2020 was a fabulous year. If you’re a highly contagious virus. For the rest of us, it meant lockdowns, Brexit, and – most importantly – severe disruption to the rugby schedule.
The Six Nations finished on Hallowe’en, and we had an odd Autumn Nations Cup, in which one nation never played. Leagues were all over the place. Mostly, fans are still not allowed to attend matches, even when those matches have not been cancelled.
On the up side, the Saracens got relegated.
And there is the sheer beauty of this to end the year (thank you, Beeb):
Meanwhile, the OvallyBalls mascot is on the scent of newsworthy items.
She has been paying attention to recent news items, including this article, which contains the following snippet:
This requires not only forwards tracing (identifying who you might have given the infection to) but also backwards tracing (where you got it from).
Obviously, tracing both backwards and forwards is her forté, but it has caused her to wonder if, in rugby, we should refer to the forwards and the backwardses. Or be like the French, and call them the in-fronts and the behinds. She likes behinds.
But enough of that shite….
A new year has just emerged, squalling and puking in the manner of these things, and we have been finally shat completely out of the EU, but we do have the hope of vaccines (along with the knowledge that the Tories will inevitably fuck up the distribution).
And now Chimpie has a fully erect Melbury (no, me neither) that he is preserving and oiling. So that’s good news for him, even if the rest of us may wonder what the purpose of this ‘Melbury’ is.
I raise a glass to all the contributors and lurkers of OvallyBalls, with best wishes for 2021 for yourselves and those you care about*.
Happy new year!
*Except where that involves teams playing Ulster or Ireland.
Onna telly this week
Friday 1st January
| Bristol v Newcastle | 15:00 | BT Sport Extra |
| Scarlets v Dragons | 17:15 | S4C / Premier Sports 1 |
| Cardiff v Ospreys | 19:35 | S4C / Premier Sports 1 |
Saturday 2nd January
| Pumas v Lions | 12:00 | Sky Sports Mix |
| Treviso v Zebre | 13:00 | Premier Sports 2 |
| Wasps v Exeter | 14:00 | BT Sport 2 |
| Sharks v Griquas | 14:30 | Sky Sports Mix |
| Edinburgh v Glasgow | 15:00 | Premier Sports 1 |
| Gloucester v Sale | 16:30 | BT Sport 2 |
| Cheetahs v Western Province | 17:00 | Sky Sports Mix |
| Ulster v Munster | 17:15 | Premier Sports 2 |
| Leinster v Connacht | 19:35 | Premier Sports 2 |
Sunday 3rd January
| Leicester v Bath | 15:00 | BT Sport 1 |
ticht,
https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2021-01-02-vaccines-for-south-africa-now/
https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2021-01-04-government-assurances-of-credible-action-on-covid-19-vaccines-sound-disturbingly-hollow/
LikeLiked by 1 person
This is still a really informative read:
https://dignityandrights.org/2015/02/who-lives-and-who-dies-paul-farmer-on-the-inequities-of-health-care-funding/
LikeLike
CMW – we’ve had a restructure at work and my new boss is much more important than me and can’t really spend much time managing me either. Not sure if this is good or bad but I’ll get cracking….
…look,there goes another one.
LikeLike
Actually, it’s probably a good thing. I am moving back into my house in a month and there’s lots of admin to be done.
LikeLike
Of course, running water and electricity would also be good.
LikeLike
Ticht – I was thinking about your comment re another 6 month lockdown.
A lot of people are shafted by this. I bumped into my squash coach friend yesterday for the first time this year and to put it mildly he looked like he was about to cry. Essentially he can’t get government support because up until mid 2018 he was a teacher. He then became a self employed squash coach doing school classes, holiday clubs and one to one sessions.
Since the announcement last week his income is £0. And he can’t get support so he’s started work at a roofing company. He is probably going to go back to teaching tbh.
So whilst I agree with you that a lockdown is needed, 6 months of the current situation would be absolutely dire.
LikeLike
Sbt – on the catch up. I too am doing 3 months sans booze.
LikeLike
Just got a ‘pfft’ from Mrs Craig’s. First of the year.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Craigs, your friend should simply become a relative of a member of the cabinet. The work’ll come flooding in.
LikeLike
Craigs, that the government is handling almost every facet of this situation appallingly is not something I’d argue with.
My daughter’s friend works two jobs and volunteers in another, she didn’t qualify for any support either, so her flatmate had to cover the rent and she is in a very low paid job.
We helped out with one or two things, but is that the way it’s supposed to work?
LikeLike
…………………..Normans are likely to be French/Belgian fishermen as well……………………..
LikeLike
Ticht – I’m considering a whip round at the club but I don’t want to embarrass him.
Other than that he does run zoom fitness sessions if anyone is interested? £3 a pop, a few times a week.
I don’t quite understand why the government require people to be self employed for 2 years. Other than to save cash.
LikeLike
We need to devise a form for these Normans to fill in so we can work out what’s going on.
LikeLike
What is the purpose of your visit?
a) Conquering
b) Fishing
c) Pursuing a career in finance in Kent
d) ‘Levelling up’ the North
e) Other
LikeLiked by 7 people
If you answered c) to Question 1 then you will need to complete a separate application to enter Kent.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Tomp – he doesn’t have the right school tie I’m afraid.
LikeLike
CMW – trading in ‘Total Kent Finance Solutions Ltd’ obviously.
LikeLike
Just catching up, Ticht, our government (‘government’) has fucked it up royally through a combination of arrogance, inability and insisting on dishing out contracts to party insiders. Like the Tories, just on a far larger scale in a far more vulnerable society. Doesn’t help that Saffers across the board don’t take it seriously.
LikeLike
Basically, we won’t get the vaccine before April, although the bullshit merchants in government are saying from next month some time.
LikeLike
Looks like I won’t see any kids* in until February – if I’m allowed in the building(s), that is. In brighter news it seems as though I might get at least the first dose of a vaccine (up here) by early May (according to NS).
*Apart from vulnerable children and key worker kids – not sure of numbers.
LikeLike
@bb
There’s a couple of people in the UK who have accidentally been injected with 5 doses of the Pfizer vaccine. Hope you don’t become the third.
LikeLike
The Czechs were talking about that last week. They wanted to give 6 doses.
LikeLike
OT – I remember a documentary about self vaccinations in Scotland that was very popular in the 1990s. Seems that everyone is trained to do it.
LikeLike
@tomp
In the UK they’ve also been managing to get 6-7 out of a single vial. Not on purpose but cock-up. It’s usually up to the manufacturer to sort the dosing out but for some reason Good Distribution Practice seems to not be important in this case.
LikeLike
Duhan vdM confirmed as offski to Wuss for next season.
“Disappointing” doesn’t cover it.
There is “good news” coming on the signing front for Edinburgh, which if the rumours are to be believed James Lang from Quins.
In fact Jack Blain looked like one of the few Edinburgh players worth a second glance when November Tests were going on, so it might not be such a bad thing that we don’t have to try to match the reported £300K van der Merwe was offered.
Blain isn’t quite as tall, he is a good bit lighter but he is only 20 years old and he is very quick.
LikeLike
Wuss???
Ah well. Not like we’re overflowing with cash.
LikeLike
Worcs currently next bottom and with a lot of work to do if promotion/relegation remain in place.
A good career choice?
LikeLike
300,000 reasons for it to be a good choice.
LikeLike
Am not sure whether there’ll be any relegation/promotion from the English Premiership this season.
LikeLike
Looks like I chose the right 3 months to give up drinking.
Maybe I can do something less calorific in the meantime. Like crack.
LikeLike
No mention of elite sport being cancelled, but … we’ll see.
LikeLike
Ah – permitted:
There are still circumstances in which you are allowed to meet others
from outside your household, childcare or support bubble in larger
groups, but this should not be for socialising and only for permitted
purposes. A full list of these circumstances will be included in the
regulations, and includes:
– for elite sportspeople (and their coaches if necessary, or
parents/guardians if they are under 18) – or those on an official
elite sports pathway – to compete and train
LikeLike
Mind you, it’s probably not a good idea. And this only applies to England, anyway.
LikeLike
Thaum – don’t think crack is permitted anywhere actually.
LikeLike
Craigs – you just have to work on your fitness skills.
LikeLike
Take a look at the government annual flu reports from previous years: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/annual-flu-reports
Flu starts to rise around week 50 in a given year, usually peaking in weeks 1-4 in the new year, and generally subsides around week 10-12 (sometimes a bit longer like in 2017-18), which is otherwise known as March. That is exactly when Boris said the benefit of the vaccines will start to be seen and restrictions will be able to start to be lifted.
What an astonishing coincidence.
LikeLike
thaum, elite sport is still allowed in Scotland too I think. So the curling’s unaffected. Not sure about football or r… No, stop that.
LikeLike
OT – I don’t see any astonishing coincidence, only evidence that respiratory illnesses are worse in winter.
LikeLike
TomP – I quite like to watch curling.
LikeLike
List of sports I enjoy watching:
1/ Rugby
2/ Sheepdog trials
3/ Sports involving horses (but not rodeo or related ones)
4/ Snooker
5/ Curling
6/ Tennis
7/ Ice hockey
8/ Christians v British & Irish Lions
Footie … not On The List.
LikeLike
Darts makes good telly.
I’ve enjoyed a lot of Czech lower league football over the last few years. Always entertaining.
LikeLike
Thaum – as ruler of the blog you have to add Grudge Bearing to that list. Sag would have wanted it.
LikeLike
Bearing?
LikeLike
Shame that Covid coincided with Trump and Boris running things – we dodged a bullet there. But our govt has proved incapable of delivering appropriate weather for our summer holidays, and my attempt to cut our South Island trip short by a week and scuttle home has been thwarted by everyone else doing the same and booking out the ferries. So it’s another 6 days of rain ahead.
LikeLiked by 2 people
Craigs – amendment accepted.
BK – that Jacinda, she’s no good, is she?
LikeLike
BK-I’m sure our Mike said there had been snow on the Pisa Range
LikeLike
@Craigs – “Bearing?”
I don’t think this should be on the list, no. Even if you use every bit of offal and wear the skins as I’m sure your Swedish relatives (and Slade’s neighbours) do then I still think people are going to object to this being on TV. Some folks (not me, jumps racing would be on mine) are going to complain about the horse stuff as it is.
LikeLike
Oh Google Classroom how I’ve missed you.
LikeLike
Slade – sounds about right. A few highways closed due to flooding, and the ongoing heavy rain warnings have driven all the campers to move en masse into motels. I’m sure it’s paypack for our 3 days hiking in Fiordland in brilliant sunshine (for which I do thank St. Jacinda).
LikeLike
Well they’ve done a good job of setting an unreasonable amount of work for the first day back, no way in the world they’d get through all this (with all the kids actually completing all the tasks) if they were really at school today.
LikeLike