ARM wrote:I think its a wholly pragmatic and usually pretty sensible approach to pick your best side.
For me, the message it sends to the players (assuming they have the right attitude and if they cant accept it they shouldnt be there anyway) is to get better and demonstrate over an extended period of time against the very best opposition and the most intense pressure that you are the leading player in your position. For marginal calls, its not exactly unusual to see a coach go with the tried and trusted.
As for players down south if they dont back themselves to be better than incumbents, then there is no fckin point.
The Gray one doesn't really bother me as I think on his day he is better than Toolis, and hopefully he will be refreshed after his break. It is more the admission he is picking guys regardless of form "was always going to come back into the team". How can that be interpreted as anything other than I'm picking him regardless of others form?
In Kinghorns case, he has been better almost weekly since the last Lions tour than Seymour. Has performed well in both Euro competitions, at times single handeldy dragged his club team to wins and when given a start on the wing for Scotland been good and yet when Seymour goes through an extended bad period, is never once dropped. He isn't giving the guys who over an extended time have shown a lot of quality a chance to get a run. Ireland have done it with Stockdale, Wales with Adams and both now established in the team.
You mentioned earlier in the thread that 2 were walk ins last week. Seymours hat trick v Fiji was a walk in, simple switch 2m out and a sprint in that most wingers would finish so sometimes wingers do score run ins. Walk ins are just part of their job. His 6 tries in his last 20 caps have mostly been runs ins with a good finish v Wales and winning a race v Georgia (he also sold a try that day).
Even taking away the two walk ins (one of which was a decent finish) Kinghorn was better than Seymour last week. And that is without counting that Seymour on another day could have been penalised for a deliberate KO which is often followed with a yellow. Kinghorn has 4 tries in his 2 6N starts including away at Ireland.
What more is Kinghorn expected to do? With a couple more games together Kinghorn and Hogg could be lethal together. He made a wee mistake with that break and no pass, but the way they will learn is to put him back in that situation.
Even with all the injuries there are still better options than Harley.
Kinghorn has done nothing wrong. We’re just blessed with some decent talent in the the back three. Wouldn’t it be great if we had that strength in depth elsewhere?
Seymour has consistently shown his class for Scotland. Think back to the Jones try against the ABs - made by seymour off a Hogg kick. That gives you great credit in the bank.
According to the coaches at the presentation last night Harley has been training like a beast this week, fighting his Glasgow colleagues. I like that niggle. I appreciate he his far from your favourite player but 200 caps for Glasgow plays well against Crosbie’s handful of games for Edinburgh in cripple fight Pro14 games.
Weather forecast us pretty ropey for this afternoon. You'd think it would help Ireland with their penchant for the garryowen and Kearney at full-back. Hopefully there is enough Murrayfield swirl going on to make keeping the ball in hand the best tactic.
switchskier wrote:Weather forecast us pretty ropey for this afternoon. You'd think it would help Ireland with their penchant for the garryowen and Kearney at full-back. Hopefully there is enough Murrayfield swirl going on to make keeping the ball in hand the best tactic.
Very windy on this side of the Forth but I'm pretty much right on the coast.
Hogg and Russell will need to be on their kicking game.
switchskier wrote:Weather forecast us pretty ropey for this afternoon. You'd think it would help Ireland with their penchant for the garryowen and Kearney at full-back. Hopefully there is enough Murrayfield swirl going on to make keeping the ball in hand the best tactic.
A bit of me is thinking that early on we should try and put up some garryowens on Kearney ourselves. If it is anything like as windy in the stadium as it is on the streets, anyone would struggle to catch and Kearney hasnt played much recently. With our pace, we are good if it gets chaotic in the opponents 22 too.
switchskier wrote:Weather forecast us pretty ropey for this afternoon. You'd think it would help Ireland with their penchant for the garryowen and Kearney at full-back. Hopefully there is enough Murrayfield swirl going on to make keeping the ball in hand the best tactic.
A bit of me is thinking that early on we should try and put up some garryowens on Kearney ourselves. If it is anything like as windy in the stadium as it is on the streets, anyone would struggle to catch and Kearney hasnt played much recently. With our pace, we are good if it gets chaotic in the opponents 22 too.
Don't think our up & under kicks will trouble kearney that much, he is brilliant under the high ball- we need to catch him flat footed and expose his lack of pace by making him to run to collect them.
switchskier wrote:Weather forecast us pretty ropey for this afternoon. You'd think it would help Ireland with their penchant for the garryowen and Kearney at full-back. Hopefully there is enough Murrayfield swirl going on to make keeping the ball in hand the best tactic.
A bit of me is thinking that early on we should try and put up some garryowens on Kearney ourselves. If it is anything like as windy in the stadium as it is on the streets, anyone would struggle to catch and Kearney hasnt played much recently. With our pace, we are good if it gets chaotic in the opponents 22 too.
Don't think our up & under kicks will trouble kearney that much, he is brilliant under the high ball- we need to catch him flat footed and expose his lack of pace by making him to run to collect them.
You could be right. Just sometimes I think if you undermine the opposition's strength you're half way there.
Did Ireland not score a virtually identical try to that one in recent memory?
I will bang this drum until I see evidence otherwise - there is something mentally wrong with our players when game day comes. I cannot get my head around the sheer stupidity of some of the basic f*cking mistakes we make.
Still think we can win this but we've dominated the opening stages yet trail. Deja vu.
hugh_woatmeigh wrote:
I will bang this drum until I see evidence otherwise - there is something mentally wrong with our players when game day comes. I cannot get my head around the sheer stupidity of some of the basic f*cking mistakes we make.
Huge improvement but those 23 phases of play we had in their 22 near the end... you just can't not come away with points after that. Superb Irish defence though.
& Harley is a blood sub for Ritchie.
I'l get some flak from most but delighted to have seen Sexton taken out of the game deliberately after the Irish did the same to Hogg (and attempt to do it every game). Karma.
Ross. S wrote:How much advantage do the Irish get? Thats ~30m twice this half now and hes taken them back
That was right on the edge. You would think possession 30m up the field is adv over for a penalty.
Poite has been shocking this half tbh. Being Welsh I've got no love for either team, a loss for both sides would be my preference, but one side getting shafted is awful and yet again its the Irish getting the benifet from the ref.......
that's the way to go. I'll maybe have to follow suit.