There is only one Rocky Elsom!!

That is all.Legend.

toomevara

No, there's clearly two..did you not see them both all over the field yesterday?

It would seem that wa but he can break the laws of physics.Sorry for the confusion.

thomond2006

There's only one Rocky Elsom
He's from the outback
He puts the rest on their back
Walkin' in a Rocky Wonderland

chupacabra

IRB player of the year candidate already in my book, BOD too.

tricky D

Rocky Awesome!

Aidric

I wonder if Leinster will hold on to him. Cheika seemed confident enough in the post match interview.

NickNolte

Irish-Australian relations will be at an all time high if they let us hang on to Rocky for another season. Seriously, I vow to start drinking Castlemaine XXX and watching Yahoo Serious movies and Home and Away again.

up them Schteps

What are Leinster going to do WHEN he goes back to australia, cause I would now imagine the ARU will be offering him a nice pay packet to return to OZ?

Relevant

up them Schteps wrote: »

What are Leinster going to do WHEN he goes back to australia, cause I would now imagine the ARU will be offering him a nice pay packet to return to OZ?

Jennings will move to 6 and O'Brien will become a regular at 7

flanzer

Did his parents know he'd be a future colossus of world rugby when they were naming him.... like who calls their child Rocky?

Fuc.kin legend

DonkeyPokerTour

flanzer wrote: »

Did his parents know he'd be a future colossus of world rugby when they were naming him.... like who calls their child Rocky?

Fuc.kin legend

Well with a name like Rocky he was hardly going to be a ballet dancer now was he . World class this year for Leinster. Big Loss if he goes back to Australia. Prob bring in O'Brien at 6 (he's not a 7), with Jennings and Heaslip.

Shan75

Fantastic player and no doubt he is the best 6 in the world.It would be great for Leinster if they could get him to stay but the Aussies will be wanting him back.It may come down to how much he wants to play for Australia.To be honest from an International Rugby perspective you'd want him returning to the Australia team as I for one would hate to see the international game go down the same route as soccer where the clubs rule.

ALH-06

Shan75 wrote: »

Fantastic player and no doubt he is the best 6 in the world.It would be great for Leinster if they could get him to stay but the Aussies will be wanting him back.It may come down to how much he wants to play for Australia.To be honest from an International Rugby perspective you'd want him returning to the Australia team as I for one would hate to see the international game go down the same route as soccer where the clubs rule.

I was talking to a high-level blazer in Edinburgh after the match (was wearing a Leinster dickie bow - class!) and he was 100% confident that Rocky would be with us next year.

subfreq

The Aussies seem bullish that he is heading home on a permanent basis.

http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,25197,25531057-2722,00.html

A Disgrace

His comments after the game.. "Great end...to a great season!" got me worried.. particularly the three full stops.

Podge_irl

I don't think Rocky Elsom knows whether Rocky Elsom will be with Leinster or not next year yet. Ergo I shall continue to pay precisely zero attention to the seemingly innumerable amount of articles speculating on his future.

suppafly

He has beem immense! Never seen a bad perform from him all season. Even the games when leinster weren't playing well he would be carrying the whole team with giving a god performance. i agree with Scot Quinell in saying that he has been the best southern hem import so far. I'm fairly sure he is going to be heading back though, as I've heard him talking in a few interviews and he seems really intent on playing for the Wallabies again

NotWormBoy

I've money with a mate that he'll be playing in the SH next season, more's the pity. As much as I love the man for what he's done for Leinster, I'd not expect him to stay here if it meant not getting his game in the Aussie back row. He's probably the best 6 I've seen this season, he's been absolutely immense. I don't put it down to love for Leinster, I put it down to the sheer determination of the man, and absolute professionalism. Regardless of who he's playing for, I think he'd have put in the same performances, with the same drive and enthusiasm. For what he's done though... Thank you, you beautiful bastard. Some of his runs in the final alone... its as if he just said... "Up yours, I'm going past you one way or another" and the dummy on Tuilagi was in a way the highlight of the game for me.

I can only fear for Ireland if he's playing when we come up against Australia in the next WC. If he turns in the same level of performance then, if he's still playing then, the Irish back row, good as they are, will have a serious game to play.

conno16

quinny could handle him to be fair

sedantez

Quinny could handle him in the eye

Nelson Muntz

conno16 wrote: »

quinny could handle him to be fair

He played Quinlan off the park in the semi

conno16

the tide of leinster played munster off the park on that particular day
one of the reasons elsom is prob leaving is cause of the backlash he fears from munster next season
it will be severe i suspect
sexton better spend some quality time in the gym over the summer months

Blured

conno16 wrote: »

the tide of leinster played munster off the park on that particular day
one of the reasons elsom is prob leaving is cause of the backlash he fears from munster next season
it will be severe i suspect
sexton better spend some quality time in the gym over the summer months

LOL - Rocky leaves Leinster not because he wants to play for Australia but because he is scared of big bad Munster

Diamondmaker

http://www.foxsports.com.au/story/0,8659,25535965-5002381,00.html

Super 14 Key player departures may put Queensland out of Rocky Elsom stakes
By Darren Walton and Jim Morton
May 25, 2009 Queensland Reds appear to have lost the inside running in the race to secure Rocky Elsom's playing services following revelations that fellow Wallabies Hugh McMeniman and Digby Ioane are on the verge of leaving the Super 14 strugglers.

Australian rugby's hottest property was believed to be leaning towards a return to Brisbane - where his girlfriend attends university - after helping Leinster to European Cup glory over the weekend.

But with McMeniman, a former schoolmate of Elsom's at Nudgee College, and Ioane set to chase overseas riches, a move to the Reds has lost much of its appeal.

QRU high-performance manager Ben Whitaker admits the prospect of losing McMeniman, the Reds' most destructive forward, and Ioane wouldn't exactly help the franchise's bid to snare Elsom.

“I'm sure anyone of his standing and intellect would be looking at how the team's served moving forward,'' Whitaker said.

“The squad list right now and going into the future is an important aspect.''

The NSW Waratahs, home to Elsom for six seasons before his defection to Ireland, would be hoping they were now favourites to nab Elsom, but the Brumbies have also emerged as suitors following his player-of-the-season heroics at Leinster.

And although the ARU remains confident of luring Elsom back home, high performance unit manager David Nucifora acknowledged an upgraded offer from Leinster, who are desperate to retain the 26-year-old, could tempt Elsom to stay in Europe.

“Until these boys decide to put pen to paper, you never really know,'' Nucifora said.

Nucifora refused to confirm reports that Elsom had already agreed to terms with the ARU for a return to Australia, but was hopeful he would be able to do so this week.

“We have been working on it for a long time and I have been quite confident for a while because I am confident he that wants to come back and be a part of Australian rugby,'' he said.

In addition to the uncertainty surrounding Elsom's future, McMeniman has already told Queensland coach Phil Mooney he is poised to make a move to either Europe or Japan, while Ioane has threatened to follow his teammate unless the ARU significantly raises its offer to keep him.

Ioane says he was insulted by the offer he received from the ARU to remain in Australia, reportedly $175,000 a season.

Nucifora would not reveal the exact amount Ioane was offered, but admitted the ARU was not always able to compete with the cashed-up overseas clubs.

“But these boys are well paid,'' he said.

“I think anyone can see they're not living on the breadline.

“They're able to earn significant money by playing at that top level. Beyond that, it really comes down to how much they want to play for their country.

“If Hugh and Digby and these boys have got to have it in their heads that they want to be a part of Australian rugby, that they want to play for the Wallabies, if that's their driving motivation, then we can usually accommodate them.

“If it's just about money, we're probably barking up the wrong tree.''

The Reds haven't given up hope of Ioane staying in Brisbane and have offered to act on his behalf with the ARU to ensure he gets the reported $300,000-a-season - minimum - deal the 23-year-old sees he is worth.

AAP

Jip

Well on Newstalk they're reporting that he's leaving Leinster and I think they said they he's the source but I was only half listening.
Following on from the Leinster player in a car accident thread the other day, I never read to the end to find out what the outcome was but in todays Times there was a mentioned that he had to be cut out of his car.


edit, crash just starte this thread http://boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2055574145 at the same time I posted this so I wasn't mishearing the report

Tim Robbins

Diamondmaker wrote: »

http://www.foxsports.com.au/story/0,8659,25535965-5002381,00.html

Super 14 Key player departures may put Queensland out of Rocky Elsom stakes
By Darren Walton and Jim Morton
May 25, 2009 Queensland Reds appear to have lost the inside running in the race to secure Rocky Elsom's playing services following revelations that fellow Wallabies Hugh McMeniman and Digby Ioane are on the verge of leaving the Super 14 strugglers.

Australian rugby's hottest property was believed to be leaning towards a return to Brisbane - where his girlfriend attends university - after helping Leinster to European Cup glory over the weekend.

But with McMeniman, a former schoolmate of Elsom's at Nudgee College, and Ioane set to chase overseas riches, a move to the Reds has lost much of its appeal.

QRU high-performance manager Ben Whitaker admits the prospect of losing McMeniman, the Reds' most destructive forward, and Ioane wouldn't exactly help the franchise's bid to snare Elsom.

“I'm sure anyone of his standing and intellect would be looking at how the team's served moving forward,'' Whitaker said.

“The squad list right now and going into the future is an important aspect.''

The NSW Waratahs, home to Elsom for six seasons before his defection to Ireland, would be hoping they were now favourites to nab Elsom, but the Brumbies have also emerged as suitors following his player-of-the-season heroics at Leinster.

And although the ARU remains confident of luring Elsom back home, high performance unit manager David Nucifora acknowledged an upgraded offer from Leinster, who are desperate to retain the 26-year-old, could tempt Elsom to stay in Europe.

“Until these boys decide to put pen to paper, you never really know,'' Nucifora said.

Nucifora refused to confirm reports that Elsom had already agreed to terms with the ARU for a return to Australia, but was hopeful he would be able to do so this week.

“We have been working on it for a long time and I have been quite confident for a while because I am confident he that wants to come back and be a part of Australian rugby,'' he said.

In addition to the uncertainty surrounding Elsom's future, McMeniman has already told Queensland coach Phil Mooney he is poised to make a move to either Europe or Japan, while Ioane has threatened to follow his teammate unless the ARU significantly raises its offer to keep him.

Ioane says he was insulted by the offer he received from the ARU to remain in Australia, reportedly $175,000 a season.

Nucifora would not reveal the exact amount Ioane was offered, but admitted the ARU was not always able to compete with the cashed-up overseas clubs.

“But these boys are well paid,'' he said.

“I think anyone can see they're not living on the breadline.

“They're able to earn significant money by playing at that top level. Beyond that, it really comes down to how much they want to play for their country.

“If Hugh and Digby and these boys have got to have it in their heads that they want to be a part of Australian rugby, that they want to play for the Wallabies, if that's their driving motivation, then we can usually accommodate them.

“If it's just about money, we're probably barking up the wrong tree.''

The Reds haven't given up hope of Ioane staying in Brisbane and have offered to act on his behalf with the ARU to ensure he gets the reported $300,000-a-season - minimum - deal the 23-year-old sees he is worth.

AAP

Can we organise a peition to get him to stay?

ironingbored

Rocky's ultimate goal is to play for Australia in the RWC 2011. If he stays one more season with Leinster he will still have the 2010/2011 S14 season to impress and get into the Aus team for the World Cup. After that he'll still only be 28 and can enjoy at least 3/4 years in the S14 and Tri Nations until retirement. If what is said is true another season at Leinster would equal about 3 years' wages down under.

He is undoubtedly the best 6 in the world at the moment. Only Burger comes close. He is way ahead of Kaino, Read, or any NH player.

anonymous_joe

ironingbored wrote: »

Rocky's ultimate goal is to play for Australia in the RWC 2011. If he stays one more season with Leinster he will still have the 2010/2011 S14 season to impress and get into the Aus team for the World Cup. After that he'll still only be 28 and can enjoy at least 3/4 years in the S14 and Tri Nations until retirement. If what is said is true another season at Leinster would equal about 3 years' wages down under.

He is undoubtedly the best 6 in the world at the moment. Only Burger comes close. He is way ahead of Kaino, Read, or any NH player.

Thought Burger was a 7? Don't the South Africans reverse the flanker jerseys?

RuggieBear

yep. burger is an openside

ironingbored

Apologies.

Great paragraph in the Indo online.

"Rocky Elsom, bloodied and so pumped the referee requested he tone down his language as "there's children and people watching at home," was, as ever, an utter colossus. O'Driscoll describes Elsom as probably the best rugby player he has had the privilege of playing with and that hardly sounds excessive"

Legend.

anonymous_joe

RuggieBear wrote: »

yep. burger is an openside

Shame we don't need him, because he could well fly north this summer afaik, and we'd be able to afford him. And have the profile. But we already have a quality openside.

Can't think of any world class blindsides that are up for grabs...

RuggieBear

tbh he is probably good enough and big enough to play any back row position

anonymous_joe

RuggieBear wrote: »

tbh he is probably good enough and big enough to play any back row position

I won't deny that. ^^