Just got home from the Bath match in a sold out Stade Ernest Wallon. An excellent game and Bath oh so nearly had the nerve to snatch from Toulouse and I think they deserved the losing bp which may have given them a home match in the next round.
Jack Willis not being available for England is a travesty as he was enormous this afternoon. I also heard that he's signed a one-year extension to his contract. Evidently. la vie est belle for him in Toulouse!
Robespierre wrote: ↑Sun Jan 21, 2024 7:18 pm
Just got home from the Bath match in a sold out Stade Ernest Wallon. An excellent game and Bath oh so nearly had the nerve to snatch from Toulouse and I think they deserved the losing bp which may have given them a home match in the next round.
Jack Willis not being available for England is a travesty as he was enormous this afternoon. I also heard that he's signed a one-year extension to his contract. Evidently. la vie est belle for him in Toulouse!
Willis was excellent. I suspect if it wasn't for Wasps going under he would still be in the Premiership.
He said in an interview that no Premiership club made him an offer when he lost his job... but maybe they knew they couldn't match the French euros.
Robespierre wrote: ↑Sun Jan 21, 2024 7:18 pm
Just got home from the Bath match in a sold out Stade Ernest Wallon. An excellent game and Bath oh so nearly had the nerve to snatch from Toulouse and I think they deserved the losing bp which may have given them a home match in the next round.
Jack Willis not being available for England is a travesty as he was enormous this afternoon. I also heard that he's signed a one-year extension to his contract. Evidently. la vie est belle for him in Toulouse!
Willis was excellent. I suspect if it wasn't for Wasps going under he would still be in the Premiership.
He said in an interview that no Premiership club made him an offer when he lost his job... but maybe they knew they couldn't match the French euros.
If Leinster and La Rochelle both win do Leinster get the tie at home because they are higher seeds or do La Rochelle get it because they wouldve won away from home?
"Rugby isn't a contact sport,ballroom dancing is a contact sport. Rugby is a collision sport" Heyneke Meyer
Scott1 wrote: ↑Sun Jan 21, 2024 8:36 pm
If Leinster and La Rochelle both win do Leinster get the tie at home because they are higher seeds or do La Rochelle get it because they wouldve won away from home?
Think it goes on seeding, but not 100%
Edit: Quarter-finals
2.7 The quarter-finals will be played over one match and the highest-ranked clubs from the pool stage will have home venue advantage as follows:
QF 1: Winner R16 1 v Winner R16 8
QF 2: Winner R16 2 v Winner R16 7
QF 3: Winner R16 3 v Winner R16 6
QF 4: Winner R16 4 v Winner R16 5
So, thanks to the utter numpties that designed this farce of a competition, in our section of the draw we have Ireland er…… sorry I mean Leinster, La Rochelle, Leicester and Stormers.
Wasn’t that more or less the group we were just in! You could not make this stuff up - the game is being run by idiots.
As I’ve posted on another thread I’m in the disillusioned camp for this once great tournament. Like others I never understood the format before the ridiculous situation with a repeat of so many fixtures in the knock out stages. Is there really such a need to provide the top sides with such an advantage right through to the final? How is this supposed to incentivise supporters and attract more fans to games?
What happened to the good old groups of four providing three homes games and much needed revenue?
If 24 teams need a place and a round of 16 then 6 groups of 4, top 2 and 4 best third place finishes. No problem with group winners and 2 best runners up getting home advantage keeps the groups interesting to the end, but why not go to a free draw for the quarter finals onwards? Provides another level of interest and the potential for a more open competition.
If 6 group games and a round of 16 are too much to fit in to the fixture schedule then bin the round of 16. Top 6 and 2 best runners up would make for competitive groups. Wait a minute isn’t that how it used to be?
As it stands it’s a shambles.
If you don't go in hard it's not a tackle it's an insult.
