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The same week that Horne got three weeks Fruean was exonerated for a late tip tackle that had Milner-Skudder land on his shoulder/head. Had Fruean been cited and suspended then Fitzy's comment would have been out of line. But watching Speight's tackle last night reminded me of Fruean's tackle...

Four of the departures - Nonu, Smith, Thrush and Franks are absolutely top drawer and would walk into ANY Australian Super team as starters. I reckon they'll struggle next year (though a lot of good teams like the Crusaders, Waratahs and Sharks will struggle to cope with their losses next year).

The absolute necessity of getting a coach who was well-regarded at his previous position should knock O'Connor out of the running immediately. You'd have to say even Blackadder has had his critics, but his sides have consistently made finals for a number of years. They went within inches of...

Included Auckland flights. Poor connections meant getting to hotel and then the ground was risky if there were any delays and the prices were awful.

Been doing some research on the final if its in Wellington and the news is ominous. The Waratahs organisation is not doing anything about seat/flight/accomodation packages. Stadium seats have to be booked through NZ (Ticketek?). The flight situation is looking ugly. The Sydney to Wellington...

I still maintain that Chiefs would be much stronger with Damien at 10 and one of their multitude of outside backs at 15. Leitch has been a bit quiet for the last fortnight (he was in my fantasy team unfortunately because he was a star in the weeks prior). But still, I am surprised to hear he...

Yep, that way we can have an epic final between the Tahs and Brumbies at Olympic Park with the Tahs winning four tries to three mauls. :)

But why is Damien playing 15? He's head-and-shoulders over everyone else they have now Cruden is crocked. And I reckon Marty is better than the other dude (name forgotten).

Lest I be misunderstood, I think Tilse's service from the bench has been under-rated. Maybe he's not the best scrummaging prop around but a few years ago he had to start a couple of games and he did not let us down. He seems to grow another leg when he pulls on the sky blue. A Waratah great for...

People have been suggesting this should be Tilse's last year, but I would give him one more year. That way Ala'alatoa can get the odd start off the bench next year and if he goes OK he will replace Tilse in the 2017 roster. Orr should get a squad spot next year to start his development. Its a...

For the finals, I'd like to see the best refs this season get the reffing and AR gigs. Maybe this is the case, but if so SANZAR and I disagree on who are the best refs. This week they've gone with refs from the host country in each case. If they do that next week then Angus Gardner is probably...

Without wanting the discussion to descend into acrimony, which the Cooper/Foley controversy often does, I see that the two 9/10 pairs have developed very differently since 2010. They play entirely differently: Phipps clears quickly to the playmaker, Foley or Beale, while Genia often acts as...

Finally!

There are some key positions that we need to think about: LHP. I would give Tilse one more year. Ala'alatoa is not ready yet and we need to sign another up-and-coming LHP for the future. Fat Cat may decide to go OS, especially if he misses the cut for the WC so we need to be thinking hardest...

And he will probably be another four months or so before he regains form. That's the nature of ACL injuries, they require a long rehab that in most cases extends well after playing and training resumes.

I see it, I read it but I still don't believe it. Incredible! And Saturday night I will be recording the coverage, so I'll have it to prove to my grandchildren.

Went out tonight and got back at 1030 AEST expecting to see some result. Apart from Mudskipper's helpful contribution I can't find any news anywhere on-site or off-site. Anyone heard anything?

The appeal was due to be heard Thursday. Anyone know what time the decision will be announced?

And no doubt some dill referee assessor will downgrade van der Westhuizen's game score to boot. Had Latu not lifted, Skelton's tackle would have caused Whitelock to land heavily on the ground, but perfectly legally. Its absolute bollocks. The Latu decision I can accept, though its harsh at...

I thought that van der Westhuizen had a fabulous game in very difficult conditions. Both teams were trying to hit as hard as they could and there were a lot of times he could have lost it by either being too lenient or too strict. Got it pretty right I thought. He's one for the future, I think.