Welsh Lions: Brian O'Driscoll dropped from the 23 for 3rd Test [MOD NOTE POST 1]

jamiedav2011

Judgement Day wrote: »

Well I haven't changed my mind one iota. It was a battle between two almost equally miserable coaches (plus some very talented players) and the least bad coach won. If the Aussies had a different kicker on in the 1st test today's result wouldn't have mattered.

I was delighted to see Jonny Sexton score his try, and Conor Murray outshining Philips, but apart from that.........I left the pub 10 minutes before the game ended...only the second time in about ten years. The singing of 'Bread of Heaven' throughout the game really irked me and the next time Wales wish to tour Australia can they please do it under their own flag. BTW I'm in a good mood.

Was the first one in May 2009 by any chance?

Chucky the tree

Ugo Monye spacecraft experience wrote: »

So you decided to hop on your high horse and roll over to say that?

What is embarrassing about saying BOD should have started btw?

When did I say that was embarrassing?

matthew8

Gatland has been vindicated as a great coach today, no doubt, and he might just be the most accomplished rugby coach without a world cup, but that does not equal being vindicated in dropping BOD. You have to say based on the first 2 tests he should be ahead of Davies, but it makes you think Roberts and Davies were the 2 he had in his head before the tour.

Ugo Monye spacecraft experience

Chucky the tree wrote: »

When did I say that was embarrassing?

well you said it was an embarrassing result, in what sense?

btw, I love the way you only turn up here to have potshot at Irish rugby fans or the forum in general

Chucky the tree

Ugo Monye spacecraft experience wrote: »

well you said it was an embarrassing result, in what sense?

btw, I love the way you only turn up here to have potshot at Irish rugby fans or the forum in general

For the people who suddenly wanted the Lions to lose because BOD was dropped. I came here to congratulate Gatland on winning the series. His team did it in style in the last game when it counted.

Pac1Man

Who should have started where become small irrelevant details when a team wins. If they lost those decisions are more closely scrutinized. It's the nature of team sports. No matter how well Jonathan Davies played, there would still be some dissenters complaining about the dropping of BOD. This shows how biased and blinkered they are and in my opinion, renders their opinion moot.

The win is the most important thing bar none, especially since it only comes around once every four years and is not an on-going league season. If it was then the managers decisions could and should be questioned more closely.

awec

Chucky the tree wrote: »

For the people who suddenly wanted the Lions to lose because BOD was dropped. I came here to congratulate Gatland on winning the series. His team did it in style in the last game when it counted.

Warren says thanks Chucky the tree.

Ugo Monye spacecraft experience

Chucky the tree wrote: »

For the people who suddenly wanted the Lions to lose because BOD was dropped. I came here to congratulate Gatland on winning the series. His team did it in style in the last game when it counted.

Don't think he reads boards often

AngeGal

Chucky the tree wrote: »

I came here to congratulate Gatland on winning the series.

I'd say he'll see it alright.

TouchingVirus

TouchingVirus wrote: »

Gatland would be vindicated if Davies had a cracking game or proved pivotal. He didn't, so the result can't vindicate him on it. It was still the wrong call.

Gatland doesn't give a toss about being vindicated over picking BOD or not - he won the series - that's it. Let's let it go.

Judgement Day

jamiedav2011 wrote: »

Was the first one in May 2009 by any chance?

You've got me there as I can barely remember what happened last week I watch so many games - but it was towards the end of a particularly bad Munster performance - but not against Leinster.

Judgement Day

Incidentally, I wonder how this Lions team (or any other) would do against a real SH selection as is being proposed. http://www.stuff.co.nz/sport/rugby/international/8874435/Bill-Pulver-proposes-Sanzar-Lions-for-2015

As Rugby Union is seriously waning in popularity in Australia perhaps the Lions need some equal opposition.

marbless

glasso wrote: »

Gatland doesn't give a toss about being vindicated over picking BOD or not - he won the series - that's it. Let's let it go.

Exactly. Full credit and congrats to him and his team for a magnificent win today.

Kerrydude1981

Nice interview by BOD after the game today

twinytwo

matthew8 wrote: »

Gatland has been vindicated as a great coach today, no doubt, and he might just be the most accomplished rugby coach without a world cup, but that does not equal being vindicated in dropping BOD. You have to say based on the first 2 tests he should be ahead of Davies, but it makes you think Roberts and Davies were the 2 he had in his head before the tour.

Really? given the players available to him, he more or less picked the same team as most other people would have done.

was it his tactics that won the gome?... no it was mainly down to a certain english man destroying the aussie scrum.

does this make him a great coach?... i dont think so.

nc6000

twinytwo wrote: »

Really? given the players available to him, he more or less picked the same team as most other people would have done.

was it his tactics that won the gome?... no it was mainly down to a certain english man destroying the aussie scrum.

does this make him a great coach?... i dont think so.

A certain Englishman who was fourth choice also and not even in the original squad.

Lennonist

I heard Eddie O'Sullivan on this on RTE Radio. He said Gatland still made the wrong decision re the dropping of O'Driscoll along with other things, but he got away with it because Australia were fairly beatable.

O'Sullivan made the point that it took the last half of the 3 tests for the Lions on this occasion to beat a relatively ordinary Australia side. I tend to agree with O'Sullivan. They made hard work of it, but got there in the end without much style. If this was an All Blacks tour, Gatland's ultra conservative and parochial approach would have failed.

phog

Lennonist wrote: »

I heard Eddie O'Sullivan on this on RTE Radio. He said Gatland still made the wrong decision re the dropping of O'Driscoll along with other things, but he got away with it because Australia were fairly beatable.

O'Sullivan made the point that it took the last half of the 3 tests for the Lions on this occasion to beat a relatively ordinary Australia side. I tend to agree with O'Sullivan. They made hard work of it, but got there in the end without much style. If this was an All Blacks tour, Gatland's ultra conservative and parochial approach would have failed.

Or Gatland may have had a different game plan or squad for the ABs or SA.

I agree I certainly thought the series should have been won by the 2nd test but you can't argue with the result today. Comprehensive win.

leakyboots

.ak wrote: »

The opposition can't make handling skills look better than they are.

Poor defending may make attackers look better, but that's another story.

Anyway, regardless, I still very much enjoyed the warm up games. At least they tried to play rugby.

The tests have been poison.

Ah here, come out of the fog

matthew8

leakyboots wrote: »

Ah here, come out of the fog

If England and South Africa played against each other 3 times and the games went exactly as the Lions tests, everyone would be saying how bad and negative the games were. When you get up for a game of rugby as long as it's close it always seems like a great game.

mickmackey1

Steady on, the first test had some off the best individual tries I can remember for a long time.

Hagz

I wouldn't clasify the tests as poison. They weren't a scratch on the 09 tests, but they were still very enjoyable. Some really beautiful tries and memorable moments, and at times some gorgeous rugby. The standard of play and display of skills was certainly lacking. But I think if the first and third test were between South Africa and England I still would have enjoyed them.

Teferi

mickmackey1 wrote: »

Steady on, the first test had some off the best individual tries I can remember for a long time.

Yeah but what happened for the other 79 minutes and 30 seconds?

thebaz

finally a season break - then we can get on with real International rugby - looking positive for both Wales and Ireland.

ps well done Gatland and the Lions , but I'm much more excited about seeing Ireland under Schmidt in the autumn, that a historical team from a different era

Hagz

Warren Gatland's face for the Jamie Roberts try is priceless.

Also, Kurtley Beale was a little bit of a brat wasn't he? His shoulder on Sexton after the try and then it looked to me like he shouts an insult at the ref as he's blowing the final whistle imo.

BBDBB

I only spotted that when I watched the highlights, but after Beales shove after the try there was a hint that Tommy Bowe subsequently shoved Beale. It was only one camera angle and then it switched to Sexton who appeared to see some kind of scuffle and he started to head back to the in goal area

JagerScout

he won the series so he deserves credit but it was far from a great job by him.

MBolgia

JagerScout wrote: »

he won the series so he deserves credit but it was far from a great job by him.

Got to agree with this; he almost seemed to win the series despite his selections and game plan. I don't think it's fair to say that Australia gave the Lions the victory (although if Beale hadn't slipped the series would have been
lost a week ago), but despite Gatland's poor squad selection in key areas, his poor handling of the squad and the team and so on, he won.

Larbre34

Gatland "taken aback" by the "vitriolic" reaction to his selection.

It's been "a very tough 72 hours, personally"

Well done planet Earth.

Jawgap

Fair play to Gatland, him and his team won the series - he gambled big and he won big....

......but that doesn't make him a great coach. To paraphrase Yoda.....

"Wars do not make one great"

He came up with a system, found the beefy players to execute it ruthlessly and deservedly won, but I hope this is not the future of the game - hopefully someone will come up with a better way to play that moves the game on and negates this 'style.'