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Rugby Heroes and Villains For The Year 2016

Chris Ashton

We look back on some of the year’s rugby heroes and a few of its rugby villains.

It’s been a long and sometimes strange year in rugby. 365 days ago England were crap, Premiership clubs dominated the Champions Cup, and Beauden Barrett was the substitute number 10 for the All Blacks. Now England are the (second-)best side in the world, Premiership clubs are getting hammered by Pro12 sides everywhere you look, and ‘Beaudy’ is the World Rugby Player of the Year.

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No question, All Blacks first-five is top of the list of rugby heroes who emerged in 2016. Here is a by-no-means-comprehensive list of some of the other heroes and villains we covered this year:

Hero: Beauden Barrett
Even when he’s scuttling away from your defenders and crossing your tryline with his weird distinctive running style it’s hard not to love Beauden Barrett. Scotty Stevenson paid tribute to the world’s best Number 10 after he was crowned World Rugby Player of the Year in November.

Villain: Jaco Peyper
Irish fans got extremely mad at the South African ref following their side’s controversial loss to the All Blacks in Dublin.

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Hero: Andy Goode
Andy Goode looks more like a darts player than a professional rugby player, but he came out of retirement for Newcastle and earned a nomination for Aviva Premiership Player of the Year. Phenomenal.

Villain: Chris Ashton
Chris Ashton got banned for 13 weeks for biting Alex Waller, which seems bad…

Hero: Chris Ashton
… but maybe being rugby’s answer to Luis Suarez is actually good? Confusing.

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Villain: Aaron Smith
Hasn’t been the same since he had sex.

Hero: Marty Banks
The Highlanders utility is an inexplicably popular figure in New Zealand rugby and nobody loves him more than our own Scotty Stevenson, who penned a moving tribute.

Villain: Nick Phipps
Shoved a physio and threw a boot. People have gone to prison for less.

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J
JW 4 hours ago
‘The problem with this year’s Champions Cup? Too many English clubs’

Yep, that's exactly what I want.

Glasgow won the URC and Edinburgh finished 16th, but Scotland won the six nations, Edinburgh would qualify for the Champions Cup under your system.

It's 'or'. If Glasgow won the URC or Scotland won the six nations. If one of those happens I believe it will (or should) be because the league is in a strong place, and that if a Scotland side can do that, there next best club team should be allowed to reach for the same and that would better serve the advancement of the game.


Now, of course picking a two team league like Scotland is the extreme case of your argument, but I'm happy for you to make it. First, Edinbourgh are a good mid table team, so they are deserving, as my concept would have predicted, of the opportunity to show can step up. Second, you can't be making a serious case that Gloucester are better based on beating them, surely. You need to read Nicks latest article on SA for a current perspective on road teams in the EPCR. Christ, you can even follow Gloucester and look at the team they put out the following week to know that those games are meaningless.


More importantly, third. Glasgow are in a league/pool with Italy, So the next team to be given a spot in my technically imperfect concept would be Benneton. To be fair to my idea that's still in it's infancy, I haven't given any thought to those 'two team' leagues/countries yet, and I'm not about to 😋

They would be arguably worse if they didn't win the Challenge Cup.

Incorrect. You aren't obviously familiar with knockout football Finn, it's a 'one off' game. But in any case, that's not your argument. You're trying to suggest they're not better than the fourth ranked team in the Challenge Cup that hasn't already qualified in their own league, so that could be including quarter finalists. I have already given you an example of a team that is the first to get knocked out by the champions not getting a fair ranking to a team that loses to one of the worst of the semi final teams (for example).

Sharks are better

There is just so much wrong with your view here. First, the team that you are knocking out for this, are the Stormers, who weren't even in the Challenge Cup. They were the 7th ranked team in the Champions Cup. I've also already said there is good precedent to allow someone outside the league table who was heavily impacted early in the season by injury to get through by winning Challenge Cup. You've also lost the argument that Sharks qualify as the third (their two best are in my league qualification system) South African team (because a SAn team won the CC, it just happened to be them) in my system. I'm doubt that's the last of reasons to be found either.


Your system doesn't account for performance or changes in their domestic leagues models, and rely's heavily on an imperfect and less effective 'winner takes all' model.

Giving more incentives to do well in the Challenge Cup will make people take it more seriously. My system does that and yours doesn't.

No your systems doesn't. Not all the time/circumstances. You literally just quoted me describing how they aren't going to care about Challenge Cup if they are already qualifying through league performance. They are also not going to hinder their chance at high seed in the league and knockout matches, for the pointless prestige of the Challenge Cup.


My idea fixes this by the suggesting that say a South African or Irish side would actually still have some desire to win one of their own sides a qualification spot if they win the Challenge Cup though. I'll admit, its not the strongest incentive, but it is better than your nothing. I repeat though, if your not balance entries, or just my assignment, then obviously winning the Challenge Cup should get you through, but your idea of 4th place getting in a 20 team EPCR? Cant you see the difference lol


Not even going to bother finishing that last paragraph. 8 of 10 is not an equal share.

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