Wow, the pool stages ended with a bang yesterday. Who saw Portugal beating Fiji? I didn’t for sure. Yes, Fiji were nothing like the side that could have/should have beaten Wales, nor the side that beat Australia, but let us not undermine the outcome: this was a massive result for Portuguese rugby. Some of the rugby they played was outstanding and to keep going until the final whistle scoring at the death was superb. Fiji still did enough to secure the coveted second place which sees them facing England next Sunday, and the Aussies on their way home with their tails between their legs.

Fiji will need to regroup and take a long hard look at themselves if they are to repeat the achievement of a few weeks ago when they beat England at Twickenham. England have got a lot of thinking to do too. They were poor, very poor, against Samoa and if Fiji rediscover the mojo of the early games in France then England will need to be at their best if they too aren’t soon sloping off home in embarrassment.

Wales now know it is Argentina who await in Marseille on Saturday. Los Pumas finally put a gutsy Japanese side in their place in what I thought was a cracking contest. The game ebbed and flowed with a high degree of skill for long periods interspersed with plenty of basic handling errors and ill-discipline at the breakdown. Argentina were much improved from the side who lost to England in week one and will be a threat to Wales, especially out wide where they have gas to burn, and with sharp shooters like Boffelli in the side.

Tonga beat Romania in the other game but I gave that one a swerve with a BBQ in the lovely October sun a much more attractive proposition.

Let the tournament commence. Bring on the quarter-finals where anything can happen. By the way, Brian Moore in the Torygraph highlights the lopsided nature of the draw with his headline “The World Cup has a problem if limp and sloppy England can reach the semis”. They do of course have to get past Fiji before that happens.

With a little help from his friends The Bard has cobbled together a match report for the Deal & Betteshanger game. It is on the website. It sounds as if this was a cracking match with eleven tries to delight the crowd. It seems we played some excellent rugby but D&B also played their part. Despite the scoreline it seems this was a close contest for long periods. The win takes us into second spot behind Canterbury II who beat our friends The Greenies over at Cross-in-Hand. In the other games Bromley beat Thanet Wanderers, Cranbrook lost at home to Beccehamian, Dartfordians beat Ashford and our next opponents Dover beat Charlton Park. Still early days but I’ll take second spot right now.

It is Past Players Lunch next Saturday. If you haven’t booked your place you better get a move on!!

In Surrey/Sussex 1 Hove enjoyed a good win at Old Cranleighans, Eastbourne were not so fortunate losing at Trinity and East Grinstead were well beaten by Old Tiffinians.

In Hampshire 1 Bognor won at Ellingham & Ringwood. In Kent 3 Hastings & Bexhill lost to Old Alleynians II.

Finally up in the ether Sevenoaks enjoyed an excellent win over North Walsham, TJs lost narrowly at Henley, Worthing lost by a decent amount to Guernsey. The Regional Leagues were resting darling!

Plenty of other rugby stuff in the news but that can keep until tomorrow and beyond: hedges to cut, grass to mow, hangover to shake off!!

Sunday 8th Oct: 09:45

The Bard and I didn’t make it to Deal for yesterday’s game. When I saw the result there was more than a tinge of disappointment that we hadn’t. The reasons were the right ones and you can’t turn back the clock. What we can do is celebrate what is an amazing result and an amazing scoreline. Those who follow the boys most weeks would take a 3-0 win every week but to go to Deal & Betteshanger and come away with a 53-35 win in the bag is something else. I know we were 22-9 up after about 30 minutes but other than that I am in the dark. I’ll do my best to get more info ahead of tomorrow’s league round-up.

Being at home did allow me to watch the three games yesterday. Let me do them in chronological order. Wales eventually got past a stubborn Georgian outfit and secured the win to top the pool. The scoreline flatters the Welsh and doesn’t do justice to the work the Georgians put into the contest. If Wales are to reach the semi-finals they are going to have to lift their game. Tommy Reffell and Dewi Lake did their chances of inclusion in the quarter-final team no harm at all, and the Will Rowlands / Dafydd Jenkins second row combination worked well. Plenty of negatives including Taulupe Falateu’s broken arm and Gareth Anscombe’s groin tear (I think). Seeing Liam Williams leave the ground on crutches was worrying too. The other negative was the unedifying mass brawl late on. Totally unnecessary!!

After a marvellous late lunch in the warm October afternoon it was time to hit play on the Sky box and watch England v Samoa. I think it is fair to say even the most one-eyed English supporter wouldn’t have begrudged the excellent Samoan outfit the win. They played with pace and commitment, but more importantly with imagination. The ability to play what is in front of you and exploit the opportunities when they appear. England couldn’t, and didn’t. After the opening score England looked lethargic, flat, almost uninterested. It was rugby by numbers again. The Ford - Farrell axis didn’t work, as it hasn’t in the past and a number of key players e.g. Maro Itoje were anonymous. “England sleepwalk into the last eight with Samoa escape” (BBC) pretty much sums up their performance.

A couple of asides. There is plenty of chat about the refereeing and “unconscious bias” towards the tier 2 nations. There were certainly a number of occasions when the decision seemed to go against the Samoans. Secondly I am re-reading my book about my trip to Japan for the 2019 World Cup. Ahead of one game I wrote that Eddie Jones should pick pick Ford at 10 and Farrell at 12. Interestingly, later in the tournament I wrote that it didn’t work. What is the definition of madness Mr Borthwick??

Then came the big one: Ireland v Scotland. Ireland were imperious and except for conceding two late tries were almost perfect. The headline writers have had a field day with The Guardian’s “Ireland are on a different wavelength…” being my pick. Whatever Scotland threw at them they had an answer for, and when opportunities came the Irish way they seized them. The abrasive Peter O’Mahoney on his 100th cap was immense. As good as a performance as I have seen. The fact Andy Farrell could make a raft of changes, including removing Johnny Sexton, shortly after half time summed up the Irish dominance. Scotland losing Blair Kinghorn on 7 minutes and then his replacements seeing yellow on 41 minutes didn’t help matters. Scotland were outplayed and only those two late tries after uncharacteristic sloppiness by the Irish put any form of gloss on their performance.

We now have two sensational clashes ahead of us: Ireland v New Zealand and France v South Africa. Any combination of which would be worthy of a final. Both are tough to call but if you had to then France and Ireland progressing would be the logical conclusion.

On the much, much easier side of the draw it is England v Fiji barring some form of Portuguese miracle, and Wales versus, mmm, versus? Only time will tell. 12:00 for Japan v Argentina.

The quarter-finals really do highlight the lopsided nature of the draw. That said I stick by my previous comment that this draw has given us some mouthwatering clashes already. That wouldn’t have been the case if the draw had been based on the rankings closer to the competition starting.

Leicester City win again, Max Verstappen is crowned World Champion and the ICC World Cup continues. England have started poorly by the way.

Saturday 7th Oct: 10:00

It’s going to be a long day in the saddle today with the World Cup finally coming to the boil. Having enjoyed the “amuse bouche” with New Zealand eventually strolling past a plucky Uruguayan outfit on Thursday, then the hors d’oeuvres last night with France powering past an often clueless Italian outfit, it is time for the entrees. Three matches with something of interest in all, but especially the final dish of the day: Ireland v Scotland. For a range of very good reasons The Bard and I will not now be travelling to Deal so bring it on!

For 20 minutes on Thursday Uruguay looked mighty impressive. Once the All Blacks shook off the lethargy and realised the warm-up was over and the game had started they were on a different stage in terms of the rugby on show. That Damien McKenzie one handed flip inside to the onrushing Will Jordan was a thing of beauty. If you haven’t seen it go on the interweb thingy and google it. We are talking about teams from different extremes of the game but the All Blacks really did turn on the style. Whilst the scoreline was less dramatic I for one thought this was an improvement on the Italian result, and with many of the big guns in the stands.

France were pretty imperious last night, even without their talisman. The Dobby lookalike at nine played well but Jaminet at 10 and Penaud out wide were awesome. My man of the match was Gregory Alldritt. Nothing flashy, nothing extravagant, just a very honest workmanlike performance for 80 minutes that set the platform for everything else around him. I have to say the Italians were disappointingly poor. Their attack was pretty blunt, and their defence was pretty porous. Their ability to maintain the ball in the key contact areas left a lot to be desired. Worse, I think, was it seems the soon to be gone Kieran Crowley’s frustration and slough of despond transmitted itself down onto the pitch. I am reminded however by last night’s WhatsApp stream that there were a couple of occasions where the officials were influenced by the baying mob in the crowd with decisions that went against the Italians. Ruling out the try wasn’t one of them however. He joined the ruck from the side in a very dangerous way, end of! France look the real deal.

By the way the anthems last night raised the hairs on the back of the neck. England’s pre-match morris dancing and God save the King are somewhat, no, not somewhat, ARE, underwhelming.

So to this afternoon. Wales need just a point. Doesn’t matter how it comes, one point does it. Yes, that is true, but Wales have to banish the spectre of the recent defeat to Georgia in Cardiff, and also to send a message to those who lie in wait: Wales are not here to make up the numbers. The Welsh coaching staff have made the point loud and clear that continuing to undermine and decry Wales performance to date is only reinforcing the team’s resolve to succeed.

Much will be made of Manu Tuilagi’s Samoan heritage when the second game of the day kicks off, but it will be the Ford-Farrell axis of most interest. This is an experiment that has been tried in the past, and failed in the past. Why do we expect it to succeed now? Farrell’s best position is ten and when he plays there it works. Pick him at #10, or not at all. England are through so this is about pride and passion and game plan execution. I don’t expect Samoa to be a pushover so it could be a fascinating game. England will win so everything will be right in the world with England on track to lift the Webb Ellis trophy. What a crock of nonsense. England are miles off being good enough for that. Just rerun France’s game of last night and tell me England can with the tournament.

Last up Ireland v Scotland. Finn Russell v Johnny Sexton. It is so much bigger than that. There is going onward or going home at stake here. You don’t need me to tell you how big this one is just stay sober and watch it. A rhetorical comment perhaps!!!!! Many people’s hearts would like to see Scotland win, most heads are saying it will be an Irish win. 20:00 with a Jameson’s triple distilled Irish whiskey in hand, I’ll be ready.

Before I go a quick mention for Nigel Owens. His weekly podcast is worth listening to, or read the transcript in WalesOnline. In essence enough is enough from the TMO. Owens, like many, has gone on record to agree with Eddie Jones saying the game has allowed the role of the TMO to become too invasive.

Back tomorrow with news of the ‘Borough, and all things Rugby World Cup.

Friday 6th Oct: 07:15

Deal & Betteshanger Travel Arrangements

A coach has been arranged to take the boys to Deal. Spectators are most welcome to join them.

The coach leaves Steel Cross at 11:30
OR
Prospect Road in Tunbridge Wells (100 meters from the Royal Oak Pub. Bottom of Princes Street/Cambridge Street) at 11:45

Back in Crowborough between 19:30 and 20:00

Only £10 per person

Please contact Ian Geering if you plan to travel
Itag.geering@btinternet.com

Thursday 5th Oct: 09:30

Like an expedition to the moon the Rugby World Cup is rapidly approaching stage 1 separation, the pool stages will be over, and it is then a straight shot to the top. Today is the start of the final round of pool games so come Monday morning the quarter-finals will be confirmed, basically those who survive enter the last chance saloon.

Before that however we have to discuss the story that is headlining all the rugby pages: Bill Sweeney and English rugby “being on the cusp of something special”. There has been a significant number of people at grassroots level who sit on what is called “The Council” within the RFU who have laid down motions challenging whether Sweeney and the Chairman, Tom Ilube, are up to the job. Fundamentally it all boils down to the horrendous decline in the game from playing numbers, level of support. and of course the complete and utter collapse of four professional clubs. The motions were defeated and Sweeney has come out swinging, as you can read in all the papers. The reason for his confidence seems to emulate from the new deal with Premiership Rugby that guarantees the complete and unfettered access to between 20 and 25 of England’s top players. Basically they will be on hybrid contracts. How that will work is not exactly clear but if it removes the wrangling between the clubs and the RFU then that has to be positive.

What we haven’t read is the full cost, nor the implications of the cost of the agreement. Certainly the Championship clubs are in the dark, hence Jersey’s collapse, and I don’t anticipate increased funding for the grassroots game. I also don’t hear realistic talk of cutting out some of the significant excess fat within the bloated RFU. There is no talk about the Premiership clubs getting their houses in order which is troubling as this deal seems to support clubs continuing to operate within a totally flawed business model. Sweeney did state it wasn’t the RFU’s job to prop up failing businesses which is a step in the right direction. The States of Jersey have certainly recognised that by refusing to underpin Jersey Reds for the rest of this season.

Sweeney did recognise the simple truth that the introduction of the new tackle height law was handled badly. Actually Bill, appallingly. Thankfully, in my humble opinion, the outcome has been more than satisfactory. The games I have watched seem to have been improved.

My biggest concern is despite the talk all the emphasis is on the elite game and the England teams. Grassroots needs successful England teams but grassroots rugby also needs support. It isn’t about money as clubs at the grassroots level are haemorrhaging money by paying players ridiculous amounts to play. It is about the support structures that help retain, recruit, and develop the game locally.

Moving on, the other story that has caught the eye is news that we might have heard the South African anthem, and seen the flying of their flag at the World Cup for the last time. No, not because Scotland and Ireland have done a deal, but because South Africa have not complied with the revised world anti-doping code (WADA). Despite warnings from the sports bodies in the country the South African government has failed to make the necessary changes. The first of many possible sanctions is the banning of the use of the national anthem and national flag at sporting events. Next Friday is the deadline apparently.

The keyboard selectors are up in arms as the expected England team to play Samoa is minus one Henry Arundell. Steve Borthwick is the coach so let him do his job. On that point I can understand why Arundell is not included as he is not as robust in defence as other options, especially when facing the Samoan sidestep. What I don’t understand is the fixation with George Ford and Owen Farrell ahead of Marcus Smith. I keep looking at the change in fortunes for Scotland now that Gregor Townsend has bought into having the maverick Finn Russell at outside-half. Hey ho! I’m not coaching England either !!

New Zealand v Uruguay tonight after walking rugby, the latter at Steel Cross at 18:00. Beers and a curry to follow.

Before I move off rugby my good friend PK has been in touch offering up 2 sets of 3 tickets for each of the quarter-finals in Marseille, that’ll be the England and Wales games. If you are interested let me know and I’ll direct you to PK who can confirm prices etc.

The ICC World Cup starts today. England v New Zealand open proceedings.

Leicester City go top of the Championship after their excellent 3-0 win over Preston North End.

Rishi closes the money pit down which billions have already been poured. Yes, I’m talking about HS2. It should never have been commissioned in the first place, and the fact people have made millions for themselves off the back of it is a disgrace. It wouldn’t have worked anyway, the assholes at the RMT and ASLEF would still be on strike.

Back on Saturday.

Wednesday 4th Oct: 09:00

For a bit of fun I’m going to give you the hypothetical pools for RWC 2023 IF the draw had been made closer to the tournament based on the then world rankings.

Pool A
France
Scotland
England
Samoa
Romania

Pool B
Ireland
Argentina
Wales
Tonga
Chile

Pool C
South Africa
Fiji
Italy
Uruguay
Portugal

Pool D
New Zealand
Australia
Japan
Georgia
Namibia

If that had been the case the quarter-finals would be looking a lot different to how they look right now. Additionally I think, and perhaps there is a massive bit of Welsh bias here, that the tournament would have been significantly less exciting than it has been to date. Why? Simply because the”big hitters” would only now be going head to head with each other. We have had some seriously heavyweight clashes already e.g. France v New Zealand on day one.

Anyway, moving on. What would you do? Fiji’s Josua Tuisova is staying in France despite the funeral of his seven year old son which was held yesterday. I’m not sure I could have done that even, as is the case here, the son had been suffering from a “prolonged debilitating illness”. Either way your heart has to go out to the family.

The rugby continues tomorrow with New Zealand v Uruguay. Despite Uruguay earning the plaudits of many this will be another training run for the All Blacks.

Wales are stressing there will be absolutely no change to the game plan when they face Georgia on Saturday. The approach will be the same and there will be no taking the foot off the gas at any point. The one talking point coming out of the Welsh camp is the continued absence of Gareth Davies at training. “Managing his workload” is the official line. I think he has a niggle, especially as Sam Costelow has been seen standing in at #9 in Davies absence. Will Warren Gatland rue the decision not to bring a third scrum-half?

Plenty in the papers about England’s final game. Actually, it is as usual about selection. Will George Ford start at outside-half with Owen Farrell at 12? That is what the hacks are implying. Big mistake in my book. Start Marcus Smith. What seems certain is Freddie Steward will return at fullback. We’ll know soon enough.

The bullshit about Ireland and Scotland being in cahoots continues. What complete and utter nonsense. Ireland know that a loss to Scotland could send them home. Any talk about knocking out South Africa is pure media fiction, which you could say is probably most of what you read or hear from the media, especially the lily-livered, bleedin heart, liberal BBC.

That’ll do for now except to say when will ASLEF wake up and realise that their ideological strikes against the government are now failing spectacularly with people jumping in their cars or working from home. The strikes are making some of the current rail services unviable. So having a big pay rise but then to be made redundant seems like a cracking policy.

Tuesday 3rd Oct: 09:10

My granddaughter’s 5th birthday today. Happy Birthday Charlotte.

Deal & Betteshanger for us on Saturday. It should be a good game and I hope to be there. What it does mean is I will miss the Wales v Georgia game, and probably the England v Samoa game, live. It will be almost impossible to get through the day without knowing the scores but I’ll give it a go.

Wales open training session took a fascinating turn yesterday when Warren Gatland decided to make the team announcement there and then. The deadline was Thursday but he opted to declare his hand in front of hundreds of school kids and other locals watching the training session. Dan Biggar is nowhere to be seen, nor is Jac Morgan. No surprise there as Biggar is carrying an injury and Morgan’s workload has been intense. Gareth Anscombe and Tomos Williams start, I like that, as does Rio Dyer ahead of Louis Rees-Zammitt. Plenty of changes in the forwards but with Tommy Reffell starting alongside the excellent Taulupe Faletau and Aaron Wainwright Wales still look a powerful proposition. WalesOnline for the best analysis of Gatland’s selection.

Georgia will leave their announcement as late as possible with Joe Worsley, England World Cup winner, stating the squad has been ravaged by injuries making any form of selection difficult. I still expect Georgia to put up a serious fight and they will want to finish on a high note by bursting Wales bubble.

I expect Wales to win with the question then: who will they face in the quarter-finals; Argentina or Japan. We’ll have to wait until Sunday lunchtime to know the answer.

England have quietly been going about their business, keeping their heads down and not making any fuss about much at all. They go into the clash with Samoa as clear favourites and I expect Steve Borthwick will pick a strong side, a side certainly including the now free to play Tom Curry. Samoa will be no push over but surely England will be way too strong.

Digressing, it seems the RFU and Premiership Rugby have done a deal which secures access to England’s top 20 players with a hybrid contract. I don’t say I fully understand it but in essence instead of paying £40k every time a player is released to play/train with England Steve Borthwick will now have ongoing access to these 20, including managing their workload. As part of the deal it appears each Premiership club will get £32m per year for the next four years from the RFU. That seems a huge investment at a time when the RFU are allegedly short of cash. I fear the grassroots game will suffer as a consequence, and any chance of a deal with the Championship will be dead in the water. The Torygraph carries this story.

Ireland v Scotland is the biggest game of the weekend without doubt. Saturday evening at 20:00 this one gets going. My long time good friend Paddy O’Fez has been in touch and he says Ireland having nothing to fear and will progress easily enough. I think it is too tight to call and, as daft as this might seem to many, I genuinely feel if any side is going to spoil Ireland’s party it will be Scotland. What is fascinating is some South African hack has suggested to Jacques Nienaber that the two home nations could stitch the Boks up and both sides could go through at the expense of South Africa. In theory that is true, but the permutations for that to happen are pretty complicated. Of course if it did happen you can bet old Rassie will be on his social media platform alleging all sorts of wrongdoing.

South Africa’s Makazole Mapimpi is on his way home after suffering a cheekbone fracture. He is to being replaced by Lukhanyo Am. As good as Mapimpi is Am is an outstanding player. His return from injury strengthens an already amazing Springbok squad.

Before all this we have France v Italy. The battle of the anthems. Italy will be smarting after that unbelievable defeat against New Zealand. France will be desperate for that top spot.

As an aside I pondered the tables yesterday and it is VERY clear Wales and England have had a VERY favourable draw. I did a theoretical redraw and the tables looked very different. Both Wales and England could have been on the precipice of going home on Monday if the draw had been different. Time permitting and memory allowing I’ll reproduce it tomorrow.

The Tory party conference is in full swing. The blind leading the blind springs to mind. If you think about the World Cup teams like Portugal who know they are not going to be in the final shake up have looked at their weaknesses, understood their strength, and worked as a team to eliminate the first and exploit the second. In my mind they have over archived. It is a shame the clowns running the country can’t do the same instead of focussing on “me, me, me !!”

Monday 2nd Oct: 09:20

Blackburn Rovers 1 - Leicester City 4. The Ryder Cup won. Two cracking games of rugby, in my opinion. What could be better on a sunny autumn Sunday? Actually, enhancing that with a nice lunch and a glass or three of white Rioja.

Australia kept their slimmest of slim chances of progressing to the quarter-finals of the World Cup alive after beating Portugal 34-14. The Portuguese got off to a flier but eventually experience and pragmatism wore them down. Australia did what they needed to do without being spectacular. There were some moments of brilliance but most of the excitement came from Portugal who for long periods threw the ball around with gay abandon, sadly only to be thwarted when it mattered most. The bonus point win moves Australia into second spot but with Fiji due to face Portugal next it seems inconceivable that Australia will progress. Trying to take some crumbs of comfort from Australia’s woeful showing the youngsters stepped up to the plate and given time could be the basis for a Wallaby revival ahead of the 2027 competition. Portugal can take heart from their draw with Georgia, which arguably they should have won, and not allowing Wales nor Australia to simply steamroller over them, and more importantly their willingness to play open, running rugby. Given more support, and more challenging fixtures on a regular basis Portugal could be come a force to be reckoned with.

Then came South Africa v Tonga. Another game where Mrs Bleater and I were cheering for the underdog. Sadly it wasn’t to be with South Africa keeping the spirited Tongans at bay. This again was a contest between experience and pragmatism versus sheer bloody mindedness. The Tongans were not going to roll over and South Africa were going to know they had been in a game. Three times the South African line was crossed which will give hope for whoever who comes next, likely to be France. On the other hand this relatively “green” Boks outfit crossed the whitewash on seven occasions. Handre Pollard looked assured at outside half and with his kicking he must be in contention for a quarter-final start ahead of Mannie Libbok. I must say that Fourie at hooker, normally a back row man, had a splendid game, which reinforces my opinion that World Rugby could reduce the number of subs.

The final stage of the pools starts on Thursday. More on this as the week progresses.

I’ve got time for a quick run around the leagues. Canterbury II got top of our league beating Cranbrook by a lot. You know my opinion on this, but I will repeat: it is not right, it is not safe. We go into third spot after our win over Dartfordians. Ahead of us is Ashford who beat our good friends The Greenies 21-17. Beccehamian strolled past Thanet Wanderers by a lot to very few, Dover lost at home to Bromley and Charlton Park lost at home to Deal & Betteshanger, our next opponents. The trip to Deal is long but the way the boys played on Saturday they should be confident of getting something from the game.

In Surrey/Sussex 1 Hove lost to high flying Weybridge Vandals in a high scoring contest. East Grinstead lost narrowly at home to KCS Old Boys. Eastbourne flew the flag for Sussex with a 39-29 win over Twickenham. All three Sussex sides are on six points in mid table.

In Sussex 2 the standout result was Pulborough HWO over Uckfield. I don’t know the reason but it is a worrying sign for our closest neighbours. Haywards Heath stay top after beating Brighton II. Burgess Hill snuck past Crawley in a very close high scoring game. Seaford lost to Worthing III.

In their respective leagues Hastings & Bexhill lost at home to Old Alleynians II, Bognor lost by two points at home to Bournemouth II.

In Regional 2 Chichester are finding life tough with another defeat to contemplate. Jersey Rugby 31 - Chichester 8. Salisbury have found the step up a big won after losing 62-3 at Winchester. The season is still in its infancy so Chichester still have lots of time to get off the bottom of the table.

In Regional 1 Horsham are also realising the gap between the leagues is substantial. They lost 48-19 at Brighton and are now bottom. Tunbridge Wells are flying high in second spot after their comfortable, or so it seems, win away at Bournemouth.

Up in the big boys leagues Sevenoaks lost at home to Henley, Worthing lost at home to Canterbury, with TJs beating Bury St Edmunds. It is good to see most games were high scoring.

Just to round things off Bridgnorth lost to Burton.

That’ll do for now except to say hoorah for Jeremy Hunt who is on a mission to get the work shy idlers into work or have their benefits cut. There are way too many who think it is acceptable to scrounge off the state effectively depriving those who genuinely need support. This government is a shambles right now but this policy is one I can buy into.

Sunday 1st Oct: 10:10

What a cracking game of rugby at Steel Cross yesterday. Not just because we won, but because of the whole occasion. A big crowd, the pitch looking fantastic, and most importantly some excellent rugby on show from both sides. Dartfordians started brightly and were the better side for much of the first quarter. Their big forwards had the edge in the set piece and their pacy backs used the ball well. Their live-wire scrum half was the oil in the machine, the piece that made it all work in harmony. Crowborough were on the back foot but the defence held firm. The tackling was immense. Tom Boddy, Rob Lester, the Marchesi brothers all putting their bodies on the line. Dave Bennett, Andy Kidd and skipper Alex Purnell also leading from the front in the defensive department.

Dartfordians deservedly went ahead with a well worked try and a long day at the office was staring Crowborough in the face. It wasn’t to be. The Steel Cross boys spurred on by Dartfordians efforts started to get their fair share of ball and with Sam Marchesi and Jonte Fraser at half back now pulling the strings it was the visitors turn to show their mettle in defence. Some of the handling was outstanding and it wasn’t too long before Crowborough were ahead. The game ebbed and flowed much to the delight of the now vociferous crowd. ‘Borough extended their lead with a Fraser individual effort and a Marchesi try wide out. Dartfordians added to their score with a very well deserved try taking the half time score to 21-12.

The second half was equally frenetic with attack after attack, defensive tackle after defensive tackle. This was a cracking contest. Crowborough were now more than holding their own in the scrum and with rookie hooker Callum Main hitting his target in the lineout the back line had plenty of ball to play with. As the clock ticked down Dartfordians mounted a spirited late fight back scoring a superb team try in the process. Outstanding handling and splendid support lines saw them go over for a converted try. 21-19 with Crowborough now very much under pressure to hold on for the win. The Steel Cross boys defence was turned into attack and that with some poor decision making by the visitors as they tired kept the scoreline at 21-19. On balance we deserved the win against a very good Dartfordians outfit.

It was then a quick dash home to watch Fiji v Georgia. Georgia were very good, Fiji less so. The South Sea Islanders were a shadow of the teams that could have beaten Wales and did beat Australia. The handling was less assured and the set piece was pretty shambolic at times. Georgia on the other hand, despite losing players at regular intervals to injury, played some great rugby. They will be a handful when Wales play them next weekend. With Fiji due to play Portugal in their last match it seems pretty certain they will go into the quarter-finals where England await.

Scotland did what they had to do by scoring at will against a pretty poor Romanian side. Some of Scotland’s rugby was outstanding and will send them into their final game against Ireland full of confidence. I remain convinced Scotland can pull off a shock win. We’ll know this time next week.

A couple of games today but of little importance in the overall mix of things. Australia v Portugal will be worth watching in the hope of a Portugal win. A long shot I know!

So the tournament is shaping up something like this:-
Ireland v New Zealand
South Africa v France
Wales v Japan or Argentina
England v Fiji

Yes, the draw was lopsided and favoured Wales and England. It is what it is so get on with it. It is too late now.

I’ll do a league round-up tomorrow and bring you the latest on the 20mph protests in Wales, the ULEZ protests in London, and of course my very humble opinion on anything else that catches my eye.

Blackburn Rovers v Leicester City and the Ryder Cup next, bring it on!!!!

Saturday 30th Sept: 09:20

Sadly it was inevitable, and even more sadly Jersey Reds won’t be the last to go to the wall. There is much hand-ringing and “woe is me” and people saying the RFU should do more. Yes, the RFU should do more but the professional game of rugby is a busted flush. The chase for glory is expensive, players get paid way too much, and significantly the game at the top level remains in the hands of benefactors. As is the case with Jersey Red you only need the main benefactor, or key sponsor, to walk away and the whole pack of cards collapses. Do I feel for the players and staff? Of course I do. My sympathy with the people who got Jersey to the position they’re in is non-existent. Importing South Africans and any other form of expensive mercenary chasing a dream was always doomed. If Wasps with their history couldn’t make it work how on the earth were Jersey going to survive. Clearly they weren’t.

I doesn’t take a rocket scientist to work out there are teams not far from us who must be living hand to mouth as they chase unrealistic goals. The game has to wake up to the reality that the RFU isn’t a blank cheque to bail out poorly run businesses. I will say however I think the blazers need to reassess their priorities. At the moment the grassroots game is going backwards faster than the Italian defensive line. Money is being poured into “tick box” projects and political correctness. You only have to look at the growth of the Diversity Dept and guess at the wages being spent on it. Don’t get me wrong, diversity and equality and common decency are really important for our game, and for society, but the cost doesn’t have to be disproportionate to investment in the grassroots game.

Thursday’s game between Japan and Samoa was thoroughly enjoyable. At times highly skilful, at times brutal. On balance Japan deserved to win and who says they can’t beat Argentina and go through to the quarter-finals. Unlike Samoa their discipline was good and in many respects this was the difference between the two sides. Despite being down to 14 men Samoa stuck at it and nearly pulled off a miracle win at the death. All the cards were spot on and the decision to upgrade Lam’s to red was a no-brainer. As stated the result sets up a winner takes all match between Japan and Argentina on October 8th.

Argentina v Chile is the game of the day today. Not because of the importance of the outcome but because of the history between the countries and the shared borders and shared values of these two wonderful South American countries.

Can someone tell me what happened last night. Italy losing 96 - 17 wasn’t in the script. Conceding 14 tries was certainly not in the game plan, scoring 14 tries wouldn’t have been in the All Blacks game plan either. This was boys against men and the men didn’t care, they simply kept pushing the boys back and back until the score was inevitable. Some of the All Blacks play was simply sensational, simply irresistible. The off-loading was accurate, a player always in support, ground always gained, and the contact areas dominated. Italy simply had no idea how to stem the tide, bearing in mind many had said this was a good Italian side. New Zealand will go into the quarter-finals fearing no-one, not even Ireland who are also riding high.

Ok that’ll do for now. Back tomorrow. See some of you at Steel Cross later today. Crowborough will have their hands full against table topping Dartfordians. Kick off 15:00

Thursday 28th Sept: 08:00

Thankfully a lot of the UK missed the ferocity of Storm Agnes yesterday which being selfish made driving home yesterday less stressful than it could have been. A pretty horrendous accident on the M40 held us up for a while, then another on the clockwise M25 slowed us on the anti-clockwise carriageway to a crawl, bloody rubberneckers. Anyway, I tell you all this because it meant we listened to the Uruguay v Namibia game on the radio.

It sounded quite a contest. Namibia storming ahead then the slow but relentless fight back as Uruguay clawed their way back into the game, aided by some pretty woeful ill-discipline by the Namibians. I hope to see at least the highlights sometime today. It was brilliant to see Uruguay get the win as their contribution thus far as been thoroughly enjoyable. It would have been good on the other hand to have seen Namibia break their World Cup duck.

The big talking point sadly is the series of cards shown, all for dangerous tackles. Ben Whitehouse was his “diligent” self in the TMO truck pointing out each hit in some detail. Namibia’s Des Sethie’s yellow was upgraded to red following the “bunker” review. I can’t comment on the voracity of the decisions until I see at least those highlights aforementioned. However, I will say after the string of high and dangerous tackles, and the controversy that has gone with some of them, the time has come for World Rugby to act. The solution is simple. Bring the top flight game into line with the grassroots game and reduce the tackle height. Only two games in for CRFC but I would suggest it has improved what is on offer, and made the game safer. Would that translate into the top of the game? I don’t know, but what I will say is if the game continues to allow players to be poleaxed as Antoine Dupont was then a fractured cheekbone will be the least of the injury worries.

Tonight, after walking rugby of course, it is Japan v Samoa. There is still the possibility for both Sides to qualify for the knockout stages so this could be another decent contest. It could be a nervy affair but well worth watching all the same. I will go out on a limb and suggest Samoa will win this one.

Tomorrow evening it is Italy v New Zealand. Both sides have gone with their big guns as nothing less than a win, and with a bonus point is required. Whilst it would be brilliant to see Italy stun the world and win I can only see one result and that is a comfortable enough All Black victory. By the way Mr & Mrs Barrett will be as proud as punch as all three of the sons take to the field in the coveted All Black jersey.

A couple of the papers are talking about 2027 already and how World Rugby are looking to expand the tournament to 24 teams. How it would be structured is up for debate with some suggesting having the massively complicated two pools of 12 as per the last Champions Cup is the way forward. I hope not!!! Increasing the number of teams has its merits, and would give the lesser nations more opportunities to expand their game. On the other hand what we don’t want to see is more 96-0 results. The Torygraph, and heaven’s above, The Mirror, carry the story.

I’ll comment more on these on Saturday but the big games this round are Fiji v Georgia, and Argentina v Chile. Both games have qualification at stake and could confirm who England and Wales are likely to meet in the quarter-finals. I guess the last thing anyone wants is England v Wales……. As it would be a real downer for the game for England to go out at the hands of a resurgent Wales!!!! I can dream can’t I?

Handre Pollard will start for South Africa when they play Tonga. He will take on the kicking duties, the Achilles heel of the Boks game to date.

Looking through the papers, especially WalesOnline, it seems the players have made the most of their downtime ahead of returning to their respective bases. Warren Gatland made the most of it by hiring a villa for him and his wife, his daughter and grandchildren. Good man. It seems the turnaround in Wales fortunes has caught the eye of the New Zealand public. Plenty heaping praise on Gatland and the team. Unlike Australia and Eddie Jones who are receiving nothing but scorn and derision.

Finally today can I point out a piece in the Daily Fail. Chris Foy states it is wrong for World Rugby to deny Samoa, Uruguay and Georgia a shot at the top table as they have performed so admirably thus far in the tournament. He is referring to the global rugby tournament that replaces the summer tours and autumn internationals. He makes a very good point but playing devil’s advocate where do you fit these extra teams in, and when money is involved you want the biggest and best going head to head with the biggest and best.

Before I go I see there was another terrible murder of a young person by an equally young machete wielding young person in London yesterday. Sadiq Khan needs to hang his head in shame as these awful acts of violence affect the streets of the capital on a regular basis. The modern day Dick Turpin has to go!!

Wednesday 27th Sept: 09:15

The World Cup continues tonight with Uruguay v Namibia. I’ll be on the motorway when this one kicks off at 16:45, which is a shame as for both these sides this could be considered their final. Both pointless to date so bragging rights at stake. Namibia will be without captain Johan Deysel who was given a five week ban for the red card shown in the game against France. This, in my opinion, seems somewhat harsh, and again in my opinion, is based on the injury to Antoine Dupont and not on the players action. To be clear, when considering aggravating factors panels will take into consideration injuries occurred. In this case however to start at “top end” and work backwards seems very harsh. In fact if you start at “top end” the guidance is no discount applies. In my mind the panel has AGAIN got this wrong. Like the Torygraph I suggest a tier one player would not have been treated so harshly.

Whilst one Tongan dodged a bullet with his yellow card not being upgraded to red for what looked blatant dangerous foul play, another, Vaea Fifita, has seen his very late yellow card upgraded by the chinless wonders in the bunker to red. He’ll know his fate today.

The Eddie Jones saga rumbles on. If you haven’t seen it, the Paddy Power spoof, which is all over the interweb thingy, is well worth watching.

I found it interesting this morning that mum’s carers spoke about the rugby. Yes, I know they know the family rugby pedigree, but they had clearly been watching some of the games on TV. I mention this because rumours abound that with the exception of the final the World Cup could go behind a pay-to-view wall. That would be a disaster for the game. The game’s lack of exposure on a regular basis is holding the game back, I’m sure of it! Oh, and of course the fact England and Wales have been shite.

The scheduling of the tournament has given both England and Wales the opportunity to allow their players to spend time with their families away from the claustrophobic base camp. On this basis I’d give Disneyland a wide berth as this it seems from the press this is where many of them have gravitated to. I wonder if they’ll bump into Eddie, one of Disney’s finest comic characters.

The wonders of modern medical science means that Dupont could be running out for France in the quarter-finals despite the horrific nature of his injury. A titanium plate and a loan of Zorro’s mask might well be the answer. It would be a shame if he were to miss out.

Closer to home Crowborough host Dartfordians on Saturday. Kick off 15:00. Our visitors are top of the table right now, and having come down from a season in the regional set-up will be a stern test for the boys. That said against an excellent Heathfield & Waldron side when we got it right we looked good. Eliminating the basic mistakes when it matters will be crucial. The weather doesn’t seem too bad so why not come along. Speak to Louise if you fancy a pre-match lunch.

The mischief makers are at it I see. The playing regulations for the World Cup are quite clear. Water is the only liquid supplement players can use. A picture has emerged of Johnny Sexton having treatment with what looks like a bottle of pickle juice in his hand. Pickle juice rapidly aids the removal of cramp. It’s Sexton for heaven’s sake, not some unknown from those pesky tier 2 nations. Nothing will be done about it, ASSUMING the photo is real !!!!

Have you heard such nonsense? Banning kids from playing football in the school playground. One Liverpool council, a hot bed of football talent, has banned kids from kicking balls around the playground because it is too noisy. The country is plagued with obesity and sloth, for example people who skive off work because it is oh too easy to get benefits. Kids education is suffering because of too much time spend on screens playing mindless games. I could go on. We want our kids to grow up fit and healthy, to appreciate being outdoors getting exercise, competing with, and having fun with others. Let the kids play football in the school playground, especially as the only people they are likely to be disturbing are the bone idle or the pious “work from home” brigade, who quite frankly are taking the pi55.

In the public sector, yes these are the people our taxes pay for, are some of the biggest workers from home, and coincidentally also some of the highest number of people who regularly take days off sick. It is totally unacceptable because when you are not answerable to shareholders you tend not to be answerable to anyone.

Tuesday 26th Sept: 08:50

As promised a quick run around the leagues so you can see the lay of the land. Of course you could always go to englandrugby.com and look for yourselves. Don’t do that as I’d lose my job. I’d have to go and find another, maybe as a train driver, or being a junior doctor, or better still a consultant. All highly paid but never in work !!!! If I wanted to be busy I could always get a job replacing vandalised ULEZ cameras.

Ok less of that nonsense. Our draw with Heathfield & Waldron puts us on 7 points and drops us back into 4th spot. Ahead of us a Dartfordians, our next opponents, who cruised past Charlton Park, Ashford who won away at Cranbrook, and Canterbury II who won in a high scoring game, unlike ours, at Thanet Wanderers. In the other two games Bromley lost at home to Beccehamian and Deal & Betteshanger beat Dover. Cranbrook sit bottom just below Dover, both on 1 point. It is very early days so you can’t read anything into the results yet.

In the Surrey / Sussex league Hove put quite a lot of points on the board at home to Eastbourne. East Grinstead fared better with an away win at Trinity, wherever that is. Weybridge Vandals are the team to watch in this league me thinks.

In Sussex 1 Brighton II lost at home to Pulborough, Uckfield lost at home to Burgess Hill, Worthing III lost home to Haywards Heath, Shoreham put quite a lot points on the board at home to Seaford. Heath are setting the pace.

In Hampshire 1 Bognor lost at Havant II. No surprise there as you know my view about 2nd string sides of clubs from much higher leagues playing in lower leagues. The strong get stronger and the “smaller” clubs wither on the vine.

In Kent 3 Hastings & Bexhill lost at TJs II. It is madness that this type of contest is allowed to go on. In Kent 2 there was an AWO for Park House against Old Dunstonians. It’s only the second game of the season how can this happen?

In the Regional 2 setup Chichester lost narrowly to Newbury Blues. Salisbury lost at home to London Irish Wild Geese 33-58. The Geese are 2nd in the table but I have it on good authority that their supporters are not exactly the nicest bunch you’d like to meet. Hey ho.

In Regional 1 Horsham are finding it tough at the moment losing at home to CS Stags. Tunbridge Wells beat Brighton 26-24 which sounds like quite a game. Havant are unbeaten after four games.

Up in the rarified National Leagues not the best of days for Sevenoaks losing at Bury St Edmunds, nor for Worthing losing at Westcombe Park. TJs won however at Old Albanians. Judd’s are 5th Worthing 12th, Sevenoaks 13th.

The only other grassroots result to bring you is Bridgnorth, which is where I am heading in an hour or so, won at Broadstreet.

Lots of Premiership Cup action last Saturday but you can browse through those games yourselves. Looking at the results lots of tries for the paying public to enjoy.

No World Cup action until tomorrow so the press are focussing on what’s just gone and the implications for the tournament. The future of Eddie Jones is central to a lot of press coverage. Should he stay, or should he go? There is actually a pretty strong argument to suggest he should stay. More coaching turmoil ahead of the Lions in Australia in two years time and a home World Cup in 2027 doesn’t make a lot of sense. Who would replace him? It is a poisoned chalice. On the other hand the press would have him out now, forget the fact there is still a game to go, and bizarrely they still can qualify for the quarters, mathematically at least.

The Irish and Scots are looking ahead to their clash. Scotland have Romania first but the big one is Ireland. It appears I’m not the only one who thinks Scotland have more than a decent chance of shocking the Irish and bursting their bubble. That is going to be one hell of a game.

Italy have two massive games ahead: New Zealand then France. I fear, as good as they have been their tournament is soon to be over.

Then you have Wales v Georgia and England v Samoa. Wins for both? Who knows?. The hacks are already writing about the quarter-finals with England v Fiji and Wales v Argentina being the line-up. Only time will tell.

Right, that’ll do. The motorway network beckons.

Monday 25th Sept: 09:10

It will come as no surprise that I am going to start with the World Cup and the first team to qualify for the knockout stages. Yes, that is right, the same team that was written off as “no hopers”, wasn’t even going to get out of the group, is the first team to qualify for stage 2 of this amazing competition. Not only have they qualified for the quarter-finals, I think it is fair to say they did so in some style.

Before anyone writes to me and says “you were lucky to beat Fiji” or “you weren’t very good against Portugal” let me say both of those statements are correct. The Welsh performance last night against Australia however was something else. It was a complete domination of a Southern Hemisphere tier 1 nation from start to finish. Defensively Wales were outstanding. Yes, some tackles were missed but the abiding memory is tackle after tackle sending Australia further and further back. It didn’t matter whether the shirt had No.1 or No.23 on it the outcome was the same. Tactically Wales got it spot on. Yes, there was plenty of kicking, but unlike during the Six Nations the kicking was considered and accurate. The attack looked good with plenty of innovative attacking lines to keep the Aussies on the back foot. Hoorah, the lineout was a source of quick clean ball, the scrum functioned well enough and the contact areas were well managed by the men in red. This was an outstanding performance.

What about Australia. There were times when they were like startled rabbits in the headlights bereft of ideas. There were times when it almost seemed as if they couldn’t give a damn. They simply couldn’t get going even with plenty of possession to play with.

It is oh so easy to get carried away and think Wales are contenders to lift the trophy. No they are not, but they could/should get to the semi-finals, and if they play like they did last night who knows after that.

Dan Biggar’s injury is a concern but the way Gareth Anscombe came on and managed the game was superb. Gareth Davies at #9 was back to his very best. Jac Morgan is proving not only worthy of a starting berth but also the captaincy. The centre pairing of George North and Nick Tompkins is bearing fruit. Yes, Wales had an easy draw but this was never going to be an easy pool. Well done boys. Georgia in a couple of weeks, and then who knows!!!

You reap what you sow, and that is exactly what Eddie Jones is “enjoying” now. To go out and say unequivocally that Australia were going to win last night was asking for trouble, and trouble he got. His arrogance, and so called mind-games have come back to bite him. Yes, he took it on the chin last night by taking responsibility for the defeat, but he has left himself exposed to further ridicule as a result of the outlandish comments in the lead up to the tournament. The fans expectations were raised to ridiculous levels and there is nothing worse than a seriously disgruntled supporter. Making matters worse are the allegations about a secret call to Japan about their soon to be vacant coaching role. Australia are all but out of it, and the question now is: “what next for motor-mouth Eddie?”

Earlier in the day Scotland did a very professional job in dispatching a good Tonga side. Scotland played with confidence and precision. They also continue to show the game as a whole the importance of having a “play what is in front of you” game plan. The opposition is kept guessing and find it hard to get Scotland on the back foot. The backs are amazing and with the two big South Africans on the wing they are force to be reckoned with. Two games to go, Romania then Ireland. They will need to trounce Romania, which is a possibility, and then beat Ireland to progress. There is still something nagging in my brain, and I have said this all along, that there is a possibility that Scotland can beat the Irish. Yes on current form it is a long shot but never say never.

Sadly the excellent Scottish performance is overshadowed by, in my opinion, yet another inconsistent decision from the “bunker”. Afusipa Taumoepeau was shown a yellow which should have been upgraded to a red. It was a shoulder direct to the head in a no arms tackle. There was a high degree of force. The faceless one hidden hundreds of miles away in Paris decided Jamie Ritchie dipped sufficiently to justify the mitigation meaning it stayed at a yellow card. I am not convinced there was enough justification for that decision to be made. As we don’t see all the footage, the slo-mo or the stills we are left in the dark. Gregor Townsend has quite rightly criticised the process. In terms of quickening up the game it has worked. In theory I like the idea but it does seem to be very inconsistent. It isn’t going to change between now and the final so let’s move on.

I did watch the Ireland game again and on balance they deserved to win. There is a strong argument however that says the absence of a decent place kicker in the Boks side was a significant difference. Scotland have that and they are not as predictable (to a degree) as the Boks which is another reason I think the Scots have a chance to spring a surprise.

I’ll do a quick league round-up tomorrow before heading north for another flying visit to Bridgnorth.

Sunday 24th Sept: 08:25

Despite the amazing stories coming out of France I am going to start over at Cross-in-Hand with Heathfield & Waldron RFC v Crowborough RFC. First up, Mrs Bleater and I, along with El Presidents and Richard L, enjoyed the excellent hospitality of H&W with a super lunch and copious amounts of alcohol. A special word of thanks to our good friend Liberty who was our host. A splendid way to lead into a game of two evenly matched sides who sadly were equally adept at failing to turn scoring opportunities into points. Full blow by blow match report to follow.

On a perfect day for rugby with a large, and expectant crowd in attendance, these two sides served up a curate’s egg of a game. At times the rugby was scintillating with amazing offloads, mazy runs, superb last ditch tackles. Countering this was a failure to retain the ball, find a decent pass, convert pressure into points, stop the referee having to interrupt proceedings with yet another penalty.

I’m sure both coaches will have said to their charges post match they could have, should have won that game. H&W went ahead with a well struck penalty late in the first half which Ollie Clinch matched during the second half. H&W had plenty of opportunities to score with powerful runs and good forward support play. These were thwarted either by excellent Crowborough defence or H&W self-destructing when the crucial push for the line was required. Crowborough had two guilt edged opportunities which could have, should have made the difference. The first was a Rob Lester interception on the stroke of half time which took him within metres of the line only for an amazing last ditch tackle sending him into touch. Late in the second half a Crowborough scrum drove H&W back over the line with the ball only having to be touched down. Amazingly a Greenies hand got there first, no try.

For me this was a frustrating game due to its stop start nature and the basic mistakes made by both sides. This was compounded by the simple fact that when both sides did get it right some of the play was sublime. From a CRFC point of view we were nowhere near as precise as we had been against Cranbrook and this was disappointing. Bottom line: I’ll take 3-3 because it’s better than a loss.

During lunch I was able to catch parts of the Portugal v Georgia game. This looked a cracker, a game I might watch tomorrow. What a shame Nuno Sousa Guedes missed that last second penalty to give Portugal a much deserved victory. I know comparing one game with another is not a good idea, this result did suggest Wales narrow win over Portugal might not have been as bad after all.

It was then home for England v Chile. 71-0 and a hat full of tries will have the ill-informed rose coloured glasses wearing English supporters heading for the bookies: “a fiver on England to win the World Cup please”. There was much to cheer, and much to be positive about (the cold water is on its way). Owen Farrell lead from the front playing intelligently, freeing up his supporting cast with skill, or finding ground when the pass wasn’t on. Marcus Smith was his usual jack-in-the-box self and didn’t look out of place at 15. In fact, he was able to pop up all over the place. He had the right to roam. The back line looked well balanced and varied their game as required. I would certainly not consider recalling Manu Tuilagi ahead of Ollie Lawrence, nor should Johnny May return at the expense of Henry Arundell. Yes five tries is impressive but most were walk-ins. He does have something special about him however and that is why he was in the right place to score, but most of all he has gas. The forwards did ok but the starting front row against Samoa won’t be yesterday’s front row. I would persevere with both Ludlam and Willis but Vunipola has to go. Even against Chile he was pretty ordinary at best.

Here comes the cold water. This was Chile, the lowest ranked side in the tournament. A side whose preparation was limited due to the fact they qualified late through the play-off process, obviously funds are very limited, and decent opposition was already committed ahead of the tournament. Unlike England who had the Six Nations, four warm-up games, funding for amazing facilities and support, and a huge pool of talent to choose from. Periods early in the game England were rudderless with Chile making the running. If we had been watching France v Chile you can be assured the score would have been significantly higher. The lower ranked nations are always going to fall short and praising England for a 71-0 victory is wasted on me.

Then came the big one. St Denis home of Stade de France was turned into a little corner of Ireland yesterday. The atmosphere was electric with the green of Ireland everywhere. What a contest. It was a game where not a single player took a backward step. Johnny Sexton led from the front with every other man in green, the Irish green, stepping up to the plate when required. It was brutal at times with South Africa unable to dominate not matter how hard they tried. Their attacks were snuffed out by resolute defending, and their usual “bully boy” approach failed to make inroads. A try apiece highlighted the evenness of the contest. South Africa’s 7-1 bench shot them in the foot ultimately as on a different day they could have brought on a more reliable goal kicker. Missed kicks was a significant decider in the game.

I don’t normally watch a game for a second time but I am going to watch this one again so a more considered view will follow tomorrow. Scotland v Tonga and then the big one, Wales v Australia awaits.

Saturday Sept 23rd: 08:50

Just a few hours to go before the boys take to the field at our good friends The Greenies. Yes, 15:00 over at their place. Our easiest journey, but a always a tough test. I’ll be there. I’m really looking forward to it, especially as the weather is set fair.

France really put Namibia to the sword on Thursday night. Some of the play was sublime and the tries amazing. Talking about it yesterday, some of it was akin to the Harlem Globetrotters. Remember them? The French really are looking like contenders to lift the trophy at the end of October. The press are ignoring that and focussing their attention on the facial injury to the amazing Antoine Dupont. It was a crunching blow and the red card to Johan Deysel was a slam dunk, continuing the basketball theme. It seems he has suffered a fracture which could take six weeks to heal. If he is out that would be a devastating blow for him, the poster boy of the tournament, and for France. There is still a plethora of talent available to Fabien Galthie so the French public shouldn’t go into mourning just yet.

Argentina got back to winning ways last night with a workmanlike if not wholly convincing win over Samoa. There was plenty to enjoy but generally this was an error strewn stop start contest. Emiliano Boffelli was without doubt the standout player of the day. Samoa weren’t going to lie down and with a late try made the final nervy minutes fascinating. Argentina will beat Japan and Chile and therefore will qualify in second spot to England. England play later, as you well know!

In the absence of anything else vaguely worth watching we watched Gloucester v Harlequins in the Premiership Cup. Two hybrid sides, some youngsters coming through, some nailed on 1st XV starters looking ahead to the Premiership season in a few weeks time. It was a pretty enjoyable game with Gloucester coming out of the traps like a greyhound on heat with Harlequins being slow to get going.

Outside of H&W RFC v Crowborough the only game in town