The briefest of all possible previews.
Georgia v Fiji
Fiji are a very good side, but have not played a test match due to their Covid problems. Georgia were much improved last week. Georgia by 5.
Ireland v Scotland
Both sides looking rather pedestrian at the moment. With the inexplicable void where Hamish McFuckface should be, as well as the return of Sexton and Ireland’s home advantage (and despite the dropping of McCloskey), Ireland by 10.
Wales v Italy
Wales by 25. You know why.
England v France
With France putting out a C side, there is not much doubt: England by 15. Although I suspect France will throw some surprises England’s way.
Onna telly this week
Friday 4th December
| Bristol 18 – 17 Saints | ||
| Connacht 31 – 14 Treviso |
Saturday 5th December
| Australia v Argentina | 08:45 | Sky Sports Arena |
| Georgia v Fiji | 12:00 | Sky Sports Arena |
| Ireland v Scotland | 14:15 | Amazon Prime |
| Bulls v Cheetahs | 14:30 | Sky Sports Arena |
| Leicester v Exeter | 15:00 | BT Sport Extra |
| Wasps v Newcastle | 15:00 | BT Sport Extra |
| Worcester v Bath | 15:00 | BT Sport Extra |
| Wales v Italy | 16:45 | S4C / Amazon Prime |
| Golden Lions v Western Province | 17:00 | Sky Sports Arena |
| Glasgow v Dragons | 19:15 | Premier Sports 1 |
Sunday 6th December
| England v France | 14:00 | Amazon Prime |
| London Irish v Sale | 14:30 | BT Sport Extra |
| Gloucester v Harlequins | 16:15 | BT Sport 1 |
Ovally Balls 
Good win for the Drags. Painful for the lad missing the conversion to win it, but being a soppy old get I was pleased to see the good spirit between the teams at the end.
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Was it Brandon Thomson?
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It was, Tam.
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Thus capping a wonderful day for me personally….
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“This wet squid thing is going to run and run….”
I think it’s got legs.
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Or arms. Or tentacles. Not sure what I think really.
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@BB – On the plus side Dova’s alive.
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There is that.
For those that watched the Glasgow game, was the kick at the end a conversion or penalty? Lots of chat on the Glasgow FB group about Dragons moving as Thomson was about to kick, but if it’s a conversion they can (attempt to) charge it down.
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Just read the report – so it was a conversion attempt, and Dragons players can charge the kick. Not sure what the fuss on the FB page was about then. Seems as though Thomson should have made the kick anyway.
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Can one by hoisted by his own squid?
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hoisted by your own calamar is close enough, Flair, in rhyming terms at least.
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It’s a good thing petard isn’t a French word right enough
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dammit, I just thought of a better version of that joke,
ahem,
To paraphrase George Bush, The French don’t have a word for petard
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I could be here all night.
just trying to improve on a bad premise
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@Ticht – I wouldn’t ink it in just yet.
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“Pétard comes from the Middle French péter, to break wind”
You learn something every day.
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It also means arse, particularly if said arse is rather large.
Also means a type of cigarette almost legal.
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‘“Pétard comes from the Middle French péter, to break wind”
You learn something every day.’
Ah yes, the same root as Le Pétomane, sans doute, a breaker of wind by profession.
People paid to watch, apparently.
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“Some of the highlights of his stage act involved sound effects of cannon fire and thunderstorms, as well as playing “‘O Sole Mio” and “La Marseillaise” on an ocarina through a rubber tube in his anus.”
I would pay to watch (and listen). And if I could do it I suspect I would do little else.
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I wonder if embouchure is something he worked on, or if the tube fits internally, probably not.
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Think of all the talent lost as a result of potential petomanes starting out with the wrong sized ‘mouthpiece’.
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“Soon after he left school, he had a strange experience while swimming in the sea. He put his head under the water and held his breath, whereupon he felt an icy cold penetrating his rear. He ran ashore in fright and was amazed to sense water pouring from his anus. While serving in the army, he told his fellow soldiers about his special ability, and repeated it for their amusement, sucking up water from a pan into his rectum and then projecting it up to several yards.”
Honestly I’d never stop.
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You could make a fortune with a can of petrol and a cigarette lighter
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Are you going to post Mr Methane videos or am I?
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@OT – I was just thinking the same thing.
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Testing
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Ooh it’s working! Yesterday watching Wales-Italy I tried posting loads but they never appeared. It was like screaming into the void. Hello to Dova. Sorry to hear you’ve been having a bad time. Like you I didn’t post/catch up on here for months, mainly because life was so busy. But it’s lovely that the notablog ticks along and that we receive such a warm welcome when we return.
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My dad used to have a dictionary of French slang and found it hilarious that “to go for a shit” could be translated, “couler/chier un bronze”
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Dab – for some reason, WordPress saw fit to dump your posts in the spam bin. I have rescued them.
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@Thaum – very decent of you. Not that they were in any way enlightening!
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Hola Dab!
My son worked at Oddbins in Calais some years ago – his French became very good, but his vocab. was ‘enlightening’ to say the least.
La francais du trottoire ……………….or something!
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Calais? I’m pretty sure Boris is getting that back for us this coming week. And then it’ll be the Queen’s English all the way.
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Peter Alliss RIP
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@BB, Rhodri Williams charged towards the kicker and the ref adjudged he set off before the Glasgow lad started his run up, so Rhodri was sent back behind the goal line. Perhaps a bit of gamesmanship to put the kicker off, but it was in a field position where it was harder to miss it than to kick it – at least how it looked from my armchair.
Anyway, no shame in losing to the Drags
🏃
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Seems like it was a bit of a Frothy Facebook Frenzy. Glasgow fans up in arms because an opponent was deemed to have done something terrible (and not ‘in the spirit of the game’), but if it had been the other way around…..
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Morning all, thanks Thaum for the info.
No stream yet on VIP, but fortunately have French TV now so I can practice my ( virtually non existant ) French. If Boris is going to trade a piece of France for fish, perhaps Aquitaine instead of Calais ?
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Lovely try from France!
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was about to say France are looking pretty handy. nice try, they look well up for it today.
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Elbow to Genge’s head there, lucky it didn’t connect. Jalibert and Dulin playing really well.
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Ha, 13-6, about right too. Not bad for a 3rd team.
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Fantastic defence from France.
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Well defended France.
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15 guys in blue really want to impress their coach. England looking a bit shell shocked and directionless.
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France very good value for their lead, but there were two very blatant penalties for not rolling away in that last passage that really should have been given. First it was the French 7 after Curry’s charge, next was after Ford’s run. But England didn’t even deserve the attacking platform they had at that moment.
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Have to say I am really enjoying this. Can Les Bleues keep this up for another 40? Hope so. England may have to do something more than play kick tennis to be in this game.
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Un “bleu” in old French slang is a rookie, a new soldier.
Not bad for those bleus.
I still think England will walk away with this game but they must up the intensity. Because those Bleus won’t decrease theirs.
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Je pense que les commentateurs sont un peu fatigue quand ils disent ” la chandelle”. Moi aussi.
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I bet Billy V smiled as he got up after that
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What the hell was that from Jalibert?
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Daly should really have done better with that 2-on-1.
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