RSA v England - 26 May 2007

[rwenzori]

I find it very difficult to support the Springboks. Too many bulls in their team...

As for the ref, what can I say? He shouldn't be allowed into the country, let alone a rugby field.

LOL - you should emigrate to Oz, then you can win everything and be happy!

 

[The_Techie]

Well done Bokke!

 

[Edwe]

The Boks played very well, but, to be honest, the English played extremely poorly. I just hope the Boks don't get laid-back now, because, in all fairness, this victory doesn't really say much about their true skill and preparedness for future international matches.

 

[Pixual]

Walsh needs glasses. He missed about another dozen knock-ons that I saw.

 

[James]

Walsh needs glasses. He missed about another dozen knock-ons that I saw.

You are not the only one that saw these.....

Not content with making the blunder that cost the Sharks the Super 14 title last weekend in Durban, Walsh was at it again yesterday in the Bloemfontein crisp winter sunshine. His was a simply awful performance.

South Africa's superiority was extensive enough without Walsh making mistakes that handed them scores on a plate. But that was how the Springboks scored their first try of a palpably one-sided game and it set them on the way to an easy, runaway win that represented a completely hollow victory.

Wynand Olivier clearly took out two defenders when the ball was moved right in the 23rd minute. But the obvious crossing never occurred to blunderbus Walsh and recalled wing Ashwin Willemse was able to stroll over in the right corner for the first of his team's hatful of tries.

If referees cannot see such clear incidents as that they shouldn't be handling schoolboy games, never mind international matches.

By then, had not Walsh already shown where his sympathies lay?

South Africa were able to make 25 metres downfield after he warned England he was playing advantage for offside. He had oceans of time to call 'advantage over', yet when Bryan Habana was forced into touch he took play back for the penalty from which Percy Montgomery kicked his second three-pointer.

Moments later, Walsh called advantage for numbers in the line-out. Yet when England made a maximum of one and a half metres, Walsh called 'advantage over'.

Just to add to Walsh's long list of failures, he totally failed to get on top of the mess at the set scrums. Sometimes, you despair at the standards of international refereeing - and this was one of those days.

But England coach Brian Ashton had said there would be no excuses whatever happened and not even Walsh's inadequacies could mask England's crushing failure to compete properly at this level.

source

 

[Random717]

Wynand Olivier clearly took out two defenders when the ball was moved right in the 23rd minute. But the obvious crossing never occurred to blunderbus Walsh and recalled wing Ashwin Willemse was able to stroll over in the right corner for the first of his team's hatful of tries.

It was a well executed dummy run with the ball being passed behind Olivier to an unmarked Willemse... if Jean had held on for a second longer it might have been ruled obstruction, but the defenders weren't close enough to tackle him when the pass was made.

Penalties get more advantage than free kicks, for obvious reasons...

If he had been more strict on the scrum, the English tighthead would have been yellow carded for repeatedly dropping his bind.

I don't think Walsh is a great referee, but everyone sees the game in a different way. Criticizing the ref afterwards is a waste of time and energy.

 

[justinct]

I think Walsh realised that if he had to send off an English player for repeatedly dropping his bind then an already demoralised and weakend team would have been really on the ropes.

I think our set pieces were a bit of a mess. The structure could have been alot better but i think with 5 days of proper preparation we did pretty well. This weekend will give us more insight into how things will go in the future if the England team put up a decent fight.

 

[McSack]

I actually wish the boks gave england a 100 point thumping. Teach them a lesson sending the 3rd team.

Hope the clubs over there take a hiding in the press for their lack of national pride

 

[dawie54]

I actually wish the boks gave england a 100 point thumping. Teach them a lesson sending the 3rd team.

Hope the clubs over there take a hiding in the press for their lack of national pride

Rather a good preformance than a 100 point knock. Now the score is 58-10 but it doesn't show us the poor scrums, all the knockons, and the 25min stagnation after halftime.

 

[Sneeky]

Well done to the Boks.

Rugby purists would rather see a better contest than a one sided game.
As far as I am concerned we need to keep the pedal to the metal and humiliate them as much as possible if we can. It will make them think twice about sending what they cal 2nd or 3rd choice teams to tour.

I hope we rub their noses in it this coming weekend, welcome to 'Loftus' poms!