The Rugby Thread

[pharvey]

Looking forward to next weekend.

No game this evening, 5 games tomorrow afternoon, all at the same time and only 1 of which I'm not interested in...

Some cracking matches on indeed - unfortunately, whichever one you watch TNT Sports will constantly give away the results of others... Don't these Muppets realise that many of us record matches and don't want or need to know scores of other matches?!! Tw@ts...

Anywho, some further information on the race for the playoffs and the teams involved in tomorrow's matches

https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/rugby-union ... dgdy5kgp5o

[pharvey]

Well, this could cause some issues at Bath... Hopefully, if anything it'll not hit until late afternoon/early evening though...

"Thunderstorms could cause disruption including flooding in Wales, south west England and parts of the West Midlands from Saturday afternoon.

A Met Office weather warning said some locations could see 30mm (1.6in) of rain in two hours, with a "small chance" that repeated showers may lead to up to 50mm (2in) in a "few places".

"Whilst not all places will see them, slow-moving heavy showers and thunderstorms may lead to some flooding and disruption in places," it said.

The warning, which has been put in place between 13:00 BST and 20:00, covers Herefordshire and Shropshire as well as the south west.

And in Wales it covers 16 of the country's 22 council areas, excluding most of north Wales and Pembrokeshire."

[pharvey]

Quite a day of rugby yesterday - which thankfully the weather (above) didn't effect

Northampton were already guaranteed a home semi-final spot and whilst still strong, it was a much changed team. Bath were not, and were going for a Bonus Point win from the outset. Very well taken win 43-12. With Sale's shock win at Saracens, Bath also now have a home semi-final spot!

Sarries vs Sale. A hell of a performance from Sale gave them their first away win at Sarries for 19 years! In doing so also handed Bath their hoe fixture - so cheers for that one!! Sarries were miss-firing in the first half, but did get back into things in the 2nd, unfortunately for them too little too late, going down 10-20. Sale have come back strongly in the latter stages of the season, and this win earns them a playoff spot - knocking Sarries down to 4th place.

SEMI-FINAL Lineup: -

P1 - Northampton vs P4 - Saracens Friday May 31st 7:45pm KO

P2 - Bath vs P3 - Sale Saturday June 1st 3:30pm KO

[dtaai-maai]

SEMI-FINAL Lineup: -

P1 - Northampton vs P4 - Saracens Friday May 31st 7:45pm KO

P2 - Bath vs P3 - Sale Saturday June 1st 3:30pm KO

At least we can watch both games live!

[pharvey]

SEMI-FINAL Lineup: -

P1 - Northampton vs P4 - Saracens Friday May 31st 7:45pm KO

P2 - Bath vs P3 - Sale Saturday June 1st 3:30pm KO

At least we can watch both games live!

Which is a very big plus!! Hopefully the TV coverage will also be somewhat better than it was for the Bath match as well!!

[pharvey]

This weekend brings the finals of the European Rugby Challenge Cup and The Champions Cup.

ERC Cup Final - Gloucester vs "Hollywood" Sharks
Venue - Tottenham Hotspur Stadium
Date - Friday 24th May.
KO (UK) - 20:00 pm

Gloucester have had a dire season in the Premiership, but have been rotating the squad and blooding a whole new crop of youngsters - next season will be a whole lot different though IMHO. However, they have taken a vastly different attitude towards Cup Rugby and are deservedly in the Final. Sharks will be favourites, but this will not be a one-sided event.

Champions Cup Final - Leinster vs Toulouse
Venue - Tottenham Hotspur Stadium
Date - Saturday 25th May.
KO (UK) - 14:45 pm

The Final that was always going to be I guess and should be one hell of a game with Leinster being slight favourites with the bookies. Write Toulouse off at you peril though....

[Lost]

Bloody big crowd in Tottenham today. Guessing it's a big event on the rugby calendar. I only follow the 6 nations and the world cup. And bloody great they are too, I should try getting into club rugby really!

Suggest a team to take an interest in.

[dtaai-maai]

Suggest a team to take an interest in.

You might get very different answers from pharvey and me!

Northampton Saints
Saracens
Exeter
Bristol Bath
Sale
Harlequins

[Lost]

Suggest a team to take an interest in.

You might get very different answers from pharvey and me!

Northampton Saints
Saracens
Exeter
Bristol Bath
Sale
Harlequins

I shall do due diligence before I commit.

[dtaai-maai]

Northampton - Saracens at 7.45 this evening, semi-final of the Gallagher Premiership. Should be a cracker!

[pharvey]

Northampton - Saracens at 7.45 this evening, semi-final of the Gallagher Premiership. Should be a cracker!

And indeed it was - the last quarter especially. I thought Saints' dominance in the scrum was going to make things a tad one-sided, but thankfully that wasn't the case.

Now for Bath just to do Sale in the 2nd Semi later today!!

There is also "Judgment Day" in Wales with the Dragons taking on the Scarlets and Cardiff taking on the Ospreys (both matches to be played at the Cardiff City Stadium) - all Welsh teams well out of the mix in the URC , so the only real interest is seeing the performances of possible players for the Summer Tour.... Though that could well be depressing in itself!! That said, a few senior players are back from injury, Mason Grady returning to Welsh Rugby and a number of players retiring or moving on....

[pharvey]

Well, what an afternoon of rugby!!

Cracking result for Bath, myself and fellow supporters!! But most of all, a hell of a game! One or two of Bath's "Stars" had off days, but it's credit to the squad these days that saw others step up to proove the strength in depth that's now with the team. The "Million £ Man" Russell was a mixed bag again - brilliance mixed with arrogance mixed with... well Cracking displays from many others who don't get the limelight of the afore mentioed, but perhaps that's a good thing!! Don't get me wrong, Russell is class, I've supported Bath for over 40 years, but heads up arses is not a good mix IMHO and I don't think there's anymore room in Russell's backside with the idiotic commentators on TNT Sports included.

So, it's a Northampton vs Bath Final at (lah-de-dah) HQ this coming Saturday (timing works well for the Canadian F1 ). Saints will be favourites and their scrummaging power will cause issues for Bath - hate to say it, but massive respect for Northampton and the likes of Lawes who will be missed when he moves to France next season. I just hope his last game is on the losing side!!

As for the URC, Judgment Day and the Welsh teams.... Well, good God! Cardiff vs Ospreys turned out to be a cracker and beyond all belief (whilst it was mathematically possible), the Ospreys have qualified in the "Last Eight" and for the Play-offs!! They had to win with a Bonus Point and have 3 other games go their way - they were given a 10% chance of getting there..... AND THEY DID!! Incredibly, Welsh Rugby still has somthing to smile about

More later!!

[pharvey]

This is truly sad news. Rob along with the late Dodie Weir and other sufferers brought the world's attention to MND which he had suffered from for 4 and a half years. His former teammate and great friend Kevin Sinfield raised a great deal of money through running countless marathons - even pushing Rob in his wheelchair on a few - not to mention carrying him over the finish line on the odd occasion. An absolutely dreadful disease, but through the work of people like these, hopefully there will be strides made in the medical world.... RIP Sir.

Leeds Legend Rob Burrow Dies Aged 41

"Leeds Rhinos and Great Britain rugby league great Rob Burrow has died.

Burrow, who was 41, had lived with motor neurone disease for nearly five years after being diagnosed in late 2019.

The diagnosis came just two years after he retired from playing, following a stellar 17-year career that included winning eight Grand Finals, three World Club Challenges and two Challenge Cups."

More to follow. https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/rugby-leagu ... qqwvwzp5zo

[PeteC]

Are we doing anything with the International's this year Pharvey? I'm having Superbru withdrawal symptoms at the moment.

[pharvey]

Are we doing anything with the International's this year Pharvey? I'm having Superbru withdrawal symptoms at the moment.

Caught up with me a bit this year and had forgotten how close things were from kicking off - just over 2 weeks away now!! I'll take a look at setting things up