NetRugby World Cup 2008
Last Saturday saw another stunning summer NetRugby campaign come to a conclusion as the world cup finals tournament took place on Clapham Common in London. The sun blazed and the crowd sizzled with excitement as the imperious Taverners defeated the resilient Satyrs in a closely fought final…
…you would be forgiven for wondering what on earth this article is on about and that the only rugby of note over the weekend was the match between the All Chokers of New Zealand and the Wallabies but there is a little known sport that has been going for 101 years and is one of the best ways to keep fit for rugby over the summer months. That sport is NetRugby.
The sport was established in 1907 with the name “rugby-netball” and is played on uniquely marked pitches on Clapham Common with specially designed oversized netball nets at either end. The players are completely amateur and the majority play rugby for clubs in the South-East over the winter in preparation for getting fit for the NetRugby season – from April to July.
Players can pass the ball in any direction (including forward) and can run with the ball. There are 10 players per team plus substitutes, it is full contact and all tackles must be made above the knee (but below the neck!) and cannot involve any shirt-grabbing whatsoever. This creates a very fast and skilful game which has essences of hockey and football incorporated in the teams’ tactics.
Before rugby went professional you would find representatives from the main London clubs playing over the summer, even some full internationals. Since the professional era dawned, the numbers of teams participating in the league has dwindled and it is now contested between 6 clubs. All the clubs are keen for new members but what the sport is really looking for is other rugby teams in London and the South East to put together a squad for next season and look to try the sport out. With the basics of passing, tackling and running all the same as the sport we all know and love it is relatively easy to pick up.
Go to www.rugbynetball.com for more information or email info@rugbynetball.com if you want to form a team or join an existing one next season.
Jamie Noon talks to The Rugby Blog
It’s a beautifully sunny afternoon in the north of England and O2 has kindly combined the best aspects of both winter and summer: rugby and the beach.
Unsurprisingly, the rugby crowds have turned out in force with plenty of fun and games going on everywhere, and some of the Newcastle Falcons squad are mingling with their fans, signing autographs and chatting to the children.
One of those is England centre, Jamie Noon, and the hard-tackling unit of a man is good enough to talk to our reporter from The Rugby Blog who asks him what he’s been up to since the England tour of New Zealand.
“I had a week off when we got back, and then spent four days doing a ‘coast-to-coast’ charity bike ride for the British Heart Foundation. We’ve all been back at training for a week or so now.”
“What’s the mood in the camp like, given some of the recent changes in personnel?”
“It’s pretty good actually. There’s been a lot of stuff written about us, but we’ve got a good bunch of guys and we are just getting on with it. People come and go all the time in rugby…that’s just the way it is.”
“How has the training been going?”
“We are really just trying to learn the new rules at the moment. The laws themselves are pretty simple, but it’s how you apply them that is the hard bit. Teams will interpret them in different ways, and we have to work out how to use them to our advantage.”
“How do you think Newcastle will fare this year in the Premiership?”
“I’ve got a good feeling about it actually, and we are all fairly hopeful of a good season. Saying that, we’ve been confident for the last few years, but haven’t quite managed to stay in the top half of the table. I wouldn’t say we’ve under-achieved – I think we just haven’t quite achieved as much as we should have.”
“Right.“
“We’ve got a very strong squad with a fair bit of experience and quite a few young guys coming through from the academy as well. Our main objective is to get into the Heineken Cup next year.”
“Last season, apart from Leeds, Newcastle scored the fewest tries in the Premiership. Are you doing anything to address that?”
“I think we’ll be running the ball a lot more that we have done previously. We’ve looked at the way we think rugby is going, and you’ve got to be able run from anywhere.”
“Danny Williams might help your chances of scoring?”
“Who?”
“Danny Williams – you signed him from Leeds Rhinos last week?”
“Oh yeah. He hasn’t started yet, but he’s supposed to be pretty quick!”
“And what about England? Is Johnno the right man for the job of reversing our fortunes?”
“I think he is. If he isn’t, I just don’t know who is to be honest. He’s played at the highest level and he’s got so much respect that he will just make it work.”
“Will we learn anything from the New Zealand tour?”
“We’ve got to. We got some pretty harsh lessons out there and we’ve got to build on what we have. It’s not like we are starting from scratch, but we really need to consider our approach.”
“We always seem to be slightly bereft of ideas in attack, whereas New Zealand always seem to put a lot more pace on the ball in attack. Is that fair to say?”
“Not completely. I think the breakdown is actually the key, rather than looking at our backs moves. The All Blacks were definitely better at the breakdown than we were, disrupting our ball so much that we couldn’t do much with it. They do seem to get away with an awful lot, and the referee would let them lie all over the ball, but then ping us if we tried to slow them down. They were coming in from the side, killing the ball, and without quick ball it’s so difficult to attack at pace.”
“So what are your personal objectives for the season?”
“I really just want to play as much as I can. It was a bit frustrating last year with my knee inkiry at the World Cup and then did my ankle later in the season. If I can string some decent games together and then compete for places in the autumn, I’ll be happy.”
“Does everyone have one eye on the Lions tour next summer?”
“Not just yet. The key thing for me is getting in the England side. There are a lot of good players around, but if I get in the England team, there’s a chance I’ll go on the Lions tour. I just need to stay fit and strong and do the best I can.”
“Well Jamie, thanks for your time. Good luck this season, I hope it works out well for you.”
Jamie Noon spoke to us at O2 Scrum on the Beach. Follow the link for details of the next few events - they are well worth going to.
Interview with Jamie Noon: your questions please
Given that The Rugby Blog is all about the online rugby community, sharing opinions and discussing rugby matters with other fans, we thought we’d invite readers to ask questions of Jamie Noon this weekend.
We have some time with Jamie on Sunday 27th July (in a few days’ time), so if there’s a question you’ve always wanted to ask, please do let me know.
Either email me your questions, or just leave a comment here - they might provide inspiration for others. We’ll then publish the questions and answers next week.
Time to have your say…
O2 Scrum on the Beach clip
Check out this clip of some rugby gods (Easter, Strettle and Care) playing some beach rugby. It is being used to promote the O2 Scrum on the Beach series, but thought it was quite amusing.
I think these Quins boys were filmed before the tour to New Zealand!
Deans inspires Australia to victory over world champions
Robbie Deans masterminded a stunning Australian win over South Africa in the Tri-Nations at the weekend, and now look forward to the arrival of the All Blacks.
The Wallabies played with width and intention, eventually breaking down the strong Springbok defence and playing the game away from the forward battle that Peter de Villiers had had in mind.
The visitors stuck to their usual gameplan that won them the Webb Ellis Cup, reducing the match to a pretty dull affair, but Australia had enough weapons in the armoury to eventually cross the line twice, through Lote Tuquiri and Stirling Mortlock.
Few people would have predicted the result (I certainly won no points in the SuperBru prediction game), but the prospect of next week’s match between Australia and New Zealand is now very appealing.
Springboks target Wallabies’ front-row
When you type “Australia scrummage” into Google the first link that appears is “Australia scrum in for more pain”, which then goes onto detail the heroics of a certain Andrew Sheridan.
The Wallabies have been branded with a reputation which neither jelly-belly Dunning, nor any of the fresh-faced Wallaby props have been able to shift post-Sheridan. It is therefore no surprise that the Springboks have picked a pack aimed at disrupting the Australian scrum.
We all know the Boks are physical, and they dealt with the All Black props in a way that England can only dream about, and with two props on the bench and CJ Van der Linde and Guthro Steenkamp ready to tenderise Benn Robinson and Al Baxter, the omens do not look good for the men in gold.
Alongside this, the Boks have brought in a more mobile number 8 in Pierre Spies (with an equally mobile Ryan Kankowski on the bench) , and have Bakkies Botha and Victor Matfield back to their World Cup-winning form purring in the engine room. My guess on their game plan is: hit them hard up front, tire them out, then make them chase us.
The Aussies have made their own changes as well. The experimental side that Robbie Deans put out against a hapless French side makes way for the experience of Nathan Sharpe, Wycliff Palu (with the tenacious Phil Waugh dropping to the bench ) and Lote Tuquiri. All three players have come back from injury but perhaps lack match fitness.
Deans will nonetheless be looking for a big effort from his players in this his first match against the big guns down under. However, it looks like it could be a long 80 minutes in the Subiaco Oval for the Wallabies.
Australia team: Adam Ashley-Cooper, Peter Hynes, Stirling Mortlock (capt), Berrick Barnes, Lote Tuqiri; Matt Giteau, Luke Burgess; Benn Robinson, Stephen Moore, Al Baxter, James Horwill, Nathan Sharpe, Rocky Elsom, George Smith, Wycliff Palu.
Replacements: Tatafu Polota-Nau, Matt Dunning, Hugh McMeniman, Phil Waugh, Sam Cordingley, Ryan Cross, Drew Mitchell.
South Africa team: Conrad Jantjes, JP Pietersen, Francois Steyn, Jean de Villiers, Bryan Habana, Butch James, Ricky Januarie, Pierre Spies, Juan Smith, Schalk Burger, Victor Matfield (captain), Bakkies Botha, CJ van der Linde, Schalk Brits, Gurthro Steenkamp
Replacements: Adriaan Strauss, Tendai Mtawarira, Brian Mujati, Andries Bekker, Ryan Kankowski, Ruan Pienaar, Peter Grant.
By John White
Brian Smith is appointed to England’s coaching team
Martin Johnson has announced that Brian Smith will be England’s ‘attacking’ coach for next season.
The London Irish director of rugby has been widely tipped as the saviour of England rugby and the man to drag the international side out of defensive boredom by providing some attacking structure.
England’s last attack was at the 2003 World Cup against Georgia, so this news might be heralded among rugby supporters that have endured five years of misery.
Have a look at this article for some background on the new coach.
The best team in the world stun the All Blacks
A late try by Ricky Januarie left the All Blacks reeling in Dunedin at the weekend, after they had assumed the lead with ten minutes to go and looked certain to win after the Springboks were reduced to 14 men.
The World Champions proved their worth with a gritty hard-fought display to earn a first victory on New Zealand soil in ten years.
After all the bitter off-field wrangling that went on last week, Peter de Villiers’ men will enjoy the bragging rights until the third Tri-Nations fixture between the two sides takes place on 16th August in South Africa.
The Boks certainly seem to deserve their ranking at the top of world rugby, after their demolition of the Six Nations champions last month and this latest away victory.
This will come as a blow to the All Blacks, who now aren’t even the best team in the world between World Cups.
New Zealand v South Africa in the Tri-Nations
New Zealand and South Africa renew their rivalry once again on Saturday, with the second instalment of the Tri-Nations taking place in Dunedin.
Graham Henry and Peter de Villiers have been engaging in a so-called war of words, each criticising the other’s team’s interpretation of laws and trying to expose a number of areas of contention.
De Villiers has a point in my view - the recent England series suggested as much in the land of the long white cloud where Richie McCaw is god and can do whatever he likes on the field without penalty!
However, every coach wants his team to play to the limit of the referees tolerance, and the laws are only relevant if the referee chooses to apply them - both coaches are meeting with tomorrow’s official to try to agree what’s allowed and what isn’t.
Both teams have made a couple of changes, and it’s likely to be another close game in the cold and wet House of Pain. I’ve gone for the All Blacks by 9 on SuperBru…
Here are the teams:
New Zealand: 15 Mils Muliaina, 14 Sitiveni Sivivatu, 13 Conrad Smith, 12 Ma’a Nonu, 11 Rudi Wulf, 10 Dan Carter, 9 Andy Ellis, 8 Jerome Kaino, 7 Rodney So’oialo (captain), 6 Adam Tomson, 5 Ali Williams, 4 Anthony Boric, 3 John Afoa, 2 Andrew Hore, 1 Tony Woodcock.
Replacements: 16 Keven Mealamu, 17 Neemia Tialata, 18 Kevin O’Neill, 19 Sione Lauaki, 20 Jimmy Cowan, 21 Stephen Donald, 22 Leon MacDonald.
South Africa: 15 Percy Montgomery, 14 JP Pietersen, 13 Adrian Jacobs, 12 Jean de Villiers, 11 Bryan Habana, 10 Butch James, 9 Ricky Januarie, 8 Joe van Niekerk, 7 Juan Smith, 6 Schalk Burger, 5 Victor Matfield (captain), 4 Bakkies Botha, 3 CJ van der Linde, 2 Bismarck du Plessis, 1 Gurthro Steenkamp.
Replacements: 16. Schalk Brits, 17 Brian Mujati, 18 Andries Bekker, 19 Luke Watson, 20 Ruan Pienaar, 21 Francois Steyn, 22 Conrad Jantjes.
New ‘Headlines’ page on The Rugby Blog
Check out the new ‘Headlines’ page on The Rugby Blog, the only page you’ll need to keep an eye on headlines from around the world of rugby.
It brings together headlines from sites like BBC Sport, The Times, Planet Rugby and many others to save you the bother of trawling the internet for rugby news.
Now there really is no need to go anywhere else - use the Headlines page for the latest news and then read and comment on features and opinion from our regular writers.
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