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NBC · 09-24-2011, 11:24 AM

England hammered Romania in the early match today 67-3, scoring 10 tries in the process. They looked good - very good, granted it was against a Romania side that is undoubtedly targeting the Georgia clash as their priority.

New Zealand was clinical in their dismantling of France today. Don't let the scoreline fool you into thinking that France were in it. Outside of the first 13 or 14 minutes where France was controlling the play and had all the territory, they were totally outplayed in ever facet of the game afterwards. Their forwards were blown away by the ABs and were not remotely aggressive enough. And their backs had an absolutely torrid time. They were under intense pressure from minute 15 onwards and not a single one showed anything. Their tackling was atrocious, kicking suspect at times and they were out-competed on almost every ball. The two tries they did manage to get were almost farcical. An interception off a long Carter pass and a weird kick restart after a penalty was given by the ref. The ABs thought that time had been called but hadn't been. Very strange that.

NZ looked mightily impressive today. Their skill at the breakdown is sublime. Smith and Nonu were fantastic, and the young fullback Dagg was great. But the way in which the NZ forwards dominated the French pack was unbelievable. I've not seen a French pack get bossed around like this for a long time.

If I were SA or Aus, I'd not relish the thought of facing this AB side in the quarters. And if today's performance is anything to go on, and if England win their group, I don't fancy France's chances of reaching the semis.

Scotland and Argentina tomorrow. Winner will be looking towards the QF, loser most likely going home. Scotland have a great kicking game and are underrated. Argies are old and are carrying some injuries. Not sure if Contepomi will play. They won't have much of a chance if he doesn't. Scotland - England next weekend should decide who wins the group and who avoids the All Blacks.

09-24-2011, 11:24 AM	#164
NBC Account closed at user's request. Join Date: Jul 2009 Exp:	England hammered Romania in the early match today 67-3, scoring 10 tries in the process. They looked good - very good, granted it was against a Romania side that is undoubtedly targeting the Georgia clash as their priority. New Zealand was clinical in their dismantling of France today. Don't let the scoreline fool you into thinking that France were in it. Outside of the first 13 or 14 minutes where France was controlling the play and had all the territory, they were totally outplayed in ever facet of the game afterwards. Their forwards were blown away by the ABs and were not remotely aggressive enough. And their backs had an absolutely torrid time. They were under intense pressure from minute 15 onwards and not a single one showed anything. Their tackling was atrocious, kicking suspect at times and they were out-competed on almost every ball. The two tries they did manage to get were almost farcical. An interception off a long Carter pass and a weird kick restart after a penalty was given by the ref. The ABs thought that time had been called but hadn't been. Very strange that. NZ looked mightily impressive today. Their skill at the breakdown is sublime. Smith and Nonu were fantastic, and the young fullback Dagg was great. But the way in which the NZ forwards dominated the French pack was unbelievable. I've not seen a French pack get bossed around like this for a long time. If I were SA or Aus, I'd not relish the thought of facing this AB side in the quarters. And if today's performance is anything to go on, and if England win their group, I don't fancy France's chances of reaching the semis. Scotland and Argentina tomorrow. Winner will be looking towards the QF, loser most likely going home. Scotland have a great kicking game and are underrated. Argies are old and are carrying some injuries. Not sure if Contepomi will play. They won't have much of a chance if he doesn't. Scotland - England next weekend should decide who wins the group and who avoids the All Blacks. Last edited by NBC; 09-24-2011 at 11:28 AM.