Test Rugby 2022. England downunder

[Gilly Goodness]

OK.

Strap yourselves in.

THE BATTLE OF THE WEST

England V Australia in Perth, Western Australiia.
In the most remote city in the world, can "Aussie" Eddie Jones coach the men in white to a ninth straight win over the local lads?

Or can the Men in Gold, tall and true bounce back after a fine domestic series against the Kiwi club sides?

Will Quade Cooper conduct the strings while Captain Hooper leads the horns?. Will Owen Farrell just kick 12 penalty goals to win?

For the Mobbs- Ella trophy. Captain Cook got cancelled. Haaaahaaaha.
Killed too many natives. Actually mostly Hawaiins.
Mobbs was a Pom who played in the first test who later died in WW2. Mark Ella was the koori magician that, along with his brothers won a grand slam in the UK and Ireland. So fittin' all round.

So bring it on. As the TV ad says, "nothin' feels better than smashin' Poms!"

[Gilly Goodness]

Over! Go you good thing!

Reduced to 14 men early, the Men in Gold held on for a memorable victory. As the skies opened on the East, a boy named Noah led from the front towards Salvation. 30-28.

Quade Cooper injured his calf in the warmup so the Brumby playmaker was thrust on. Wasn't too worried. He's a great young player so we had 2 glamour boys up against eachother. Marcus Smith looked slippery.

Then the dark arts of the Poms was made clear. A hair pull. A retaliation and Swain was sent off. But The Gloden Wall didn't break. And Hooper led his boys to some crazy good tries off rollin' mauls. What were my eyes seein'? 60,000 Perth fans were in full voice. Kerevi was unstoppable. Kellaway indomitable. The bench men brought energy.

So Aussie Eddie Jones will have to lick his wounds. Both teams showed in the last 15 minutes that they can play expansive rugby and not cagey safe footy.

So the games move to the East. Bring it on !

[madbear]

An embarrassing match for England I think. Some people, like Owen Farrell, need to move on. The Ireland match was actually more interesting, despite the final score.

[Gilly Goodness]

THE TONGAN THOR. He back!!! 😳

[Gilly Goodness]

England were very, very good. Credit to them and Eddie Jones to bounce back. Always on the front foot.
Energetic. Direct. Led by their captain, they won most 50-50 situations.

Good 2nd half from the Wallabies but couldn't overcome simple errors. Also kicked away too much possession. So. Onto Steak 'n' Kidney. The decider.

[madbear]

Good match, good solid win. As was Ireland over All Blacks.

[Gilly Goodness]

Good match, good solid win. As was Ireland over All Blacks.

Noone goes to NZ and beats NZ! 😜

[Gilly Goodness]

THE DECIDER AT THE SCG





So it all comes down to this. Australia first played England at the Sydney Cricket Ground in 1899. We won. 13 - 3. The SCG. The home of Sir Donald Bradman, Richie Benaud and the Ella Brothers.

Now. A humble brag. Playin' full back for the New South Wales U18's, I scored 2 meat pies. 1 under the Paddington end goalposts. From a backline move 25 yards out. 2nd was a 75m intercept down the middle all the way downtown to the Randwick end goalposts. We won. Against the Queensland U18's. As a curtain raiser to the Wallaby and NZ Allblacks. We won that too mainly thanks to Michael O'Connor. Have never forgotten the rush of hearin' the whole 50,000 crowd sing Waltzin' Matilda for the last 7 minutes as we knew we had won. Glorious! The true National Anthem.

Also my final memory, 40 odd years ago was how uphill you had to run over the centre cricket pitch area which was not only raised but also concrete hard. There was likely 10,000 NSWelshmen and women who enjoyed the intercept. The applause was deafenin'. Nice memories.

Anyhoo. Back to the present day. Gonna be an excitin', niggly match. Winner takes all. First time the SCG has hosted a test since the nineties. Back to the spiritual home.

[Gilly Goodness]

A BIT OF HISTORY

Read today how Eddie Jones and Mark, Glen and Garry Ella and their cousin Kenny Ella all played together for Matraville High down near La Perouse. A mile or so from where Captain Cook first landed in Australia in 1770. La Perouse in those Ella days had an Aboriginal reserve. Aborigines were not allowed the vote and were even only considered fauna in the census. But, boy could they play rugby.

How times change...

1. Now the half Aussie, half Japanese chubby kid with the cheeky smile is now the lauded coach of England and all its establishment ties.

2. Now the Captain Cook Cup is now the Ella- Mobbs Cup. Named after Mark and an English winger and soldier who died in WW1.

3. The Aussies sing the national anthem in First Nations language and wear Indigineous decorated jumpers. Both teams are welcomed to country. Most of the team are not only indigineous but Pacific Islander.

So don't think Eddie Jones won't move heaven and earth to win his old mate's Cup. Tis indeed a small world. And what did the old Schoolboy footy coach say to these remarkable boys about footy?
"Make sure you have fun!"

Let the game begin!

[madbear]

Fantastic match - and we won!

[Gilly Goodness]

Fantastic match - and we won!

Congrats Rupert. Your lads played a dedicated, grindin' style of test rugby, go for field position and take points when on offer. Plus Smith had a great game in defence and attack.

Enjoyed the contest. Was the best officiated match of the series. The Kiwi ref let the game flow. Both sides kept the ruck pretty decent.

Good night for Northern Hemisphere teams except Wales. So next year's world cup will be fascinatin'.

[madbear]

For once, Smith and some of the other youngsters deserve the media hype around them. I wish Farrell would go away though, and that you didn't need pay TV to watch the full matches. Radio and highlights aren't the same!

[Gilly Goodness]

Didn't know that about the paywall. Plus ya gotta pay for a TV license? We have a government law anti-siphon ban so cricket, rugby, soccer have to remain free to air. National teams. Some more extensive coverage is a available on payTV. But there would be blood on the streets if the cricket or footy was not free to air.

On Farrel. He does strike fear into us watchin' him bang over penalties. He's got an aura. Smith looks like a member of BTS but is a tough little cookie with silky skills. Can see why the tall bloke with a mullet is a cult figure. With his sneaky smile. 😙

[madbear]

dont mind paying for a TV licence at all.. but draw the line at Sky and paying for sport channels, especially as i don't watch anything except the rugby.
Farrel is dull, and past his prime.. Smith is just coming into blossom!

[Gilly Goodness]

THE FIGHTIN' SHAMROCKS

Have just defeated the Springbocks at Lansdowne Road. Pulsatin' match. Spirited display. On youtube.






Wallabies V France soon. Strap yourselves in.