Test Rugby 2015 Rugby World Cup Match Discussion Thread

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Broar

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Doubt they go out in the group stage, their group is very weak, they would still have to lose to one of Scotland, Samoa or USA to not make it which I don't think they will.
Yea its a big call but it would not surprise if South Africa implode from here, Samoa are always a dangerous proposition.
 

chibimatty

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Should be interesting, if Samoa can beat Australia in recent years, and Japan has just beaten the Boks, what sort of match will we have? Traditionally Samoa vs South Africa matches have been bad-tempered and ugly, with a lot of fists flying; will Samoa go a tactical route, or lift their aggression even further than usual?

And what kind of Pumas team will turn up tonight for their match against their Rugby Championship rivals, New Zealand? Fascinating stuff.
 

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chibimatty

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The level of Argentinian fitness was quite telling, I've noticed that there's more bulk (muscle and/or fat) in the Euro club competitions than in Southern provincial rugby, and that lack of aerobic fitness started to show quite a long way out from the end of the game.
 
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Japan: Ayumu Goromaru, Kotaro Matsushima, Male Sa’u, Yu Tamura, Kenki Fukuoka, Harumichi Tatekawa, Fumiaki Tanaka, Amanaki Mafi, Michael Broadhurst, Michael Leitch (captain), Justin Ives, Luke Thompson, Hiroshi Yamashita, Shota Horie, Keita Inagaki. Reserves: Takeshi Kizu, Masataka Mikami, Kensuke Hatakeyama, Shinya Makabe, Shoji Ito, Hendrik Tui, Atsushi Hiwasa, Karne Hesketh.

Scotland: Stuart Hogg, Tommy Seymour, Mark Bennett, Matt Scott, Sean Lamont, Finn Russell, Greig Laidlaw (captain), David Denton, John Hardie, Ryan Wilson, Jonny Gray, Grant Gilchrist, Willem Nel, Ross Ford, Alasdair Dickinson. Reserves: Fraser Brown, Ryan Grant, Jon Welsh, Richie Gray, Josh Strauss, Henry Pyrgos, Peter Horne, Sean Maitland.

Nice balance to the Scottish side, Finn Russell and Stuart Hogg if they manage to link together will ensure that there is no repeat fairytail for Japan tonight
 

Maester

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Maybe. If Japan play as well as they did against the Springboks then they are capable of beating Scotland - though it is tough having to back up just 4 days later. But the Scots are a considerably less powerful team. Hopefully it's a good open game. Great lead up before the Wallabies opener!
 

Maester

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I thought Japan was the better team for about 50 minutes but all the calls from the referee were going against them (it was a bit ridiculous actually), and they failed to take their many chances. Then Scotland dominated the final 30 and blew the score out. The 4 day turnaround proved tough. Might have been different had Japan been up by 10 points after 50 minutes like they should have been.

Wallabies played pretty well in the 1st half but couldn't maintain it in the 2nd. Pocock definitely the best player for us and the combination with Hooper was great again. Foley had another average game at 10 but at least his goal kicking was decent. Our defence was excellent, still a bit to work on in attack. To be fair Fiji played pretty well, especially up front and in defence. I think it's a pity for them that they're not starting Matavesi at 10. Volavola did well to score his try but he doesn't get the backline going forward at all. Nevertheless I think they'll have a pretty good chance at beating Wales.
 
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Pocock MotM deservedly and I thought Hooper, Simmons, Fardy were all really good in the pack while Giteau, Folau and Genia were all really solid in the backline.

Really good defence from the Wallabies and the lineout was great when Simmons was running it. After that it fell apart. Scrum was really equally matched until Sio, TPN and Holmes were our trio and they destroyed. They're our three strongest guys in the scrum too so that was to be expected.
 

Maester

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Scrum was really equally matched until Sio, TPN and Holmes were our trio and they destroyed. They're our three strongest guys in the scrum too so that was to be expected.

I think it was more due to the fact they were fresh. We've seen it in basically every test match no matter which combination comes off the bench. It's great to have 2 very good front rows.
 

chibimatty

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Still annoys me that the coaches aren't working on the quick-strike in-and-out tactic for the Wallaby scrum. It's an option that needs to be available to us, knowing of our scrum's "reputation," especially if the referee is refereeing according to that reputation.

Speaking of refereeing, when Matsushima got yellow-carded for scooping the ball away on the ground, I knew it wasn't going to be Japan's day. I thought that was a marginal penalty at best, seeing as the tackle was hardly completed, and both guys were still scrambling on their feet and knees.
 
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Maester

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Well Namibia's try was well taken! I'm very surprised they kept the margin under 50 points. Would have got good odds on that.

Argentina vs Georgia tonight will be scrum porn for all the front rowers out there.
 

Maester

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Great win for Wales. Lovely try to take it to 22 all and at the end they did well to hold on. They're having such an awful run of injuries though. Gotta think they've stuffed up something in their preparation to have all these guys go down. If it wasn't for the fact that Fiji may be missing 4 or 5 of their best players (through injury and suspension), I'd think they were specials to knock them off in a few days. They may do it anyway. Wales will struggle to back up after that, mentally as much as physically.

Our match with England next weekend now becomes so crucial. It'll be very, very tough.
 

Maester

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Canadians were ripped off by the refereeing in this one.

Big time. It was outrageous. Italy are so poor considering how long they've been in the 6 nations now. Outplayed by a Canadian team that hasn't been in form all year. The Canadian left winger Van der Merwe is a sensational player.
 

chibimatty

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Italy is surviving on it's ability to import foreigners through European Cups contracts. I like the Italians, and I wish them all the best in developing their game outside Veneto, but it annoys me that they're in this slightly advantageous position over the other "non-big-5" teams just because they're part of the European Champion's Cup and the Pro 12.

And the media saying that Canada winning would be "such an upset!" was a little annoying. I can't remember Italy ever making out of their RWC pools, at least Canada have been World Cup quarter-finalists.
 

Maester

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It would really shake things up if Romania could beat them. That would probably be a better result to challenge the status quo of world rugby. Unfortunately for Romania they play them just 5 days after their match with Canada. Italy will have 2 extra days to recover and prepare after their match with Ireland.
 

chibimatty

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Funny that you mention Romania actually, seeing as how they and Canada are very good examples of what happens when the IRB do nothing to nurture the teams from outside the old "Original 8" who are on the cusp breaking into the top-level test-match rugby.

They were very strong rugby nations once, certainly better than Italy, Argentina and at times the Home Unions back in the amateur days. One wonders where they'd be now if the IRB put the attention it does into the inclusion of Argentina and Italy at the top level of club, provincial and test rugby, into them instead?
 
Funny that you mention Romania actually, seeing as how they and Canada are very good examples of what happens when the IRB do nothing to nurture the teams from outside the old "Original 8" who are on the cusp breaking into the top-level test-match rugby.

Totally agree. It's disappointing that Tonga, Samoa and Fiji all lose their best to New Zealand, Australia or the Welsh valleys. Having a strong second tier would make almost every game important. It's where cricket falls over significantly and where Soccer does not.
 

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