Advertisement
If you have a new account but are having problems posting or verifying your account, please email us on hello@boards.ie for help. Thanks :)
Hello all! Please ensure that you are posting a new thread or question in the appropriate forum. The Feedback forum is overwhelmed with questions that are having to be moved elsewhere. If you need help to verify your account contact hello@boards.ie
British and Irish Lions vs Western Force, Wed 5 June 11am; Sky Sports 1
Options
Comments
-
-
-
wonderfullife wrote: »Thoughts on the Game (i'm sad enough to have watched it live and also have re-watched it again in full since
)
1. This performance should help finally silence the doubters over whether BOD still has it. He does. No debate, no question, he's still the best 13 in the Northern Hemisphere, the best Centre full stop. Injury-free he starts all 3 tests.
2. SOB and Heaslip were magnificent today in the loose. At the breakdown they were decent but no more than decent. This is where the complex decision lays for Gatland. If he puts a lot of weight on the breakdown area then the calls between Lydiate/Tipuric/Warburton/SOB/Heaslip/Faletau/Croft get even tighter. Make no mistake Croft is in the picture (imo), whilst he doesn't offer the raw power of some of the others he does a lot right, is a major help in the line-out and breakdown.
It's really too tough to call, if the emphasis is purely on the breakdown (in terms of openside). But based on that performance today it would be a travesty if NEITHER Heaslip or SOB start the first test. One of them should be in. Both carried brilliantly. O Brien, as we all know, is a beast. Heaslip brought his Grand Slam form to the table.
3. Best and Murray didn't do themselves too many favours, though in the case of Murray he had a very good 2nd half when on the pitch.
4. Tommy Bowe still looked like he was getting match sharpness but with another run-out i believe his linking with Sexton/BOD may prove the difference in getting ahead of Cuthbert. North is a certainty imo.
5. Whilst i dont see Evans usurping O' Connell, he certainly had a better game to Wyn-Jones.
6. If Sexton gets injured we (the Lions) are in a bit of bother. Farrell and a likely Wilkinson call-up, will not suit the style we are trying to play. At all. That much is clear. Sexton attacking the gain line is crucial to what the Lions are trying to do. Fact is this - we dont need Farrell for his kicking. Halfpenny and Sexton is plenty.
7. Based on the above, rob kearney will need a miraculously good game to even make it close with Halfpenny. Mind you, there may be a permutation to get both into the side, IF Bowe doesnt prove his match sharpness. I dont think Halfpenny offers anything superior to Kearney as a pure full back and i know i'd prefer Rob under the high ball for sure. It's just the kicking that is a clear separation.
My Ratings
15. Leigh Halfpenny: 7.5
14. Tommy Bowe: 6.5
13: Brian O’Driscoll: 8.5
12. Manu Tuilagi: 7.0
11. George North: 8
10. Johnny Sexton: 9.0
9. Conor Murray: 6.5
1. Cian Healy: 6
2. Rory Best: 6
3. Dan Cole: 6.5
4. Alun-Wyn Jones: 6.0
5. Ian Evans: 7
6. Tom Croft: 7.5
7. Sean O’Brien: 8.5
8. Jamie Heaslip: 8.5
Halfpenny arguably deserves more but he cost us 70 metres by being caught way out of position and didnt offer much other than kicking. Drico made a few mistakes and escaped a clear yellow, otherwise he'd get 9, O' Brien missed a key tackle, Heaslip also cost us a few penalties in bad positions.
The penalty count was quite worrying. Sure, it was the Force and we blew them away. But a penalty count that high against the Wallabies could be the difference between winning and losing.
Which is why Warburton may just edge the Openside for the Test. We need someone crafty at the breakdown to help lower the penalty count and for all SOB and Tipuric offer at 7 in terms of go-forward, neither did enough on the deck for my liking.
Loving the fact it's a Lions year, especially on a day like this nothing better than sitting in the sun watching it on laptop. The joys of unemployment
Lions Tour has assured my sanity for 6 more weeks
Excellent post.
Do you think that perhaps the penalty count was high due to the nature of learning the refs?0 -
-
Excellent post.
Do you think that perhaps the penalty count was high due to the nature of learning the refs?
Thanks
I'm not positive if it was due to refereeing or purely down to the players adjusting to the defensive system still or just a lack of craft at the breakdown Probably a little of all three.
What i do know is the scoreline ended up 69-17 but that's allowing for the fact the Force turned down 6 kickable penalties in favour of scrums and line-outs AND allowing for the fact our repeating infringing cost us a yellow card and arguably the ref was lenient in waiting so long to (mistakingly) card AWJ.
We're not going to blow the Wallabies away and if we hand up an easy 12-18 points in Pens and have men in the Sin-Bin for repeated breakdown infringements, we're going to be in a lot of trouble come test time.
I still feel we have the squad, ability and determination to get a series victory but these defensive issues need to be ironed out. There's no doubt whatsoever the squad is pure class in terms of attacking potency and we have plenty in the squad to give us go-forward. But the penalty count will kill that advantage if we don't tighten up.0 -
Advertisement
-
-
-
-
-
-
Advertisement
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
Advertisement
-
Advertisement