6N Squad

[Mikey Brown]

This will become moot when Lawes is named at 6 for the opening 6N match.

I think you mean 7.

[Raggs]

This will become moot when Lawes is named at 6 for the opening 6N match.

I think you mean 7.

I'll cut you.

[FKAS]

This will become moot when Lawes is named at 6 for the opening 6N match.

I think you mean 7.

I'll cut you.

This was similar to my reaction when Tigers deployed a backrow of Fitzgerald, Williams and Kalamafoni.

Hopefully we are past the days of a lock at 6, if he wanted to go that route than Ted Hill is the obvious inclusion as he is actually mobile enough to play in the backrow.

[stevedog1980]

Some positive examples there of a decades old system which would be positively murdered by a modern defence. One might as well call for all players to smoke the pipe and to enjoy a good half-time brandy

When are you going to propose this half-time stuff? I'm thinking of making a comeback and this is exactly the sort of idea that will push me over the line!!

Wales still employ this strategy regularly with Justin Tipuric popping up in midfield and on the wing plenty of times in the game. Admittedly, they are a team who have enjoyed more limited success in recent but many times Tipuric is the catalyst for a successful line break still

[Digby]

Sorry for Underhill but Willis at 6 with Curry at 7 starts to look a lot better balanced than Curry 6 / Underhill 7 combo

Why? What role does the 6 fill that the 7 doesn't or vice versa, for England? How does Willis (our best breakdown specialist) fit that role more appropriately than Curry?

Why do you bite?!

Puja

He likes MMA, and I'm pretty sure that'd be a legal move in MMA

[Digby]

Some positive examples there of a decades old system which would be positively murdered by a modern defence. One might as well call for all players to smoke the pipe and to enjoy a good half-time brandy

When are you going to propose this half-time stuff? I'm thinking of making a comeback and this is exactly the sort of idea that will push me over the line!!

Wales still employ this strategy regularly with Justin Tipuric popping up in midfield and on the wing plenty of times in the game. Admittedly, they are a team who have enjoyed more limited success in recent but many times Tipuric is the catalyst for a successful line break still

Brandy during the interval has its place, but more at the level I could play at than something above the level of shambling about dropping the ball whilst intentionally buying the decoy run

And by all means spread forwards about the pitch (which I note happens more fluidly again than just having pod systems in place) just don't assign them to track 3/4s as we used to see in the 80s/90s. Well I say used to see in the 80s, I wasn't watching back then but given the players named...

[Beasties]

Some positive examples there of a decades old system which would be positively murdered by a modern defence. One might as well call for all players to smoke the pipe and to enjoy a good half-time brandy

When are you going to propose this half-time stuff? I'm thinking of making a comeback and this is exactly the sort of idea that will push me over the line!!

Wales still employ this strategy regularly with Justin Tipuric popping up in midfield and on the wing plenty of times in the game. Admittedly, they are a team who have enjoyed more limited success in recent but many times Tipuric is the catalyst for a successful line break still

Brandy during the interval has its place, but more at the level I could play at than something above the level of shambling about dropping the ball whilst intentionally buying the decoy run

And by all means spread forwards about the pitch (which I note happens more fluidly again than just having pod systems in place) just don't assign them to track 3/4s as we used to see in the 80s/90s. Well I say used to see in the 80s, I wasn't watching back then but given the players named...

Glorious. Made my day.

[jngf]

Some positive examples there of a decades old system which would be positively murdered by a modern defence. One might as well call for all players to smoke the pipe and to enjoy a good half-time brandy

When are you going to propose this half-time stuff? I'm thinking of making a comeback and this is exactly the sort of idea that will push me over the line!!

Wales still employ this strategy regularly with Justin Tipuric popping up in midfield and on the wing plenty of times in the game. Admittedly, they are a team who have enjoyed more limited success in recent but many times Tipuric is the catalyst for a successful line break still

Brandy during the interval has its place, but more at the level I could play at than something above the level of shambling about dropping the ball whilst intentionally buying the decoy run

And by all means spread forwards about the pitch (which I note happens more fluidly again than just having pod systems in place) just don't assign them to track 3/4s as we used to see in the 80s/90s. Well I say used to see in the 80s, I wasn't watching back then but given the players named...

I’m not recommending all forwards track in this way but I think there is a lot of merit in getting the openside to do it - Josh Kronfeld and Michael Jones were brilliant at this ditto Olivier Magne and has been mentioned Justin Tipuric. It’s this role I could see Simmonds, Earl, Ludlum or Curry doing really well.

[Digby]

When are you going to propose this half-time stuff? I'm thinking of making a comeback and this is exactly the sort of idea that will push me over the line!!

Wales still employ this strategy regularly with Justin Tipuric popping up in midfield and on the wing plenty of times in the game. Admittedly, they are a team who have enjoyed more limited success in recent but many times Tipuric is the catalyst for a successful line break still

Brandy during the interval has its place, but more at the level I could play at than something above the level of shambling about dropping the ball whilst intentionally buying the decoy run

And by all means spread forwards about the pitch (which I note happens more fluidly again than just having pod systems in place) just don't assign them to track 3/4s as we used to see in the 80s/90s. Well I say used to see in the 80s, I wasn't watching back then but given the players named...

I’m not recommending all forwards track in this way but I think there is a lot of merit in getting the openside to do it - Josh Kronfeld and Michael Jones were brilliant at this ditto Olivier Magne and has been mentioned Justin Tipuric. It’s this role I could see Simmonds, Earl, Ludlum or Curry doing really well.

There is a slight shift to what might be called fluidity in resourcing forwards across the park, but it's some evolved use of the pod system still, and it's done so players (forwards) don't have to run around after the ball, so they don't have to in essence run shuttles that might never see them do other than work off the ball. Reason being someone noticed running those shuttles left them less energy for useful aspects of the game. You might see merit in bringing back shuttles, but whilst you might have some specific moves that involve a certain forward I think more generally the coaches will give the idea a wide berth, it's not a pointless idea because there is some positive but overall it's a bad take.

You may wish to counter there are other luxury uses of backrow forwards, Pocock floating looking for turnovers as a for instance, but here the number of touches at 12 and 13 and the number of times they'd get the ball away to a 7 who has tracked them is going to be limited, it's rarely going to happen off scrums, you could enable if off lineouts but that's frankly covered by the specific strike move noted above where you can place say a 7 in a specific role in/off the backs, and beyond that multiphase isn't going to afford you many chances, it's already hard enough to run multiphase and to station the 7 out behind the 12/13 is only going to make that harder. So really all you'd get is a weaker breakdown support game and your 7 running extra metres for no appreciable return.

If you could set up such your 7 would play as you envisage and it'd be a positive outcome you're probably so much better you'd win whatever

[Mikey Brown]

Was Magne even an openside? I thought he was just French.

[Digby]

Oli went both ways

[Mellsblue]

Sports professionals on France’s list of those exempt from international travel restrictions. Looks like we’re good to go.