland highlights reel, it doesn’t have some of my favourit bits, but it’s a fun watch.
Good choon, too, there is a distinct possibility that Sag produced it, or worked on it in some capacity
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It is, for sure. I think we’ve got another one in Duhan van der Merwe, and probably Kebble and Schoeman at loosehead, but the idea behind the new academy system and the Super 6 is to produce our own, whilst also keeping an eye open for those gems.
Having only two teams also means it’s difficult to get young guys game time, I haven’t checked yet but in the upcoming U20s 6N Scotland will probably have the least amount of senior experience among the players. Jack Blain played one game for Edinburgh last season and Rory Darge was in the Edinburgh squad that played the Os in a preseason in August, and that’s it.
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Ta for the very informative answer Yos.
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“65K per week? That’s 3 million a year.”
That’s the rumour, though if it’s near the truth it’s probably more likely 65k per game as opposed to a whole 52 week year
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Am not sure Kebble or Schoeman could be described as “being under the radar”.Both SA Under 20s and lots of Super Rugby caps.
van der Merwe more likely. His defence wasn’t rated much in Pretoria and then he had that weird year in Montpellier. Always scored lots of tries.
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BB – I get where you are coming from with Gervais (although I’d be pleased with myself in his shoes) but I think it might just be his demeanour. I had a friend at school who was similar in that way.
He is extremely suited to tearing into a bunch of hypocritical A listers at a Hollywood awards show though.
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Stats are fun:
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Hadn’t had a haircut in a more than little while.
Finally had the opportunity over the holidays, (four days ago to be exact…)
The stylist/barber/hairdresser did their thing.
A haircut and a beard trim.
I can trim my beard better than it looks now. (And I am not very good at it still.)
What confuses me is why she edged my hairline?
I now have stubble around my forehead, (fivehead?)
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Stubble around the forehead? Long time since I was able to worry about such things!
So England did it with a few overs to spare yesterday. Great Test match, with Sibley’s ton and Stokes’ destruction with bat and ball the highlights for sure, along with, in a more understated way, Malan’s Stalingrad defence, which almost got us the draw. Love Test cricket.
Very little real rugby news down here at the moment.
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Very little real activity at the moment.
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Likewise… going to have to face into it later this week – most hairdressers/barbers here are too fond of the clippers … 1, 2, 3 or 4 tends to be the scope of their ability
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All working too hard, Deebee.
Apart from craigs. Who’s shortly to be embarking on his new pharmaceutical distribution career.
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Haircuts eh.
Let mrs chimpie loose with the clippers at the weekend after she’d done the kids. fortunately I’m not too fussy on style.
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Although i don’t have a stubbly forehead like LADOAB
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And you’re cheap.
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Sir Iain Duncan Smith to give him his full title.
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Thrilling rugby news from South Africa! Both the Sharks and Stormers warm up for the gruelling months ahead with matches against lousy uni sides! Morne Steyn declares he wants to make the Bulls 10 jersey his own! Nothing from the Lions! Although given that they’re recruiting a Dad’s Army with the likes of Jannie du Plessis and Willem Alberts on the books, it’s no wonder they’re being so quiet.
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Sharks are playing Russia – twice, Deebee.
Plus, it’s SuperHeroSaturday in Soweto next weekend. You goijng?
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Are you posting from 2008?
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He’s got two rivals – Mannie Libbock, young and flakey but I like him, and Marnitz Boshoff, who the Bulls cut once before.
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Les French name a 42 man squad for the 6N. Also a new captain in Charles Ollivon. #bewaretheflair
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That’s a phenomenally green squad. Some good young players but if England rock up with their strongest XXIII they’ll crush them.
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Only two players over the age of 28. I still think they will clown at least one team that isn’t Italy.
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hmm
lots of young lads / zero caps
no Vahahahamina – hurrah!
no Raka – boo!
Dangerous – nothing to lose / all to play for…………………………………….I like it. I await Flair’s view………………
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ps
I do my beard
wife does my hair
rustic.
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Sharks are playing Russia – twice, Deebee
I know, but they play NWU before Russia, so it makes better copy. I’m not going to the Calabash, unfortunately, as I’ll be away that weekend. Also don’t fit into my slinky Spiderman outfit after a rather over-indulgent New Year. Spidey with a beer belly prolly not going to charm many!
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World Cup 2023 firmly on their minds. Jordan Joseph next, please.
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That sounds like Robert du Preez set it up before he got the sack.
Stormers are playing all 4 Western Cape universities. I quite like the idea of it. And they’re doing it in Parow or somewhere. Good practice for the Uni teams, a workout for the Stormers. Am in favour of it.
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