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OK I think this one might have run its course.

Seems it isn't just RA in financial strife....... https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2018/nov/26/rfu-accounts-reveal-loss-and-redundancy-of-54-staff-members

I suppose I meant the wider squad. In the backrow I'm not sure exactly who will be taking the field, but I'd wager it's some combo of Hooper/Pocock/Dempsey/Naisirani/Tui with Samu/Jones/Cottrell there or thereabouts. Still plenty of room for bolters, but I can't see anyone coming from...

Maybe we leave the Cheika talk to other threads, and leave this to more admin/head office matters.

Barring injuries, I think the forward pack is relatively settled. One of the few pleasing aspects of the tour has been our second row - Rodda and Coleman have stepped up, and the performance of the lineout has been greatly improved. You'd suggest hooker is still wide open, though I think Latu...

Wasn't having a crack at you Badger. Just the people who talk in sweeping absolutes, and live in a world where a few bad games mean that you should be ruled ineligible from all future selections.

No he didn't Badger, he was TERRIBLE. Don't you know how this place works? I'd be more than happy never to see him wear the gold again. For all of eternity.

I don't want to go back-and-forth, so I'll leave it at this. You spoke in very absolute terms about Hooper's leadership: I'm not sure you have the evidence to back it up. When asked to do so, you put forward a lot of vague statements about how previous captains were better, but really...

His defence in the game against Ireland in Brisbane was awesome too, he generally combined well with Kerevi in that series. What happened to that too??

I think there's a bit of revisionist history going on there. According to your analysis, Dennis and Horwill were titanic leaders while Hooper is ignored and derided by both his team-mates AND referees. After all, both Dennis and Horwill led teams to Super titles (though Dennis didn't actually...

This is an interesting analysis. You posit that Dennis and Horwill were respected, then say that Hooper is not. What is your evidence for any of this? It seems to me that unless you are inside the sheds, it's very hard to know how a captain is viewed by his peers. .

We have an independent board, no? .

Speaking about the game more broadly, the thing that summed the game up to me was patience and composure. We were capable of great rugby, but only for 4-5 minutes at a time. England played a lot of mediocre rugby, but kept their composure and stayed patient. They held the ball, worked it from...

There are no simple solutions here, as much as we crave them. The kick to corner vs take the points debate is a case in point. I recall Dave Dennis at a Waratahs press conference once explain why he took an option similar to Hooper in that situation, with words to the gist of 'we'd worked our...

Random observation, that probably doesn't fit here, but it fits with our broader discussion on school rugby. One of the great strengths of our game is it is just easy to play at low levels. Not necessarily 15 vs 15 full contact rugby, but touch/7s. And I think it's underrated, especially in a...

That bench is worrying. Best part of our World Cup team was the quality blokes we were bringing off the pine in the last 20, especially in the front row. This is a far, far cry from that. Also, I was weirdly disappointed not to see AAC (Adam Ashley-Cooper)'s name on the team sheet as well. Surely it's last...

I've almost come full circle with this game. My expectations are so low that I now have a weird feeling we might win. I don't know how, or why. This team is so annoyingly erratic that this is just the type of game they might come out and play out of their skins. It's a 10% chance, but it is a...

Not disagreeing with anything above, but our defence has been excellent on tour thus far. I'd hope to see it continue. It's more of a system thing than anything to do with individual players - our forwards have been faster, more accurate and physical in the contact zone. Coleman and Rodda have...

I just banged my head on the desk so hard I've put myself in HIA protocol. It's not that I disagree with the take BR, just the execution....... .

My only criticism of To'omua was he caught the ball flat-footed on a few too many occasions. And his kicking game was Foley-esque. Gordon was OK but I’ve seen Phipps play that exact game about 25 times. He’s worth persisting with though.