Lions Tour

sprucemoose

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117733281#Comment_117733281

are sky done with it now? there seemed to be a tribute thing on at the close of the programme on saturday and Alex APyne/Payno said something along the lines of 'thanks for watching over the last 24 years'. i wonder would amazon go for it if sky dont have the rights

bilston

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117733459#Comment_117733459

I think Sky are pretty much done with Rugby. They have the Rugby Championship this year which is good, but I don't think they have any rights beyond that.

I have no idea about the 2025 Lions, but it wouldn't make a lot of sense for them to keep those rights on their own.

They will be Australian rights to sell so they could end up with anyone! A Lions series of FTA TV would be massive, but for the Aussies it will be about making as much cash as possible.

Hopefully Alex Payne gets a gig somewhere (and not just on his podcast with Tindall and Haskell!). I think he's a very good presenter.

Sudden Valley

Was thinking was there any equivalent in any other sport of what Rassie did to the referee after the first test. I know in football managers are afraid of even naming the decisions they disagree with in post match interviews. Though saying that I remember the Lions management going after the referee following the injury to BOD in the NZ test.

sprucemoose

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117734525#Comment_117734525

yeah it seems sky dont have much interest in union at this stage so i wouldnt be surprised if they give up the lions rights. my money would be on something similar to the nations cup last year but with it being shared between c4 and amazon, probably live on amazon and highlights on TV. itd be interesting to see what would happen in ireland then if rte got live rights for ROI only.

as for aus, channel 9 seem to be making a big push for more sports coverage atm so i wouldnt be surprised if they get it, im pretty sure they were showing the Super Rugby AU this year. havent watched much of their union coverage but their league stuff is quite decent so im guessing theyd do a good job.

agreed on payne, would definitely prefer him to someone like craig doyle but i think i vaguely remember him saying he would be slow to go back to TV since he felt he got a raw deal from sky.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117735821#Comment_117735821

When the entire All Black squad came down with food poisoning during the 1995 world cup, apparently one of the coaches completely shat the bed while ill. Probably the most comparable example.

Yeah_Right

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117735821#Comment_117735821

Rafa's fact rant? That would be comparable. Jose has probably had one or two rants as well over the years.

Sudden Valley

If they did up a long presentation and put in on the internet I think they would face along ban. Mourinho has had rants but it's usually in the heat of the moment post match when managers are given some leeway.

Hopefully Erasmus gets something beyond a token punishment

He really ensured that a complete balls of a (albeit already poor) series ensued

Real short-term thinking and inability to see the bigger picture

Captain_Crash

On the Sky and rugby stuff a few days ago, just watching the GBR Podcast there and “Payno” was saying that the end of the Lions was the end of rugby on Sky for the foreseeable future.

icdg

They do have The Rugby Championship - for this year anyway- but that just involves taking a feed from the host broadcaster, they aren’t adding anything of their own other than the opening titles.

Teferi

Huge pity Sky are giving up the rugby tbh. The best coverage for hyping up the sport bar none - they played a massive part in building the legends around Leicester, Munster, Toulouse in the early years and the likes of Leinster and Toulon later on. I loved their coverage at the height of the Heineken Cup, they'd have you believing that Newport vs Caste was the biggest game of the season.

Captain_Crash

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117769093#Comment_117769093

Loved those H Cup Saturday’s where you’d have 3 back to back kick offs! To be fair, they can be stale at some sports but the rugby coverage was fantastic in its hey day

Dave_The_Sheep

Loved a good Heineken Cup weekend on Sky. Wall to wall rugby, great entertainment.

BT just don't cut it compared to those days.

Iain Henderson the second Lions tour player, after Finn Russell questioning the tactics of Warren Gatland re Lions tour. If Warrenball is even considered to be head coach again for the 2025 Oz Tour, then that be a grave mistake from the selection committee, that will backfire on them spectacularly.

molloyjh

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117929839#Comment_117929839

That assumes that there’s another willing and available candidate. What other clubs or unions would be willing to give so freely of their coaches?

It’s kind of like the Welsh giving out about the Pro14 final being in the Aviva so often. But the WRU never bid for it and Edinburgh at that time of year is bedlam. If the only realistic option is the Aviva then what can the Pro14 do about that?

ersatz

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117930981#Comment_117930981

Or they could go a different direction and use a younger hungrier coach with something to prove. Part of the problem with the Lions is that it is overburdened by it's legacy and that begs down heavily on the entire project. It doesn't have rugby identity as such, it's a cultural and historical endeavor, and recently a singularly commercial affair. It could retain all that but become far more interesting if it developed an expectation of experimentation and risk taking. And it probably wouldn't lose any more series than it already does. It's basically a three game tournament with a few warm up matches to prepare, no reason a young coach coming from a successful club background couldn't do something great with it.

bilston

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117943855#Comment_117943855

You have to remember the players the Lions coach is dealing with. These are the most experienced and best internationals in Ireland and Britain. How would they take to a young coach who hasn't coached at test level?

I suppose that's the risk aspect you're talking about, but that would be a tough gig for any young coach.

ersatz

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117944102#Comment_117944102

Its definitely a risk but the Lions have made some howler mistakes over the years that have seriously undermined its credibility, who can forget the Alastair 'gulf war salesman' Campbell as three ring circus caller in '05? It's proven to be a fairly robust concept nevertheless and fans enjoy it and pay attention but if the rugby is really bad and it doesn't feel like 'the best players in Britain and Ireland', then what's the point?

Many of these players already play with young coaches who haven't international experience, think ROG or McCall as examples. There are others in the UK that have credibility among players.

aloooof

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117946381#Comment_117946381

I can't imagine their clubs would be too pleased about it tho. Didn't Howley take over as caretaker from Gatland preceding 2013 and 2017, for example? And that's an international coach, where there are fewer games to prepare for. I just don't see it flying with the clubs owners.

Quin_Dub

Lions head coach is nearly a full year of a commitment now- No one is going to get a sabbatical from a top level National or Club/Regional head coach role to take it on.

So you are looking at a former coach or an up and comer.

Both come with major risks - The former coach route means you might get someone with a style that's past it's sell-by date , exactly what Gatland is accused of. With an up and comer , the risk is that they will be out of their depth.

No easy solutions to be had.

ersatz

Yes, its risky but the logistical part of it is not such a biggie. Gatland was pencilled in within a few months of the NZ series. Its actually easier than a situation where a coach announces he's leaving at the end of the season and a club/country has to scramble to hire someone. In the case of the Lions they have 3 or more years out to plan for it. Ill bet guys like ROG have a pretty clear picture of what he'll be doing in 3 years, whether he'll still be at La R or not.

Big picture is that the project is in decline and that has to do, in some respects at least, with an overcautious risk averse culture and an inability on the part of the suits to invest in what the series might become instead of what's its been.

I would rather the Lions took risks. The coach should team much the same as the team changes. I think it would add substantially to the spectacle and I'm kinda tired of Gatland at this stage.

I'd rather an exciting 3 loss tour than the dour stress fest it seems to have become.

theVersatile

Yeah, I'd love to see a young coach like Johan Van Grann get his hands on the Lions. Doubt he'll be in Munster by 2025 so he should be free to have a stab at it when the time comes.

aloooof

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117946750#Comment_117946750

The problem here tho is that if you want to give it to a less experienced coach, and they need to be confirmed 3-4 season previous, that could end up looking like a very silly appointment by the time it came around.

I’m not sure what the solution is but I’m not sure this is it either tho.

But I’d very much be in favour of someone other than Gatland getting it next time out. Also I’m hopeful that something as simple as having crowds back for the Tests will be make a big difference.

AbusesToilets

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117946750#Comment_117946750

Why does it have to be a year long gig? It's a couple of months for the tour. Presumably bureaucrats and whatnot handle the actual planning of the trip itself

aloooof

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117947878#Comment_117947878

Presumably so you’re not leaving a club high and dry mid-season.

salmocab

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117947878#Comment_117947878

The coach would need to travel around watching players live like an international coach would.

Lost Ormond

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117947878#Comment_117947878

The coach isnt doing any of the planning of the trip bar selecting/agreeing with whatever facilities the admin staff pick out but the coach will want to be watching provincial/club games all through the season to get sense of what players theyd like to pick. they cant do that if coaching a side.

Aren't some horrific shitfests just best left in the past?

No less than a three-parter.

Hopefully each shorter than the actual second test.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kDDrts9aa74

PTH2009

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119206549#Comment_119206549

Pity it's on ITV

Some balls not having the channel (that you can record ) on Sky

The days of the DVD releases gone