The Cory Hill news came after the Cardiff news. Both are bad IMHO. The Hill one is shocking to be truthful.
i used music gig as an absurdism.
like the poster above who equated it to a premiership game in the aviva.
no idea at all why the provinces should be consulted if that were to happen. I actually think it would be a great idea, though it wouldn't sell out.
Why Cory Hill ?. Had thought he had left Welsh rugby after the bottle throwing incident and wouldn't be available for selection. WRU rules must be different for non-cap internationals.
Still, I suppose he's a 'former Lion'.
What's the deal there, why is Cory Hill a bad choice for captain? Edit: A quick Google throws up a bizarre account "he was named as among a group of men who damaged a woman's house in May 2021." … "A representative for the player said the group went "to the wrong property"… https://www.walesonline.co.uk/sport/rugby/rugby-news/wales-rugby-star-cory-hill-21764414
https://www.planetrugby.com/news/disgraced-forward-handed-wales-captaincy-by-warren-gatland-while-ex-rugby-league-sensation-makes-debut-against-reds
as for why hes been playing, they dropped the "gatland law" from 60 caps to 25 back in feb last year.
Also, his less than salubrious character aside, he is playing in the 4th tier of the Japanese league.
https://www.theguardian.com/sport/article/2024/jul/10/rhys-webb-four-year-ban-rugby-union-wales-biarritz
Rhys Webb getting a doping ban, I do wonder how much of this goes on.
Never accordingly to most people here when the topic is brought up.
Tom Daly to Stade Nicoise (ProD2)
Sam Arnold to Newcastle Falcons
HGH (ab)use is endemic in the players over 30 by all accounts. I wonder how Webb got caught.
He was tested in pre season last July by Biarritz.
Yeah I didn't mean when so much as what exactly he was taking to get himself caught. HGH is quite hard to get popped for. Whatever it was was also allegedly supplied to him by the WRU which is even more interesting.
"According to our information, scrum-half Rhys Webb, who has 40 caps for Wales, tested positive for growth hormone following an unannounced test carried out by the French Anti-Doping Agency (AFLD) during training in July.
This would be the first athlete to be pinpointed in France since 2016, as synthetic growth hormone is difficult to detect directly (a window of only a few hours). In 2021, a method developed by the Chatenay-Malabry laboratory using an indirect marker (IGF1) made it possible to extend the detection window to one week. The product was allegedly supplied by the Welsh federation and Webb did not declare it to the Biarritz club doctor. "
https://www.lequipe.fr/Rugby/Actualites/Rhys-webb-biarritz-positif-a-l-hormone-de-croissance/1415831
McKinley returning to Italy as an assistant coach to Vicenza. He'll be a huge loss to VM rugby coverage.
Good for him, hope he can build a successful career in coaching
Sbu Nkose - 16-cap Springbok tested positive for an anabolic steroid in May. Facing a 4 year ban if the B Sample tests positive too.
I saw somewhere there is a Lions Tour Talk in the aviva tonight with Gordon Darcy …im trying to find where one can buy tickets but cant seem to ..anyone able to help ?
It seems like it might have been an event exclusive to Lions members. I checked my emails when I received an invite to buy tickets but the page to buy tickets is now showing an error.
Doesnt sound like i can rock up and pay at the door so ….
Is there anywhere to stream teh Olympic 7s?
Irish game should be on rte2.
Discovery plus have all the games
It is on BBC Red button if anyone has that
I went to this Lions Fans talk last night in Aviva and paid on the door 35stg, Gordon D'Arcy & Simon Zebo on panel previewing next years Lions Tour in Australia and picking potential squads etc , think its on in Murrayfield, cardiff, London over the coming months with different guest speakers , interesting evening even if it is a year away, about 250 people seated in the premium area .
Im still in awe of what Dupont did in the 7s final earlier....it reminded me of Lomu in 1995....had me off my seat every time he got the ball.....
He is definitely one of the greatest players of all time....he is just so unbelievably influential....
I think his performance will be one of the highlights of the whole Olympics....
I'd tend to agree but I saw a fact that I was amazed about in a contrarian post about whether Dupont was the greatest of all time.
Outside of World-cups he has not played outside of Europe since the very start of his International career before he was a starter.
He's never toured SA , NZ etc. as he has not gone on a French Summer tour in years.
The argument being made was that he can't be a "GOAT" as he's never won a series in the Southern Hemisphere and so on.
Not sure I agree with the point , I think he's incredible , but I was shocked to see that he'd never travelled outside of the 6N's countries for a French test match.
Like Sexton never having been to South Africa.
Dupont has not lost a final since he played u18 club rugby.
He's definitely the biggest star since Lomu and maybe a lot bigger. He's a fantastic player too.
Ah it is not similar at all. That's just a quirk of history - he still has series wins against Aus and NZ. Dupont has played 24 minutes in the SH in total.
Why would 6n need to compensate SANZAAR
.
The southern hemisphere unions are particularly unhappy with France and Ireland, whose reluctance to sign up to what was billed as a Super Bowl of rugby led to the Six Nations blocking a deal worth £200m each for four events to be staged every two years in Doha from 2026.
Good work France and Ireland.
