so who's going to win the rugby world cup this year? - Page 3 - Tilted Forum Project Discussion Community

archer2371 · 11-02-2003, 08:57 AM

Finalized Pool Standings (again, winners and runners up only).

Pool A
Australia-18
Ireland-15

Pool B
France-20
Scotland-14

Pool C
England-19
South Africa-15

Pool D
New Zealand-20
Wales-14

Well, almost all of my playoff predictions came true, not bad for a Yank huh? My next post shall feature a breakdown of what I think will happen in the Road to Telstra Stadium for the Cup.

archer2371 · 11-02-2003, 09:09 AM

Quarterfinals

New Zealand v. South Africa QF1

Australia v. Scotland QF2

France v. Ireland QF3

England v. Wales QF4

Semifinals

New Zealand v. Australia

England v. France

Third Place Playoff

Australia v. France

Final

New Zealand v. England

Winner: New Zealand

bundy · 11-03-2003, 06:37 PM

archer, did you manage to see that NZ vs Wales match??

that was a GREAT game - probably the game of the cup so far...
they both played great attacking rugby.
which with the boring style that the poms have been employing, has been rare in this competition.

the Welsh really stuck it to the blacks most of the match... i mean, if it hadn´t been the best NZ squad (possibly ever) they would have been upset.

Rocococo was just too fast and in form, but the Welsh leading at half time, and dominating play in the first half was great to watch.

i think, just like Samoa, the Welsh won´t be able to repeat that effort against the next big team they come up against (they´ve got England in the qtrs)...

it can be kind of seen as England and NZ passing two big tests. Samoa scared England, and the Welsh put the wind up NZ.
shame there weren´t some real upsets.

well done to the Welsh!
hope you guys can repeat the effort against the poms.

as for your predictions for the rest of the cup Archer, well its pretty hard to bet against that outcome.

though i think for the third place spot, Australia will struggle against the French...

it´ll be a nasty match. a revenge match where the dirty French will try their hardest to hurt, and beat the Aussies in retaliation for the defeat in the final 4 years ago.

archer2371 · 11-03-2003, 07:36 PM

No, unfortunately, I have not seen that match yet, stupid Fox Sports World broadcasts them on a 72 hour delay, and pay-per-view is just too much money. Man, I wish I had Sky Sports. But I imagine it was a good matchup, because when I watched the first Wales/NZ match earlier in the year, the Welsh showed some promise, but never could get it going. *Sigh* maybe it's time for me to move to New Zealand.

Spartak · 11-08-2003, 01:54 AM

Whoa did anyone see the All Blacks - Springboks game ?

My god that was insane, pretty much 1 try separating the teams until about 60 minutes in, I was yelling at the TV so much I nearly lost my voice.

Great game by the All Blacks, especially Spencer and Meelamu. A 20 meter break by a hooker for a try is one thing, a 20 meter break by a hooker for a try against the Springboks is another.

Great game AB's you thoroughly deserved your stay at the world cup.

Now to armageddon next week (provided Australia beat whoever they are playing now). For anybody who knows little about rugby.. the Yankees/Red Sox rivalry has absolutely nothing on the Australia/New Zealand rivalry.

GO BLACK!

bundy · 11-08-2003, 04:50 AM

Spencer was in GREAT FORM!!
which isn´t good for the Wallabies.

Boks put up a great fight.
its just a shame they didn´t upset Black.
apparently its the first time NZ has ever beaten the Boks in a World Cup... and its also the first time either of the teams has lost in before the semis.

as for the Wallabies, well another shit first half. not clinical. not good enough if thats what we´re going to give to the Blacks.

the second half was better... STIRLING and LOTE... its about time. please Eddie Jones, drop Mat Rogers for Matt Burke.

as for armageddon... Spartak... you´re bloody right.

Australia / NZ ... bring it on!! this is the greatest sporting rivalry in the world.
nothing better than having an underdog Aussie squad battling their hearts out against a tough opposition.

GO GOLD!

Doos · 11-10-2003, 07:57 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by Spartak
Whoa did anyone see the All Blacks - Springboks game ?

My god that was insane, pretty much 1 try separating the teams until about 60 minutes in, I was yelling at the TV so much I nearly lost my voice.

Great game by the All Blacks, especially Spencer and Meelamu. A 20 meter break by a hooker for a try is one thing, a 20 meter break by a hooker for a try against the Springboks is another.

To be fair, we missed about 4 tackles on Mealamu.

Just wait til we get a real coach

archer2371 · 11-10-2003, 08:56 PM

Excuses, excuses, admit defeat and move on Doos.

Addiction · 11-12-2003, 05:50 AM

I think France has it in them, after their performance against Ireland. So much style, so much precision, basically everything that Australia lacks. :P

bundy · 11-12-2003, 08:46 PM

you could well be right there addiction.
in the past week theres been a more than a few experts suddently taking notice of France.

personally i think it could well be a repeat of the ´87 rwc final.

bundy · 11-15-2003, 05:12 AM

OH MY FUCKING GOD!!!

Wallabies 22-10!!!

i can´t believe it!
what an amazing match!!!

Stirling Mortlock, i love you!!!
every single wallaby went out there and played their hearts out!!

too much pressure, finally made the kiwis crack...

now, lets see if France can stick it right up the poms, and then we can replay the last cup final!!

god i love rugby!

Spartak · 11-15-2003, 11:03 AM

The worst possible thing happened:

The backs got shut down and Concussions MacDonald had to make pressure kicks. The blatant lack of kicking game was exposed and there you go.

The try by Mortlock didn't help either

Addiction · 11-16-2003, 12:45 AM

I kinda hope that France lose to England, just so that I'm not cheering for both teams in the final. :P

But what an amazing performance by the Aussies. They absolutely locked New Zealand down in the last 20 minutes, and defended their lead with class. Well done.

TIO · 11-16-2003, 01:59 AM

Spartak, who needs a kicking game?

It was funny, though, the few times Australia fot it in their heads that they had a ruck. Someone really needs to tell them that they don't.

The France-England game is looking pretty violent...whichever team gets through to next weekend will have a point to prove vs. Australia; that'll be a sensational game.

And here's to Johnny Wilkinson's boot!

Spartak · 11-16-2003, 02:12 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by TIO
Spartak, who needs a kicking game?

I hope you're being sarcastic :/

The main reason you won that game was because Elton Flatley was knocking in one penalty after another.

You do need a kicking game, look at England right now, ahead by 5 all because of 4 kicks.

EDIT: wow, all 24 points for England came from the boot of one Johnny Wilkinson.

Bring on the third place playoff!

TIO · 11-16-2003, 10:43 AM

Spartak, that boot can win matches, but we don't play a kicking game and neither do you. The strength of the Australian side is in running the ball; we rarely get involved in the kind of arial ping-pong that the Frogs and the Poms were carrying on with.
Which is a problem. We rely on our defence to keep tries out when we get caught with the ball in our own half; that strategy isn't much good against a team that likes to score field goals.
Can't really say I'm glad England won; they'll be tough competition in the final.

TIO · 11-16-2003, 10:49 AM

By the way, Bundy, great new avatar!
What a bloody champion...

Spartak · 11-16-2003, 10:49 AM

Point taken.

Now good luck against the Poms!

zubrei · 11-16-2003, 11:49 AM

Already looking forward to saturday.

2 great defences, the deciding factor will be between the back rows. Who can secure enough quality ball. Smith is simply superb, but England are so much better with Richard Hill back in the team. Look at how England totally dominated the French back row, who was regarded as the best in the tournement prior to today.

Prediction: England to win by 10 points.

bundy · 11-16-2003, 02:34 PM

what a boring display of northern hemisphere rugby sunday night was.

for everyone who wished to know the difference between northern and southern rugby, just compare saturday and sunday.

Australia vs NZ was an absolute cracker of a match, and thats not just because i´m an Aussie. England and France was boring, slow ping pong.

that Dominici attack was hilarious, probably the funniest thing i´ve seen in this tournament (apart from Rokocoko dropping the ball out over the sideline - sorry NZ, but that was hilarious)

the crap weather was courtesy of Sydney, but the rest was all down to Englands game plan, and Frances inability to just do anything.

boring boring boring.

about this coming Saturday...
can Australia once again put the English to sporting shame (just like we´ve done in every single other sport - including english staples such as darts and bowls)...
btw, if Australia does win this one, apparently we get to keep the cup.

or will the poms finally win Bill?

my advice...never, ever bet against an underdog Aussie team.

**edit - oh, and i almost forgot...

RULE BRITANNIA
MARMALADE AND JAM
5000 CRACKERS UP YOUR ASSHOLE
BANG BANG BANG

Spartak · 11-16-2003, 04:51 PM

Excellent, I hope you do keep that tiny little world cup, as long as we have the big silverware

But seriously, I hope they cast a giant cup, bigger than the Bledesloe out of solid gold to be the new World Cup, the current one is hilarious, my new kettle is bigger than it is.

TIO · 11-16-2003, 09:46 PM

hehe

Good luck to you guys on Thursday, Spartak! I'll be down at the pub cheering for you.

Strategy suggestion for Saturday: Send Joe Roff on in the first 5 minutes to go for Wilkinson's knee, and bugger the card.
(Better yet, have someone in Sydney this week 'drop' a hammer on his foot...)

But as long as we're tipping, Zubrin, I'll say Australia by 9, England to have a score exactly divisible by 3.

bundy · 11-17-2003, 01:17 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by TIO
England to have a score exactly divisible by 3.

LOL!!!
funny cos its true...

Quote:

Originally posted by TIO

Strategy suggestion for Saturday: Send Joe Roff on in the first 5 minutes to go for Wilkinson's knee, and bugger the card.
(Better yet, have someone in Sydney this week 'drop' a hammer on his foot...)

haha.
that reminds me of a story i heard about some S.Africa vs NZ game many years ago... the boks had some absolute wrecking ball of a prop who just laid waste to everything in range... so, on hearing that this guy was on the way to NZ for a tour, the Blacks called up some massive unit who was playing for some local club or some equivalent... anyway, they put him up in the opposing front row of the scrum, and during the first scrum, this bok wrecking balls head suddenly shot up, then he fell down unconscious... then the kiwis immediately subbed their new guy... who also turned out to be the local heavyweight boxing champ...

whattya say about subbing in Anthony Mundine or Kostya Tszyu for a few minutes, just to deal with jonny?

nah, we don´t need that.
we can win anyway.

Spartak · 11-17-2003, 01:37 AM

Hahahaha, the old All Blacks were a cunning bunch, I remember seeing a doco about a tour of the UK in the 70s I think.

Anyway the AB's were losing to England (I think) by 2 and it was approaching fulltime, and New Zealand got a lineout on about the English 30. The legend is, the ABs in the lineout just looked at each other and jumped out as soon as the ball had been released, looking like they have been pushed. They did such a good con-job that they fooled the ref into giving them a penalty, which they ended up converting and this beating England.

Sneaky, sneaky

archer2371 · 11-17-2003, 02:05 PM

Finally saw the match, I was away for the weekend, luckily someone got pay per view and taped it for me. Let me say this. You may hate me for it, but Australia did not deserve to win. That Mealamu "knock-on" was a try. Mortlock was offsides for his try, look at it, slow it down, he is blatantly offsides. Two of the penalties conceded for points (offsides ones) should not have been called because the players that were called offsides were not affecting the play anyways. The ref was horrid and did not call ruck when one was formed. There was a forward pass that was called, that wasn't. The score should have been 17-6 in favor of New Zealand. So now, I really could care less who wins the World Cup, Australia doesn't deserve it, and I can't freakin' stand England. Just a frusturating deal all around. If the ref had called it the same way for both sides, and the Wallabies won that way, then I would have been ok with it. Yet, the ref controlled the match and basically drained all the flash from the All Blacks, even Cees Meeuws looked distraught, he never does, that man is crazy, he never, ever, shows any other emotion than pissed off. This is ridiculous, I am disgusted with the poor quality of refs in high stakes matches like this, the IRB needs to wake up and do it soon.

bundy · 11-17-2003, 08:32 PM

oh, poor Archer...

Quote:

Originally posted by Archer
Excuses, excuses, admit defeat and move on Doos.

LOL!!
excuses, excuses... your words.

as for your excuses...

Australia did deserve to win.
going in to this cup campaign, NZ only had ONE game plan, just as Spencer said after the match. Australia shut it down... that done, Spencer couldn´t pull anything else together... especially with Australia defending as well as they did.
they put the pressure on, and NZ made mistake after mistake... Rokocoko´s dropping the ball into touch is a great case in point.
Mortlock was NOT offside... that was a magnificent, and risky intercept... look at the replay, if he didn´t pull that off, there would have been three NZ backs running around him.
that disallowed try WAS knocked on... and his elbow was in touch if i remember correctly. Tuqiri´s tackle was too strong.
There are always forward passes... this is because refs are not able to always stay at a decent angle of the play... this happens all the time...
it wasn´t the ref who drained the ´flash´ from the blacks, it was the Wallabies.
Kees Meeuws ought to have been distraught... he put Ben Darwin in hospital, possibly ending his rugby career, oh, and his world cup dream had just died.

as for Australia not deserving to win the cup... LOL!!

both England and Australia deserve to win the cup.
why?
because when it counted, they played the best rugby.
if England wins on Saturday, it´ll be because they´ve been able to play the greatest rugby around, and that they´ve mastered the rules...
to take advantage of the kicking aspect of the game in the way that they do (masterfully, i should add), even if heaps of people think its boring (myself included), shows that they are well and truly deserving of the cup.

if Australia wins, well its because they are the best, and that when it counted, they´ll have outwitted two supposedly better teams.

for an American, you don´t seem to be taking a Kiwi defeat very well.

TIO · 11-17-2003, 09:32 PM

^What he said.

archer2371 · 11-18-2003, 01:43 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by bundy

for an American, you don´t seem to be taking a Kiwi defeat very well.

Great-great grandparents are Kiwis. Well, were, considering they're passed on now.

almostaugust · 11-19-2003, 06:00 AM

Bring it on. I cant wait for the aussies to crush the poms in yet another sport.

almostaugust · 11-19-2003, 06:04 AM

I heard that the Womens Refuge Society in New Zealand issued a statement saying that domestic violence jumped very sharply the night the aussies beat the Kiwis.

Spartak · 11-19-2003, 11:41 AM

Yeah, the economy also collapsed and the suicide rate incrased sharply...

Don't believe the hype.

bundy · 11-19-2003, 02:42 PM

i noticed the Kiwi dollar was up yesterday against the Aussie dollar.

things can´t be all that bad. after all, the Kiwis still have most of the good (and large) silverware.

zubrei · 11-19-2003, 03:51 PM

You southern hemisphere lot are so bitter and twisted. Yes we have the best boot in Rugby, so why not use it. I'm damn sure if you lot had Jonny you'd do exactly the same as England.

Any "one" person willing to have a gentlemen's bet. I'll bet that England do indeed score a try, who will bet against me? The stake is I'll buy the first Aussie I meet in a pub a pint of lager (or bottle if hes a weirdo) if I'm wrong. If I'm right you have to buy the first English bloke you meet in a pub a pint (or bottle). And you have to explain why.

I still stick by my original assessment. England by 10 points (which isn't divisable by 3 :P).

bundy · 11-19-2003, 04:36 PM

ok zubrei. you´re on.
gentlemens bet it is.

i´ll buy the first Englishman i see in the pub a pint if England scores a try.

thats not to say i don´t think they´ll try for a try.
with Coen and Robinson, why wouldn´t they try to spread it wide once in a while?? especially when everybody is expecting everything to be going to jonny. a running rugby tactic may be a smart move. esp is Australia is preparing for a kicking game.

like i said a few posts above, Wilkinson/England may be boring, but they have mastered a great aspect of the game. this should be interesting. the best kicking squad against the best running squad.

good luck to the Poms. LOL - they´ll need it!!!

i just can´t help but remember back to the semis of the 1999 cup.
that yarpie Janni De Beer (sp?) was kicking drop goal after drop goal (5 in a match is still the record) - what was the very typical and brilliant response by the Aussies??
thats right, Steve Larkham went and kicked a drop goal to beat them.

btw Aussies, starting Friday, i hope everyones going to be getting around in gold. esp on saturday night.
the poms are a very vocal, annoying crowd... they´ll all be in white all 20000+ of them... so just like when the lions were last here in 2001... lets just get every aussie in gold.

England divisible by 3.
Australia to win.
close match.
esp if they run it a Wendell and kick it at Rogers. (which is what i reckon their plan will be).

oh, and come on New Zealand for tonight.

archer2371 · 11-19-2003, 04:37 PM

Nah, despite my bitterness towards Australia right now, they're a much better all around footy team, Australia by 7.

Spartak · 11-19-2003, 05:21 PM

England by a couple of drop goals.

They have too much experience and a solid, still unbroken gameplan, if things get too tough up front they are more than happy to give it to Johnny and let him have a go. While they also have some speed on the field, namely their fullback (Robinson ?) is a fast little chap.

They are also masters at bleeding the clock dry as well as other assorted means of "gamesmanship".

And it worked for them this far, it even worked for them when they had to come back from behind to win.

TIO · 11-20-2003, 01:18 AM

OK, it's still scoreless, and I haven't seen any of the game, so this tip isn't really cheating:
France by 3

(I want NZ to win, but think France will)

TIO · 11-20-2003, 01:19 AM

Damn...I said ^that exactly 30 seconds before the first try

zubrei · 11-20-2003, 01:57 AM

Bundy it's a deal.

Good first 20 minutes, crap second 20 minutes. France just aren't using the ball. Mind you it's annoying that france are using a basically 2nd string team.

slimshaydee · 11-20-2003, 02:57 AM

I won tickets to the final, im so freakin pumped. I'm gonna get wasted, and watch the aussies roll the pommies!!!!!!

11-02-2003, 08:57 AM	#81 (permalink)
archer2371 Sarge of Blood Gulch Red Outpost Number One Location: On the front lines against our very enemy	Finalized Pool Standings (again, winners and runners up only). Pool A Australia-18 Ireland-15 Pool B France-20 Scotland-14 Pool C England-19 South Africa-15 Pool D New Zealand-20 Wales-14 Well, almost all of my playoff predictions came true, not bad for a Yank huh? My next post shall feature a breakdown of what I think will happen in the Road to Telstra Stadium for the Cup. __________________ "This ain't no Ice Cream Social!" "Hey Grif, Chupathingy...how bout that? I like it...got a ring to it." "I have no earthly idea what it is I just saw, or what this place is, or where in the hell O'Malley is! My only choice is to blame Grif for coming up with such a flawed plan. Stupid, stupid Grif."

11-02-2003, 09:09 AM	#82 (permalink)
archer2371 Sarge of Blood Gulch Red Outpost Number One Location: On the front lines against our very enemy	Quarterfinals New Zealand v. South Africa QF1 Australia v. Scotland QF2 France v. Ireland QF3 England v. Wales QF4 Semifinals New Zealand v. Australia England v. France Third Place Playoff Australia v. France Final New Zealand v. England Winner: New Zealand __________________ "This ain't no Ice Cream Social!" "Hey Grif, Chupathingy...how bout that? I like it...got a ring to it." "I have no earthly idea what it is I just saw, or what this place is, or where in the hell O'Malley is! My only choice is to blame Grif for coming up with such a flawed plan. Stupid, stupid Grif."

11-03-2003, 06:37 PM	#83 (permalink)
bundy . Location: Tokyo	archer, did you manage to see that NZ vs Wales match?? that was a GREAT game - probably the game of the cup so far... they both played great attacking rugby. which with the boring style that the poms have been employing, has been rare in this competition. the Welsh really stuck it to the blacks most of the match... i mean, if it hadn´t been the best NZ squad (possibly ever) they would have been upset. Rocococo was just too fast and in form, but the Welsh leading at half time, and dominating play in the first half was great to watch. i think, just like Samoa, the Welsh won´t be able to repeat that effort against the next big team they come up against (they´ve got England in the qtrs)... it can be kind of seen as England and NZ passing two big tests. Samoa scared England, and the Welsh put the wind up NZ. shame there weren´t some real upsets. well done to the Welsh! hope you guys can repeat the effort against the poms. as for your predictions for the rest of the cup Archer, well its pretty hard to bet against that outcome. though i think for the third place spot, Australia will struggle against the French... it´ll be a nasty match. a revenge match where the dirty French will try their hardest to hurt, and beat the Aussies in retaliation for the defeat in the final 4 years ago. __________________ Ohayo!!!

11-03-2003, 07:36 PM	#84 (permalink)
archer2371 Sarge of Blood Gulch Red Outpost Number One Location: On the front lines against our very enemy	No, unfortunately, I have not seen that match yet, stupid Fox Sports World broadcasts them on a 72 hour delay, and pay-per-view is just too much money. Man, I wish I had Sky Sports. But I imagine it was a good matchup, because when I watched the first Wales/NZ match earlier in the year, the Welsh showed some promise, but never could get it going. Sigh maybe it's time for me to move to New Zealand. __________________ "This ain't no Ice Cream Social!" "Hey Grif, Chupathingy...how bout that? I like it...got a ring to it." "I have no earthly idea what it is I just saw, or what this place is, or where in the hell O'Malley is! My only choice is to blame Grif for coming up with such a flawed plan. Stupid, stupid Grif."

11-08-2003, 01:54 AM	#85 (permalink)
Spartak Bang bang Location: New Zealand	Whoa did anyone see the All Blacks - Springboks game ? My god that was insane, pretty much 1 try separating the teams until about 60 minutes in, I was yelling at the TV so much I nearly lost my voice. Great game by the All Blacks, especially Spencer and Meelamu. A 20 meter break by a hooker for a try is one thing, a 20 meter break by a hooker for a try against the Springboks is another. Great game AB's you thoroughly deserved your stay at the world cup. Now to armageddon next week (provided Australia beat whoever they are playing now). For anybody who knows little about rugby.. the Yankees/Red Sox rivalry has absolutely nothing on the Australia/New Zealand rivalry. GO BLACK! __________________ I can read your mind... looking at you... I can read your mind... Last edited by Spartak; 11-08-2003 at 01:17 PM..

11-08-2003, 04:50 AM	#86 (permalink)
bundy . Location: Tokyo	Spencer was in GREAT FORM!! which isn´t good for the Wallabies. Boks put up a great fight. its just a shame they didn´t upset Black. apparently its the first time NZ has ever beaten the Boks in a World Cup... and its also the first time either of the teams has lost in before the semis. as for the Wallabies, well another shit first half. not clinical. not good enough if thats what we´re going to give to the Blacks. the second half was better... STIRLING and LOTE... its about time. please Eddie Jones, drop Mat Rogers for Matt Burke. as for armageddon... Spartak... you´re bloody right. Australia / NZ ... bring it on!! this is the greatest sporting rivalry in the world. nothing better than having an underdog Aussie squad battling their hearts out against a tough opposition. GO GOLD! __________________ Ohayo!!!

11-10-2003, 08:56 PM	#88 (permalink)
archer2371 Sarge of Blood Gulch Red Outpost Number One Location: On the front lines against our very enemy	Excuses, excuses, admit defeat and move on Doos. __________________ "This ain't no Ice Cream Social!" "Hey Grif, Chupathingy...how bout that? I like it...got a ring to it." "I have no earthly idea what it is I just saw, or what this place is, or where in the hell O'Malley is! My only choice is to blame Grif for coming up with such a flawed plan. Stupid, stupid Grif."

11-12-2003, 05:50 AM	#89 (permalink)
Addiction Tilted Location: Sydney, Australia	I think France has it in them, after their performance against Ireland. So much style, so much precision, basically everything that Australia lacks. :P

11-12-2003, 08:46 PM	#90 (permalink)
bundy . Location: Tokyo	you could well be right there addiction. in the past week theres been a more than a few experts suddently taking notice of France. personally i think it could well be a repeat of the ´87 rwc final. __________________ Ohayo!!!

11-15-2003, 05:12 AM	#91 (permalink)
bundy . Location: Tokyo	OH MY FUCKING GOD!!! Wallabies 22-10!!! i can´t believe it! what an amazing match!!! Stirling Mortlock, i love you!!! every single wallaby went out there and played their hearts out!! too much pressure, finally made the kiwis crack... now, lets see if France can stick it right up the poms, and then we can replay the last cup final!! god i love rugby! __________________ Ohayo!!!

11-15-2003, 11:03 AM	#92 (permalink)
Spartak Bang bang Location: New Zealand	The worst possible thing happened: The backs got shut down and Concussions MacDonald had to make pressure kicks. The blatant lack of kicking game was exposed and there you go. The try by Mortlock didn't help either __________________ I can read your mind... looking at you... I can read your mind...

11-16-2003, 12:45 AM	#93 (permalink)
Addiction Tilted Location: Sydney, Australia	I kinda hope that France lose to England, just so that I'm not cheering for both teams in the final. :P But what an amazing performance by the Aussies. They absolutely locked New Zealand down in the last 20 minutes, and defended their lead with class. Well done.

11-16-2003, 01:59 AM	#94 (permalink)
TIO Addict Location: The Land Down Under	Spartak, who needs a kicking game? It was funny, though, the few times Australia fot it in their heads that they had a ruck. Someone really needs to tell them that they don't. The France-England game is looking pretty violent...whichever team gets through to next weekend will have a point to prove vs. Australia; that'll be a sensational game. And here's to Johnny Wilkinson's boot! __________________ Strewth

11-16-2003, 10:43 AM	#96 (permalink)
TIO Addict Location: The Land Down Under	Spartak, that boot can win matches, but we don't play a kicking game and neither do you. The strength of the Australian side is in running the ball; we rarely get involved in the kind of arial ping-pong that the Frogs and the Poms were carrying on with. Which is a problem. We rely on our defence to keep tries out when we get caught with the ball in our own half; that strategy isn't much good against a team that likes to score field goals. Can't really say I'm glad England won; they'll be tough competition in the final. __________________ Strewth

11-16-2003, 10:49 AM	#97 (permalink)
TIO Addict Location: The Land Down Under	By the way, Bundy, great new avatar! What a bloody champion... __________________ Strewth

11-16-2003, 10:49 AM	#98 (permalink)
Spartak Bang bang Location: New Zealand	Point taken. Now good luck against the Poms! __________________ I can read your mind... looking at you... I can read your mind...

11-16-2003, 11:49 AM	#99 (permalink)
zubrei Tilted Location: England Home of RWC Champions	Already looking forward to saturday. 2 great defences, the deciding factor will be between the back rows. Who can secure enough quality ball. Smith is simply superb, but England are so much better with Richard Hill back in the team. Look at how England totally dominated the French back row, who was regarded as the best in the tournement prior to today. Prediction: England to win by 10 points.

11-16-2003, 02:34 PM	#100 (permalink)
bundy . Location: Tokyo	what a boring display of northern hemisphere rugby sunday night was. for everyone who wished to know the difference between northern and southern rugby, just compare saturday and sunday. Australia vs NZ was an absolute cracker of a match, and thats not just because i´m an Aussie. England and France was boring, slow ping pong. that Dominici attack was hilarious, probably the funniest thing i´ve seen in this tournament (apart from Rokocoko dropping the ball out over the sideline - sorry NZ, but that was hilarious) the crap weather was courtesy of Sydney, but the rest was all down to Englands game plan, and Frances inability to just do anything. boring boring boring. about this coming Saturday... can Australia once again put the English to sporting shame (just like we´ve done in every single other sport - including english staples such as darts and bowls)... btw, if Australia does win this one, apparently we get to keep the cup. or will the poms finally win Bill? my advice...never, ever bet against an underdog Aussie team. edit - oh, and i almost forgot... RULE BRITANNIA MARMALADE AND JAM 5000 CRACKERS UP YOUR ASSHOLE BANG BANG BANG __________________ Ohayo!!!** Last edited by bundy; 11-16-2003 at 02:55 PM..

11-16-2003, 04:51 PM	#101 (permalink)
Spartak Bang bang Location: New Zealand	Excellent, I hope you do keep that tiny little world cup, as long as we have the big silverware But seriously, I hope they cast a giant cup, bigger than the Bledesloe out of solid gold to be the new World Cup, the current one is hilarious, my new kettle is bigger than it is. __________________ I can read your mind... looking at you... I can read your mind...

11-16-2003, 09:46 PM	#102 (permalink)
TIO Addict Location: The Land Down Under	hehe Good luck to you guys on Thursday, Spartak! I'll be down at the pub cheering for you. Strategy suggestion for Saturday: Send Joe Roff on in the first 5 minutes to go for Wilkinson's knee, and bugger the card. (Better yet, have someone in Sydney this week 'drop' a hammer on his foot...) But as long as we're tipping, Zubrin, I'll say Australia by 9, England to have a score exactly divisible by 3. __________________ Strewth

11-17-2003, 01:37 AM	#104 (permalink)
Spartak Bang bang Location: New Zealand	Hahahaha, the old All Blacks were a cunning bunch, I remember seeing a doco about a tour of the UK in the 70s I think. Anyway the AB's were losing to England (I think) by 2 and it was approaching fulltime, and New Zealand got a lineout on about the English 30. The legend is, the ABs in the lineout just looked at each other and jumped out as soon as the ball had been released, looking like they have been pushed. They did such a good con-job that they fooled the ref into giving them a penalty, which they ended up converting and this beating England. Sneaky, sneaky __________________ I can read your mind... looking at you... I can read your mind...

11-17-2003, 02:05 PM	#105 (permalink)
archer2371 Sarge of Blood Gulch Red Outpost Number One Location: On the front lines against our very enemy	Finally saw the match, I was away for the weekend, luckily someone got pay per view and taped it for me. Let me say this. You may hate me for it, but Australia did not deserve to win. That Mealamu "knock-on" was a try. Mortlock was offsides for his try, look at it, slow it down, he is blatantly offsides. Two of the penalties conceded for points (offsides ones) should not have been called because the players that were called offsides were not affecting the play anyways. The ref was horrid and did not call ruck when one was formed. There was a forward pass that was called, that wasn't. The score should have been 17-6 in favor of New Zealand. So now, I really could care less who wins the World Cup, Australia doesn't deserve it, and I can't freakin' stand England. Just a frusturating deal all around. If the ref had called it the same way for both sides, and the Wallabies won that way, then I would have been ok with it. Yet, the ref controlled the match and basically drained all the flash from the All Blacks, even Cees Meeuws looked distraught, he never does, that man is crazy, he never, ever, shows any other emotion than pissed off. This is ridiculous, I am disgusted with the poor quality of refs in high stakes matches like this, the IRB needs to wake up and do it soon. __________________ "This ain't no Ice Cream Social!" "Hey Grif, Chupathingy...how bout that? I like it...got a ring to it." "I have no earthly idea what it is I just saw, or what this place is, or where in the hell O'Malley is! My only choice is to blame Grif for coming up with such a flawed plan. Stupid, stupid Grif."

11-17-2003, 09:32 PM	#107 (permalink)
TIO Addict Location: The Land Down Under	^What he said. __________________ Strewth

11-19-2003, 06:00 AM	#109 (permalink)
almostaugust Junkie Location: Oz	Bring it on. I cant wait for the aussies to crush the poms in yet another sport. __________________ 'And it's been a long December and there's reason to believe Maybe this year will be better than the last I can't remember all the times I tried to tell my myself To hold on to these moments as they pass'

11-19-2003, 06:04 AM	#110 (permalink)
almostaugust Junkie Location: Oz	I heard that the Womens Refuge Society in New Zealand issued a statement saying that domestic violence jumped very sharply the night the aussies beat the Kiwis. __________________ 'And it's been a long December and there's reason to believe Maybe this year will be better than the last I can't remember all the times I tried to tell my myself To hold on to these moments as they pass'

11-19-2003, 11:41 AM	#111 (permalink)
Spartak Bang bang Location: New Zealand	Yeah, the economy also collapsed and the suicide rate incrased sharply... Don't believe the hype. __________________ I can read your mind... looking at you... I can read your mind...

11-19-2003, 02:42 PM	#112 (permalink)
bundy . Location: Tokyo	i noticed the Kiwi dollar was up yesterday against the Aussie dollar. things can´t be all that bad. after all, the Kiwis still have most of the good (and large) silverware. __________________ Ohayo!!!

11-19-2003, 03:51 PM	#113 (permalink)
zubrei Tilted Location: England Home of RWC Champions	You southern hemisphere lot are so bitter and twisted. Yes we have the best boot in Rugby, so why not use it. I'm damn sure if you lot had Jonny you'd do exactly the same as England. Any "one" person willing to have a gentlemen's bet. I'll bet that England do indeed score a try, who will bet against me? The stake is I'll buy the first Aussie I meet in a pub a pint of lager (or bottle if hes a weirdo) if I'm wrong. If I'm right you have to buy the first English bloke you meet in a pub a pint (or bottle). And you have to explain why. I still stick by my original assessment. England by 10 points (which isn't divisable by 3 :P).

11-19-2003, 04:36 PM	#114 (permalink)
bundy . Location: Tokyo	ok zubrei. you´re on. gentlemens bet it is. i´ll buy the first Englishman i see in the pub a pint if England scores a try. thats not to say i don´t think they´ll try for a try. with Coen and Robinson, why wouldn´t they try to spread it wide once in a while?? especially when everybody is expecting everything to be going to jonny. a running rugby tactic may be a smart move. esp is Australia is preparing for a kicking game. like i said a few posts above, Wilkinson/England may be boring, but they have mastered a great aspect of the game. this should be interesting. the best kicking squad against the best running squad. good luck to the Poms. LOL - they´ll need it!!! i just can´t help but remember back to the semis of the 1999 cup. that yarpie Janni De Beer (sp?) was kicking drop goal after drop goal (5 in a match is still the record) - what was the very typical and brilliant response by the Aussies?? thats right, Steve Larkham went and kicked a drop goal to beat them. btw Aussies, starting Friday, i hope everyones going to be getting around in gold. esp on saturday night. the poms are a very vocal, annoying crowd... they´ll all be in white all 20000+ of them... so just like when the lions were last here in 2001... lets just get every aussie in gold. England divisible by 3. Australia to win. close match. esp if they run it a Wendell and kick it at Rogers. (which is what i reckon their plan will be). oh, and come on New Zealand for tonight. __________________ Ohayo!!! Last edited by bundy; 11-19-2003 at 04:39 PM..

11-19-2003, 04:37 PM	#115 (permalink)
archer2371 Sarge of Blood Gulch Red Outpost Number One Location: On the front lines against our very enemy	Nah, despite my bitterness towards Australia right now, they're a much better all around footy team, Australia by 7. __________________ "This ain't no Ice Cream Social!" "Hey Grif, Chupathingy...how bout that? I like it...got a ring to it." "I have no earthly idea what it is I just saw, or what this place is, or where in the hell O'Malley is! My only choice is to blame Grif for coming up with such a flawed plan. Stupid, stupid Grif."

11-19-2003, 05:21 PM	#116 (permalink)
Spartak Bang bang Location: New Zealand	England by a couple of drop goals. They have too much experience and a solid, still unbroken gameplan, if things get too tough up front they are more than happy to give it to Johnny and let him have a go. While they also have some speed on the field, namely their fullback (Robinson ?) is a fast little chap. They are also masters at bleeding the clock dry as well as other assorted means of "gamesmanship". And it worked for them this far, it even worked for them when they had to come back from behind to win. __________________ I can read your mind... looking at you... I can read your mind...

11-20-2003, 01:18 AM	#117 (permalink)
TIO Addict Location: The Land Down Under	OK, it's still scoreless, and I haven't seen any of the game, so this tip isn't really cheating: France by 3 (I want NZ to win, but think France will) __________________ Strewth

11-20-2003, 01:19 AM	#118 (permalink)
TIO Addict Location: The Land Down Under	Damn...I said ^that exactly 30 seconds before the first try __________________ Strewth

11-20-2003, 01:57 AM	#119 (permalink)
zubrei Tilted Location: England Home of RWC Champions	Bundy it's a deal. Good first 20 minutes, crap second 20 minutes. France just aren't using the ball. Mind you it's annoying that france are using a basically 2nd string team.

11-20-2003, 02:57 AM	#120 (permalink)
slimshaydee If you've read this, PM me and say so Location: Sitting on my ass, and you?	I won tickets to the final, im so freakin pumped. I'm gonna get wasted, and watch the aussies roll the pommies!!!!!!