Who is still playing?

[Adder]

roosters v barbarians.jpg

Thanks for sharing.
Pitch was actually very good! only a small part was dry. A lot less grazing than usual.

[rowan]

Nice to know that no matter where you play, there's always pylons by the pitch.

Those might even be the goal posts, since the field looks like a farm up in the Balkans somewhere . . .

Ha! Where do you think they get their "energy" from and Rowan, how dare you! The pitch was (almost) perfect, without a furrow or cowpat in sight!

It was intended as a compliment.

[Lizard]

This is a desperate cry for help for someone to talk some sense in to me. I've just thoughtlessly agreed to turn out in a Presidents' Grade (Over 35s) match this weekend. I haven't played since a one-off cameo for my old club in London in 2015. I haven't trained since 2009. I will be 40 before this season is out and at least 10% of my 84kg or so is wasted (or just waist!).

The boots have been hung on a nail in my shed for a couple of years, so I hope they are still servicable.

[Lizard]

So I just got confirmation of my registration from the "Director of Rugby" at the club who I believe captained Manawatu against the 2005 Lions before signing for the Cornish Pirates.

[Adder]

This is a desperate cry for help for someone to talk some sense in to me. I've just thoughtlessly agreed to turn out in a Presidents' Grade (Over 35s) match this weekend. I haven't played since a one-off cameo for my old club in London in 2015. I haven't trained since 2009. I will be 40 before this season is out and at least 10% of my 84kg or so is wasted (or just waist!).

The boots have been hung on a nail in my shed for a couple of years, so I hope they are still servicable.

You'll have fun! I'm ten years younger and just walk around the pitch hoping someone will bump into me.

[Mellsblue]

Play, film it, edit it, stick it in the Random Funny Images thread.

Next year is the ten year anniversary of me gloriously leading my club to the league title, with only one loss. I'm planning on reforming the team and playing a match at the club's end of season festival and age wise I, and the majority of the reformed team, will not be far behind you. That will be comedy gold.

[Lizard]

Well that wasn't too bad, actually. There were plenty of guys older than me in the side. I did have to play the first half at centre, where I hadn't played for at least 25 years. Mind you, our 1st 5/8 was one Junior Tonu'u which helped.

We won, I only missed one embarrassing tackle, and suffered no major injury. I think I'll keep playing.

[Mr Mwenda]

I'm taking a year off bar possibly one or two run outs. I'm loving it - no 3+ hour away trips every other week and i'm not being concussed. I guess i'm largely done with Swedish rugby.

[Scrumhead]

I'm taking a year off bar possibly one or two run outs. I'm loving it - no 3+ hour away trips every other week and i'm not being concussed. I guess i'm largely done with Swedish rugby.

Same here. Had 3 broken bones last season and I'm getting on now, so being sore until Wednesday/Thursday after playing on Saturday has got a bit too much.

I might play vets games, but that's it. Not in Sweden (obviously).

[Mr Mwenda]

On holiday in Finland a popped down to join in with training at one of my old teams. Man it feels rubbish not to commit for Saturday, particularly after it felt so good to run about and tackle things.

[Peat]

Played my first game for a few months yesterday and absolutely hate myself today.

[Lizard]

So the Over-35s season opener is tomorrow. I've taken up commuting by bike a few times a week so my fitness should be o.k. My main concern is that my boy is now old enough (5) to understand the game a bit and he will probably be there. The illusion I have given him of my adequacy at rugby is at serious risk of being exposed.

If I make it to the end of the season, I think I might be able to technically claim greater longevity than Brad Thorn.

EDIT: It's just occurred to me that I have no idea where my boots are. Has anyone seen them? They're Canterbury, the proper colour (black), with proper screw-in sprigs.

[rowan]

OMG, I think I found you on Facebook!

[Stones of granite]

So the Over-35s season opener is tomorrow. I've taken up commuting by bike a few times a week so my fitness should be o.k. My main concern is that my boy is now old enough (5) to understand the game a bit and he will probably be there. The illusion I have given him of my adequacy at rugby is at serious risk of being exposed.

If I make it to the end of the season, I think I might be able to technically claim greater longevity than Brad Thorn.

EDIT: It's just occurred to me that I have no idea where my boots are. Has anyone seen them? They're Canterbury, the proper colour (black), with proper screw-in sprigs.

I think I have them. Pop round with a beer.

[Lizard]

Found them. Hanging on a nail next to some clamps in the shed (of course).

Now - mouth guard?

[Peat]

We beat our nearest and most hated rivals 93-7 last week. And we let the ref call the game 7 minutes early as they wanted no more of it. If only the whole season was like that

[kk67]

We beat our nearest and most hated rivals 93-7 last week. And we let the ref call the game 7 minutes early as they wanted no more of it. If only the whole season was like that

Did they stay for a beer in 'De Bunker' or did they cross the road and go home..?.

[cashead]

Been on the coaching end at the high school level. I took the 2nd XV of my school to the final last year (as part of a 3-man panel, as a result of us absorbing the U15s into the squad due to a lack of numbers on their end), where we didn't fire a single shot and got shut out by the team that was demonstrably better on the day (it was 30-something to nil). We'd also lost to them twice in the regular season, including an 8-5 heart-breaker in the rain and wind as well.

This year, I was with the U14 boys, where we weren't anywhere near as successful due to a variety of factors (poor discipline on our end killed us). I'll never forget out last game, where we went up against a side cobbled together from rural schools, who could still only field 14 players. We played them out in the sticks, and got absolutely torn to shreds. Their starting 2 was a girl, and she gave our boys the Lomu treatment. One tried to tackle her and she literally threw him out of her way, and dragged 4 of our players across the tryline to score the first of her three tries that day. She was clearly a leader in the team as well, and you could hear her barking orders at her team mates on the touchline, while the parents supporting that side were all grinning and going "yep, that's our girl!"

I won't be involved next year though - moving to a girls' school, where there is no rugby programme. Shame, really.

[Lizard]

So start one. My sister in law (all 5’2’ of her) basically set up rugby in a school she taught at in an Aussie Rules region in Victoria.

[cashead]

So start one. My sister in law (all 5’2’ of her) basically set up rugby in a school she taught at in an Aussie Rules region in Victoria.

Yeah, probably eventually down the line once I'm entrenched there, I'll gauge some interest and see if I can establish a team.

[Lizard]

As is now traditional in this thread, I’m just letting you know that my first game of the season is tomorrow. To complete the required details:

I am now 41 and a half.

I commute solely by bike so aerobic fitness should be ok.

I am 90% certain my boots are hung up in my music studio/sports memorabilia room.

I don’t know where my mouth guard is but I think I’ve got an unused one at the back of the undies drawer.

Anyone older than me still playing?

[Puja]

There's older than you playing at my club still Liz, although none of the feckers turned up to the first day of pre-season yesterday. I was comfortably the least fit one there. My club runs 4 sides, ranging from the firsts who are only a couple of divisions off the national leagues and who have attracted a former Maori All Black as an assistant coach this season (okay, so it's Jackson Willison, but that's still pretty impressive) down to the 4ths where I'm likely to be lingering after having fallen completely off the cliff of my fitness kick from December, stopped running and going to the gym, and put on 3 stone of not-muscle through injudicious lard consumption.

I may have been lapped a couple of times. Still, better to be old, fat, and slow, but at least turning up. Possibly time to get on the salads again though, if only so I don't feel so discriminated against when there's body-weight exercises.

Puja

[Scrumhead]

I’m toying with the idea of playing again this season.

I’m 38 but in pretty good nick. I had the last two seasons off. The first with a reasonably serious injury and last season mainly through laziness. I’m definitely stronger than when I last played and reasonably fit, but not ‘rugby fit’.

The problem is, I’m now too slow to play at 7, so I would probably have to play hooker which I don’t massively enjoy. Sometimes it’s good, but the standard is fairly low which means there are lots of scrums, particularly on wet days.

As I said, I’m not quick, but as forwards go, I’d definitely be considered more mobile and I’ve always thought I could do a good job at 12 as a fairly one-dimensional, crash-ball centre, but I doubt I’d get a chance to try it out in anything other than an injury emergency.

[Puja]

I’m toying with the idea of playing again this season.

I’m 38 but in pretty good nick. I had the last two seasons off. The first with a reasonably serious injury and last season mainly through laziness. I’m definitely stronger than when I last played and reasonably fit, but not ‘rugby fit’.

The problem is, I’m now too slow to play at 7, so I would probably have to play hooker which I don’t massively enjoy. Sometimes it’s good, but the standard is fairly low which means there are lots of scrums, particularly on wet days.

As I said, I’m not quick, but as forwards go, I’d definitely be considered more mobile and I’ve always thought I could do a good job at 12 as a fairly one-dimensional, crash-ball centre, but I doubt I’d get a chance to try it out in anything other than an injury emergency.

How many sides does your team have? Can you do what I do and drop down a level to maintain your back row status?

Whatever you do, don't let on that you can play hooker if you don't want to. I keep doing that and then I keep getting picked there cause they're short of front row.

Puja

[Scrumhead]

Way too late for that ... I’ve alternated between the two for years so that cat is well and truly out of the bag ... it doesn’t help that my throwing is decent. Not great, but perfectly serviceable.

We only have two sides, so I’d probably be 3rd or 4th choice at hooker. 10th choice flanker or something like that. Hard to be sure after 2 seasons out, but I think hooker is most likely.

As you’ll probably know, getting involved in the game can be pretty tough playing hooker at a lower level. Realistically, you’re unlikely to get any sniff of the ball until 3rd phase at the earliest, so you’re relying on your team completing enough phases to be involved in anything in attack other than clearing rucks.

Most of the time, the only times I get the ball as a hooker are on pick and goes, which aren’t really my forte (I fancy myself as more of a Brits/Coles style of hooker - albeit a very poor man’s version).