Positives and negatives: Ire V Wales
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Re: Positives and negatives: Ire V Wales
Andreu didn't do bad for a littlun
Re: Positives and negatives: Ire V Wales
So Earls is too small for international rugby yet still managed to play ok against S Africa in the autumn?
Jason Robinson (Lions and world cup winner) and Shane Williams (IRB player of the year) aren't exactly huge either.
If we're going to judge players purely on the french game then Earls wasn't the only one who can't cut it at international level. Think the Fench treated Tommy with a lot more disdain in Paris a few years ago.
Jason Robinson (Lions and world cup winner) and Shane Williams (IRB player of the year) aren't exactly huge either.
If we're going to judge players purely on the french game then Earls wasn't the only one who can't cut it at international level. Think the Fench treated Tommy with a lot more disdain in Paris a few years ago.
- bogboy
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Re: Positives and negatives: Ire V Wales
Ulster throw in
Earls reluctance ( in ability ? lack of awareness of team mates) to pass makes DK play him either at full back or wing and is also the reason he is not the person to replace BoD .
I don't think the wings received a pass after Earls moved to centre last saturday and is also in my opinion why if d'Arcy is not fit for this saturday PW is on standby although not on the bench
ie DK does not see Earls as a centre unless injury of a player makes it necessary
thus playing Murphy at full back and Kearney on the Bench with RoG removes /limits the Irish options because Kearney/Murphy / Earls /and also Fitzgerald are all basically wing/full backs and only two of them have a very limited ability to play centre thus any injury to a centre reduces the Irish potential to score trys on the wing.
Earls reluctance ( in ability ? lack of awareness of team mates) to pass makes DK play him either at full back or wing and is also the reason he is not the person to replace BoD .
I don't think the wings received a pass after Earls moved to centre last saturday and is also in my opinion why if d'Arcy is not fit for this saturday PW is on standby although not on the bench
ie DK does not see Earls as a centre unless injury of a player makes it necessary
thus playing Murphy at full back and Kearney on the Bench with RoG removes /limits the Irish options because Kearney/Murphy / Earls /and also Fitzgerald are all basically wing/full backs and only two of them have a very limited ability to play centre thus any injury to a centre reduces the Irish potential to score trys on the wing.
2B or not 2B that is the question ?
Re: Positives and negatives: Ire V Wales
I agree somewhat with Bogboy.I see Earls as a winger primarily.Apart from the question of his passing ability which is quite valid I also think his defence is suspect in the centre, particularly his defensive positioning as we saw when BOD had to go off v England.That said this can and will be worked as he gains more centre experience with Munster.What can't be taught is having lovely passing hands.I'm not sure that he doesn't have them or that he can't pass with the required speed accuracy and at the right time but it is up to him to do it.
Still not too many would have the skill to do this I'd imagine.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mdkuVKAm ... re=related
Still not too many would have the skill to do this I'd imagine.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mdkuVKAm ... re=related
It is a man's own mind, not his enemy or foe, that lures him to evil ways.
Re: Positives and negatives: Ire V Wales
If you're being 100% honest though shan - brilliant as it was - a large part of "that try" was down to the bounce of the ball. it kept a lovely straight line and bounced to a lovely height so that he never had to check speed or break stride. He could try that 100 more times and not get another chance as sweet as that one.
Paul.
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Re: Positives and negatives: Ire V Wales
Fair enough it was a one in a hundred chance Paul but I've never seen another player chip the ball up into his hands at pace before in rugby, although that doesn't mean it hasn't happened.For me that was sublime skill coupled with great confidence in his footballing ability.Agreed he may never have the right circumstances again but feck it we can enjoy these moments of great skill in our game which is sometimes lacking in it these days.pwrmoore wrote:If you're being 100% honest though shan - brilliant as it was - a large part of "that try" was down to the bounce of the ball. it kept a lovely straight line and bounced to a lovely height so that he never had to check speed or break stride. He could try that 100 more times and not get another chance as sweet as that one.
Good as well to see some Gaelic Football style skill still evident in this great game bearing in mind lots of players used Gaelic to hone their footballing skills during the off season when the game was still amateur, including the legendary Zinzan Brooke who loved the game and claimed it helped his rugby skills development.
Of course there are some who claim that rugby has it's origins in a type of Gaelic Football played in Tipperary in the 1700's and 1800's which British Servicemen would have seen while stationed there.The people of Nenagh don't seem too bothered about this as it is hurling country nowadays and lots of them wouldn't know a rugby ball if it slapped off their ham sandwiches and flasks of tea but can you imagine if this had been Cork.We'd never hear the end of it.
Yes I am rambling on again.
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Re: Positives and negatives: Ire V Wales
He was lucky...he tried it instinctively and it worked... it's a bit of a leap to say it was a GAA skill. I've seen it tried before, but not successfully.
- Jackie Brown
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Re: Positives and negatives: Ire V Wales
Pure luck, jez the first international quality back 3 player from Munster in over a generation and he's hailed as a world beater. If I remember rightly Cave scored a cracker at Thomond last season from a similar lucky bounce of the ball.
Last edited by Jackie Brown on Thu Mar 18, 2010 2:15 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: Positives and negatives: Ire V Wales
Who claimed he was a world beater.Feck sake it was a lovely bit of skill.That is all I was saying.I try to enjoy these little moments because with the emphasis on power these days there's less moments of magic about whether part of it is down to luck or not.Jackie Brown wrote:Pure luck, jez the first international quality back 3 player from Munster in over a generation and he's hailed as a world better. If I remember rightly Cave scored a cracker at Thomond last season from a similar lucky bounce of the ball.
It is a man's own mind, not his enemy or foe, that lures him to evil ways.
Re: Positives and negatives: Ire V Wales
Yes and he was successful.Credit where it is due no? I don't think it's a leap at all as that is normal practice in Gaelic Football but easier because the ball is round.Snipe Watson wrote:He was lucky...he tried it instinctively and it worked... it's a bit of a leap to say it was a GAA skill. I've seen it tried before, but not successfully.
It is a man's own mind, not his enemy or foe, that lures him to evil ways.
Re: Positives and negatives: Ire V Wales
I'd agree with this but I'm slightly worried that you may be spending too much time on MF.Red Hand Hero wrote:Think there is a slight unwillingness here t give Earls credit where it is due. Going into and after the French debacle i thought that Trimble was stil the man for the job however Earls' illustrtaed in his performances at Twickers and CP last weekend what a talent he really is, the lines he takes are BODesque, the flat burst of BOD's pass for one of the tries was absolutely class he's also got a lot more acceleration than any other pretender to the 13 shirt i.e. McFaden and Cave. If you think back to BOD as a Lion in 2001 he wasn't the biggest around, nor the best tackler but christ he scored some serious tries; Earls is doing this for Munster and Ireland and if he continues to get game time at 13 for the Turnips he'll be top-class. You can work on awarenes and passing, BOD has only started to kick and pass at a competent level these past few years remember.
It is a man's own mind, not his enemy or foe, that lures him to evil ways.
Re: Positives and negatives: Ire V Wales
Apologies, I didn't mean to start a wholesale demolition of Earls. I just wanted to give my opinion that the particular try in question was skill supplemented by a bit iof good luck. Superb but unlikely to be repeated too many times.
Paul.
C'mon Ulsterrrrrrrrr!
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Re: Positives and negatives: Ire V Wales
Aren't all great tries though?pwrmoore wrote:Apologies, I didn't mean to start a wholesale demolition of Earls. I just wanted to give my opinion that the particular try in question was skill supplemented by a bit iof good luck. Superb but unlikely to be repeated too many times.
- Snipe Watson
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Re: Positives and negatives: Ire V Wales
That's the key point! He was lucky ...you have to be with an oval ball.Shan wrote:Yes and he was successful.Credit where it is due no? I don't think it's a leap at all as that is normal practice in Gaelic Football but easier because the ball is round.Snipe Watson wrote:He was lucky...he tried it instinctively and it worked... it's a bit of a leap to say it was a GAA skill. I've seen it tried before, but not successfully.
I'm not having a go at Earls, he had a good game and is a good winger, but he's not a centre.
Re: Positives and negatives: Ire V Wales
No Paul there is no issue with what you said.I shouldn't have bothered posting the link but I just innocently thought people might enjoy seeing a nice bit of skill if they didn't see it before.I didn't realise it was just all luck.Silly me.pwrmoore wrote:Apologies, I didn't mean to start a wholesale demolition of Earls. I just wanted to give my opinion that the particular try in question was skill supplemented by a bit iof good luck. Superb but unlikely to be repeated too many times.
It is a man's own mind, not his enemy or foe, that lures him to evil ways.