Men's Six Nations 2022

[Twist]

We need Tom O'Toole to tour NZ. Bealham was unlucky with that penalty. The Scots were targeting him and he held well, but we left the ball in the scrum way too long.

I can't be alone in thinking Marty Moore has been overlooked unfairly? He's playing really well for Ulster and he didn't get those two 6N medals he has by fluke. The one area you'd say he's definitely ahead of Bealham is scrummaging, and that's a real area of concern for us now. I don't get why he's not being called up

[Peg Leg]

We need Tom O'Toole to tour NZ. Bealham was unlucky with that penalty. The Scots were targeting him and he held well, but we left the ball in the scrum way too long.

I can't be alone in thinking Marty Moore has been overlooked unfairly? He's playing really well for Ulster and he didn't get those two 6N medals he has by fluke. The one area you'd say he's definitely ahead of Bealham is scrummaging, and that's a real area of concern for us now. I don't get why he's not being called up

The phrase "lightning quick ruckball" would be a good place to start your investigation

[Flash Gordon]

We need Tom O'Toole to tour NZ. Bealham was unlucky with that penalty. The Scots were targeting him and he held well, but we left the ball in the scrum way too long.

I can't be alone in thinking Marty Moore has been overlooked unfairly? He's playing really well for Ulster and he didn't get those two 6N medals he has by fluke. The one area you'd say he's definitely ahead of Bealham is scrummaging, and that's a real area of concern for us now. I don't get why he's not being called up

He's also finally got himself into decent shape. Jack McGrath has had his hip reconstructed too, the guy was a 3 test Lion and has more than 50 caps for Ireland.

[Laighin Break]

I haven't seen it mentioned anywhere but Padovani touched the ball down with 78:31 on the clock and Garbisi kicks the conversion at 80:06, so 96 after the try, despite the referee warning him that it had to be taken within the 90 seconds.
Should the conversion have been ruled out, resulting in a Wales win?
Would have been a sh!t way to lose the game

[blockhead]

Not even the welsh complained, or even booed , so stunned they were.

[munster#1]

A lot of what you say is a consequence of why we are so good to watch. I'd agree with you on ruck ball protection to a certain extent but our objective is to recycle within 3 seconds. There's a trade off there, we'll undoubtedly have to sacrifice a couple of turnovers to achieve that.

Not sure on the centers, my first name would be Henshaw plus 1. I know France marked the 13 channel in Paris but what he was doing was different to the way we played in the Autumn. I do hear what you are saying about Ringrose and the options he choses - he's such an incredibly talented player though....

We'll see n the summer tour, I wish we were playing Australia rather than the All Blacks. With regard to the lack of faith in the bench, that's true of course but in reality Joey is the next best option unless we look at reverting to Ross Byrne. Harry Byrne and Frawley are playing 12 for Leinster now, Burns doesn't have it and the coaches don't like Carty. It is what it is.

Some of the lads you mention resting might not make the world cup. I'd love the summer tour to be an opportunity for Casey to challenge for the 9 spot for example. Also think one of my favourite Irish players Keith Earls might have played his last game. There is such a wealth of talent on the wing currently.

I fully understand that if you want to play a high tempo game then the last thing you want to do is flood the breakdown, but Ireland must adapt their breakdown to ensure that the ball is protected.
Not doing so results in giving away penalties which costs you on the scoreboard and in territory.

I am in full agreement with you regarding the centres, Henshaw is right up there with Furlong in terms of being the first name on the teamsheet imo, as he is probably the second best centre Ireland have produced in the pro era.
I personally would pair him with Aki, as I think they are the most effective pairing both in terms of link play and ball carrying.

I know that Joey is viewed as the next 10, but if you have no faith in him then you move on.
There is a year and a half to the next RWC, it would be foolish to bank on Sexton still playing at the required level, so you need to develop an alternative should they be needed.
Should use Sexton sparingly between now and then, and pick someone like Healy or little Byrne to step up?

Last point, and this is a major one. I really hope you are wrong about Earls.
I would love to see him hit the 100 cap mark as he is by far my favourite player.

[riocard911]

munster#1: "I know that Joey is viewed as the next 10, but if you have no faith in him then you move on.
There is a year and a half to the next RWC, it would be foolish to bank on Sexton still playing at the required level, so you need to develop an alternative should they be needed.
Should use Sexton sparingly between now and then, and pick someone like Healy or little Byrne to step up?"

My answer would be in the affirmative (à la Spock).

[ronk]

How do you define it? Because we were patchy against all the other four. I don't think there's even a debate about that...

Well, I mean on the offensive side we scored more tries than Ireland ever has in 6N history, securing 4 bonus points. On the defensive side we conceded the fewest tries in the tournament (4) and I haven't checked but i imagine it's the fewest in Irish history in the pro era.

Historic production on the O and D sides of the ball? I'd say that was pretty compelling an argument, no?

So you look at tournament wide stats to understand whether we played well across all 80 minutes in 5 games?

Not sure that's a great metric to understand that claim is it?

We have had a mixed tournament, and like with France, we were middling to poor in at least four of our games. You could make the argument that pre Adams card in the Wales game we were veering that way too.

It's unlikely but not impossible to have team record setting performances while still not playing well or being patchy.

And it's not like we had a Montpellier-esque scoreline that squed the figures.

[wixfjord]

Well, I mean on the offensive side we scored more tries than Ireland ever has in 6N history, securing 4 bonus points. On the defensive side we conceded the fewest tries in the tournament (4) and I haven't checked but i imagine it's the fewest in Irish history in the pro era.

Historic production on the O and D sides of the ball? I'd say that was pretty compelling an argument, no?

So you look at tournament wide stats to understand whether we played well across all 80 minutes in 5 games?

Not sure that's a great metric to understand that claim is it?

We have had a mixed tournament, and like with France, we were middling to poor in at least four of our games. You could make the argument that pre Adams card in the Wales game we were veering that way too.

It's unlikely but not impossible to have team record setting performances while still not playing well or being patchy.

And it's not like we had a Montpellier-esque scoreline that squed the figures.

But the team were patchy and didn't play well for periods of lots of games. So not sure what the point is there.

[fourthirtythree]

It's the unneeded moaning. Nobody claimed that any team played uniformly well for 80 minutes of every match yet somebody seems to feel the need to append that to everybody else's posts.

It isn't needed. It wasn't needed. And frankly I can't think of situations where it will ever be needed.

[wixfjord]

It's the unneeded moaning. Nobody claimed that any team played uniformly well for 80 minutes of every match yet somebody seems to feel the need to append that to everybody else's posts.

It isn't needed. It wasn't needed. And frankly I can't think of situations where it will ever be needed.

Would you accuse our captain of moaning when he said we were patchy against Scotland?

Like do you expect uniform positivity towards the Irish side or should we (like Faz and the team are) look with a bit more of a colder view of how the team actually performed (which was good to poor in places) and identify loads of areas we can improve and get better (which are manifold).

[hugonaut]

Found myself thinking a lot more about the Scots after the game than I did before the game.

There's a weird, destructive relationship between Townsend and the senior backs [Hogg and Russell in particular]. They're never going to accomplish anything significant together. The Scots aren't going to become a team who play bigger than the sum of their parts.

It's difficult to pin down a solution because I think the players take a larger portion of the blame than the coach, but he's not blameless himself. Townsend has a good bit of spoof in him. I'm not saying that he's a complete spoofer, as I think there are some parts of the game that he coaches well, but he's a bit like Brendan Rodgers. He can't quite carry off what he's trying to do, but he thinks that if he keeps projecting this image of himself, that facts will bend to his will, or people will see it the way he's selling it.

His response to those lads going out on the piss after the Italian match looked kack-handed and weak. Some guys get let off, one guy gets dropped, one guy gets sent home. They all did the same thing, why are they treated differently? If you do something like that, you have to own your decision, because it is wide open to criticism. Jimmy Johnston, the old Dallas Cowboys coach, used to be completely up front about his favouritism to better players and said something like "Of course I treated players differently, they were all different players."

The two lads are basically a*seholes. They're not the worst a*seholes, but they're still a*rseholes. They've been indulged from the get-go because Scotland were drastically short of talent, and they're both talented.

Hogg is a bad captain [his fault] and was a bad choice of captain [Townsend's fault], because he has to try to be something he's not – responsive and responsible, stable, concerned about others, composed, forceful. Townsend was obviously hoping that by giving him the role, he'd grow into it ... but that hasn't happened, and was always unlikely to happen.

I probably have a jaundiced opinion, but Hogg comes across as somebody trying to fake being a captain when he's interviewed, trying to say what he thinks a captain is supposed to say ... because he knows that if he just says what he's feeling, it's not going to sound captain-like. Sometimes I wonder how somebody like Jurgen Klopp always manages to 'figure out' the right thing to say, and then I realise that he's not second guessing himself or trying to figure it out, he's just saying what he feels. He is who he says he is. That's why people play so hard for him. I get the feeling that if Hogg said what he felt it would just be a long line of complaints and grievances.

Russell has unbelievable skills, sees space incredibly well, is one of the most inventive players of the last decade ... and is lazy, uncompetitive, weak-willed and immature. He requires far more management than any 29-year old professional should. His drinking has seriously interfered with his career – on a public level, that everybody knows about – twice in the last two seasons. It's a f*cking problem for him.

[FLIP]

Hogg and Russell are the Scottish Zebos. Undoubtedly talented but their attitude and effort levels let them down, and they will shift blame to others instead of looking at themselves.

[LeRouxIsPHat]

I don't think you're in a place to criticise them Hugo, you thought our team photo organisation was shambolic but our performances turned out okay

I know they've had plenty of false dawns, and I'm as guilty as anyone on here for saying "this could be their year" at times, but they really do have a very strong side now. Two very strong front rows and the second row and back are very good when they're fit. I'd say that halfback and centre are a slight weakness but can also be good at times, and would obviously do better if the first choice pack was fit.

So if they got those wild lads to knuckle down then they could really put something together. As it is they seem like a complete mess.

[fourthirtythree]

Would you accuse our captain of moaning when he said we were patchy against Scotland?

If he felt the need to log on to a website to insist that (or whatever his gripe was at that time) be appended to every opinion expressed, whether it was incompatible with it or not, yes. Yes I would.

[wixfjord]

Would you accuse our captain of moaning when he said we were patchy against Scotland?

If he felt the need to log on to a website to insist that (or whatever his gripe was at that time) be appended to every opinion expressed, whether it was incompatible with it or not, yes. Yes I would.

Ah right, so it's just me and others with a dissenting opinion to yours that you have the issue with, not the opinion that's correctly shared by our captain. Fair enough!

(You've been on LF and other rugby boards before right??)

[JB1973]

Found myself thinking a lot more about the Scots after the game than I did before the game.

There's a weird, destructive relationship between Townsend and the senior backs [Hogg and Russell in particular]. They're never going to accomplish anything significant together. The Scots aren't going to become a team who play bigger than the sum of their parts.

It's difficult to pin down a solution because I think the players take a larger portion of the blame than the coach, but he's not blameless himself. Townsend has a good bit of spoof in him. I'm not saying that he's a complete spoofer, as I think there are some parts of the game that he coaches well, but he's a bit like Brendan Rodgers. He can't quite carry off what he's trying to do, but he thinks that if he keeps projecting this image of himself, that facts will bend to his will, or people will see it the way he's selling it.

His response to those lads going out on the piss after the Italian match looked kack-handed and weak. Some guys get let off, one guy gets dropped, one guy gets sent home. They all did the same thing, why are they treated differently? If you do something like that, you have to own your decision, because it is wide open to criticism. Jimmy Johnston, the old Dallas Cowboys coach, used to be completely up front about his favouritism to better players and said something like "Of course I treated players differently, they were all different players."

The two lads are basically a*seholes. They're not the worst a*seholes, but they're still a*rseholes. They've been indulged from the get-go because Scotland were drastically short of talent, and they're both talented.

Hogg is a bad captain [his fault] and was a bad choice of captain [Townsend's fault], because he has to try to be something he's not – responsive and responsible, stable, concerned about others, composed, forceful. Townsend was obviously hoping that by giving him the role, he'd grow into it ... but that hasn't happened, and was always unlikely to happen.

I probably have a jaundiced opinion, but Hogg comes across as somebody trying to fake being a captain when he's interviewed, trying to say what he thinks a captain is supposed to say ... because he knows that if he just says what he's feeling, it's not going to sound captain-like. Sometimes I wonder how somebody like Jurgen Klopp always manages to 'figure out' the right thing to say, and then I realise that he's not second guessing himself or trying to figure it out, he's just saying what he feels. He is who he says he is. That's why people play so hard for him. I get the feeling that if Hogg said what he felt it would just be a long line of complaints and grievances.

Russell has unbelievable skills, sees space incredibly well, is one of the most inventive players of the last decade ... and is lazy, uncompetitive, weak-willed and immature. He requires far more management than any 29-year old professional should. His drinking has seriously interfered with his career – on a public level, that everybody knows about – twice in the last two seasons. It's a f*cking problem for him.

Hogg has a huge amount of natural talent, quick has a good step and can boot it miles, he does seem to thrive on being the big fish in a small pond with Scotland though , when he has been with the lions he has looked over awed and not lived up to his billing so that will always leave a question mark over him . I have seen him be brilliant but he can also make big match turning mistakes (Dublin seems his bogey ground!) and I think his best days are behind him

Russell is way more flaky than Hogg and is as likely to lose you a game as win it, when he is on his day he is great to watch but when he is off he is a liability.

In short both are good (one is really good) but the question marks around their discipline and mental toughness means neither has been as good as they should have been.

Touch of the Henson what if's about the both of them

[blockhead]

Official Six Nations Team of the Tournament- Chosen by votes on twitter (over 1m votes)
15. Hugo Keenan (Leinster)
14. Damian Penaud (Clermont)
13. Gael Fickou (Racing 92)
12. Jonathan Danty (La Rochelle)
11. Gabin Villiere (Toulon)
10. Romain Ntamack (Toulouse)
9. Antoine Dupont (Toulouse)
8. Gregory Alldrit (La Rochelle)
7. Josh van der Flier (Leinster)
6. Francois Cros (Toulouse)
5. Paul Willemse (Montpellier)
4. Maro Itoje (Saracens)
3. Tadhg Furlong (Leinster)
2. Julien Marchand (Toulouse)
1. Cyril Baille (Toulouse)

Toulouse and Leinster dominate, nothing new there.

[Peg Leg]

Official Six Nations Team of the Tournament- Chosen by votes on twitter (over 1m votes)
15. Hugo Keenan (Leinster)
14. Damian Penaud (Clermont)
13. Gael Fickou (Racing 92)
12. Jonathan Danty (La Rochelle)
11. Gabin Villiere (Toulon)
10. Romain Ntamack (Toulouse)
9. Antoine Dupont (Toulouse)
8. Gregory Alldrit (La Rochelle)
7. Josh van der Flier (Leinster)
6. Francois Cros (Toulouse)
5. Paul Willemse (Montpellier)
4. Maro Itoje (Saracens)
3. Tadhg Furlong (Leinster)
2. Julien Marchand (Toulouse)
1. Cyril Baille (Toulouse)

Toulouse and Leinster dominate, nothing new there.

J10 was streets ahead of Ntamack

[the spoofer]

Found myself thinking a lot more about the Scots after the game than I did before the game.

There's a weird, destructive relationship between Townsend and the senior backs [Hogg and Russell in particular]. They're never going to accomplish anything significant together. The Scots aren't going to become a team who play bigger than the sum of their parts.

It's difficult to pin down a solution because I think the players take a larger portion of the blame than the coach, but he's not blameless himself. Townsend has a good bit of spoof in him. I'm not saying that he's a complete spoofer, as I think there are some parts of the game that he coaches well, but he's a bit like Brendan Rodgers. He can't quite carry off what he's trying to do, but he thinks that if he keeps projecting this image of himself, that facts will bend to his will, or people will see it the way he's selling it.

His response to those lads going out on the piss after the Italian match looked kack-handed and weak. Some guys get let off, one guy gets dropped, one guy gets sent home. They all did the same thing, why are they treated differently? If you do something like that, you have to own your decision, because it is wide open to criticism. Jimmy Johnston, the old Dallas Cowboys coach, used to be completely up front about his favouritism to better players and said something like "Of course I treated players differently, they were all different players."

The two lads are basically a*seholes. They're not the worst a*seholes, but they're still a*rseholes. They've been indulged from the get-go because Scotland were drastically short of talent, and they're both talented.

Hogg is a bad captain [his fault] and was a bad choice of captain [Townsend's fault], because he has to try to be something he's not – responsive and responsible, stable, concerned about others, composed, forceful. Townsend was obviously hoping that by giving him the role, he'd grow into it ... but that hasn't happened, and was always unlikely to happen.

I probably have a jaundiced opinion, but Hogg comes across as somebody trying to fake being a captain when he's interviewed, trying to say what he thinks a captain is supposed to say ... because he knows that if he just says what he's feeling, it's not going to sound captain-like. Sometimes I wonder how somebody like Jurgen Klopp always manages to 'figure out' the right thing to say, and then I realise that he's not second guessing himself or trying to figure it out, he's just saying what he feels. He is who he says he is. That's why people play so hard for him. I get the feeling that if Hogg said what he felt it would just be a long line of complaints and grievances.

Russell has unbelievable skills, sees space incredibly well, is one of the most inventive players of the last decade ... and is lazy, uncompetitive, weak-willed and immature. He requires far more management than any 29-year old professional should. His drinking has seriously interfered with his career – on a public level, that everybody knows about – twice in the last two seasons. It's a f*cking problem for him.

Hogg has a huge amount of natural talent, quick has a good step and can boot it miles, he does seem to thrive on being the big fish in a small pond with Scotland though , when he has been with the lions he has looked over awed and not lived up to his billing so that will always leave a question mark over him . I have seen him be brilliant but he can also make big match turning mistakes (Dublin seems his bogey ground!) and I think his best days are behind him

Russell is way more flaky than Hogg and is as likely to lose you a game as win it, when he is on his day he is great to watch but when he is off he is a liability.

In short both are good (one is really good) but the question marks around their discipline and mental toughness means neither has been as good as they should have been.

Touch of the Henson what if's about the both of them

Simple question, would you want either at Leinster? My view is no.