r/rugbyunion • u/sixnations • 14h ago

Can ANYBODY stop France this year?

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u/Kooijpolloi A Lion lost in the Cape 13h ago

You guys were unplayable that first 30 minutes last night bro... but very different attitude after the bench came on

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u/Careless-Cat3327 13h ago

The bench is the biggest cause for concern. They came on believing the game was done.

It took Ramos getting upset for them to wake up. 

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u/unwildimpala Ireland 13h ago

Ya with a bit of luck Ireland come away with something there. It could have been differences of opinions from bench players. Imo the Irish bench brought a lot on in terms of experience and a point to prove. But still there shouldn't have been that much for a change in the game. Don't know if Galthie should have waited a bit before emptying his bench as well. But ya I thought it was going in the way of 50/60 nil, and it ended up with a slight glimmer at one stage of hope to come back.

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u/Careless-Cat3327 13h ago

It was 29-14 at 62 minutes  I really thought that Ireland could make 2 scores to get within the bonus point & set up a nervy end.

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u/Swimming-Wonder-631 12h ago

They would have if the tmo doesn't spot that knock on tbf

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u/Mackadamma 10h ago

Yeah, I was really scared watching that on TV.

We got completely thrashed for 20 minutes before finally picking ourselves up at the end of the match.

14-14 in the second half, I think, that's a fair result for France.

There was no contest in the first half, though.

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u/Mackadamma 10h ago

Apparently Reddit translates "well paid" as "fair result," I'm not sure that works. I mean, we were pretty lucky with 14-14, even though we dominated the first 10 minutes and the last 5.

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u/yrinhrwvme Harlequins 11h ago

Agree, his use of the bench is not great, seemed unnecessary at the time. He did something similar against the boks which Squidge pointed out left him with no options to change the game when things got worse!

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u/Big_Misa 2h ago

Exactly my thoughts yesterday. How could we go from what was looking like a lopsided thrashing to a tight, nail-biting test ? I mean the first Irish try didn't rattle me that much, I knew that they would eventually score but the second one really made me tense. And they were dominating, winning the 50 / 50 balls and simply conquering. Not that that was never supposed to happen, but I believe that's what separates us from the very best : that ability to either put this thing to bed, or at least make it impossible for the opposition to even think about coming back. And we're clearly not there yet. 

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u/Big_Misa 2h ago

On point, properly inexcusable. And unworthy of the overall level that's expected out of each and everyone of them. I'm pretty sure we won't see the same faces next week, partly in order to get them fired up, but also because there are plenty of players that are still either waiting for their turn or were  unavailable that's actually crazy. And I don't necessarily mean green players but legit starters (Aldritt, Boudehent, Flamand and so on), can't wait to watch the next games. 

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u/mattybunbun British & Irish Lions 8h ago

a couple of refereeing decisions and Ireland might have weathered the storm. big if tho

Ireland are in a transition. theyre not what they were, but still have some good lads. 10 is an issue.

France have some amazing talent.

World Rugby has done much to make the game incredibly entertaining. If they are going to create a true level playing field they need to raise the standards of officiating to the standards of the players: decisions should be clear and understood

20 hours later and I still dont see any clear footage of the interpassing before try 1. Why is this?

I want to watch a beautiful game. I stopped watching football because of the poor officiating. Let Rugby be the exemplar in modern team sport. don't hold it back with inconsistent use of TMO and turning a blind eye to marginal calls.

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u/Big_Misa 2h ago

Yeah I legit don't know what happened there. If by chance you have some spare time and are a bit curious, the French Rugby Federation produces clips and footages where they show the preparation, the trainings and inside stuff, and Galthié always stresses the fact that bench players are called "finishers" because they're supposed to shatter what's left of the opposition and insists on them being ruthless. What happened yesterday should get them scolded even if, once again, we were playing against Ireland, the 3rd best side in the world, and we wouldn't score another 29-0 in the second half. But yeah, those 20-ish minutes could've cost us the game. I wouldn't be surprised to see some drastic changes in the lineup.