The rugby

[Dorset Boy]

Andy Farrell has some really interesting choices to make for the Lions. Won't be many Welsh, but the other 3 nations should all have good numbers.
Best side won the tournament, but still baffled by the lack of understanding of last night's bunker official on the not a red.

 

[Dorset Boy]

What a great performance in the most important game of the weekend by Bath, particularly the youngsters who into the wind led Exeter's strongest available team at HT, before a second half demolition!

Treble is on!

 

[Bonefish Blues]

Andy Farrell has some really interesting choices to make for the Lions. Won't be many Welsh, but the other 3 nations should all have good numbers.
Best side won the tournament, but still baffled by the lack of understanding of last night's bunker official on the not a red.

Morgan and Blair only?

 

[Dorset Boy]

Morgan and Blair only?

Blair won't get in ahead of Kinghorn and Keenan.
Tomos Williams may go with Gibson Park and Ben White

 

[Bonefish Blues]

Blair's versatility might get the nod was my thought

 

[Blazing Saddles]

What a great performance in the most important game of the weekend by Bath, particularly the youngsters who into the wind led Exeter's strongest available team at HT, before a second half demolition!

Treble is on!

They beat Exeter at their own game too. So much power sitting on that Bath bench. In the end, it was so one sided, Exeter must have thought that they were Wales.

 

[matticus]

A good 6 nations. France were the best by some distance and the performance against Ireland was awesome in the true sense of the word. Ireland are on the way down and need to rebuild but are unlucky not to be in second place.

Yup.
Although clearly ENG were best, as we beat the french.

[this is not entirely serious - although I do seriously think it means we deserved to finish 2nd. After all, we scored more points than IRE!]

 

[Bonefish Blues]

Yup.
Although clearly ENG were best, as we beat the french.

[this is not entirely serious - although I do seriously think it means we deserved to finish 2nd. After all, we scored more points than IRE!]

The only people who could beat France in this 6N were France

 

[matticus]

The only people who could beat France in this 6N were France

Tres vrai, Rodney!

Meanwhile:

 

[laurentian]

It’s why I don’t see him in with a shout of starting for the Lions. They’ll go with the consistency of Pendergast. I’d like to see White start at 9 but would Prendergast outside him make use of his fast playing of the ball? I suspect he’ll miss out to Gibson-Park but hope not. I don’t want to see a load of Kiwi or South African rejects in the Lions team.

I think Prendergast is an absolutely wonderful player. From the very little I've seen of him, even at this early stage, I have many reasons to believe he could be an all time great for Ireland and would wish him every success.

However, I would be very surprised if he is first choice pick for the Lions at 10. Russell is the shoe in I would think and, on the basis of this Six Nations alone, I may (sic) even put Finn Smith ahead of Prendergast.

 

[Dogtrousers]

My interest in the Lions has dwindled over the years. I used to watch matches live at unholy hours of the night and it was a very big thing.

But the last Lions tour I got excited about was 97. I just can't be arsed with it these days.

Not saying it's less important, just that I don't care anymore. I doubt that the Lions are all that bothered by this fact.

 

[secretsqirrel]

I’ve never really seen the relevance of the Lions in the professional era. I understand that it is no doubt an honour and very prestigious to be selected as a player to go on tour, but from a sporting perspective it is a bit like a greatest hits compilation?
The pinnacle of RU achievement is the WC, a Lions tour does not even affect the world rankings and therefore the seedings for the draw. It is just another opportunity for players to get injured needlessly as far as I can see.

There I said it!

 

[Pross]

I'm not a fan of rugby's residency rules at the best of times but I'll probably lose all interest if a large part of the team are players that had the majority of their rugby upbringing outside of UK & I. It doesn't seem to fit in with the ethos to me but then I suspect that battle is well and truly lost by now.

 

[Dorset Boy]

I'm not a fan of rugby's residency rules at the best of times but I'll probably lose all interest if a large part of the team are players that had the majority of their rugby upbringing outside of UK & I. It doesn't seem to fit in with the ethos to me but then I suspect that battle is well and truly lost by now.

i agree to a large extent, but if the player makes the UK or Ireland their permanent home, after their rugby career is over, I don't have an issue.
I do however have an issue with te likes of ricky Flutey who was capped by the Lions, and as soon as his career was over, he naffed off back to his real home in NZ, and therefore stole his caps. He isn't the only one in that category, and I suspect the likes of Gibson Park, Lowe, Aki etc will do the same, and therefore further devalue what it should mean to be a Lion.

 

[Dorset Boy]

I think Prendergast is an absolutely wonderful player. From the very little I've seen of him, even at this early stage, I have many reasons to believe he could be an all time great for Ireland and would wish him every success.

However, I would be very surprised if he is first choice pick for the Lions at 10. Russell is the shoe in I would think and, on the basis of this Six Nations alone, I may (sic) even put Finn Smith ahead of Prendergast.

I'd put Fin Smith ahead of Prendegast too.
Finn Russell to be the test 10.
Fin Smith and then one of George Ford or Prendegast as back up, with Marcus Smith as 4th choice waiting for the phone call.