Sir Anthony O'Reilly laments the lack of running rugby.

Sir Anthony O'Reilly in a fine article in Independent Online South Africa (© 2007 Independent Online. All rights strictly reserved) laments the lack or running rugby in the World Cup Final.

This is an excerpt from the article: ".................But there are other aspects that rugby should put in to place to solve this problem of penalty kicks winning matches, and games being dominated by kicking. To kick the ball away is now an accepted trend, surely an absurdity in the sport.As O'Reilly says: "William Webb Ellis was lauded not for picking the ball up, placing it on the ground, stopping the whole game and taking 60 seconds to kick it through a set of posts. Nor was he acclaimed for dropping a series of goals."He picked the ball up and ran with it.

We need to remember that fundamental point. Therefore, it seems to me, the points scoring needs to be changed. "The game today is a victim of the need for success at the expense of beauty and poetry within the sport. The World Cup final said it all. It was a slugathon. To have a final with no tries clearly points to the need to increase the value of a try. "You should be given six points if you score a try, while the value of the penalty goal and drop goal should be reduced to two points. People are playing for penalties now........................."

The Stellenbosch Laws are designed to address some of the problems and to free up the game. These evolved from trials with students at Stellenbosch University South Africa. SANZAR (South Africa, New Zealand and Australia Rugby - which governs the Super 14) at the behest of the International Rugby Board (IRB) may agree to the use of the experimental law variations (ELVs). So far this year there have been trials in South Africa, Scotland, Australia and the New Zealand .
Major changes proposed include the following:

• Downgrading most penalty offences to free-kicks .
• Allowing handling in the ruck.
• Backs must be 5m behind rear foot at scrum.
• Removing corner flags.
• Permitting defending teams to collapse rolling maul .
• Ball cannot be passed back into 22 and kicked out on the full.

Since the advent of professionalism there is a greater emphasis on defence often under the influence of Rugby League coaches. The crash bang approach is spoiling the game as a spectacle. Amateur Rugby Union Internationals were usually more open and exciting. It is now time for change.

South Africa wins Rugby World Cup Final

In a dour but compelling contest South Africa defeated England. There was an awesome display of forward power on both sides. The game featured much high kicking also. The Springboks line out was superb. Nevertheless South Africa failed to score a try. Ferocious tackling by England kept them out.

Mark Cueto crossed the line for England but television match official — Australian Stuart Dickinson- decided that Cueto's knee grazed the touchline as he dived over.

Best for South Africa were: Victor Matfield, Percy Montgomery, Francois Steyn, Butch James, John Smit and Bakkies Botha . Os du Randt at 36 years deserves special mention. He is probably finest loose head prop of all time.

English players to a man gave it their best shot and lost no caste in defeat. All in all a fantastic effort by the Red Rose.

Springboks coach Jake White may now coach either Australia or New Zealand.

Rugby World Cup-England rise phoenix like from the ashes and shock France

In a dour game devoid of much quality Rugby England defeated France. Two weeks ago Brian Ashton and his players were the subject of biting sarcasm and criticism for an insipid performance against South Africa. Now the team has got its act together and each game shows an improvement in performance over the preceding one.

Tonight England played to its strengths and utilised its forward power to the full. English players exploited the leniency of referee Jonathan Kaplan (South Africa) by consistently turning the ball over illegally and playing offside. France with a strong pack and a more talented back division blew the game. Les Bleus consistently chose the wrong option when close to the English line. Brian Ashton won the tactical battle.

England is almost entirely dependent on forward power and the boot of Wilkinson. This may not be sufficient against South Africa or Argentina in a World Cup Final. Great credit is due to an ageing team which is brimful of experienced players and is battle hardened. Brian Ashton's team cannot be ruled out. South Africa are now favourites to win the competition. The underdog tag will suit England fine.

Rugby World Cup-New Zealand in despair after defeat by France

Today New Zealanders woke up to the realisation that an elusive World Cup victory is out of reach for four more years.
Headlines in Stuff.Co.NZ (carried below) convey an appalling sense of gloom and despair. Graham Henry and the players and coaching staff face a firestorm of criticism. Henry will be consigned to the dustbin of New Zealand Rugby history notwithstanding the fact that he is an outstanding coach.
In addition the outflow of star players to France and England is a threat to New Zealand dominance in the Southern Hemisphere. However it could turn out to be a blessing in disguise as new talent is thrown in at the deep end. This talent would have four years to establish itself. The All Blacks host the 2011 World Cup. This in itself is probably a double edged sword. Pressure to succeed at home may be overbearing. However if channeled correctly it might propel the All Blacks to victory.

• All Blacks plead for mercy
• Heartbroken Richie admits – French rattled us
• Our darkest hour - ever!
• History repeats for Kelleher: The pain is chronic
• Haka inspires French
• Nightmare continues: ABs fried by French
• It ain't all bad!
• Sunday, Bloody Sunday
• Only the French cheering in NZ
• Our Gods fall to earth
• French guillotine hovers over Henry's future

Rugby World Cup-France poleaxe New Zealand, England defeat Australia.

Today was a day of shocks in the World Cup. In the first game England surprised Australia with an awesome display of forward power.




The Aussie front row has long been the Achilles Heel of the team. Today England exploited this weakness to the full. Englands forwards starved the Aussie backs of possession. Andrew Sheridan Nick Easter and Lewis Moody and Simon Shaw were outstanding whilst Jonny Wilkinson and Andy Gomarsall were a thorn in the side of the Wallabies. Andrew Sheridan was man of the match. Chris Latham Stirling Mortlock and Lote Tuqiri were best for Australia. Englands biggest weakness is the lack of creativity amongst its backs.


In the second game France stunned New Zealand. In the first half the French tactics of just kicking the ball into the New Zealand half played into the All Blacks hands by conceding possession. The French line -out was poor. In the second half Les Bleus varied tactics and kept the ball in hand more and spread the ball to the wings . This stretched the All Blacks. Luke McAlister was sin binned for an off-the-ball tackle. In those ten minutes France scored ten points. This was one of the turning points of the game. Bernard Laporte's use of the bench played a major role in fashioning this victory. That the French defence withstood the New Zealand onslaught is a tribute to coach Dave Ellis.



Why did New Zealand lose this game?

• Excessive pressure on coach and players in New Zealand creates a mental block.
• New Zealand won its group without one hard game. France was battle hardened in the Group of Death.
• Possibly the failure to select Chris Jack and Aaron Mauger.
• Too many All Black players are heading to France and England after the World Cup. This is undoubtedly a distraction.

There will certainly be much soul searching in New Zealand and Australia over the next few months. Australia must find good forwards. New Zealand must find some way of overcoming a mental block where the World Cup is concerned.

Rugby Union World Cup-Irish expectations were unrealistic.

Amongst some elements of the media and supporters there was a belief that Ireland was a credible World Cup contender.

These expectations were built on a foundation of sand. Sure Ireland won the Triple Crown in 2006 and 2007. But it is worth remembering that the English team has been in free fall since 2003. The present English team is but a pale shadow of the World Cup winning team of 2003.

Scotland is in decline. Wales during this period had injury problems. So winning two Triple Crowns in successive years probably masked some glaring inefficiencies in Ireland's game.

Much is made of the fact that Ireland defeated South Africa and Australia in Autumn Internationals. Both South Africa and Australia sent experimental sides. They were more concerned with developing strong squads for the World Cup. This was the correct approach and is in marked contrast to the ill-advised policy pursued by Eddie O Sullivan.

A disappointing tour of Argentina and a shockingly poor performance against Italy in a warm up match ought to have sounded the alarm bells.

World Cup Rugby-France defeats Ireland

Tonight Eddie O'Sullivan appeared to rest some of the responsibility for Ireland's defeat on referee Chris White's shoulders. White had an excellent game and was consistent.

Unfortunately for Eddie reasons for Ireland's defeat rest closer to home. In the four year period leading up to this World Cup he has been slow to introduce new players. He was not prepared to introduce too many new players and risk criticism. This has allowed him to maintain a high success rate. Good for the ego but useless for the future development of the International squad. Australia, New Zealand and South Africa have experimented. They are now reaping the benefits of such a policy.

Eddie's selection policy is open to question. He dropped the highly talented Geordan Murphy and Denis Hickey. Why?

Tonight he he made his first substitutions in the 72nd minute. This was a pointless exercise as it was too late to influence the outcome. Contrast this with the policy adopted by France. The first strength Irish team has now played its third match in the World Cup- a suicidal policy.

Defence alignments left much to be desired. This has been glaringly obvious for some time. Why was this not rectified? Similarly with the forwards. Likewise the line out was a mess.

Flair has been squeezed out of the team to be replaced by a robotic approach. It is time to end this madness.

Rugby Union World Cup -Impressions

Ireland's performance against Namibia has been labelled a horror show and a shambles. These descriptions are probably too mild.




A full time professional Irish side struggled to defeat a Namibian side with just six professionals in its ranks. The 32-17 scoreline flattered Ireland. Jerry Flannery scored a late controversial try. The decision to award the try was incorrect. The Irish forwards fared badly. This does not augur well for the games against Argentina and France. Irelands back play is too stereotyped and lacking in originality. It is too easy to defend against. Nick Mallett and Alan Solomons and Robbie Kempson played a role in the coaching of the Africans. This performance will improve their career prospects.

Many of the Namibian players will use the World Cup to showcase their talents. Essentially they are hungry for contracts in Europe. The Irish players appear to lack hunger and some may be more concerned with avoiding injury. European Cup rugby is now their bread and butter. Club may be more important than country.

The lack of competition for places is probably a contributory factor. I dislike the conservative approach of Eddie O'Sullivan.
England's performance against the USA was unconvincing. Brian Ashton has inherited a mess. English club rugby may be strong but its strength is increasingly dependent upon an influx of players from the Southern Hemisphere.
Home grown talent is neglected. A similar position is developing in France. The situation will deteriorate further with a new influx of New Zealand and South African players post the World Cup. This will impinge strongly on the strength of International sides.

It is time to limit the number of foreign imports to two per club. This would aid the development of indigenous talent and help maintain the strength of European International sides.