RugbyRebels

Thu 28th to Mon 8th- should be fun, lots of medals to share around.
Road and Rail travel in/out the city can be a nightmare even without Games, holiday traffic, footy matches, Rail strikes etc.
Just hope they're better prepared than Dover..

Some better showings at the warm-up event (Worlds); must say Keely Hodgkinson looks class, almost Ovett-esque the way she controls a 2-lap race (but more hair..).
Logo's a bit dull.

I think the bin men are striking on the first and last day of the games as well.

Galfon wrote:Thu 28th to Mon 8th- should be fun, lots of medals to share around.
Road and Rail travel in/out the city can be a nightmare even without Games, holiday traffic, footy matches, Rail strikes etc.
Just hope they're better prepared than Dover..

Some better showings at the warm-up event (Worlds); must say Keely Hodgkinson looks class, almost Ovett-esque the way she controls a 2-lap race (but more hair..).
Logo's a bit dull.

We've got tickets for the 7s tournament and almost booked train tickets. Very glad that we went for park and ride instead, but no doubt that will be rammed as a result of the strikes.

Hopefully it doesn't ruin what should otherwise be a very good event.

The venues look a good mix (*) - pleased that somewhere like Smethwick has got a stonking Aquatic centre from this !
Pity that the athletes are split into 4 villages, but given the above (*) it appears sensible.

1st 7s match a bit of a mis-match.
Also mis-labelled (wherever it was I looked) as men's

Painful in England vs Sri Lanka women's 7s. 14-0 after two and a half minutes and Sri Lanka have only had the ball for 2 phases (inside their own 22 from a kick-off) before getting stripped. I do hope they have at least one try or at least a good run so they've got something to cheer about.

And, as I type, now 21-0 after Sri Lanka are turned over from the kickoff again.

ETA 20 seconds later - Sri Lanka panic, fly kick the ball backwards into their own try area, and now 28-0. C'mon Sri Lanka!

ETETA - the half ends with Sri Lanka failing to accomplish a scrum, England getting a free kick and a fifth try being scored. I'm aware that this is top-level sport, but at this point, I'd be in favour of the referee showing a bit more sympathy and not being so harsh on the Sri Lankan players for what was clearly inexperience rather than cheating. Reset would've been an option there.

Puja

This referee is being absolutely merciless. Yes, she is technically correct on every occasion, but there's so many marginal calls or times when it's inexperience rather than cheating where she could very reasonably let the play go, especially as England were likely to score anyway, and she's just blowing every time.

45-0 with three minutes to go, after an England tap and go from a penalty for a marginal offside.

52-0 as I type that.

Puja

Well, the male 7s commentator has just proven himself a bloody idiot.


He said Portia Woodman's hair is a homage to Shelley-Ann Fraser-Pryce; and that he'd love to see the 2 of them in a foot race, and he's pretty sure Woodman would take SA FP...


That's SA FP who win silver at the World Championships last week, and is probably the best female sprinter in history.

I'm loving the more inclusive nature of this 7s competition.

First round of the women's competition, then straight into the first round of the men's.

Obvioulsly something they're doing very consciously, just like bringing the Para games into the main even, rather than an after-thought a week or two later

Which Tyler wrote:I'm loving the more inclusive nature..something they're doing very consciously, just like bringing the Para games into the main even, rather than an after-thought a week or two later

totally agree, it seems the obvious thing to do, especially at big events where spectators are generally more diverse anyway.
It seems ticket sales are excellent throughout so competitors will benefit from that too.

Oops, just spooked my dog!

Uh-oh

Which Tyler wrote:Uh-oh

You gonna give us context on any of these things, Which, or are we just guessing what spooked your dog and elicited the Uh-oh?

Puja

Might put some money on Sri Lanka.

Puja wrote:

Which Tyler wrote:Uh-oh

You gonna give us context on any of these things, Which, or are we just guessing what spooked your dog and elicited the Uh-oh?

Puja

Erm... watching the rugby live, dunno if others will be watching later on.
[spoilers]Spooked the dog when Sri Lanka scored against NZ.
Uh Oh when Samoa scored their 3rd against England, who then scored their 4th whilst I was typing, and 5th as I type this[/spoiler]

Yee- hey !...1st gold bagged . good encouragement there.

Which Tyler wrote:

Puja wrote:

Which Tyler wrote:Uh-oh

You gonna give us context on any of these things, Which, or are we just guessing what spooked your dog and elicited the Uh-oh?

Puja

Erm... watching the rugby live, dunno if others will be watching later on.
[spoilers]Spooked the dog when Sri Lanka scored against NZ.
Uh Oh when Samoa scored their 3rd against England, who then scored their 4th whilst I was typing, and 5th as I type this[/spoiler]

I'd personally take the attitude that anyone coming onto the Commonwealth Games thread has only themselves to blame if they see spoilers for the Commonwealth Games.

Puja

Puja wrote:I'd personally take the attitude that anyone coming onto the Commonwealth Games thread has only themselves to blame if they see spoilers for the Commonwealth Games.

Generally, so would I, but this is a rugby board, so I'd consider the rugby part of the games to be a bit different for spoilers.
But that's me.

Just turned on and watching the triathlon... Birmingham looks incredibly green - is it always like that?

Sent from my CPH2195 using Tapatalk

Donny osmond wrote:Just turned on and watching the triathlon... Birmingham looks incredibly green - is it always like that?
Sent from my CPH2195 using Tapatalk

That's Sutton, which is posh (north) as opposed to Solihull (posh south-ish).So unless there's a drought, yep.
Lots of trees in Birm. suburbs generally - if you look out from high up the new Queen E. hosp., towards places like Selly Oak & Bournville, it seems bit like countryside.Nice view for patients.

Home nations not going so well in both the rugby comps
NZ may extinguish both Eng hopes today.

Galfon wrote:Home nations not going so well in both the rugby comps
NZ may extinguish both Eng hopes today.

Yeah the Samoa game was a lesson

So whys that not a maul?
4 Kenyans holding up 1 Aussie with the ball, and literally carry him to the touch line.

Would a maul require a 2nd Aussie in there?

Situationally, if ref isn't going to call a maul, they'd have been better off carrying him over his own try line. Kenya were 5-0 up, in the second half. They are up a yellow card period for Aus, and I let earned a throw-in well inside their own half. Carry him over the try line eat tonnes of time, and restart with an attacking 5m scrum.
At worst, Aus would have added another player, to either give away a penalty for tackling/collapsing, or at keast creating a maul, so that possession is automatically Kenyan wherever it falls over.

sevens grim for England tbh. No idea though whether it was the best we could put out?

Galfon wrote:

Which Tyler wrote:I'm loving the more inclusive nature..something they're doing very consciously, just like bringing the Para games into the main even, rather than an after-thought a week or two later

totally agree, it seems the obvious thing to do, especially at big events where spectators are generally more diverse anyway.
It seems ticket sales are excellent throughout so competitors will benefit from that too.

I like that they've mixed up the disabled sport with abled as well. It must present organisational challenges so evidences a real positive intent.