Why are we not so good at Union?

[fightingdreamer88]

I'm not a rugby fan but I have heard that England knocked us off AGAIN and I can't understand it - we own cricket, we own rugby league, we kick the crap out of the irish in international rules and of course much of the cream of our sporting talent resides in our Aussie Rules empire....but why don't we figure so prominently in Rugby Union?

 

[Herbs]

Union has been hopeless in developing young talent in lower levels, they've just concentrated on the higher levels and recruiting rugby league players. Also, to have fat ****s like Matt Dunning at the top level ruins the sport's credibility. Only other places you'll see sportsmen as rotund as that these days is baseball and darts.

 

[clucas91]

We can't be good at everything I guess.

Anyway, our failures in Union have more to do with the depth of our player pool than anything else. We simply dont have as large a base of players from which to choose from as the other nations do.

Plus we have stuck with a lot of same tired old players for a bit too long.

 

[Dipper]

Well Australia are the only side to have won the WC twice, coming from a country where Union is only really played in 2 states & in those states RL has a bigger club game it's pretty good going.

The only really problem is the culture that doesn't produce good front rowers.

But Pat Howard is the new perfomance director & he was in the paper over here talking about sorting that problem out.

He's coached in England for Leicester who've always had a good pack so if anyone can sort it out it'd be him.

 

[EnglishWarrior]

Actually, Australia have won more workd cups at Union than anyone (2 compared to Eng, NZ and S.Africas 1). Hopefully we can equal it on Saturday

What I wanna know is, why are you no good at football (that's soccer to you)? By far the most popular sport globally, and you, well lets be honest, don't really register.

I mean swimming is bigger than soccer in Australia. How ****ed up is that?

 

[Dipper]

Well mate you're on dodgy ground when you consider that the last time we played them at football they beat us.

 

[JESTERHAWK]

English Warrior, I have spent 3 years living in the U.K and being a mad sports nut i got on the football(soccer) bandwagon. (St Mirren & Colchester) However it will never compete with Aussie rules. It has the perfect mix of both football and rugby. Silky skills + hardness. Aussie crowds will not allow the play acting that is so rife throughout the game. Last world cup Aus got right behind the socceroos, but lost all momentum with that waek ass dive taken by the italian. Will never come close to the real game!!

 

[hype]

We can't be good at everything I guess.

Anyway, our failures in Union have more to do with the depth of our player pool than anything else. We simply dont have as large a base of players from which to choose from as the other nations do.

Plus we have stuck with a lot of same tired old players for a bit too long.

I don't know that much about Rugby or Rugby Union.. But from my viewing in the past I've noticed almost all the props are round. I don't think its got anything to do with his Fitness. Probably more because of his height/stature and genetics related to muscle gain (i.e. you need to eat a lot to gain muscle). Also the shirts are quite tight compared to previous years (well thats what one of the commentators said).

I expect he'd be able to get a pretty damn good score in the beep test.

Back to the OP's question. I think we are a decent side in Rugby Union. New Zealand are clearly the best team in the World and have been for almost the last 20 years. They have gone into every world cup as favorite I think. After New Zealand, you'll probably find South Africa at the moment. After this I'd say it would be Us, England, France and Wales.

So we really are not too bad at Union. We don't dominate it like Cricket, but we are up in the top 3 sides in the world.

English Warrior: The reason our Soccer is not nearly as high classed as others is because of the funding behind it all. There is a pretty average system and many skilled kids rarely get the coaching and training required to become special.

Another reason may be because we have AFL as our national sport. Its gets far more attention (because of popularity nationally and also because the league is bigger than the A-League, in terms of skill levels and media coverage). Because AFL and Soccer need similar athletes, I think its usually a decision for kids to either follow AFL or Soccer. Because of AFL being so mainstream in this country, children will more likely choose it.

I think it all comes down to the local professional league. If its any good, you will find that the grass roots levels will also be good at developing players. Since the A-League is so thoroughly shithouse. It probably follows from that.

 

[gaelictiogar]

I'm not a rugby fan but I have heard that England knocked us off AGAIN and I can't understand it - we own cricket, we own rugby league, we kick the crap out of the irish in international rules and of course much of the cream of our sporting talent resides in our Aussie Rules empire....but why don't we figure so prominently in Rugby Union?

The answer is because Union has more realistic international competition than the other sports. League is a regional game in Eastern Australia and 3 counties in England. Dominance is nothing to write home about. We don't dominate the Irish in IR. They have won as many as we have and of course we are pros so should win. We are great at cricket which is the only genuine internation sport we dominate and we are nothing at all at soccer and basketball which are the only true world sports. How many Aussies are lighting up NBA? How many are playing for Man U or Real Madrid?

We are blowhards.

 

[fightingdreamer88]

The answer is because Union has more realistic international competition than the other sports. League is a regional game in Eastern Australia and 3 counties in England. Dominance is nothing to write home about. We don't dominate the Irish in IR. They have won as many as we have and of course we are pros so should win. We are great at cricket which is the only genuine internation sport we dominate and we are nothing at all at soccer and basketball which are the only true world sports. How many Aussies are lighting up NBA? How many are playing for Man U or Real Madrid?

We are blowhards.

...

Union is even less popular than League in OZ.

 

[ParraEelsNRL]

Because it's a minority sport for private school w@nkers?

gaelictiogar, PNG has RL as their national sport, their population is bigger than NZ and the whole Pac Islands put together.

You also show you have no idea about Australia or England, if RL is such a minority sport in England, why is it in sport Englands top 5?

Could you also point me to the other winter sport in NZ besides Union to be bigger than Rugby League?

France don't exist in RL do they?

No, that 70 year history is all BS, we made it up.

Here, read and learn

http://forums.leagueunlimited.com/forumdisplay.php?f=98

Oh and here is some more news.

http://forums.leagueunlimited.com/showthread.php?t=186057

BANK OF BEIRUT PARTNERSHIP ANNOUNCED
Last Updated: Thursday, October 18, 2007.

Lebanese Rugby League is proud to announce a landmark partnership with one of Lebanon’s premier banks, Bank of Beirut.

The three-year deal, with an option for a further two-years, is worth a significant six-figure sum, and will see the Lebanese league re-branded the ‘Bank of Beirut Rugby League Championship’.

In addition to full competition naming rights, the Liban Espoir side will be known as the Bank of Beirut Espoirs, while the bank’s famous logo will also adorn the sleeves of the national team jersey for the upcoming World Cup qualifiers.

The Bank of Beirut connection gives Lebanese rugby league a further boost to cement the rapid advances made over the last few months, and builds on the firm foundations laid since 2002.

“Lebanese rugby league’s development model has been clear from the outset,” said LRLC vice president Danny Kazandjian. “We have been working on a policy of institutionalizing the sport within our partner universities, with the aim of making rugby league a part of their culture, before moving onto the public at large. This strategy has proved wonderfully successful, with a large number of Lebanese players, coaches and officials now, I’m proud to say, inveterate ‘leaguies’, as loyal supporters of the game as anyone in the traditional league-playing nations. This progressive partnership, with an institution the size and prestige of Bank of Beirut, is a reflection of the purely positive message embodied by Lebanese rugby league and together we will now be showcasing our sport to a nationwide audience. If our fine national team, the Cedars, can overcome the last two obstacles, namely Russia and Ireland, it will make 2007 a year to remember for Lebanese rugby league, and 2008 quite simply out of this world.”

The 2007-8 Bank of Beirut Rugby League Championship will be covered by all ten marquee Lebanese newspapers, as well as two prominent radio stations and the country’s major television stations, sky-rocketing the exposure of the sport in the mass media.

The new season begins on November 10th, with the LRLC promising a further exciting announcement before the big kick off, and even more exciting news in the months ahead.

 

[BigBadBustler]

Because it's a minority sport for private school w@nkers?

gaelictiogar, PNG has RL as their national sport, their population is bigger than NZ and the whole Pac Islands put together.

You also show you have no idea about Australia or England, if RL is such a minority sport in England, why is it in sport Englands top 5?

Could you also point me to the other winter sport in NZ besides Union to be bigger than Rugby League?

France don't exist in RL do they?

No, that 70 year history is all BS, we made it up.

Here, read and learn

http://forums.leagueunlimited.com/forumdisplay.php?f=98

Oh and here is some more news.

http://forums.leagueunlimited.com/showthread.php?t=186057

I'm surprised there wasn't a mention of Vichy there for France...you must be slipping mate. As for PNG, how seriously can a third world nation really be taken in terms of support? Sure, they're into their league but they still have cannibal tribes there FFS!

 

[clucas91]

Because it's a minority sport for private school w@nkers?

gaelictiogar, PNG has RL as their national sport, their population is bigger than NZ and the whole Pac Islands put together.

You also show you have no idea about Australia or England, if RL is such a minority sport in England, why is it in sport Englands top 5?

Could you also point me to the other winter sport in NZ besides Union to be bigger than Rugby League?

France don't exist in RL do they?

No, that 70 year history is all BS, we made it up.

Here, read and learn

http://forums.leagueunlimited.com/forumdisplay.php?f=98

Oh and here is some more news.

http://forums.leagueunlimited.com/showthread.php?t=186057

Get your head out of your arse mate, seriously. You lost all chance at having a credible argument by having a go at private schools, who cares?

I like both Rugby League and Union, I never feel the need to have a go at a sport just because I don't follow it. Just relax and enjoy it, sport is sport.

 

[cos789]

PNG has RL as their national sport, their population is bigger than NZ and the whole Pac Islands put together.

Yes but the playing numbers are low .

if RL is such a minority sport in England, why is it in sport Englands top 5?

Because they didn't have a top 4.

Honestly , there's a big difference between number and one and number two .

Could you also point me to the other winter sport in NZ besides Union to be bigger than Rugby League?

sheep grazing ?

France don't exist in RL do they?

If you say so . Nobody I know , knows .

No, that 70 year history is all BS, we made it up.

If you say so .


How's the home brew this year ?

.

 

[james Dean]

Union has been hopeless in developing young talent in lower levels, they've just concentrated on the higher levels and recruiting rugby league players. Also, to have fat ****s like Matt Dunning at the top level ruins the sport's credibility. Only other places you'll see sportsmen as rotund as that these days is baseball and darts.

You were saying?

 

[Unwritten_Law]

Also, to have fat ****s like Matt Dunning at the top level ruins the sport's credibility. Only other places you'll see sportsmen as rotund as that these days is baseball and darts.

Actually my answer to the question was going to be that our big fat ****s, our forwards, are not up to standard. We need bigger and better fat ****s to match the SA, Pommy and NZ packs. Oh yeah, I don't know anything about rugby either. Obviously

 

[King Elvis]

We suck at Union due to s**t admnistration at every level.

Hopefully thats changing now, but it's been a joke.

When the supposed best players we can find are League converts, it tells you a lot about the quality of the junior development system.

 

[MC_Bomba]

WE ARENT s**t AT UNION.

I hate people because we lose 1 game, by 2 points, by the boot, in the most boring fashion, we are suddenly crap? No. Our front row didn't turn up in the quarter final but other than that are team is world class. If Mortlock got that kick, we would be in the semis. But no, thats sport, you cannot win every single thing or it just gets boring like cricket where we absolute dominate the sport so much its getting boring to watch Australia win 3 world cups in a row it loses its meaning winning them after a while. Thats why the soccer world cup was a success for us because we haven't been there and exceeded expectations, these days in rugby and cricket it seems if we win we dont exceed expectations and its loses it meaning. I doubt I'll see an Australian team win the soccer world cup which is good in a way, with only 7 teams in the world winning it which is surprisenly low, but if we do the country will erupt.

Rugby Union is a great sport. Super 14 would be even better if it was on FTA (well the Aussie games) so more people know the depth we have. No one knew Berrick Barnes before the world cup, none of my mates did.

Also this year the Aussie Schoolboys broke the 10 year drought beat NZ Schools 23-17, the team is pretty good so I say we are in good hands.