The All Blacks were supposed to be England’s toughest Test. After each game in this series, it was; ‘We’ll get massacred by New Zealand if we play like that.” As it happens, being the underdogs gave England an opportunity to have a go at the underperforming, but still fearsome Kiwis (though not to the same degree as plucky Scotland, who won a deserved victory over Australia).

The early sparring saw England twice go ahead, 3-0, then 6-3, before Dan Carter levelled each time.  Ugo Monye nearly did the team an even bigger favour, just failing to intercept the ball when he had come off his wing and the All Blacks had decided to run from their 22.  In all, however, it was quite a dull first half, with England holding on and Carter missing the kicks that would have allowed New Zealand the comfort to play their own game.

It was in the second half that England began to exert some pressure of their own, but the game was determined in a ten-minute period starting fifteen minutes into the second half.  First, Wilkinson’s chip into the 22 saw a whole pack of England players bearing down on New Zealand.  The All Blacks, however, were quite content to use the space run it out of their 22.  Nonu’s inside pass releasing Zac Guildford, and Wilkinson had to backtrack thirty metres to dislodge the ball from the winger.

Not long afterwards New Zealand took clean ball from a lineout and as the forwards drove into the England 22, created space on the blindside.  Although Sivivatu was marked by Banahan, he jinked and held the defender in place as Richie McCaw and Jimmy Cowan came round the scrum.  Sivivatu slipped the ball inside, for McCaw to play in Cowan.  It was a devastating display of passing, allowing New Zealand to turn a non-advantage into a decisive overlap.

England found themselves in the All Black’s half several times with options, but frequently took the wrong ones.  Wilkinson’s first option when given the ball on the 22 was to take a drop, highlighting the paucity of England’s ambition.  In response, Mils Muliaina sliced through England’s defence before feeding Conrad Smith, who was forced into touch just yards from the line.

Haskell made a few half-breaks, but it was Tom Croft (on for the injured Joe Worsely after two minutes) who ripped the ball from a New Zealand maul after Wilkinson’s teasing kick, and seemed almost certain to cross but for determined defence.  Duncan Bell picked up and dived for the blindside, but was held up short, and the forwards could not clear the ball.  The resulting scrum proved disastrous, and the put-in was reversed.

Late on, Geraghty’s chip could have found Monye but bounced short and a last minute encampment on the New Zealand line turned to farce.  As has become common, England’s attack had wanted composure and received only individualism.

It is getting easy to forget what England are good at, but the scrum and particularly the lineout were solid.  Wilkinson, Borthwick and Moody typified an almost complete defensive performance, but it is possession that seems to worry England most.  In Haskell, Croft and Hartley, they have plenty of quick forwards who love to run, but no stand-out ball carriers who will break the gain line when defences have re-grouped.  For that, they probably missed Worsley and later, Shaw, but the distribution was also inadequate.  Hodgson seems to get drawn into rucks too easily, and Wilkinson plays too deep to encourage players to run good lines.  England miss Flutey desperately.  Unfortunately, Wilkinson’s defence is just too invaluable, so the first-receiver problem is key.

New Zealand. Land of One Tree Hill, lamb, Russel Crowe and of course, the incomparable New Zealand All Black rugby team. Now, if there is one team that a fragile England do not want to face, it is New Zealand. If it was France pitching up tomorrow I would be certain of a home win, such is England’s capacity to upset the French against the odds. But New Zealand? Forget it. Whilst England have at some time managed to hold dominance over all other nations, they have never managed it against New Zealand. Even at their 2002-2003 peak, England could muster only only two narrow victories against the All Blacks. This England team are far from any kind of peak. The stats don’t lie. England have never beaten New Zealand in a World Cup match, their win ratio against New Zealand is less than 19%, over the last 10 tests between the two sides the aggregate points score is England 138 – New Zealand 290. Ouch. Yes, England are truly New Zealand’s bitch. Why? Are New Zealand just inherantly better than England? What makes them so hard for us to beat? I think partly it is because we just don’t play them enough, and when England do play them, they don’t just play the team, they play the myth, the aura. Deep down they don’t believe they can win. Can this change tomorrow? Well, there is some crumb of comfort for England that this All Blacks team are not vintage, but they are still capable of putting 30+ points on the red rose. After a week of stinging criticism of coaches and players, there is no doubt that Martin Johnson will have put a rocket under his troops. I hope so, because if the management cannot get the team up for this match then we might as well turn out the lights at Twickenham. There is also no doubt that the recalled Joe Worsley will bolster England’s defence. Worsley is a tackling machine. Just as well because he will be doing a lot of it once that funny dance is over. Simon Shaw will bring much needed aggression, bulk and ball carrying to the front five and so the pack does not look too bad. It is sad though that Tom Croft is demoted to the bench. England’s blindside was poorly defended against Argentina, but the coaches must find a way to integrate Croft’s talents into the side. If they don’t it is another black mark against them. It is in the backs and as usual, the gameplan, that England look in trouble. Surely the tactic of using Erinle as a battering ram will not work against a team of New Zealand’s calibre? But how can England give themselves a chance? Well, the cardinal rules against New Zealand are:
1) Do not kick aimlessly to their back three
2) Do not give away cheap turnovers
3) Do not kick aimlessly to their back three
There is no team on the planet better adept at converting turnovers or punishing poor kicks. No problem then, seeing as Wilkinson is kicking so well from hand and Erinle is reknowned for his boot… If England kick, they have to make sure either they make touch, or the chase is organised, fast and frantic. The breakdown is the other area where New Zealand regularly slay England. The All Blacks are past masters at slowing down and killing down opposition ball. Call it cheating, call it being smart, they just know how to bend the rules and get away with it. It is no coincidence that it is in matches where a ref reins New Zealand in at the breakdown that they struggle. So, England have to make sure that when a player goes into contact, there is a team mate there immediately to help them. They have to make sure that players hit rucks with the ferocity of the damned to clear out All Black poachers. If they do this then maybe they can get to the hour mark and still be in touch. If so, then pressure will mount on Graham Henry’s men. It is all a tall order, and one that I feel is simply beyond this combined current England setup. There is a worry that if New Zealand start well that the wheels could seriously come off the chariot and we could be in for humilation. I think however that we will see a fairly routine victory for New Zealand by 12-15 points. I expect England to stay in touch for fifty or so minutes before the superior class of the All Blacks sees them pull away without really getting out of third gear. Oh, and that man Carter to score a try.

Hay un placer delicadamente pornográfico en la observación de esos placajes con los que Jonny Wilkinson derriba a los terceras contrarios. Primero los detiene en seco, sin acusar el mínimo retroceso de su posición; luego los levanta; por fin, los arrastra de vuelta por el camino por el que habían venido. Se trata de una inversión completa de la realidad, como ahora veremos. Para empezar, porque Wilkinson no se mueve de su sitio y los otros parecen haber chocado con una pared. Pero después, el muro se mueve, inicia el avance y deriva en aplanadora. Wilko no los levanta por el aire ni los voltea. Simplemente los detiene y los tumba, a medias entre el esfuerzo y el asombro. No incurre en ilegalidades de exhibicionista pendenciero como voltearlos en el aire o ponerlos cabeza abajo, aunque al estirado francés Emile N’Tamack lo dejara patas arriba en cierta ocasión muy célebre. Hablamos de alas (como la caza de Justin Bishop, un irlandés al que el suelo le cayó sobre la cabeza de manera repentina, al final de un triángulo escaleno de derribos de Wilko). Si lo permitiera la normativa, es probable que a ese tipo de jugadores de tamaño medio Wilkinson se los metiera en el bolsillo del pantalón. Pero lo bueno viene cuando baja a un tercera, notablemente a uno de esos terceras que cubre la touche en un golpe de castigo o una patada defensiva contraria; que recoge la pelota corta y que sale a la carga campo arriba, convertido en un batallón de radical soledad física. Bajo la epidermis de esta jugada de Wilkinson late una venganza global: los terceras a menudo pasan los partidos a la caza del apertura contrario. El 10 es la pieza más codiciada, en parte por hacer que perdure la estrategia del terror, de la que los terceras son jinetes, y también por interrumpir la conexión vital del equipo contrario. Wilkinson (que es tan fuerte como ellos, tan duro como ellos y técnicamente mucho mejor que la mayoría de ellos) se da el gusto de ejercer la poética de la revancha. Rara vez se deja cazar. Y a menudo los embosca. A la manera habitual, un tal Chesney lo descubrió por sí mismo, sin que nadie tuviera que contárselo.

Si hablo de placajes es porque hablo de Wilkinson, quien desde hace años (desde el mismo instante en que alcanzó la cúspide) entra y sale de acuerdo a una rutina de gloria y dolor, de triunfo y lesiones. Si hablo de Wilkinson es porque ha vuelto a Inglaterra después de 18 meses ausente (y antes al rugby en el Toulon francés), y porque lo ha hecho de una sola pieza, de pedernal, claro. Y si hablo de placajes es porque estos días voy mirando los tests de noviembre, con los tres grandes del Hemisferio Sur (Australia, Nueva Zelanda y Suráfrica, aunque también la cuarta que es Argentina) de vuelta por la Galia y la Bretaña, retando naciones enteras como quien se arriesga a un pulso mano a mano. Noviembre -un mes que clausura la luz y derriba las últimas esperanzas de cualquier hombre sensible- tiene a menudo un único sentido: los partidos internacionales de rugby de otoño. Vi a Gales y Nueva Zelanda, a Irlanda con Australia, a Australia con Inglaterra y a Francia contra Suráfrica… Vengo fijándome en los notables placadores de diversas escuelas. Me fascinaron las coberturas de Gethin Jenkins, el pilar galés, que alcanza las esquinas del campo con derribos que firmaría un tres cuartos centro. Me hizo acordarme de aquel día en el que, jugando en el campo de La Almunia, salió la pelota sobre el Perdigón (el liviano ala contrario, amigo con el que yo mismo había jugado hombro con hombro años antes en Ingenieros), y contra todo pronóstico al muchacho le sobrevino un lapsus inexpresable que lo llevó a quedarse parado sobre la línea, tal vez mientras decidía hacia dónde salir o bien sujeto por un ramalazo del subconsciente, que le recordaba en el peor momento del día que se había dejado abierto el grifo de casa. Esos segundos se dilataron lo suficiente para darme tiempo a llegar a mí, subido en el efecto bola de cañón del centenar de kilos y ávido de completar una jugada que recordaría siempre (como demuestran estas líneas). Sin que aún sepamos cómo ni por qué ninguno de los dos -y tratamos en vano de analizarlo durante el tercer tiempo- lo planché en seco contra la touche. Con el consiguiente júbilo de mis correligionarios y un atisbo de depresión en el gesto del Perdigón durante el resto del partido. Lo había cazado un pilar que venía de frente. Esas cosas no pasan.

Rocky Elsom, clásico tercera australiano en el que uno puede confiar para las tardes de lluvia y las noches de tormenta.

Hablaba de Gethin Jenkins, entonces. Pero también de Rocky Elsom o de Richie McCaw, dos flankers con el punto de salvaje inconsciencia y rigor táctico-defensivo que tanto me gusta. Ahora que el australiano Phil Waugh se ha dejado vencer por la edad (aunque no del todo, sostiene él) y que los Wallabies celebran la irrupción de Pocock en la tercera australiana, uno reza para ver el sábado en Murrayfield (a donde vamos a peregrinar por fin, después de tantos años de desearlo) a George Smith y Rocky Elsom sobre el campo. También a Matt Giteau, cómo no, el apertura al que tanto le cuesta pasarla, otro alienado del subconsciente, al que el cuerpo le reclama la guerra de los centros.

Medidos frente a Escocia (mi equipo, siempre mi equipo) los australianos siempre van a salir ganando. Hace 27 años que Escocia no vence a los aussies y nada hace sospechar que puedan lograrlo el sábado. Éstos no están siendo días de un gran rugby, siempre en términos proporcionales al extraordinario nivel del que hablamos. Pero sí repletos de detalles. Suráfrica ha bajado el pistón después de un bienio portentoso, inabordable (lleva tres tests perdidos de manera consecutiva) y Francia le ganó con talento nuevo; Australia tiene bajas principales (qué decir de Stirling Mortlock, hombre de piedra) y Robbie Deans maneja un equipo en transición, con muchachos dotados de la imperfecta electricidad de la juventud en la tres cuartos y un medio de melé (Genya) que por fin parece digno de calzarse los zapatos del inolvidable Gregan.Hace dos semanas, en Twickenham, Genya fue el artífice del cambio de ritmo que le permitió a Australia dejar a su espalda a la basta Inglaterra de Martin Johnson, un equipo que aún comienza y acaba en Jonny Wilkinson, incapaz de regenerar por sí solo el equipo campeón del Mundo en 2oo3, pero sí de ganar partidos y aceitar con un masaje de pies y otro de placajes las aristas de cualquier encuentro comprometido. Irlanda le empató sobre la hora a Australia en un partido bastante entretenido, resuelto por un error defensivo final que capitalizó el insaciable O’Driscoll. También me gustó el Gales-Nueva Zelanda (añoranza de Ali Williams y Chris Jack en la segunda), con los Blacks estrenando alas (ni Sivivatu ni Rockocoko). 

El sábado veré a Escocia, en directo, por fin en Murrayfield. A los pies de la hermosa ciudad vieja de Edimburgo, el castillo de Holyrood, el Museo de los Escritores, los callejones empedrados de Boswell, del doctor Johnson, de Stevenson, la columna de Walter Scott, el pub del Diácono Brodie, la Royal Mile infestada de cerveza en camisetas de rugby. La camiseta azul -viejísima, viejísima pero siempre necesaria- y el recuerdo de esta interpretación del Flor de Escocia en ese mismo escenario, en el Mundial de 1991, cuando Escocia jugó y perdió la semifinal contra el viejo rival inglés… Los tiempos de David Sole y Turnbull, de Finlay Calder, de John Jeffrey, de los lampiños Craig Chalmers y Stanger, del sabio Tukalo, el sobrio Scott Hastings, el totémico Gavin Hastings. Este partido, grabado en VHS del viejo ScreenSports, lo vi cien veces al final de noches de cerveza y whisky, mientras miraba “roaches climb the wall”. Al final de las noches siempre está el desencanto (Onetti). Flor de Escocia, ¿cuándo veremos otra vez tu belleza?…

No I don’t know why I did that either, but at the same time I couldn’t resist, well I’m sure we’ll find all sorts of things like that in our lifetime! <<WAT! Anyway, on that note we return to the matter in hand, this blog! Now in my last few blogs I have been bragging about how much, well, nothing really happens, not saying thats particularly changed, but, well, a few things have happened over the last few days I thought I’d share with the world!

We’re off to see Nickelback!
I know what you’re thinking, damn Ben why didn’t you add that in to your blog title, thats pretty epic, dude, or something, but well the reason I didn’t is … well, let me explain. On Wednesday night I got a phone call from Rob asking if I wanted to see Nickelback, and I was like, well, yeah of course, so agreed that the details would be filled tomorrow, which would also be when it would happen, put the phone down. So, I’m like, yeh, Nickelback gig, rock on! Then, I later found out that it actually was the Christmas Light switch on at Leeds, which would be still alright had it not be for my Mum informing me from Real Radio, who just so happen to organise this event of epicness, so yeh brill, trust me the replacement is worth waiting for!
So, me, Rob and James (Rob’s brother) set off to the bus stop where we met Ben (not me obviously) and set off to the bus stop where we we’re to go to Dewsbury to meet Trish, who’s Trish, well its Rob’s new GF, don’t you read my blogs, arrrghghh! ….Anyway, so, bus to Dewsbury, train to Leeds, wooo train. I actually got an extreemly cheap ticket for the train, I had £10 and it was like 30-odd pence, yeh love carrying that change, then my ticket never got checked so in reality I could of probably just not got one and enjoyed a light pocket, but I now had a determined challenge to spend my change through the day, wayy! So, we arrived in Leeds and who did I see, well, on Rob’s birthday I saw Ashley from College, well this time I saw Michael from College, when I’m saying from College, I mean last year when the course wasn’t full of di**s. So, had a chat to him, turned out he was off to the same place but was meeting his girlfriend, so yeh, so eventually I joined the gang and continued on to the rather expectedly large crowd. It was absolutely chucking it down which was bad, the Nickelback not performing was confirmed, ugghh, but Pixie Lott is still coming, wopty flipping duu, refrain me from doing summersaults in excitement, OK maybe that was harsh, if anything she’s quite good looking, anyway, and my age + 1, I know, bonus, anyway again, but the fact that Nickelback wasn’t here meant they’d to fill the gap and who with, well the first was the crap X-Factor singer who had that hideous dress and was fat, link at the bottom of this blog of a YouTube link. But then, ooo it all started to kick off, on the stage came Loraine Kelly!!! OH MY GOD, IT’S that one from LK Today thats on when I’m either not awake or at college, or have much better things to do or watch. Then when they filled the rest in with idiots dressed in costumes singing ‘Frosty The Snowman’ which call me rather weird I don’t actually know the words to, I think we’d had enough, definitely Ben had, Rob later said it wasn’t happy that Ben didn’t like it, but, Rob, seriously, face it, it wasn’t the best of shows! Anyway, so, where to go now, well, we ended up tracing all the way back to Cleck and going to Weatherspoons, then James had to go home, and huhh, so Ben took James home and I was left with Rob and Trish, who later had probably the biggest fuss to going home I’ve ever seen, seriously if I had a Guinness World Record adjudicator with me, we’d have a record on our hands, all I’m gonna say is he wasn’t like that with Beth, so thats a good sign, anyway, look at me talking about people on here, oo! It’s not like I’ve revealed that some people **** in the toilets and shout it on an almost full bus or anything! I think we’re even. Anywho, so yeh, so I went with them for the journey and ooo it was indeed a fun journey, to Dewsbury, then in the Red Corner, Rob “Fore the Taxi” and in the Blue Corner, Trish “I’ll walk I’ll be fine”. I’m not dissing them, I’ve just never seen someone have so much fuss over each other, anyway, when the night ended we got home, on the same bus as well, ooo! But then came a bluddy other trouble, just as we were getting close to our stop, the bus lights turn off and he goes the otehr way, ARTGHH, so we ran out of the bus basically, we almost got deported!
YEAH! Anyway, oh yeh I spent my money on McDonnalds, I got Large and a Small portion of fries as their just isn’t enough in the portion of large, don’t you tink, oo and some Munchies! Spent rest today on Lucozade and toast, woo living the high life me!
When I got home I gave my Mum a heart attack which was kinda funny, it probably wouldn’t be if it was an actual heart attack but ya know what I mean.

Anyway, just gonna finish by letting you know that Windows 7 Review will happen when it happens, the RKUK Toolbar will have an update soon with Yahoo! Bing and Dogpile search added, thanks for the requests guys. We’ve got a proxy site, oh and Selection 77 is out. Breath it, breath out, it is indeed all starting to happen. Such a pity its gonna absolutely pi** it down all weekend … bugger. Oh well, I’m a Celeb starts on Sunday and of course X-Factor where surely Lloyd should go now!

Anyway, thats all for now, E-Ya Later

Ben

http://rkukmedia.ning.com

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YouTube Link;
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H6Q142RaG3Y = The blond one!

Argentina. Land of Corned Beef, Eva Peron, the Tango, and Los Pumas rugby team. Whilst their footballing counterparts, driven by Maradonna and primadonnas, have twice won the World Cup, the Argentine rugby team has never dominated on the world stage. They face a permanent struggle in fact. They have no annual tournament to compete in (entry to the Tri-Nations in 2012 is long overdue), an amateur domestic league and their players ply their trade far and wide across Europe (mainly France, a place that has become a home from home for their top stars).
Despite this, they finished third in the 2007 World Cup and come to Twickenham ranked higher than England in the IRB rankings list.
Argentina have always produced great forwards, particularly front five forwards. Scrummaging is in their blood. Some of the forwards turned out by the Pumas are bigger and stronger than the beef cattle that roam the Humid Pampa. Their problem (like Italy) has always been finding backs who can convert possession into points. The reason for Argentina’s success over the last few years is that those backs finally appeared. The likes of Juan Martin Hernandez, Felipe Contepomi, Ignacio Corleto came on the scene and provided the dash to go with the dump trucks up front. Sadly none of these three will feature at Twickenham and the test for Argentina will be whether the new players they bring in to their back line can match the exploits of the missing stars.
Although maybe the backs won’t have to do much. The forecast is for a torrential downpour in TW1. Manna from heaven for the likes of Scelzo, Roncero, Albacete. One shudders to think what that crowd could do to England’s pack.
England’s pack. Yes. Where do we start? Forget the injury excuses. Compared to Argentina’s preparation for this match we have nothing to complain about. There was an interesting statistic on Sky’s Rugby Club last night. Against Australia, the England front five, between them, carried a total of 11 times, for a total of 11 metres gained. 11!! No wonder we are struggling to dent holes in attack if our big men are not getting over the gainline! OK so Steve Borthwick might be in the side for leadership and lineout (alledgedly). That is fine if you pick someone alongside him who is a big brute (a Danny Grewcock if you like). Louis Deacon is not that person. Presumably James Haskell and Dylan Hartley have been introduced to rectify this glaring issue. My question would be, who in this England pack is going to do the dirty work, the hard grunt around the fringes, knocking down the waves of big Argentine forwards? Joe Worsley is on the bench but I would have picked him to start this one. Still, the team is what it is.
On another note, it is disrespectful that the RFU still do not consider Argentina worthy of the same status as the other SANZAR nations when it comes to billing this match. Yes it makes it easier to get tickets, but is it not time Argentina were given some more kudos? After all they beat England on their last visit to Twickenham. Dom and I were at that match ( a depressing experience) and for the first time ever we nearly had a fight at a rugby match. With England “fans”. Who objected to us applauding good Argentina play. Sometimes free ticket allocation is not a good thing.
So who will win the game? Well, Jonny will kick the points again to keep England in touch, Argentina will probably struggle to gel and surely Shane Geraghty cannot play as badly as last week? But that rain….
I think England will sneak a win by no more than 4 points. But then I also think Los Pumas will claim another (marginally) against the odds victory to add to the impressive list of notches on their belt.

Ca y est. On le tient ! Les gentils publicitaires qui visent les femelles de moins de 50 ans entre plus Belle la vie et la rediff de Dr House ont enfin compris qu’il fallait oublier les violons, et l’image de la très sainte mère de famille.

Alors exit les pub Bledina… et le sourire complice devant sa progéniture anéantissant son tube de rouge à lèvre hors de prix.

Et bonjour aux pubs décallées, aux leçons immorales, au vice…

Loin , très loin des images d’Epinal et autres cucuteries audiovisuelles de la moman parfaite

La vraie vie quoi !

et celle ci pour la route… parce qu’on s’en lasse pas !

For the first 10 minutes of yesterday’s match, it was as if we had been set into a time machine, back six years. Here was Jonny Wilkinson, dropping a goal, kicking a penalty, ticking the scoreboard over, giving England an early lead, a lead from which they would press on and suffocate the opposition. But then, Jonny lined up a long range penalty from over halfway. This for 9-0. It sets sail, its on target! It hits the post. It misses. Suddenly, the spell is broken. We wake up. Australia wake up. They realise they are not playing England of 2003, but of 2009. Safe in that knowledge, they go down the field and score a try. They then dominate the entire second half and win comfortably, despite blowing at least three “open goal” try chances. And we England fans are left to scratch our heads and wonder just what the result means, and just where it leaves us. Was it a reasonable effort from a hastily assembled side and something to build on? Or was it a muddled catastrophe to rank alongside something from the Andy Robinson era? At first I thought it the former, but after watching the match again, I am leaning towards the latter.
Aside from the first 15 minutes, when England ruled the lineout, bossed the breakdown and had something like 65% possession, it was all Australia. England’s front five faded visibly with every minute the match went on, and hence there was no platform for the backs. If not for the heroic tackling of Moody and Wilkinson, the score would have been embarrassing.
England looked absolutely impotent in attack. Not once did we look like scoring a try. Not once. Australia on the other hand looked like arch wizards every time they had ball in hand.
Shane Geraghty had a shocking match. I think he deserves another go but I am now starting to fear that he is cut from the same cloth as Charlie Hodgson and that the biggest stage is a step too far for him. Matt Banahan looked totally lost and was unable to impose his size on proceedings, one tap back from a cross kick apart, and Ugo Monye had one of those games that make you think that maybe he is just someone very fit and very fast, but not actually any good at rugby.
Perhaps it is unfair to be harsh on these guys though, when in truth they had almost no quality ball to work with. The lack of snap and continuity from the forwards just heightens the doubts about John Wells as forwards coach. These doubts are now starting to be raised ever more loudly in the press, and for the first time, a major journalist has said that Martin Johnson should go. Over the top criticism? Maybe, but it is nothing compared to what will happen if England lose to the Pumas next week then ship another 30-40 points to the All Blacks the week after that. It is as if Andy Robinson/Brian Ashton had never left. Players have come and gone, Jonno might find to his cost that head coaches have as well, but somehow the Mike Ford/John Wells duo survive.
Perhaps we just have to accept what England are, a second division team fuelled by past glories to unrealistic expectations. And yet is it unrealistic to expect progress and competitiveness from the best funded team on the planet? There lies the problem for Jonno and the mysterious Rob Andrew. All the plans of the EPS, the acadamies, the long form agreement, mean nothing if the end result is clueless defeat like yesterday.

England 9 Australia 18

England were counting on a victory against Australia today.  Though the hosts were had more than twenty elite squad players sidelined through injuries, the visitors were missing captain, Stirling Mortlock, and had rolled over for both New Zealand and South Africa in the Tri-Nations.  England meanwhile were last in action in a Six Nations they were ultimately runners-up in, but were ill disciplined and inconsistent.  A win would give England momentum and start their autumn series with a view to a successful World Cup campaign in two years.

Though the lust for victory was plain to see, England faltered yet again.  Australia, for their part, did not let themselves down.  While England dominated the first half, Australia got the only try.  And when Australia had the opportunity to dictate the pace of the game in the second half, they did so beyond England’s capacity to absorb it.

England looked a more comfortable outfit in the first half than they had done in the two years since the World Cup final.  They didn’t concede turnovers, nor many penalties, and moreover, were dominant in the set-piece.  Steve Borthwick, in particular, was imperious in either side’s lineout and Jordan Crane made his mark early on with five carries within as many minutes of the game starting. 

Indeed, England were off the mark after only two minutes, as Jonny Wilkinson dropped a goal following good progress by the forwards.  Not long afterwards, the rejuvenated fly half had added another three-points from a penalty and hit the post from forty metres.

Wilkinson was a joy to watch, tackling everything that came his way, and running the ball menacingly at the Australian defence.  What was even better, however, was that the combination of Wilkinson and Geraghty, the form fly half in the Guinness Premiership, worked wonderfully.  With Wilkinson operating at first tackle and Geraghty with his superior pass and sidestep as first-receiver capable of mis-matching forwards against weak tacklers, England looked worthy of the quick ball Danny Care provided. 

Another positive was the willingness of England’s back three to run the ball.  Monye is continuing the form that saw him selected for the Lions, and the addition of a competent kicking game makes him a suitable fullback.  That said, he needs to stay on his feet more if he is to create genuine scoring-opportunities.  Banahan and Cueto on the wings offered both pace and brute force, and their height gives them an advantage when it comes to cross-field kicks.

That said, England scored no tries, and their best sustained pressure came from forward play.  Danny Hipkiss always seems to break the game line, but Ayoola Erinle seemed more capable of offloading.  All in all, no one seemed to be running the lines to take advantage of Geraghty’s awareness of what was on.

Australia were quite the opposite.  Their backs attacked at pace and were rewarded by breaking the gain line.  The fly half-centre axis of Matt Giteau and Quade Cooper was almost impossible to second-guess, so that England’s resolute defence nevertheless was always in reverse. 

After a poor decision from the touch judge gifted Australia an attacking lineout, the visitors broke into the 22, and from five metres out, the scrum half, Will Genia picked up, sold Louis Deacon the dummy and scampered around the ruck to score their first half try.  Nonetheless, Wilkinson kicked a penalty to give England a first half lead.

England never regained the upper-hand that they had enjoyed.  Too frequently the ball was knocked on after promising starts – as with a weaving run by James Haskell and a chip and chase by Monye.  They also surrendered their advantage in the set-piece by failing to contest the scrum or lineout effectively.  The most disappointing moment of the second half saw Australian fullback drive twenty metres for a try, with Monye and Cueto unable to bring him down.

One Step Forward, Two Back

The new-look England team, however long it lasts, is a leaner, faster one. The bulkier three-quarters, quick back row and Dylan Hartley at hooker offer ball-carriers all over the field.  Geraghty looks like the play-making stand-off England have been crying out for, without being the loose cannon that Cipriani proved. 

However, there is a long way to go.  Experience should help settle a back line that is not used to playing together.  Nevertheless, backs coach, Brian Smith (who did so much to increase London Irish’s attacking potential), has his work cut out.  England have not begun to ape the Lions formula of dynamic supporting runners.  Whether Hipkiss would be better utilised at inside centre and Geraghty at ten is a question that will not get asked as long as Wilkinson is around, but the existing arrangements will have to be made a lot less static.

The statistics will probably not be too harsh on England.  They missed relatively few tackles, but were still unable to halt Australian advances.  This bodes poorly for when England have to face more physical opponents, which they will in the next few weeks.  They may be able to maul, but will need to focus on the tackle area, from both an attacking and a defensive perspective.

Martin Johnson would not, in an ideal world, have used this series to experiment.  He sees it as far too late and in a way is right.  Injuries present immediate and long-term problems.  Does he ignore the opportunities presented by this exciting team of rookies and draft the regulars back in? 

Andrew Sheridan and Julian White will not be left out (neither, unfortunately, will Vickery, in all probability).  Simon Shaw and Joe Worsely are probably too strong and experienced defensively not to be included.  Paul Hodgson played well when he came on, but the scrum half position will not be crucial. Mike Tindall should not be required, but the centres are still a problem area.

These autumn internationals will therefore be critical to England’s development under Martin Johnson, and unless they can win one or two against the odds, the pressure will mount. That is why a good performance was not good enough.

OK, so Australia are in disarray. They have lost all but one of their tests this year, the players are disillusioned in the coach, and attendances are collapsing. On top of that they have just hopped off a plane from Japan and now have to pitch up at Twickenham. So all England have to do is sing the anthem and a win is assured right? Except that… except that we just don’t know how good (or bad) this England team is. There is simply no reference point, no form guide. Moreover, we don’t really know what tactics or game plane England have. I am still not convinced by Mike Ford and John Wells as coaches but hey, before we even consider England, let’s not underestimate Australia shall we? Yes they might have lost matches this year, but those were against New Zealand and South Africa. How many games do you think England would win if they played six tests against those two?
Yes they might have injuries to key players, but Giteau, Elsom, Smith and Ashley-Cooper are world class and in Will Genia they seem to have found another livewire scrumhalf.
Against New Zealand last week I thought they were unlucky. New Zealand got away with daylight robbery at the breakdown (again). Time and again the ball was turned over (mostly illegally) when Australia seemed set to unleash an attack in a dangerous position. England have nowhere near the nouse at the breakdown that New Zealand possess.
Also, they might come here tired, but they come battle hardened. And let’s not underestimate the motivation factor that beating the Poms at Twickers will give them.
So can England stack up? Well, ironically, for once England’s backs look more potent than their forwards. The back three are all potent, the centre pairing looks to have good balance and at half back, a rejuvenated Jonny Wilkinson could be the difference between winning and losing. The pressure on him to perform must be immense, but at the very least you know he will kick the goals to keep England in the hunt and build confidence in those around him.
It is the front five that worries me. It looks like a Saxons selection. Borthwick is Borthwick. He is Jonno’s man. Credit must go to him for how he handles himself. Maybe it is time to get behind him. Louis Deacon does not add a lot for me. David Wilson is a great prospect at prop but will he be a destroyer? I must confess I do not know what Steve Thompson’s form is like at Brive, will he be the dynamo of 2001-2003 or the dumpling of 2004-2006? Tim Payne will do a job but he is no Sheridan.
The back row should be efficient. Lewis Moody will hare around like a nut case all day, Tom Croft will win lineouts, run fast and look good, Jordan Crane will crash and carry, but do they have the cunning to stop George Smith? That is the key question, and on the answer will hinge the outcome of the match.
Too close to call. My heart says England, my head says Australia.

Whilst England can claim only two victories on Australian soil in their entire history (albeit one was rather special!), at Twickenham their record is rather better. Matches between the two teams in TW1 tend to be close run and exciting matches. Here I recall some of the best Autumn Internationals of recent years.

2005
England 26 – Australia 16
Not a particularly memorable match, but England’s last victory against Australia at Twickenham. Notable only for England’s scrum (and Andrew Sheridan in particular) marmalising the Aussie pack. Despite umpteen amounts of possession, England still nearly managed to stuff it up and the game was only safe when Cueto scored late on.

Thanks for 1000 HITS, three is my appreciate. Top 10 Bikini Hollywood Woman, enjoy them.

Complete Top 100 Bikini and original source can be found at : zimbio

1.Marisa Miller, Sports Illustrated Swimsuit model Marisa Miller poses for a photo shoot on the beach.

2.Kelly Brook, keeps cool by splashing around in the Caribbean waters.

3.Katy Perry chilling by the beach in Mexico, reading Madonna’s Biography and later on having fun riding a seadoo.

4.Brooke Hogan, reality star turned singer Brooke Hogan films her music video with the company of her new boyfriend, rapper Yannique Barker.

5.Penelope Cruz, her sister Monica Cruz and her boyfriend enjoy a winter vacation in St. Bart’s.

6.Kristin Cavallari’s has some fun in the sun while filming an upcoming episode of MTV’s “The Hills” at a beach house in Malibu.

7.Audrina Patridge poses while hosting a Bombay Sapphire event at the Wet Republic pool at the MGM Grand Hotel.

8.Paris Hilton and boyfriend Doug Reinhardt enjoy the pool at the Eden Rock Hotel in Cannes.

9.Whitney Port films scenes for her show ‘The City’ wearing a bikini.

10.Kendra Wilkinson of ‘The Girls Next Door’ vacations in Miami with some friends.

Complete Top 100 Bikini and original source can be found at : zimbio

www.ffk-wilkinson.com/de/

Unbedingt den Trailer mit Ton anschauen. Väter aufgepaßt.

Ahem! Hello and welcome to Metrodeco’s first blog. There, I’ve said it…20 long weeks after I first hoped to utter those words. You see, 20 weeks is about the length of time since we opened our art deco tea salon and antiques shop so I suppose you could say it’s taken us a while to get round to this online/blogging shenanigans.

But it is an important type of shenanigans. Because unless you are certifiably insane, and by that I mean so mad that you probably woke up this morning and thought you were an onion, you cannot ignore the obvious uses of the internet when you’re selling something (in our case, fine early 20th century furniture and Brighton’s best tea). So it’s both a pleasure and a relief to be welcoming you to Metrodeco’s Brighton Blog.

[Pauses to allow applause to recede]

Of course, we’re not only now present in the blogosphere – we’re also armed with Twitter page and a Facebook page. And because we also want to engage with those who are interested in My Little Pony and Power Rangers, we’re on MySpace, nestled snugly beside a teen death metal band called Satan’s Anal Ring, who are based in the leafy Withdean environs.

Ah, you’ve noticed I keep referring to ‘we’. There are more than one of us, you see. For a start, Metrodeco comprises Helen Wilkinson and Maggie Morgan, the owners. Then there are at least four others who pitch in. And, if we’re really going to give credit where credit is due, there are the fairies who order the cakes, fill out the tax returns and keep on top of the cleaning.

So who’s writing this? The answer is that it is at once all and none of us. Think of Metrodeco’s Brighton Blog as a remote, intangible, abstract voice, which is at once wholly separate and inextricably tied to the shop. And once you’ve pondered over that non-sensical explanation know this: if you or your neighbour’s dog feel affronted or offended at the words we will offer on a weekly basis, please do not march into the shop (which is here, by the way) wielding your unGodly rage at the sweet tradespersons and artisans within.

Neither should you lunge dementedly and with murder in your eyes at one of our 18 jars of bespoke tea (on sale here) nor aim your madly flailing fists into a pile of our menus, nor spit your unlovely rage over our bookings diary (which is taking bookings now for Christmas), nor rant your hurtful and hate-filled rant that our promo video (here) is barely better than a Kate Winslett movie.

For this, you see, is an anonymous blog and your wrath might be embarrassingly misplaced.

So, what is the blog about about? You might think me pointless and irrelevant when I tell you that Peter Andre and Katie Price are among the many subjects it will NOT touch on – but I’m told the mere use of those words will help with our Google ranking.

Nor will we mimic the sort of petty-minded and bigoted polemic to be found on the Argus chat forums (links to high-traffic websites apparently also help please Gary Google).

No, this blog will simply discuss the day to day trials and rewards of running a tea shop in the heart of Kemp Town. And this, we hope, will be of some interest to other small businesses or those who’ve wondered what owning your own shop is like. We hope not only to flaunt Metrodeco’s wares here – but to make connections with friends and business partners we haven’t yet met, while enjoying some good old rufty tufty and debate.

So please don’t be frightened to tell me what arse-filled rubbish I’m talking and please do join in by leaving comments on this page or at metrodeco@yahoo.co.uk

Right, I’m off to lie under an oak tree with a large pitcher of Deliciously Decadent (erm, available here at only £2.20 a pot).

Honnêtement, les rosbeefs ne sont pas ma tasse de thé !

Depuis leurs hypocritissimes “Sorry good game” (remember, quand ils avaient gagné au rugby et qu’ils venaient serrer les pognes des Français après nous avoir battus!) de l’époque des années 80, j’ai des pointes d’urticaire à la vue du maillot à la Rose !

Mais la haine et la rancoeur sont deux vilains défauts. Jonny Wilkinson est arrivé cette saison à Toulon. Et lui, il est vraiment good, very good. Au bout de deux mois, il speaks french pratiquement fluently, il est sympa avec les journalistes, il mouille le fameux maillot au brin de muguet et en plus il joue bien, fantastiquement bien comme contre Toulouse où il met tous les points du RCT.

Ce gars-là, pourtant, pour ceux qui l’ignorent, est un hôpital ambulant depuis six ans et le titre mondial des Anglais: quinze blessures au bas mot et des opérations à presque tous les os de son corps. Mais même blessé, il s’entraîne. Plus, beaucoup plus, que les autres. Des heures par jour à taper des coups de pied, bref à faire ses gammes. Un exemple à méditer pour certains que je nommerai dans d’autres billets. Bon, c’est vrai, il prend du pognon (on parle d’un million par an), mais à comparer avec les footeux, c’est cadeau comme disait un ancien taulard ! Boudjellal, son président, qui l’a imposé à ses entraîneurs, doit se frotter les mains de son investissement. Et surtout allumer un cierge dans toutes les églises pour que sa star ne se pète plus rien !

L’interview du gars dans le Figaro est un petit délice. Tiens, justement, le cierge il doit pas trop y croire, il s’est converti au boudhisme. Moi, je le bouderai pas…

Philippe Verneaux.

Música e internet son dos conceptos vinculados con el público joven. Con la red como herramienta, Wilkinson ha lanzado una iniciativa en la que ofrece a los usuarios dos aplicaciones que permiten crear temas musicales de forma fácil y divertida desde la web www.wilkinsound.es.

Creada por Uncommon, esta propuesta, en activo todo el mes de septiembre, es la primera de una serie de acciones que se están desarrollando, dentro de la campaña de reposicionamiento de la compañía, con el objetivo de acercarse al target más joven.

En www.wilkinsound.es se encuentran dos aplicaciones. La primera es un juego llamado “Un afeitado perfecto siempre suena bien”, que permite escoger entre tres estilos de música y añadir otros instrumentos y efectos a la base rítmica elegida. La segunda aplicación es Music Precision, mucho más profesional que la anterior, desde la que se puede componer un tema musical utilizando un secuenciador.

Más información: Marketingnews.es

KENDRA WILKINSON isn’t interested in showing the world her swelling baby bump. Instead, the pregnant Playboy babe has turned to the photo archives to keep her fans hooked while she’s off playing mum.

She’s dug out these sexy lingerie promos taken pre-conception and kindly posted them on her blog, showing off her formerly flat belly.

And flat isn’t a word often associated with busty Kendra…

GOOD to see KENDRA WILKINSON’S still setting aside time to flash her cleavage as she prepares for her big day.
Playboy boss HUGH HEFNER’s ex is tying the knot with HANK BASKETT in June, but she clearly isn’t keeping displays of her two greatest assets exclusive to her future hubby.

The former Playboy Bunny was in jubilant spirits as she larked about on Santa Monica pier, sliding down a steep handrail at some speed.

No doubt such injury-causing antics would have her wedding planner in a spin.

Still, at least Kendra had a couple of decent-sized airbags to cushion any hard landings.

Another bit of news…
Amanda Wilkinson is one of the art world luminaries invited to join the British Council sponsored junket in Sulaymaniyah Iraq…

Hoy cuando salí de clase en la universidad, en el metro una señoritas me dieron una cuchilla de afetiar de Wilkinson y un folleto, patrocinado por Wilkinson, que decía: “quiero una casa ya; movimiento por la emancipación de los jóvenes”. No sé por qué pensé que era el típico panfleto anarquista de ocupas, pero al dar la vuelta vi que no era eso: “Ahora con XTREME3 puedes conseguir el alquiler de tu piso gratis durante 1 año. Entra en www.mevoydecasaya.es e infórmate de cómo conseguirlo. También puedes conseguir un fantástico mini portátil Asus”.

Yo encantado, probablemente lo que más me gusta en esta vida es que me regalen cosas… aunque si entras a la web verás que necesitas el código de barras de un producto, así que ves a cualquier supermercado y copia el código de barras XD. Darán 700€ a una persona y un portátil a 4, yo vivo de alquiler y quiero cambiar y mi portátil. Después de ver ‘Lost’, podría decir que es el destino el que me ha hecho llegar este folleto a mí, jajaja, pero voy a obviar ese tema (aunque aprecio mucho a John Locke, pero soy más de Jack).

Como campaña no la voy a criticar, será la cuarta o quinta cuchilla que me dan en un año, pero el concurso es bastante escaso: sólo cinco premios es casi una nimiedad. Pero participaré, aunque no compraré ninguno de sus productos, lo siento por ellos, pero yo soy más de maquinilla.

To hasten response times and enlarge the department, Lindsay police officers will begin cross training how to respond to calls regarding fires, animal control and medical aid starting Oct. 1.

Chief Rich Wilkinson made the announcement at Tuesday’s regular city council meeting at City Hall.

“It won’t be uncommon for an officer to show up to a medical emergence call and perform the first treatments,” he said.

Training should be complete by Jan. 1, he added.

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