The Rugby Thread
-
dtaai-maai
- Hero
- Posts: 14912
- Joined: Mon Jul 30, 2007 10:00 pm
- Location: UK, Robin Hood country
Re: The Rugby Thread
Gloucester - Sale. Well worth a watch! In particular from 70 minutes.
This is the way
-
dtaai-maai
- Hero
- Posts: 14912
- Joined: Mon Jul 30, 2007 10:00 pm
- Location: UK, Robin Hood country
Re: The Rugby Thread
Just watching London Irish vs Leicester. I'm reminded of something I heard in commentary last week. Irish have players named Dolly (unfortunate enough itself, you'd think) and Parton. The commentator (Mullins?) said something along the lines of "... sandwiched between Dolly and Parton, uncomfortable but not entirely unpleasant..."
And of course Harry Potter's playing for the Tigers!
And of course Harry Potter's playing for the Tigers!
This is the way
-
dtaai-maai
- Hero
- Posts: 14912
- Joined: Mon Jul 30, 2007 10:00 pm
- Location: UK, Robin Hood country
Re: The Rugby Thread
Newcastle - Bristol
<yaawn> don't bother. A poor game made worse by a commentator who'd obviouly spent the previous night jotting down bad bear puns and was determined to squeeze them all in - even when applied to Newcastle...
<yaawn> don't bother. A poor game made worse by a commentator who'd obviouly spent the previous night jotting down bad bear puns and was determined to squeeze them all in - even when applied to Newcastle...
This is the way
Re: The Rugby Thread
This is really sad, and something no doubt we will see more of. I would think there are big rule changes coming, and/or added personal protection gear being made mandatory. 4 minute video at link, plus photos.
Alix Popham: Ex-Wales flanker on early onset dementia diagnosis
https://www.bbc.com/sport/rugby-union/55208227
"I don't want to be a burden on anybody. That's the thing that plays on my mind."
At just 40 years old, Alix Popham was diagnosed with early onset dementia. A former Wales flanker, he is a husband and father of three girls, trying to navigate an illness that affects his personality.
"I felt like there was a rage inside me boiling up and I just needed to get it out," Popham told BBC Sport.
"I slammed the doors and broke them. The bannister in the house, I pulled that off. After that aggression has come out, I'm thinking to myself, why did I do that? I have no control over those actions at that time."
Popham would forget people's names, or lose track of a conversation. His wife, Mel, remembers him setting the kitchen on fire. "He put the grill on and closed it. Darcy [their 2-year-old] was in her high chair. I could smell burning," she says. "It was pretty frightening."
But it was something as normal as a bike ride, following a loop Popham had taken hundreds of times, that was the turning point.
"I got lost on the bike ride and had a blackout moment," Popham, now 41, says.
"He said he'd got lost, but he just got to a point where he didn't know which way to go," Mel explains. "He had to retrace his route on an app. He came home and sort of broke down to me."
Popham went to his GP and underwent tests. They showed his short term memory was, in his words, "really bad". In the winter of 2019, Popham was approached by a neurologist who specialises in head injuries. By then, things were getting worse.
"If it is two people talking, there are no problems," he says. "But if there are lots of people talking or background noises, I couldn't take in the information. I'd come out of meetings thinking what was that all about?"
Mel also spoke to the neurologist. "She told him things like me mixing up words, forgetting words, losing my train of thought in conversations where I'd be telling a story about something that happened recently."
On 16 April, Popham was diagnosed with early onset dementia. His diagnosis pushed him to become one of eight former rugby union players who are in the process of starting a claim against the game's authorities for negligence.
Mel, who was physically sick after seeing the damage to her husband's brain, struggled to grasp what was happening.
"Every time I looked at Darcy I burst into tears," says Mel. "I kept thinking, how can this be happening?
"We made a decision not to have another baby, which we were planning to do this summer. That was really tough, but we felt knowing what we know, that wasn't the right thing to do."
Popham describes the effects of concussions and sub-concussions on his brain as a leaking tap. "If it drips once or twice there will be no mark on the floor, but if it dripped for 14 years, there would be a big hole," he says. "That is the damage that is showing on the scans."
The diagnosis has led him to contemplate his future. He knows, for example, that he may not be able to walk his daughters down the aisle.
"The neurologist has given us a five to 10 year management plan, but how quickly the symptoms get worse after that, nobody knows. That's the scary bit for me" he says.
"You end up talking about adapting the house, carers coming in, and as a 40-year-old, to hear that, was upsetting.
"It's watching the lights fading gradually in him," explains Mel. "My biggest fear is Alix ending up in a nursing home. And for my daughter, my biggest fear is her losing her dad; him being here but not being the same Alix.
"We had so many big plans for the future. We've got different plans now."
Popham, known for his block-busting tackles, is in no doubt that the concussion protocols when he was playing were not adequate.
"You thought concussion was when you were out cold on the pitch," he says. "If you felt a bit groggy, you would have a sniff of salts. You didn't want to come off the field as a player and show weakness.
"You knew your body was going to be sore in retirement, but nobody knew your brain was going to be in bits as well."
From being a youngster, Popham was told that if he went into a tackle at anything less than 100%, he would be injured. So he gave it his all three times a week in UK training, then four times a week in France, followed by a game on Saturday. For 14 years, that was his routine. His doctor believes he had more than 100,000 sub-concussions in his career.
"I haven't got memories of large chunks of my career," he says."During lockdown they repeated the 2008 game against England, when we won at Twickenham. I have no recollection of being on that pitch.
"We played in South Africa and I met Nelson Mandela before the game. I've got the picture on the wall, but I can't remember meeting him."
The Popham family want to raise awareness of the impact rugby head injuries can have. Mel estimates they have been contacted by a hundred of Popham's former team-mates and friends who are experiencing similar symptoms. It has helped her, too, creating a community of wives and partners that she can talk with.
Their home life has changed. "We don't ever shout to dad from another room like we used to," Mel says. "We always make sure we are in front of him when we speak because we have realised the part of Alix's brain that is affected is distinguishing noises from each other.
"We try to take something positive from every day so that no bad day is an all bad day."
They hope that by sharing their story, they can raise awareness of the illness, and encourage people to come forward. Both love rugby and want it to be as safe and as informed as it can be. But their lives have changed.
"Sometimes there is a look in his eyes of him not getting or understanding something," Mel adds. "That was never there before. It is really hard to witness."
Alix Popham: Ex-Wales flanker on early onset dementia diagnosis
https://www.bbc.com/sport/rugby-union/55208227
"I don't want to be a burden on anybody. That's the thing that plays on my mind."
At just 40 years old, Alix Popham was diagnosed with early onset dementia. A former Wales flanker, he is a husband and father of three girls, trying to navigate an illness that affects his personality.
"I felt like there was a rage inside me boiling up and I just needed to get it out," Popham told BBC Sport.
"I slammed the doors and broke them. The bannister in the house, I pulled that off. After that aggression has come out, I'm thinking to myself, why did I do that? I have no control over those actions at that time."
Popham would forget people's names, or lose track of a conversation. His wife, Mel, remembers him setting the kitchen on fire. "He put the grill on and closed it. Darcy [their 2-year-old] was in her high chair. I could smell burning," she says. "It was pretty frightening."
But it was something as normal as a bike ride, following a loop Popham had taken hundreds of times, that was the turning point.
"I got lost on the bike ride and had a blackout moment," Popham, now 41, says.
"He said he'd got lost, but he just got to a point where he didn't know which way to go," Mel explains. "He had to retrace his route on an app. He came home and sort of broke down to me."
Popham went to his GP and underwent tests. They showed his short term memory was, in his words, "really bad". In the winter of 2019, Popham was approached by a neurologist who specialises in head injuries. By then, things were getting worse.
"If it is two people talking, there are no problems," he says. "But if there are lots of people talking or background noises, I couldn't take in the information. I'd come out of meetings thinking what was that all about?"
Mel also spoke to the neurologist. "She told him things like me mixing up words, forgetting words, losing my train of thought in conversations where I'd be telling a story about something that happened recently."
On 16 April, Popham was diagnosed with early onset dementia. His diagnosis pushed him to become one of eight former rugby union players who are in the process of starting a claim against the game's authorities for negligence.
Mel, who was physically sick after seeing the damage to her husband's brain, struggled to grasp what was happening.
"Every time I looked at Darcy I burst into tears," says Mel. "I kept thinking, how can this be happening?
"We made a decision not to have another baby, which we were planning to do this summer. That was really tough, but we felt knowing what we know, that wasn't the right thing to do."
Popham describes the effects of concussions and sub-concussions on his brain as a leaking tap. "If it drips once or twice there will be no mark on the floor, but if it dripped for 14 years, there would be a big hole," he says. "That is the damage that is showing on the scans."
The diagnosis has led him to contemplate his future. He knows, for example, that he may not be able to walk his daughters down the aisle.
"The neurologist has given us a five to 10 year management plan, but how quickly the symptoms get worse after that, nobody knows. That's the scary bit for me" he says.
"You end up talking about adapting the house, carers coming in, and as a 40-year-old, to hear that, was upsetting.
"It's watching the lights fading gradually in him," explains Mel. "My biggest fear is Alix ending up in a nursing home. And for my daughter, my biggest fear is her losing her dad; him being here but not being the same Alix.
"We had so many big plans for the future. We've got different plans now."
Popham, known for his block-busting tackles, is in no doubt that the concussion protocols when he was playing were not adequate.
"You thought concussion was when you were out cold on the pitch," he says. "If you felt a bit groggy, you would have a sniff of salts. You didn't want to come off the field as a player and show weakness.
"You knew your body was going to be sore in retirement, but nobody knew your brain was going to be in bits as well."
From being a youngster, Popham was told that if he went into a tackle at anything less than 100%, he would be injured. So he gave it his all three times a week in UK training, then four times a week in France, followed by a game on Saturday. For 14 years, that was his routine. His doctor believes he had more than 100,000 sub-concussions in his career.
"I haven't got memories of large chunks of my career," he says."During lockdown they repeated the 2008 game against England, when we won at Twickenham. I have no recollection of being on that pitch.
"We played in South Africa and I met Nelson Mandela before the game. I've got the picture on the wall, but I can't remember meeting him."
The Popham family want to raise awareness of the impact rugby head injuries can have. Mel estimates they have been contacted by a hundred of Popham's former team-mates and friends who are experiencing similar symptoms. It has helped her, too, creating a community of wives and partners that she can talk with.
Their home life has changed. "We don't ever shout to dad from another room like we used to," Mel says. "We always make sure we are in front of him when we speak because we have realised the part of Alix's brain that is affected is distinguishing noises from each other.
"We try to take something positive from every day so that no bad day is an all bad day."
They hope that by sharing their story, they can raise awareness of the illness, and encourage people to come forward. Both love rugby and want it to be as safe and as informed as it can be. But their lives have changed.
"Sometimes there is a look in his eyes of him not getting or understanding something," Mel adds. "That was never there before. It is really hard to witness."
Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed. Source
-
dtaai-maai
- Hero
- Posts: 14912
- Joined: Mon Jul 30, 2007 10:00 pm
- Location: UK, Robin Hood country
Re: The Rugby Thread
Saints vs Worcester
Oh dear. Northampton pretty good, but Worcester are having a really tough time this season.
They have a serious prospect at fly half in the form of Fin Smith aged 19, but he might have to move on soon if he's to progress...
Oh dear. Northampton pretty good, but Worcester are having a really tough time this season.
They have a serious prospect at fly half in the form of Fin Smith aged 19, but he might have to move on soon if he's to progress...
This is the way
-
pharvey
- Moderator
- Posts: 15825
- Joined: Sat Aug 29, 2009 10:21 am
- Location: Sir Fynwy - God's Country
Re: The Rugby Thread
Truly nice touch by Biggar after the match with Fin Smith.dtaai-maai wrote: ↑Sun Oct 24, 2021 1:13 am Saints vs Worcester
Oh dear. Northampton pretty good, but Worcester are having a really tough time this season.
They have a serious prospect at fly half in the form of Fin Smith aged 19, but he might have to move on soon if he's to progress...
Yes, agree Smith is a great prospect - needs some decent coaches, so shouldn't move to Bath!!
"Hope is a good thing, maybe the best of things" - Yma o Hyd.
-
pharvey
- Moderator
- Posts: 15825
- Joined: Sat Aug 29, 2009 10:21 am
- Location: Sir Fynwy - God's Country
Re: The Rugby Thread
It's been in the news for quite some time and certainly in Wales. Very sad indeed and several other players have since come forward with the same diagnosis. Rule changes are in effect already and refereeing is highlighting high tackles, head contact and "HIA Protocol" introduced https://www.world.rugby/news/612891PeteC wrote: ↑Sat Oct 23, 2021 4:21 pm This is really sad, and something no doubt we will see more of. I would think there are big rule changes coming, and/or added personal protection gear being made mandatory. 4 minute video at link, plus photos.
Alix Popham: Ex-Wales flanker on early onset dementia diagnosis
https://www.bbc.com/sport/rugby-union/55208227
Popham was a machine - put his body on the line and put massive hits in. Unfortunately, he's paid the price. Full of respect for the man.
"Hope is a good thing, maybe the best of things" - Yma o Hyd.
-
pharvey
- Moderator
- Posts: 15825
- Joined: Sat Aug 29, 2009 10:21 am
- Location: Sir Fynwy - God's Country
Re: The Rugby Thread
Have not seen much rugby in recent weeks, but what a turnaround for Exeter....
No big changes in the squad, no changes in coaching - have they simply been "found out"? Similar for Bristol, but the are missing a few star players - I thought the squad depth was far better than it seems to be now.
Bath need to rid themselves of the coaching staff - how can a squad of players with that talent be at the foot of the table and winless?! 
Their defence in all honesty has been wanting for several seasons, but they got away with things.... No more. HUGE changes must be made!
No big changes in the squad, no changes in coaching - have they simply been "found out"? Similar for Bristol, but the are missing a few star players - I thought the squad depth was far better than it seems to be now.
Bath need to rid themselves of the coaching staff - how can a squad of players with that talent be at the foot of the table and winless?!
Their defence in all honesty has been wanting for several seasons, but they got away with things.... No more. HUGE changes must be made! "Hope is a good thing, maybe the best of things" - Yma o Hyd.
-
dtaai-maai
- Hero
- Posts: 14912
- Joined: Mon Jul 30, 2007 10:00 pm
- Location: UK, Robin Hood country
Re: The Rugby Thread
Yes, I watched that this morning. Have the big teams lost their edge or are the rest simply improving? London Irish have been playing pretty well this season, with a couple of narrow defeats and 2 draws they could have won, and they definitely had the better of Exeter for most of the game - it was certainly no fluke. Leicester, Wasps, Quins, Saints all have potential. Has to be good for the Premiership.pharvey wrote: ↑Sun Oct 24, 2021 7:12 pm Have not seen much rugby in recent weeks, but what a turnaround for Exeter....
No big changes in the squad, no changes in coaching - have they simply been "found out"? Similar for Bristol, but the are missing a few star players - I thought the squad depth was far better than it seems to be now.
I've got the Bath game teed up for my next watch - maybe I shouldn't bother...?
Busy sports day today with the T20 world cup, the footie and the US Grand Prix this evening, so the rugby is on hold until the morning.
This is the way
-
pharvey
- Moderator
- Posts: 15825
- Joined: Sat Aug 29, 2009 10:21 am
- Location: Sir Fynwy - God's Country
Re: The Rugby Thread
Sorry.... Shouldn't have given the game awaydtaai-maai wrote: ↑Sun Oct 24, 2021 7:45 pmI've got the Bath game teed up for my next watch - maybe I shouldn't bother...?
Busy sports day today with the T20 world cup, the footie and the US Grand Prix this evening, so the rugby is on hold until the morning.
"Hope is a good thing, maybe the best of things" - Yma o Hyd.
-
dtaai-maai
- Hero
- Posts: 14912
- Joined: Mon Jul 30, 2007 10:00 pm
- Location: UK, Robin Hood country
Re: The Rugby Thread
I might have been a bit previous including Wasps in that list. I've just watched them being destroyed by a Saracens team not playing at their best for much of the game. Hats off to Jimmy Gopperth, mind you, 38 and still real quality.
By the way, Pietro, I didn't think Bath were all that bad...
Leicester-Sale teed up for the morning. I know I keep saying this, but the Premiership Rugby website is fantastic! And fortunately, it's usually quite easy to avoid seeing the results.
This is the way
-
dtaai-maai
- Hero
- Posts: 14912
- Joined: Mon Jul 30, 2007 10:00 pm
- Location: UK, Robin Hood country
Re: The Rugby Thread
Yes, shame on you! On current form, I was assuming Bath would win by 50...
This is the way
-
dtaai-maai
- Hero
- Posts: 14912
- Joined: Mon Jul 30, 2007 10:00 pm
- Location: UK, Robin Hood country
Re: The Rugby Thread
Watching Gloucester-Newcastle. Just noticed that Gloucester's shirt sponsor is a company called Big Dug... Surprisingly, they don't sell extra large bras!
This is the way
-
pharvey
- Moderator
- Posts: 15825
- Joined: Sat Aug 29, 2009 10:21 am
- Location: Sir Fynwy - God's Country
Re: The Rugby Thread
Welsh though and through - well aside from my late father being a devout "Yorkshire Man"!!
Truly great to see Wales play against "The Blackness" in Cardiff in a full stadium..... Why in God's name did it have to be played outside the "IRB Test Window" - England based Welsh players will not be released. We've also lost players through injury.......
Beating NZ is nigh on impossible at the best of times - why arrange it when we're missing (and can't pick) class players?!! Money spinner... but admittedly a great opportunity for fringe players.
I shall shout and scream for my country, but doubtful helpful -
Halaholo now also out (and how many others) as he tests positive for Covid....
Complete joke now.... 
Truly great to see Wales play against "The Blackness" in Cardiff in a full stadium..... Why in God's name did it have to be played outside the "IRB Test Window" - England based Welsh players will not be released. We've also lost players through injury.......
Beating NZ is nigh on impossible at the best of times - why arrange it when we're missing (and can't pick) class players?!! Money spinner... but admittedly a great opportunity for fringe players.
I shall shout and scream for my country, but doubtful helpful -
Halaholo now also out (and how many others) as he tests positive for Covid....
Complete joke now....
"Hope is a good thing, maybe the best of things" - Yma o Hyd.
-
dtaai-maai
- Hero
- Posts: 14912
- Joined: Mon Jul 30, 2007 10:00 pm
- Location: UK, Robin Hood country
Re: The Rugby Thread
^^This coming Saturday, just in case anyone's interested. A minor but quite relevant detail...
EDIT: And yes, there really is a Welshman named Halaholo...
EDIT: And yes, there really is a Welshman named Halaholo...
This is the way