The Phantom

Robinson; Sackey, Tait, Catt, Lewsey; Wilkinson, Gomarsall - Englands Backline last night…. Take out Catt and that is a quality backline, full of creativity (catt is just passed his sell by date). Robinson Sackey and Lewsey are 3 pacey individuals, who you’d back one on one with almost anyone. Tait has impressed be a lot this world cup. It just seems to me that Engand have no faith in their backline. The game against Wales they spread the ball out once, and scored a magnificent try. If that was a Welsh backline I’d be very proud. The All Blacks backline is not even that good compared to previous seasons. Their centres are suspect, and they need to have a definitive full back. Swapping Mealamu and McAllister all the time has not helped them at all.

It just really kills me to see this happening again. I’m not even switching on the TV this week, because the media is so over the top.

I wouldn’t expect you to appologise for the way England got to the final, and nor you should. I wouldn’t if it was Wales, but England will have a major problem from now on. This campaign will be hailed a success, and quite rightfully so, but there is no development in the game (to me anyway). By reaching the final it merely papers over the cracks. The RFU will go away happy, but if they don’t change things soon, England will be in a mess playing wise. Ashton will probably stay on for another 2 years or so.. which means England will be waaay behind the other nations in as far as development is concerned. Wales, France, Australia, New Zealand, Argentina, South Africa will all have new coaches (Ireland should do to, but they won’t because they made the error of signing O’Sullivan before the World Cup) and structures in place, to make sure what happened this year does not happen again in 2011. Also the English game is run by mulit millionaires who don’t give a damn about developing players for the future.. as is evident with the amount of foreigners in the league, and we’ll see a lot of this now with the mass exodus of All Black players to Europe. At least in France they all go to the 2nd division to play.

England beat Australia because Australia didn’t have a pack, which in the modern game quite frankly baffles me. John Connolly is a forwards man himself, so I’m sure there is no man more embarrassed than himself.

New Zealand went out because they didn’t play their own game. Some will say France stopped them, to a certain degree that is true, but some of the blame must be put on the players themselves, from watching a lot of their games over the last 4 years, they weren’t putting themselves in the positions they normally do. Also the MAJOR factor in why New Zealand didn’t win, is because they don’t know how to finish close games off. They are never in the position of having to do so. Most close games they are involved in, they lose. Just look at their Tri-Nations battles with Australia. They should have won the game with a drop goal in the closing mins, but instead they looked for the try.

From what I’ve seen of South Africa (and to be honest, it’s not an awful lot) they are not a team who will be bullied up front, and they have the ability to finish off close games, having had many (if not all) of their players playing the Heiniken Cup, and the Curry Cup regularly.

4 years ago I was actually sick when England won the world cup (might have had something to do with me being out until the early hours the previous night celebrating my 18th birthday… but still), I will probably be puking again if they life the Webb Ellis cup again next Saturday. I might even take a long holiday, and never return?!

Do you think I feel strongly about this?