2009 Grand Slam Champions

[muppet]

I have to say I like Barnes.

He spent years on the bench for England watching Rob Andrew percentage everone to death.

He has a point, as a neutral, but as an Irishman I will be happy with a 3-0 win on saturday.

P.S.
He told a story on once Sky after the Munster Miracle match (or one of them) where he said they had to stop the car on the way back to Dublin and he ran to a door begging to use the bathroom. He said after that he become opposed to the 'Sin Bin'.  He thanked the owners of the house for letting him use their facilities.

[passedit]

I have to say I like Barnes.

He spent years on the bench for England watching Rob Andrew percentage everone to death.

He has a point, as a neutral, but as an Irishman I will be happy with a 3-0 win on saturday.

Indeed Muppet, it's not hard to see where his hostility to 'antirugby' comes from.

Funny enough both the boul fella and his nemesis were on the same flight as the lads I was with at the England match the following morning and had to spend the entire flight pretending not to hate eachother much to the amusement of all concerned.

[ONeill]

ex⋅cit⋅a⋅ble   /ɪkˈsaɪtəbəl/  Show Spelled Pronunciation [ik-sahy-tuh-buhl]  Show IPA
–adjective 1. easily excited:

Yeah

Barnes is easily excited?

[ONeill]

Direct quotes from his article:

Headline - Ireland dwindle on the biggest stage

On O'Gara 'most of the tactical kicking was aimless an unthinking'...'there seems to be no pace to his game, physically or mentally' ....'O'Gara's chest was nothing like a puffed up as it is when he wears the red of Munster'


"In a year when the mediocrity of European rugby has opened the high road to their first Grand Slam since 1948, Ireland seemed too often intent on getting there via the low road and its low-risk intent. Ireland are still on for a Grand Slam but there is nothing grand about it."

Is that a fair summary?

[GalwayBayBoy]

Direct quotes from his article:

Headline - Ireland dwindle on the biggest stage

On O'Gara 'most of the tactical kicking was aimless an unthinking'...'there seems to be no pace to his game, physically or mentally' ....'O'Gara's chest was nothing like a puffed up as it is when he wears the red of Munster'


"In a year when the mediocrity of European rugby has opened the high road to their first Grand Slam since 1948, Ireland seemed too often intent on getting there via the low road and its low-risk intent. Ireland are still on for a Grand Slam but there is nothing grand about it."

Is that a fair summary?

Let's just say if Ireland win the Grand Slam or even the championship then expect it to be called the worst 6 Nations ever.

Only England are allowed to win vintage 6 nations titles.

[muppet]

Only England are allowed to win vintage 6 nations titles.

Don't be so sensitive.

It hasn't been a good 6 Nations but neither have most of them, so what.

Do you expect us to win the Grand Slam and have all the other countries proclaiming it as the greatest ever and bowing to our greatness?

[GalwayBayBoy]

Only England are allowed to win vintage 6 nations titles.

Don't be so sensitive.

It hasn't been a good 6 Nations but neither have most of them, so what.

Do you expect us to win the Grand Slam and have all the other countries proclaiming it as the greatest ever and bowing to our greatness?

I'm not sensitive in the slightest but wait and see because you know it'll happen.

[Capt Pat]

Does anyone remember how Wales won the grand slam last year, shutting down all their matches with 2o minutes to go with endless recycling going nowhere,as long as they were a few points ahead? It doesn't really matter as long as you win at the end of the day.

[Hound]

14. Solid if unspectacular. Little chance to shine but gained ground on Leigh Halfpenny and may now be ahead of him for the Lions.

You really think Leigh Halfpenny for the Lions?

I'd definitely have Tommy Bowe ahead of him, and I think after the weekend Cueto is there too. Personally I'd play Kearney at 15 and Byrne on the wing. Shane Williams obviously nailed on for the other wing.

[muppet]

14. Solid if unspectacular. Little chance to shine but gained ground on Leigh Halfpenny and may now be ahead of him for the Lions.

You really think Leigh Halfpenny for the Lions?

I'd definitely have Tommy Bowe ahead of him, and I think after the weekend Cueto is there too. Personally I'd play Kearney at 15 and Byrne on the wing. Shane Williams obviously nailed on for the other wing.

The Welsh back 3 seemed favourites at the start of the 6N. Now Byrne looks a little shakey as Kearney has made fewer maistakes and even Armitrage has come into the reckoning, while Halfpenny mightn't even travel. I agree about Cueto but the English have only played well once, next week's Calcutta Cup might revise their standing.

I think Bowe will definately travel and is a long shot to start but a lot of decisions will be made next weekend.

[Tim Buzaglo]

Only England are allowed to win vintage 6 nations titles.

Don't be so sensitive.

It hasn't been a good 6 Nations but neither have most of them, so what.

Do you expect us to win the Grand Slam and have all the other countries proclaiming it as the greatest ever and bowing to our greatness?

100% correct muppet.  If we are to win on Saturday i'll be delighted.  What the journalists say wont make a difference to me and it shouldn't to anyone else.

We haven't set the tournament alight but we've probably been the best team - time to drop the chip on the shoulder

[Hoof Hearted]

bit of a surprise, Stringer and Best dropped


O'Leary back for Cardiff showdown


Tomas O'Leary returns to the Ireland starting line-up to face Wales
Tomas O'Leary has won a surprise recall to the Irish line-up as Declan Kidney makes three changes for Saturday's Six Nations climax against Wales.
O'Leary returns at scrum-half in place of Peter Stringer who was Ireland's man-of-the-match against Scotland at Murrayfield last Saturday.
Also returning are Jamie Heaslip and Jerry Flannery who start in place of Denis Leamy and Rory Best.
Gordon D'Arcy, however, retains his place with Paddy Wallace still benched.
The main talking point will be the return of O'Leary ahead of his Munster colleague Stringer.
Stringer, who won his 88th cap last week, was responsible for setting up the only try of the game for number eight Jamie Heaslip and his overall distribution was critical in Ireland's victory.
However, despite Ireland's need to drag the Welsh pack around the park with quick service from rucks, Kidney has gone for the more rounded skills of O'Leary.
O'Leary, who took over from Stringer after a poor World Cup campaign, has strength on his side and has the knack of keeping back-rows honest.
Hooker Best can also be described as unlucky following a five-star showing up front against the Scots where his scrummaging and rugged play in the loose caught the eye.
Heaslip was always going to return at number eight after replacing Leamy midway through the first half when the Munsterman took a stinger on his shoulder.
Leamy, however, still remains doubtful. He has not trained this week to date, and the management will give him more time to fully recover.
D'Arcy gets the nod ahead of Wallace, mainly because of his defensive attributes although it is rough on the Ulsterman who has done nothing wrong so far in the Championship.
D'Arcy, however, looked comfortable again beside his midfield partner Brian O'Driscoll and they should form a useful defensive barrier against the big Welsh centres.
Unbeaten Ireland are looking to secure their first Grand Slam for 61 years while the Triple Crown and the Six Nations Championship title are also at stake.
Ireland will take all three honours if they win, while Wales need to beat Ireland by 13 points or more to secure the Championship and the Triple Crown.
Ireland: R Kearney; T Bowe, B O'Driscoll, capt, G D'Arcy, L Fitzgerald; R O'Gara, T O'Leary; M Horan, J Flannery, J Hayes, D O'Callaghan, P O'Connell, S Ferris, D Wallace, J Heaslip.
Replacements: R Best, T Court, M O'Driscoll, D Leamy, P Stringer, P Wallace, G Murphy.

[turk]

Does anyone remember how Wales won the grand slam last year, shutting down all their matches with 2o minutes to go with endless recycling going nowhere,as long as they were a few points ahead? It doesn't really matter as long as you win at the end of the day.

Agreee 10000%. People are making out Wales to be world beaters for their recent "slams" when in fact all they did was get on with it. The recent championships that France won were smelly enough too. All that needs to be done is get on with it

[mountainboii]

What do yous make of this? Some low blows from Gatland, he may as well have just come out and called them chokers. And how does he know what the players got up to in the dressing room after the Scotland game?

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/rugby_union/welsh/7949738.stm

Wales 'dislike' Irish - Gatland


Coach Warren Gatland says Wales' players dislike their Irish rivals more than any other team in the Six Nations.

Gatland made his comments ahead of Saturday's crunch clash in Cardiff in which Ireland bid for the Grand Slam and Wales for the championship.

Gatland said: "Probably, out of all the teams in the Six Nations, the Welsh players dislike the Irish the most.

"Players' experiences against Ireland haven't always been the greatest, so they are very motivated."

Gatland had a a 38-Test reign as Ireland coach between 1998 and 2001 and his comments came after he named a team showing eight changes from the line-up that fumbled its way to a 20-15 win against Six Nations wooden-spoon favourites Italy last weekend.

To retain the trophy, Wales must win by 13 points or more - they last achieved that at Ireland's expense 26 years ago - while a victory of any description would secure a third Triple Crown in five seasons.

Gatland added: "It's about winning the game first, win the Triple Crown, deny them the Grand Slam and then see what position we are in.

"There is a lot of pressure and expectation on the Irish team to come to our back-yard and perform.

"After the Scottish game [on Saturday], the Irish players were an hour-and-a-half in the changing room celebrating and singing, so they were clearly happy where they were at.

"It's how they handle that pressure. There has been expectation on them over a number of years and in a couple of World Cups as well.

"At international level, when there has been that expectation either to perform in Six Nations tournaments or World Cups, they've sometimes faltered a little bit.

"It will be interesting to see how [coach] Declan [Kidney] handles that and how the players handle that this week.

"They've performed well in this Six Nations, but we're at home with a massive crowd behind us.

"If you go back to the autumn, they [Ireland ] were talking themselves up a lot before the All Blacks game - and they really performed poorly in that game.

"We've got to really concentrate on ourselves and put them under as much pressure as we can."

Reflecting on events in the Eternal City, Gatland said: "I've been criticised for the number of changes I made, and in hindsight maybe we made too many changes.

"I am not afraid to put my hand up and say maybe it was the wrong decision. Tactically, we got some things wrong against Italy.

"We feel we haven't played as well as we could have done in this Six Nations and we want to address that.

"To win the title again would be a massive achievement. If we play to our potential on Saturday, we are capable of winning and winning well."

He added: "With a healthy head-start, you have to say Ireland are probably favourites to take the title.

"But we are confident we can come up with a win - and who knows what will happen if we can get ourselves ahead in the game and that Millennium Stadium factor begins to kick in?"

[SLIGONIAN]

What do yous make of this? Some low blows from Gatland, he may as well have just come out and called them chokers. And how does he know what the players got up to in the dressing room after the Scotland game?

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/rugby_union/welsh/7949738.stm

Wales 'dislike' Irish - Gatland


Coach Warren Gatland says Wales' players dislike their Irish rivals more than any other team in the Six Nations.

Gatland made his comments ahead of Saturday's crunch clash in Cardiff in which Ireland bid for the Grand Slam and Wales for the championship.

Gatland said: "Probably, out of all the teams in the Six Nations, the Welsh players dislike the Irish the most.

"Players' experiences against Ireland haven't always been the greatest, so they are very motivated."

Gatland had a a 38-Test reign as Ireland coach between 1998 and 2001 and his comments came after he named a team showing eight changes from the line-up that fumbled its way to a 20-15 win against Six Nations wooden-spoon favourites Italy last weekend.

To retain the trophy, Wales must win by 13 points or more - they last achieved that at Ireland's expense 26 years ago - while a victory of any description would secure a third Triple Crown in five seasons.

Gatland added: "It's about winning the game first, win the Triple Crown, deny them the Grand Slam and then see what position we are in.

"There is a lot of pressure and expectation on the Irish team to come to our back-yard and perform.

"After the Scottish game [on Saturday], the Irish players were an hour-and-a-half in the changing room celebrating and singing, so they were clearly happy where they were at.

"It's how they handle that pressure. There has been expectation on them over a number of years and in a couple of World Cups as well.

"At international level, when there has been that expectation either to perform in Six Nations tournaments or World Cups, they've sometimes faltered a little bit.

"It will be interesting to see how [coach] Declan [Kidney] handles that and how the players handle that this week.

"They've performed well in this Six Nations, but we're at home with a massive crowd behind us.

"If you go back to the autumn, they [Ireland ] were talking themselves up a lot before the All Blacks game - and they really performed poorly in that game.

"We've got to really concentrate on ourselves and put them under as much pressure as we can."

Reflecting on events in the Eternal City, Gatland said: "I've been criticised for the number of changes I made, and in hindsight maybe we made too many changes.

"I am not afraid to put my hand up and say maybe it was the wrong decision. Tactically, we got some things wrong against Italy.

"We feel we haven't played as well as we could have done in this Six Nations and we want to address that.

"To win the title again would be a massive achievement. If we play to our potential on Saturday, we are capable of winning and winning well."

He added: "With a healthy head-start, you have to say Ireland are probably favourites to take the title.

"But we are confident we can come up with a win - and who knows what will happen if we can get ourselves ahead in the game and that Millennium Stadium factor begins to kick in?"

No harm will motivate us further if possible. Id say thats bullshit about the celebrations, and the Welsh would hate the English more id guess. Gatlands full of shite is the conclusion i come to. Cant wait, should be a cracker.