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So much rugby this week and didn’t we love it.
So much rugby this week and didn’t we love it.
The Rugby Championship reached round five and there were home wins for South Africa and New Zealand over Argentina and Australia.
England’s Gallagher Prem and the United Rugby Championship (URC) got underway with some eyebrow-cocking results, Chile booked their place for Rugby World Cup 2027, and the Top 14 provided it’s usual mix of drama, glamour, and brute force.
Plus, opinions were being loosened off during the week, as the first wave of pre-Christmas book sales got underway.
Here’s our favourite soundbites…
“He didn’t try and kick a short kick-off. He just wanted to kick the ball to the guy who was kicking off. But it’s a legal try. He drop-goaled, they were five metres away and they caught it. Bit of a brainfart.”
Rassie Erasmus explains Cheslin Kobe’s error in language we all understand:
“If you ever get to watch Leroy in training, he is probably the best on the park. Everything you see on the field he does it and he just goes and goes. There is that sevens quality of repeat efforts.”
All Blacks coach Scott Robertson isn’t surprised by Leroy Carter’s debut:
“Whitey, he is the gift that keeps on giving. We had Whitey in the changing room, so he’s not too far away. He lives in Perth and he’s such a good character within the squad. haven’t had any discussion with him, but at the moment I just feel for Tate McDermott.”
More comebacks than Sinatra: Aussie coach Joe Schmidt isn’t ruling out another call to Nic White:
“We are satisfied with the result, but above all with the team’s test of character. Winning at home, in front of your own crowd is satisfying. Doing it like this makes us earn respect in a competition where we will never give up and we will be uncomfortable.”
Zebre coach said Massimo Brunello hails his team for their opening day win:
“I’m back now to probably about 98-99 kilos, and I’m definitely quicker than I was before. I’m definitely faster, and I’ve filled out a bit up top, because I used to always have like a little kid’s upper body, and all the boys used to let me know about it as well.”
Defences be warned; if Louis Rees-Zammit isn’t going to gas you, he’ll bash you:
“I had all my flights booked for 24 September because joining Newcastle wasn’t on the cards at all. I had to tell the missus ‘we’re going from the Sydney Harbour Bridge to the Tyne Bridge’ so that was a bit of a shock.”
For Newcastle Red Bull wing Joel Grayson, it’s going to be Blyth Beach, rather than Bondi:
“Liam's 34 years of age, so we've got to look after him. He'll be like a tube of toothpaste. We just need to squeeze it gently to get the most out of him over the next 12 months. He's not coming to play 30 games, he's coming to play 15, 20 games for us and it's not what he brings on the field, it's what he brings around the whole environment. I like blokes like him. He's got through his injuries, he's as fit as a butcher's dog, and he has a really good mental attitude.”
Newcastle Red Bull director of rugby Steve Diamond waxes lyrical about new boy Liam Williams:
“The energy that he brought to training sessions last year as a 37/38 year old was amazing. So, the void there. It’s for Alex Dombrandt, it’s for Cadan Murley, it’s for those young leaders now. Not in terms of replacing Danny’s (Care) influence, because that’s just too difficult, but there’s an opportunity for those boys to show some leadership.”
Harlequins coach Jason Gilmore calls on his players to step up as leaders:
“He (Eddie Jones) wanted to talk about how things were for Tiff and (Youngs’ brother) Tom and whether he could do anything to help. He wanted to know how I was doing emotionally. It was strange that my club coach, who I saw every day, never asked the same question. Unbelievable, actually. What sort of man management was that? What sort of basic human decency, even? I guess if it wasn’t written on a data sheet, Steve (Borthwick) didn’t compute.”
Ben Youngs explains why he’ll always be an Eddie fan:
“You have to avoid a bit of rough and tumble,” he said. My kids are crazy. I have to avoid them, honestly. It’s all well and good and fun, but when it’s the flying two-foot drop-kicks on the back of my head, I’m just like: ‘kids, just give it a couple of weeks, please’.”
Edinburgh prop Paul Hill explains how neck injuries can affect day-to-day life:
“I respect all the players I coach and have coached over the past 20 years. In a career, sporting relationships can sometimes be marked by incomprehension or disappointment; it's human.”
France coach Fabien Galthie responds to US Montauban captain Fred Quercy’s view that “he’s the biggest piece of shit.”