WRW WEDNESDAY: YOUR THOUGHTS ON THAT SCRUM
It got all us talking….and we all reacted in our own ways..
These were just some of the comments to WRW:
S4llyC
It’s a pity Tempest didn’t see fit to dish out a yellow card earlier, since Bristol had had several ‘final’ warnings. Then the whole sorry situation may have been avoided. The real positive is that we were even close to getting the win, after so many past games where we would have folded completely.
Rob Voss
I think the ref had two options once he had made the decision to yellow card the Bristol prop. Either bring Afoa back on as the team manager had recorded it as a tactical substitution or go to uncontested scrums, if he was concerned about Afoa having an injury that would prevent him returning.
What appeared to happen from the exchanges was that he (wrongly) allowed Bristol to dictate matters by effectively choosing which option they preferred. Lam saying Afoa was injured (true or false) and couldn’t return to the field should have meant the ref said it then would be uncontested scrums and a further player would need to be removed from play. Decision taken, full stop.
The fact the ref then allowed Bristol to flip flop from one scenario to another once they had worked out the worst case scenario for them was the wrong thing for the ref to do - he was somewhat conned.
Phil Sandford
Not withstanding the last 10 minutes, Tigers showed that they have come a very long way since appointing Borthwick. Notwithstanding Bristol are not playing well at the moment, after gifting them 14 points, we pushed them within 3.
Moore is correct in most of what he's saying - I said to the guy to my left when Afoa came back on "we're gonna lose this scrum now, he had us on toast first half" (if only I could have got the Lottery numbers right).
I'm worried that a fair number of citings could come out of this, against Tigers; Borthwick for his 'liar' comment, Wigglesworth and Genge for the hands in the melee after the scrum.
I'm guilty of a few comments against TMO for not picking up the Bears scrumhalf grabbing the ball before it came out - I have been led to believe TMO cannot comment on anything other than foul play. Now Dickson isn't my favourite official, but if that's the case, then it explains his silence (maybe TJ should have seen it)
Robin Gilliver
Seems to be disagreement between the manager and the coach and could easily be remedied by requesting the coach to sign the card being submitted by the manager. But surely the coach makes decisions in connection with substitutions and, therefore, why is the manager involved. Seems over complicated and open to what happened on Saturday
Andy Wye
There are a number of questions that need answering from Saturday. If he was a doubt, why include John Afoa in a matchday squad if he was only going to play 40 minutes because of an injury? According to Pat Lam, it was a three-hour bus journey. What happened to player welfare? Shouldn’t there be a travelling reserve tighthead who probably should have been in the squad instead?
The whole incident at the end should have lasted a minute at most and consist of two questions. Is Afoa fit to come on, and if he isn’t who are Bristol taking off? Afoa looked like he was on a deckchair and had no intention of moving until Bristol had got their breath back.
And a genuine question. Can someone explain how a collapsed maul four metres from the line can result in a penalty try and a yellow card at the first attempt but a collapsed scrum has several resets or penalties and no sign of a penalty try?
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My main beef with the whole sorry business…it took away from the moment Liebenberg brought the house down..and beautifully captured by Mick Bannister:
SIR KEV?
Kevin Sinfield MBE is known within Leeds and rugby league as “Sir Kev”, which rather reveals his status within the 13-man game.
There are few with as rich a playing pedigree as Sinfield, with seven Grand Final and two Challenge Cup wins, claiming an unprecedented domestic treble in his final season in 2015 with the Rhinos.
And yet, the rumour mill points to his arrival at Welford Road as part of Steve Borthwick’s coaching backroom.
A great coach?
All those who know Sinfield speak of his personal characteristics - a hugely impressive leader and an incredibly focussed, driven professional. One person told me that he makes Jonny Wilkinson resemble a slacker. You can hear from him in length in this podcast with Jake Humphrey.
What is odd is that Sinfield has yet to translate this rich playing pedigree into a coaching career. When he retired, he became director of rugby initially with the RFL and then in 2018, with Leeds. That role was initially hands-on alongside more experienced coaches, especially James Lowes.
Having flirted with relegation two years earlier, the Rhinos had another poor season with Sinfield’s role eventually moved more upstairs where he remains.
Sinfield’s future at a time where clubs are looking to cut costs left, right and centre, has been discussed for some time. But in February, he wasn’t exactly saying he’s staying.
No-one’s talking, so let’s wait and see
Yet his characteristics may yet make Sinfield an attractive proposition, especially to someone as equally relentless as Borthwick. Given Eddie Jones’ penchant for seeking ideas from other sports, it wouldn’t be a surprise if Borthwick knows him.
Moving sports would be a gamble for anyone but perhaps for Sinfield, moving out of a city and area where he is genuinely adored might make long-term sense - especially if he is given time away from the spotlight to develop as a coach.
That might represent a calculated risk worth taking from Leicester’s perspective.
Borthwick won’t discuss things like that in public, but I am told Sinfield is saying absolutely nothing even in private. I’ve no idea if this will happen, but whether he comes as attack coach or even defence coach, another son of Saddleworth (like the Fords) would make a fascinating addition at Welford Road.
AUGUST 27TH - SAVE THE DATE
Not the first time that Leicester will have played a recent pre-season friendly in the Channel Islands, but I wonder if more than a few travel-starved Leicester fans might be eyeing this one up..
Smart move to also ensure a Covid-friendly environment for at least one of the usual pre-season games.
WELCOME TO JAPAN
No excuses for not getting the newsletter out on time this week. I’m eight hours in front of you, experiencing what those of you did during the World Cup in 2019.
If you really want to know, I’m doing a job at the Olympics which means a two-week quarantine followed by a month’s prep which precedes the Opening Ceremony on July 23rd.
The quarantine itself is in a budget hotel (imagine Premier Inn) in the Akihabata part of Tokyo, which is apparently a hub for cheap electronics. I won’t say it’s the lap of luxury but it could be a lot less uncomfortable even if it wasn’t exactly designed for someone 6’6 tall.
Not even the dodgiest of estate agents would claim it was more than bijoux. And no, I’ve not seen anything in public yet, let alone the toilets
So Adam, without access to DAZN, it’s all down to you…
Back on Friday when hopefully I won’t be climbing the walls…
Chris
If a yellow card was warented after repeated scrum infringements why was a Penalty Try not awarded
Others have stated that obviously having repeatedly warned Bristol for successive penalties the referee failed to either award a penalty try or issue a yellow card immediately following the first or even the 2nd warning. The " my prop is injured routine" was rapidly changed when it was realised that it meant losing an additional player and having to commit 8 men to the scrum, In France I think failure to field a front row means the loss of two players which seems to cure the problem. The pushing of our scrum half and picking the ball out of our scrum by the Bristol 9 unseen by the officials demands it's own enquiry to discover how they failed to see it and take action.