[2018 Rugby Championship] Round 2: New Zealand v Australia (25/08/2018)

[mania]

Is he allowed to pull Genoa into the maul?

Yes. Genia has the ball so is fair game

 

[Bean]

The gulf between Ireland the All Blacks is at least 20pts.

 

[Derpus]

The gulf between Ireland the All Blacks is at least 20pts.

RWC is going to be a ******* bore next year. But hey while international rugby dies at least we can enjoy the Kiwi circle jerk some more.

 

[All Black]

I know you guys are not saying it is but it's not our fault if international rugby dies. The Wallabies, South Africa, England, Wales, France, Ireland hell even Argentina can beat us and I truly believe that. In the game, you just gotta either stay with us or lead by 25 points plus. I say 25 points plus because I have, on occasions, seen us come back to win from trailing a 24 point deficit.

 

[Derpus]

I know you guys are not saying it is but it's not our fault if international rugby dies. The Wallabies, South Africa, England, Wales, France, Ireland hell even Argentina can't beat us and I truly believe that. In the game, you just gotta either stay with us or lead by 25 points plus. I say 25 points plus because I have, on occasions, seen us come back to win from trailing a 24 point deficit.

Fixed it for you. Have you ever even lost to Argentina at all?

Keep kidding yourself. The All Blacks are going to win themselves into irrelevance. It's already cooked in Aus. Haven't a single mate who still watches. I watch because i'm hopelessly rusted on by i'm at the end of my tether.

 

[Dan54]

You reckon Derpus? Why do people watch Winx run in the Gee gees, she beats everything, but more people go to races when she is running. Take a little peek when ABs play Italy , stands are absolutely packed as people tend to want to watch the best. I understand it not doing Aus rugby any good as ABs play then bloody often, but countries like Scotland who have never beaten ABs in their history sell out stadiums when ABs come to town. As I said I understand your frustration, but surely you not expecting the ABs to not try and be best they can because your mates only want to watch Aus teams winning!! Man I not a huge cricket fan , but used to watch Aus team play cricket as much as I could during the 90s as they were so bloody good!

 

[All Black]

Fixed it for you. Have you ever even lost to Argentina at all?

Keep kidding yourself. The All Blacks are going to win themselves into irrelevance. It's already cooked in Aus. Haven't a single mate who still watches. I watch because i'm hopelessly rusted on by i'm at the end of my tether.

Look at the bright side, you's are better at more sports than us

 

[Leonormous Boozer]

The gulf between Ireland the All Blacks is at least 20pts.

Don't put yourselves down, we're not that much better!

 

[smartcooky]

You reckon Derpus? Why do people watch Winx run in the Gee gees, she beats everything, but more people go to races when she is running. Take a little peek when ABs play Italy , stands are absolutely packed as people tend to want to watch the best. I understand it not doing Aus rugby any good as ABs play then bloody often, but countries like Scotland who have never beaten ABs in their history sell out stadiums when ABs come to town. As I said I understand your frustration, but surely you not expecting the ABs to not try and be best they can because your mates only want to watch Aus teams winning!! Man I not a huge cricket fan , but used to watch Aus team play cricket as much as I could during the 90s as they were so bloody good!

This!

When Tiger Woods was in his heyday, number one by the length of the straight, and beating the pants off everyone is sight, did golf die? No, it grew with new fans and new players. Did the crowds dwindle? No they increased.

 

[Leonormous Boozer]

This!

When Tiger Woods was in his heyday, number one by the length of the straight, and beating the pants off everyone is sight, did golf die? No, it grew with new fans and new players. Did the crowds dwindle? No they increased.

You've only mentioned individuals, this doesn't translate to team sports. The Bundesliga was far more popular when Dortmund were challenging Bayern, Ligue 1 has always struggled for viewers due to Lyon's and then PSG's dominance, no one watches international rugby league, the NBA finals this year had terrible viewing figures due to the Warriors dominance. Fans do lose interest.

Fortunately I think NZ's dominance is only going to affect Australia in rugby, rugby isn't big there and they're very good at plenty of sports. South Africa wont rest until they're worthy adversaries again and Argentina know they're still behind the 8 ball in terms of everything related to building a successful national side. The argument doesn't apply to Europe, we have our own tournament and rivalries.

I'd also say of this NZ side that, while I think league formats make them unbeatable regardless of the competition, I do think they'll be more vulnerable to a loss in the knock outs of the RWC than the last two iterations.

 

[Bada-Bing!]

I think if you're a true rugby fan and want to watch the best then you'll tune into watch the ABs. I agree I never tire of watching Federer when he's at his zenith or Bolt when he was destroying the opposition because they did it in such style. For me that is a killer combo which few sportsmen/women/teams can do.

However, For the casual fan they do want to see a contest and if it's not then they will drift away from the game. For sure the international game needs a strong Wallabies, France, Springboks and England sides to compete with them, but I am of the school of thought that it is up to them to catch up and knock the ABs off of their perch. ATM it doesn't look like happening for the foreseeable future because NZ's whole system is geared towards the ABs.

 

[All Black]

I'd also say of this NZ side that, while I think league formats make them unbeatable regardless of the competition, I do think they'll be more vulnerable to a loss in the knock outs of the RWC than the last two iterations.

Whilst I do sense and fear what youre saying, in the end, us losing the RWC can only be good for the international game. If we go undefeated from now till the final of the world cup, I think we'll still be the best team in the world regardless of who wins the RWC. World cup winners would just be crowned "world champions" but not the best IMO.

 

[TRF_Olyy]

Petition to remove New Zealand from all rugby competitions and just wheel them out every 4 years for the world cup so all the other teams in the world can enjoy themselves for 3yrs11months before getting put back in their box:




To weigh in on the dominance/interest thing: I've lost all interest in the rugby championship because it's not competitive. All Blacks will win without breaking a sweat, if i don't support one of the sides then I Iike seeing competitive games not blow outs, it just doesn't keep my interest. Would rather just watch the try highlights after

 

[Bada-Bing!]

Some of the grind fests of the six nations in the February? They've been close and competitive, but by god they were snooze fests as well. Difficult balance to strike between competitive and enjoyable rugby. I don't know what the answer is? Maybe just dip in and out and be a fair weather fan. Too much choice out there in terms of grabbing fans' attention.

 

[TRF_Olyy]

That's me, fairweather rugby fan

Loooooooooool

 

[Leonormous Boozer]

Grind fests that aren't full of unforced errors are better than one sided games imo.

 

[FrenchFan]

One way traffic games are boring. The test game is in decline.
World Rugby are reaping what they sowed. They have let the PI nations go bust. They stunted the development of Georgia and Romania by denying them access to the 6 Nations.
Fans here want to see competitive rugby with something to play for - not another June-November series. The Heineken Cup is back in October! Bring it on!

 

[Iron Lion Zion]

It's not the end of the world and it's not anything new. AB's have been crushing teams for over 100 years. Yes, there have been some periods of time where teams won series against them but consistently the AB's are the best. Now, as a kiwi let me tell you guys one thing. Kiwis do not tolerate the AB's losing. Yes, we accept it when it happens but truthfully not tolerate, a loss serves one major purpose in NZ rugby. It is crucial intel to improve and you better bloody improve or your job is gone!

At this stage, the pressure is on for these guys just to keep their jobs and they are winning!, what other countries in world rugby think like that? just look at Beauden Barrett, people wanted him dropped or moved to a new position for Richie Mouanga who himself is probably, in reality, is the 2nd best no 10 on the planet right now but can't even make the AB's bench.

Finally, you have to know that this is what the world got for calling the AB's chokers all those years because of the failed world cups. You think the AB's were just going to bend over and take that? We are insane sick f@ckers when it comes to rugby - We won the world cup at home, then the world cup in the UK and now we are coming for Japan, and you better bet your bottom dollar that the only thing that can stop another world cup win is a damn big earthquake. - that's what happens when you call us chokers for that long - world domination....... and probably forever.

 

[Leonormous Boozer]

Apparently you're all very flexible too... Serious self fellating skills!

 

[TRF_Olyy]