Rugby Mad Blog

The Men In Black had a great game against Narbonne on 14th January. They beat the French visitors by 47-20. Here’s a shot from the match:

You can see more pictures from that game at rugbypix.com, as usual.

So Saracens are on course for a great half term report, having won their pool in the European Rugby Cup, which means they get a home Quarter Final. They play Glasow Warriors again (having beaten them once in Watford and drawn the return leg at Glasgow), on the last weekend in March.

They also beat London Irish 19-8 at Watford on 28th Jan, meaning they move up to 5th in the Premiership table, heady heights indeed! Plus, they have one match in hand as they still have to play the postponed game against Irish at Reading on the third weekend of March.

Meanwhile, I’m looking forward to the Six Nations games this coming weekend. Especially with the return of Jonny at No. 10 and the inclusion of Andy Farrell at 12! Well worth watching. Dave Woods asks if Faz’s presence will encourage some of our League brethren to watch the match too.

After a break for Christmas and the New Year, I shall resume normal service for 2007, blogging and blethering to myself. If anyone’s listening, that’s great. And talking of Christmas, if you’re now suffering from the excesses of the Festive Season, you might raise a chuckle at the Halfbakery‘s suggestion of a Trolley For Dieters.

Now, on to the rugby… what’s been happening since I last posted?

• Brian Ashton got the job as England Head Coach (I’m sure you know that already). He’s now picked his squad for the Six Nations and beyond, naming Phil Vickery as Captain [see right].
• Some surprises in the squad – Billy Whizz is back from International retirement. Lawrence Dallaglio doesn’t even make it into the England Saxons squad. Jonny Wilkinson gets the nod as one of three No. 10′s, but is still not fully fit from his last injury and isn’t likely to be playable for the first game against Scotland.

Meanwhile, Sarries have been doing OK over the break. They beat Quins away on 22nd, and Northampton at home on 27th December, but lost away at Leicester on New Year’s Day. As of now they sit at 5th in the Premiership table. Heady heights indeed – let’s hope they can keep it up in the second half of the season!

My next visit will be for their home game against Narbonne (European Challenge Cup match) on 14th January – so I’ll post some photos after that.

Lots of news regarding the impending England vs New Zealand game on Sunday:

Impossible job? Mike Ford, England’s defence coach, has one of the toughest jobs in rugby right now. Let’s hope he’s been doing his homework!

Two guys that we will miss on the pitch, and won’t be able to renew their sparring from last year (see above) are Mark Cueto and Dan Carter. Cueto failed to recover from injury sustained in a Heineken Cup game against the Ospreys. Carter, meanwhile, is rested by Graham Henry ahead of the All Blacks’ games against France and Wales. Nick Evans gets the nod at No. 10.

England ‘had to gamble on youth’ – Shaun Perry (left) and Anthony Allen win their first caps against the All Blacks – what a baptism of fire! And Paul Sackey is primed for his England chance to impress. He certainly flies for Wasps on the Wing.

Old boy Iain Balshaw is shocked by his England chance at Fullback. I’m sure he’ll make the most of it. And talking of renaissances, lock Ben Kay has recently found his form again. All in all, Graham Henry expects England to come out on the attack when they take the field in front of a record 82,000 fans on Sunday.

Comback Kings?
Jonny Wilkinson is set for his latest comeback – how many is that now?
Hilly scored a try during his first match for Saracens in their Guinness A League defeat of Northampton, 43-12.And Dallaglio thinks if he doesn’t get picked for the Six Nations squad next year, he’s probably blown his chance at another pop at the World Cup.

One final thought:
The underdogs can triumph on the day – as Australia found out to their cost when they were beaten by the Ospreys last night! Well done, guys!

Andy Farrell finally played a game of Rugby Union on Monday, starting for Saracens A in their game against NEC Harlequins. After such an injury-strewn year, he must have been hugely relieved, and perhaps proved it’s been worth the wait, scoring a try on his maiden outing.

All fingers, toes and eyes crossed for his run of fitness to continue. Sarries are starting him at 6, although they think he might play at centre too.

And I notice today that Sarries have just signed another Scrum Half, Neil de Kock, from SA’s Western Province. After their slightly disappointing draw against Bristol last weekend, let’s hope they can get their first home win of the season this Sunday, against Newcastle.

The Falcons will be without Jonny again, who’s done himself another mischief, this time in the right knee department. He did the same thing to his left knee last year and it was 9 weeks on the sidelines, so I doubt he’ll be in the running for the Autumn Internationals. If you thought Farrell’s catalogue of injuries was bad, Jonny just takes the biscuit! A speedy recovery to him!

Meanwhile, here’s one of the few pictures I have of him running about! Taken in December 2004 when the Falcons visited Vicarage Road for a Zurich Premiership match.

Newcastle supremo Rob Andrew has landed the job of RFU Elite Director of Rugby, announced today. And good on him. He beat off Sir Clive for the post, and I think he has the universal respect amongst the Premiership Clubs’ head honchos, and at HQ. Hopefully, he will be able to build some bridges which have been pretty battered of late, and sort out the whole club vs country battleground, once and for all.

I don’t have any pictures of Mr Andrew himself, but here’s one of his team Newcastle, when they visited Saracens in December 2004 for a Powergen Cup match. Jonny Wilkinson emerges from underneath a heap of bodies, including the sizeable figure of Saracens’ Hooker Matt Cairns.

Andy Robinson has named his Elite Player Squad for the 2006/07 season, and Sarries’ Andy Farrell is once again on the list. Let’s hope he’s fit enough this year to actually get a run out on the park! Farrell apparently has an aura about him, akin to Martin Johnson. Perhaps a bit early in his Union career to be making such statements, but I would dearly love him to make a difference to the England team this year. God knows we need a boost somehow.

Similarly, Jonny Wilkinson returns to the White Jersey Brigade after his injury battles. I have seen him play for Newcastle and The Lions, but never managed to catch him playing for England. Fingers crossed.

Also, the usual close-season merry-go-round has finally stopped and we can now see who’s sitting where (and who’s got no chair when the music stops).

Here’s a picture of Jonny lining up a penalty for the Lions vs Argentina game last year in Cardiff.

I forgot to mention it earlier, but as a paid-up member of the England Rugby Supporters’ Club (ERSC), amongst other benefits, I get the Official RFU England Rugby Yearbook sent to me. It plopped through the letterbox the other morning. Sadly, it makes grim reading, the 2005/06 season not being what any of us would have hoped for in the year before a World Cup! Still, the pictures were nice.

And talking of which, here’s an image I took at one of the matches England managed to win this season, against Wales in the opening Six Nations match at Twickenham. The Two Number 10′s, Stephen Jones and Charlie Hodgson go head to head. You can see more images from that game and others on my dedicated site, rugbypix.com.

Oh, and I’ve just noticed this little gem on the BBC Rugby Union site, where Jonny Wilkinson states the bleedin’ obvious.