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Fiji stunned Wales on Saturday.
Email a question to Stuart
England, no chance, France, just as non existent, Fiji, don't make me laugh.
Which leaves Scotland and Argentina as the one competitive quarter final, although Argentina would be 20 point favourites if they were called `France' instead of Argentina...looks glum viewing for the Northern Hemisphere reading the form lines.
There seems little hope but then I remember Fiji in Nantes and I think anything can happen. Whether we will see a game like that again is doubtful but it is a classic reminder that sport is a live event and the past, no matter how recent is no guarantee of future success.
France might be better away from Paris, where New Zealand have resoundingly thumped them in recent years. In Cardiff the underdog tag might suit them and help repeat the 1999 stunner between the two countries. Maybe the All Blacks are light of a serious work out...
As for Fiji, what a wondrous effort but surely the Springboks will squeeze the life from the Fiji pack in a way Wales did not.
It cost Gareth Jenkins his job yet I reckon he was right to play with one eye on the South African horizon. Wales would have won in Nantes had they been tighter from the start but they sought a game to challenge South Africa.
Erroneous short term, he has paid the price for having some courage. I have not been convinced by Jenkins as a coach for some time, but in his moment of demise, I feel sorry for him. He went out doing it right.
England? Well the tight five will have to play out of their skin and Wilkinson have an unforgettable day with the boot. I don't see this scenario unfolding but then again, Fiji?
And finally Scotland...Argentina are still calling themselves underdogs but in winning Pool D they are deservedly strong favourites. Their line out can be tested and the composure of star players like Felipe Contepomi tweaked - a few penalties and with the best boot in the business in Chris Paterson, its the most probable shock scenario but Argentina are improving.
I have a sneaking feeling they have a greater role yet to play in a tournament which is ready to ignite....
Ok, questions and then the plane back for the Rugby Club...
Stuart, what would your thoughts be on introducing the minnows of the european international game into the euro cup competitions? It's clear they need regular games to develop and games against good opposition.
It would also add a new dimension to these competitions for the fans like Leicester travelling to Spain, Munster in Portugal or the Ospreys in Romania and so on. Surely this would help improve the image of the game as a global one.
My second point also surrounds the minnows of international rugby. Would it not be of the greater good of the game for the bigger, more established countries to 'adopt' a minnow to help develop and structure the game in these countries?
For the All Blacks to send a team of top coaches to any of the Pacific Islands, France to Georgia, England to the Portugal etc. These things must be put in place for the long haul and not just another temporary quick fix.
I am not sure if such a scheme is already in place but feel an effort must be made to help these countries to really create a totally global game.
Cheers, Ben, Northants
Stuart replies: Ben, There is an element of IRB assistance and collaboration between the richer and poorer rugby nations but there is much more to be done. So far, this tournament has turned a few preconceptions of the established order on its head with some superb stuff from unfancied teams and individuals.
It must be a kick start and we must NOT cut the numbers of teams down to 16. What we should do is, as you suggest, use the European competitions as a training ground as well as improved competition in its own right by an inclusive policy.
I would like to see promotion and relegation between the Six Nations tournament and FIRA but vested interests of the old order makes this unlikely. There clearly has to be a balance between commercial and sporting interests in a professional game. I hope the balance moves away from its current selfish position.
If the top teams in the FIRA tournament fail to make the Six Nations breakthrough (and the chances are currently next to non existent) how about the top three teams, say it was Romania, Portugal and Georgia) being included in the Heineken Cup, with a slightly lesser representation from the established countries? I am with you Ben, the game can grow if it adopts a less selfish and more inclusive long term approach to the sport.
Hi Stuart, I would like to know your opinion on Martyn Williams. Here in Wales both the press and the general public seem to be wearing blinkers with regards to his performances. Whilst I agree that he is a great supporting number seven he is simply not physical enough. Particularly as we play two flyers at lock (Gough and Alun Wyn Jones) we need extra power in the back row and Martin Williams doesn't provide it.
Gareth Owen
Stuart replies: Gareth, Martyn is a superb footballer, as classically Welsh a player as you could imagine with great instinctive feel for the game. He was outstanding against Fiji but I concur with you, against the biggest, the best and the tightest, there is a weakness to his game as Longo of Argentina exposed in the World Cup warm-ups. Play Williams and you gain a lovely understanding but you lose some oomph. The balance of the Welsh back row is going to be an area in need of addressing for the next Welsh coach.
Stuart, I have just woken in cold sweat at the thought at Stirling Mortlock running at Barclay and Tait. Whilst the perceived wisdom in the past week or so seems to have been to replace Tait with Hipkiss to give a little more "directness" to the 3/4 line, perhaps Farrell for Barclay would be the best horse for this particular course?
Mortlock asked a few questions of Luke MacAlister in the Tri-Nations and would surely ask plenty more of the talented, but slight, Barkley (who seems to have been strangely subdued outside Wilkinson). Tait is even slighter, but his speed I think is needed for the drift when the Australian strike runners flood the outer channels. Farrell and Tait?
Robert Peal
Stuart replies: Robert, I am sweating at the prospect of England holding this Australian midfield. Frankly there is no combination that works out on paper. We worry about Mortlock but the incisive threat of Giteau is just as great and I am far from convinced Andy Farrell will handle him any better than Barkley who has played poorly outside Wilkinson but has the small beneift of some good form this tournament as a reason for selection. I do worry about Tait versus Mortlock and maybe Hipkiss is a more natural opponent but will he stem the flow? Can he make the difference...The odds are more on Tait doing something magical than Hipkiss and if we are to lose, let's at least have a lash. We worry so much about stopping teams we forget to attack them. Have a go, Saturday, and if England lose, lose with some style and hope for the future, not a slow grinding inevitable loss, please.
Thanks for the mail and enjoy what should be a great weekend of sport, Stuart Barnes
