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The 'dreadful game of rugby' that bored the world

Guglielmo Palazzani of Zebre Rugby looks for a pass. (Photo by Harry Trump / Getty Images)

It was a mixed bag last weekend for the rugby world, as the unbridled intensity of England’s win over the All Blacks in the Rugby World Cup semi-final fizzled into the tedium of a kicking battle 24 hours later in South Africa’s win over Wales.

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The Springboks won the game 19-16, but it was far from an engrossing match. Both side’s reluctance to attack kept the game close on the scoreboard throughout and that at least ramped up the nerves, as there was something major at stake.

The same could not be said for a match played across the ocean.

In terms of boring matches, the semi-final was easily eclipsed by the Pro14 contest between Zebre and Leinster played the day before in Parma, in which the reigning champions won 3-0 in wet conditions.

The good thing that often comes from games like these is the reaction on social media, particularly as this may have been the first time that a team came away with more league points than they actually scored in the match.

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Moreover, with Leicester City winning 9-0 the day before against Southampton in football’s Premier League, the fact that only a third of the points were scored the following day makes the game all the more bizarre.

This was the reaction:

https://twitter.com/petergriffdog/status/1188165729935413248?s=20

https://twitter.com/DarrenBeck13/status/1188157778143141888?s=20

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Leinster are still missing all of their players who represented Ireland at the RWC. They will give the Pro14 side a major boost upon their return. Regardless, Leinster fans, and indeed all rugby fans, will hope that there will be no more games like this in the interim.

All Blacks Dane Coles couldn’t hold back the emotion in a Rugby World Cup press conference:

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Soliloquin 2 hours ago
Competing interests and rotated squads: What the 'player welfare summer' is really telling us

I don’t know the financial story behind the changes that were implemented, but I guess clubs started to lose money, Mourad Boudjellal won it all with Toulon, got tired and wanted to invest in football , the French national team was at its lowest with the QF humiliation in 2015 and the FFR needed to transform the model where no French talent could thrive. Interestingly enough, the JIFF rule came in during the 2009/2010 season, so before the Toulon dynasty, but it was only 40% of the players that to be from trained in French academies. But the crops came a few years later, when they passed it at the current level of 70%.

Again, I’m not a huge fan of under 18 players being scouted and signed. I’d rather have French clubs create sub-academies in French territories like Wallis and Futuna, New Caledonia and other places that are culturally closer to RU and geographically closer to rugby lands. Mauvaka, Moefana, Taofifenua bros, Tolofua bros, Falatea - they all came to mainland after starting their rugby adventure back home.

They’re French, they come from economically struggling areas, and rugby can help locally, instead of lumping foreign talents.

And even though many national teams benefit from their players training and playing in France, there are cases where they could avoid trying to get them in the French national team (Tatafu).

In other cases, I feel less shame when the country doesn’t believe in the player like in Meafou’s case.

And there are players that never consider switching to the French national team like Niniashvili, Merckler or even Capuozzo, who is French and doesn’t really speak Italian.

We’ll see with Jacques Willis 🥲


But hey, it’s nothing new to Australia and NZ with PI!

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