Summer Internationals 2018.

[Oldschool]

South Africa v Wales on Channel 4 this evening - coverage starts 9:20pm.
It's an out of window international.
The English clubs aren't releasing any of their Welsh players for it.
They're bitching about it and want a voice on the IRB to 'advise' (That's block for you and me btw) on this sort stuff.

[ronk]

Cool might watch it

[TerenureJim]

Yeah read the PRL shrill nonsense about player welfare, yep definitely think you lads have the players best interests at heart not like you throw Lions tourists into shitty preseason games. I don't see what the problem is it's a non league weekend, some players picked have had a few weeks off, showcases the game in the US and makes some money for the unions.

Oh what's that you say it diverts attention away from sh!t PRL games McCafferty is trying to promote in the US, it highlights to players you're better off in a national/league structure that watches your minutes so you're fresh for big games.

I'd have loved to see us play an "A" style warm up game with second string this weekend against an Aus Baa Baas side or Fiji, Tonga etc time is running out to build 2019 squad depth.

[ronk]

It’s PRL, there’s always a problem. It’s always the same problem, sometimes they quiet temporarily if they’ve been paid a Kings ransom to shut up.

They made a fortune from the RFU by blocking player release on non-international weekends. The other unions can’t and don’t need to pay anything like that.

They want a big pay check from Wales (et al.)for something that doesn’t cost them much anyway. They’ll reluctantly settle for ending out of window internationals, except for the lucrative 4th Autumn international.

What makes them angry is someone who doesn’t pay the protection money but keeps doing business. It makes them look weak, pisses off their Welsh players and damages relationships between Welsh players and clubs (making them harder to sign). The WRU are happy about it because it gives them leverage over domestically based players and the more this happens the more likely that PRL will go back to infighting rather than joining together to bully neighbors.

[ronk]

http://www.the42.ie/pete-samu-australia ... 8-Jun2018/

New Zealand have contracts preventing someone from playing for other countries. Doesnt seem right within IRB regs.

[blockhead]

It’s PRL, there’s always a problem. It’s always the same problem, sometimes they quiet temporarily if they’ve been paid a Kings ransom to shut up.

They made a fortune from the RFU by blocking player release on non-international weekends. The other unions can’t and don’t need to pay anything like that.

They want a big pay check from Wales (et al.)for something that doesn’t cost them much anyway. They’ll reluctantly settle for ending out of window internationals, except for the lucrative 4th Autumn international.

What makes them angry is someone who doesn’t pay the protection money but keeps doing business. It makes them look weak, pisses off their Welsh players and damages relationships between Welsh players and clubs (making them harder to sign). The WRU are happy about it because it gives them leverage over domestically based players and the more this happens the more likely that PRL will go back to infighting rather than joining together to bully neighbors.

World Rugby forced to bail out USA federation after they lose millions hosting Wales v South Africa
• The profit making arm of USA Rugby has been in dire straits for months
• They hoped to recoup losses by hosting Wales v South Africa in Washington DC
• However with only 20,000 seats sold, they are set for another massive loss
By Will Kelleher For Mailonline Published: 18:32, 1 June 2018 | Updated: 18:32, 1 June 2018

World Rugby have been forced to bail out the USA to the tune of 'multiple millions' of pounds after the Americans' financial catastrophe was accelerated by the staging of Saturday's Wales-South Africa Test.
As Sportsmail reported in April, the company who have put on the match - Rugby International Marketing (RIM), the for-profit arm of the USA Rugby which boasts the RFU and Harlequins as minority investors - has been in dire straits.
Last year they lost £3million and needed 27,000 to attend Saturday's Washington DC match in the 45,000-seater RFK Stadium to break even.
World Rugby have bailed out the USA after they lost millions hosting Wales v South Africa
But with an estimated 20,000 fans set to turn up, as Wales and the Springboks field second-string teams, RIM - and therefore USA Rugby, who own 75 per cent - are set to make another loss of at least half a million pounds.
Add to the fact that each team has been promised a fee in the region of £550,000, the match has become a major financial burden to add to the pre-existing woes at RIM.
Now World Rugby - the game's governing body - have stepped in to ease the losses caused by this overstretching.
Only 20,000 seats have been sold for the game at the RFK Stadium in Washington DC
They have provided USA Rugby with a substantial loan - which trusted sources say is in the 'multiple millions' of pounds - to be re-payed after the World Cup Sevens tournament.
World Rugby insist that competition, to be held in San Francisco in July, was never at risk, the loan is not specifically designed to save it and are sure the tournament will be a commercial success.
'World Rugby is fully anticipating a special and successful Rugby World Cup Sevens 2018 in San Francisco. That will advance the development of the sport in an important rugby market,' a statement read.
'Rugby is about partnership, and we are advancing a limited amount of funding to USA Rugby, specifically related to up-front hosting costs. With a strong commercial and ticketing programme, we are anticipating that this investment will be returned following the tournament.'
World Rugby have financially supported some Pacific Island nations in the past, but the fact that USA Rugby has needed help was described by one source as a 'sad state' of affairs.
The RFU and Quins are still minority investors in RIM having each ploughed £1.4m into the company and its now-defunct live-streaming service The Rugby Channel in 2015 and 2016 respectively as a way of trying to crack America.
Ticket sales have not been helped by both Wales and South Africa picking second string teams
The Rugby Channel had to be bought out last month having collapsed under the financial strain.
In USA Rugby meeting minutes seen by Sportsmail, board chairman Will Chang raised the subject of acquiring a loan from World Rugby. The minutes from May say 'multiple loan options' were discussed. Now we can confirm a deal was agreed.
Chang himself publicly valued RIM as worth between £15-£22m four months before it was declared in April in a letter from the Board of Directors (the task force to sort out RIM's financial issues) to Congress that 'RIM, as an ongoing concern, has no ability to successfully sustain itself as a business.' He resigned on Thursday with immediate effect.
This news of a bailout comes at a time when the Wales-South Africa match was publicly criticised by Premiership Rugby.
The English domestic league refused to release Worcester's Josh Adams, Bath's Luke Charteris and Exeter's Tomas Francis for the match as it falls outside of the agreed international window for Tests to be played between June 9 and 23 - and now chief executive of the league Mark McCafferty has said the match should never have gone ahead.
'We're not sure why World Rugby authorises these matches,' he said. 'It's just messy. Defined international windows are there, and that's when the matches should occur.
'You shouldn't be authorising matches outside Test windows and then expecting players to be released.'

[ronk]

So they’re being bailed out themselves if they have skin in the game. Agreeing match fees that aren’t contingent on team strength is a daft mistake for hosting in a neutral venue, those are huge fees. PRL have weakened the teams themselves too.

Only they are stupid enough to plan that way.

[ronk]

Skills aren’t much in this game...

[Barry]

South Africa v Wales on Channel 4 this evening - coverage starts 9:20pm.
It's an out of window international.
The English clubs aren't releasing any of their Welsh players for it.
They're bitching about it and want a voice on the IRB to 'advise' (That's block for you and me btw) on this sort stuff.

1st half was a strong candidate for the worst 40 minutes of international rugby ever

[Ruckedtobits]

South Africa v Wales on Channel 4 this evening - coverage starts 9:20pm.
It's an out of window international.
The English clubs aren't releasing any of their Welsh players for it.
They're bitching about it and want a voice on the IRB to 'advise' (That's block for you and me btw) on this sort stuff.

1st half was a strong candidate for the worst 40 minutes of international rugby ever

No, it was the clear winner in that category! Truly appalling rubbish, not helped by English referee Carley.

[neill_m]

All Kick Off Times (Irish Time):

Saturday 9 June
2am Tonga v Georgia
4:30am Fiji v Samoa
6:45am Japan v Italy
8:35am New Zealand v France Sky Sports
11:05am Australia v Ireland Sky Sports
4:05pm South Africa v England Sky Sports
8:40pm Argentina v Wales Channel 4

Sunday 10 June
2am USA v Russia
2am Canada v Scotland BBC1 Scotland (Ch 951)

Saturday 16 June
2am Tonga v Samoa
4:30am Fiji v Georgia
6am Japan v Italy
8:35am New Zealand v France Sky Sports
11:05am Australia v Ireland Sky Sports
4:05pm South Africa v England Sky Sports
8:40pm Argentina v Wales Channel 4
9pm Canada v Russia

Sunday 17 June

2am USA v Scotland BBC1 Scotland (Ch 951)

Saturday 23 June
4am Fiji v Tonga
6:45am Japan v Georgia
8:35am New Zealand v France Sky Sports
11:05am Australia v Ireland Sky Sports
4:05pm South Africa v England Sky Sports
8pm Canada v USA
8:40pm Argentina v Scotland Channel 4

[Dexter]

Remy Grosso was hospitalised after a double tackle in the NZ game on Sat (Cane and Tu'ungafasi). He suffered a double face fracture according to reports. There were no cards, just a pen, after TMO review. Have a look at the clip and make your own mind up.
http://www.punditarena.com/rugby/ckelle ... ch-fuming/

[R-Dog]

Remy Grosso was hospitalised after a double tackle in the NZ game on Sat (Cane and Tu'ungafasi). He suffered a double face fracture according to reports. There were no cards, just a pen, after TMO review. Have a look at the clip and make your own mind up.
http://www.punditarena.com/rugby/ckelle ... ch-fuming/

To add to this France had a man sin binned for a "Swinging arm High Tackle" that was no where near as bad as the tackle on the right here. Number 18 should have been a red imo

[FLIP]

Remy Grosso was hospitalised after a double tackle in the NZ game on Sat (Cane and Tu'ungafasi). He suffered a double face fracture according to reports. There were no cards, just a pen, after TMO review. Have a look at the clip and make your own mind up.
http://www.punditarena.com/rugby/ckelle ... ch-fuming/

Referees and World Rugby in letting New Zealand away with thuggery non shocker.

Remember how they went for us after we beat them in Chicago?

[Oldschool]

Remy Grosso was hospitalised after a double tackle in the NZ game on Sat (Cane and Tu'ungafasi). He suffered a double face fracture according to reports. There were no cards, just a pen, after TMO review. Have a look at the clip and make your own mind up.
http://www.punditarena.com/rugby/ckelle ... ch-fuming/

Referees and World Rugby in letting New Zealand away with thuggery non shocker.

Remember how they went for us after we beat them in Chicago?

Didn't watch the match but what happened to the "duty of care" that players, in the first instance and the officials, in particular, are mandated to ensure takes place.
In the Autumn we had better be prepared to get our retaliation in early.
The above incident should have resulted in some group therapy being dished out to the culprits and I don't usually condone that sort of stuff but you are entitled to defend yourself.
TBH the only thing that is going to stop that kind of skulduggery is for a player to take the players involved, their Union and the IRB to court - that would soften their cough.

[leinsterforever]

You'd have to wonder what's going on if no citing comes out of the Tu'ungafasi tackle. Clear red card offence.

[TerenureJim]

You'd have to wonder what's going on if no citing comes out of the Tu'ungafasi tackle. Clear red card offence.

Has there been a citing?

[leinsterforever]

You'd have to wonder what's going on if no citing comes out of the Tu'ungafasi tackle. Clear red card offence.

Has there been a citing?

Not that I've heard of. The window has probably passed as well by now

[dropkick]

That was a shocking tackle but NZ have license to get away with those.

[sunshiner1]

by dropkick » June 12th, 2018, 12:40 am

That was a shocking tackle but NZ have license to get away with those.

Like you said they have a license to get away with it. Nothing is going to change. The All-Blacks is to big a brand to fail for the IRB. If a few people have to go to hospital then so be it.