Wednesday’s Rugby News has Matt Toomua still recovering from being concussed, Brian O’Driscoll learning the hard way that All Blacks fans, levity and social media don’t mix, Dean Mumm and Leon Power signing for the Tahs, and Ben Ryan getting some pretty sweet job perks in Fiji.
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Toomua Out
Rugby.com.au is saying that Matt Toomua is likely to miss the entire Rugby Championship as he’s still recovering from concussion and other head knocks.
The Toom Raider has a bit of history with concussion, having spent a few months out in 2014 after suffering back-to-back head knocks, where it got so bad he’s forgetting that he’d passed a sideline concussion test.
“I had headaches and some memory loss … but it’s comforting from my point of view that the focus on head knocks and player welfare led to officials making the decision not to let me back on,” rugby.com.au says he said to Fairfax media. Toomua has also admitted he’s attempted to change his tackling technique to prevent further concussion.
All this news comes in the wake of the Players’ Association becoming a signatory to a concussion working document, instigated by the Australian Athletes Alliance, in a bid to raise awareness around the long-term health effects of concussion.
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Mad Bod
Brian O’Driscoll has felt the wrath of the most indiscriminate, delusional, defensive and infuriating rugby demographic, the All Blacks fan, on Twitter.
The NZ Herald reports that it started to go south once BOD began to engage in debate with the rabble – don’t join pigs in mud, Brian! – with BOD even going so far to tweet something he later regretted tweeting.
It all started when O’Driscoll tweeted: “This is an absolute sham @WorldRugby ???! Makes a mockery of citing. If nothing comes of this it’s a farce.” in a reply to a story about Owen Franks not being cited for eye gouging allegations, the Irish legend and all round good bloke copped the whirlwind of crazy defensive criticism on Twitter.
In between accusations of whataboutery, deliberate obfuscation and “”banter””, O’Driscoll got so riled up he became enlightened, tweeting to a few Kiwis he was debating that “you lot are so blinded by your beloved team. It bangs of not having a whole lot else”. He has since deleted that tweet, but a screencap of it is being passed around as a badge of honour, of sorts.
For more solid BOD tweets, you can check out his feed for more juicy debate and pithy and erudite descriptions of the All Blacks fan psyche here.
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Mumm, Power Sign
The bitter Wallabies’ fan current scapegoat of choice, Dean Mumm, has re-signed to the Waratahs. The 32-year-old lock has put crayon to paper on a one-year contract.
According to the Daily Telegraph, Mumm was thinking of retiring but has been persuaded to stay by Tahs coach Daryl Gibson. Having lost Dave Dennis to Exeter for next season, Gibson has identified the lineout as a “key growth area”. Gibson also added that “[Mumm and Power] will help to develop and nurture the next generation of NSW locks in Ned Hanigan, Senio Toleafoa, Ryan McCauley and Will Skelton.”
On top of more Mumm, the Tahs have also announced that Leon Power, the former Brumbies man, will come play for the Waratahs next season. Power has been playing in France for Oyonnax since the leaving the Donkeys in 2014. He is currently playing for Taranaki in the ITM Cup if you really must know.
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Chief Ryan
Talk about job perks. Fiji coach Ben Ryan has been given three acres of land and chief’s name as a reward for leading the island nation to rugby gold at the Olympics. The BBC says you can now call him Ratu Peni Raiyani Latianari.
Last week, Ryan was made a Companion of the Order of Fiji, while all the sevens players were made Officers.
The self-described “ginger bloke with glasses” is hitting it off in Fiji at the moment, what with addressing the crowd using words from their native language, although that may come to an awkward end as the Englishman has admitted himself he’s fielding 20 offers from different nations and clubs.
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Gagr craft beer discount
Enjoy smashing a tasty craft beer from time to time? What am I saying, of course you do!
Well GAGR has organised for you to get a $20 discount when you order any of the ‘Tight Five’, ‘The Forwards’ or ‘The Backline’ Bledisloe special mixed cases from The Craft Beer Market. Each case has competing line ups of fine Aussie and Kiwi craft beers.
Make up for our super rugby showing – YOU decide who wins in this battle!
Just enter GAGR20 as a code on checkout to get a sweet lobster off as many of these three mixed cases as you order. Delivery is free anywhere in Straya!
