ABs sitting pretty
The All Blacks have increased their lead at the top of the IRB world rankings.
Richie McCaw’s men will finish the year as the world’s best team following their emphatic 39-12 win against France and the Boks’ 15-10 loss to Ireland.
Ireland jump France into fourth spot as the highest placed European nation. England and Argentina both rise one spot with Wales falling two places after their disappointing 33-12 loss to the Wallabies.
Lower down the rankings, Italy jump Samoa into 11th spot with their 24-11 win against the Pacific Islanders.
IRB world rankings (top 10)
1(1) New Zealand 91.68
2(2) South Africa 88.59
3(3) Australia 85.55
4(5) Ireland 84.58
5(4) France 82.40
6(7) England 80.72
7(8) Argentina 80.55
8(6) Wales 79.89
9(9) Scotland 76.59
10(10) Fiji 75.91
December 2nd, 2009 at 5:06 am
@whatever:
You must be bitter…being around supporters of consistent winners.
Just enjoy their case and go along for the ride…they are just winding you up.
They obviously know you are grump and so are putting the stir in.
Do yourself a favour and lighten up and you will see they are joking with you. Do the same back and they will enjoy your case.
Make sure it is in good humour. Know some saffas they do take it seriously and get very personal.
December 2nd, 2009 at 5:07 am
@skopskiet:
Quite agreed. They can be brilliant one week-end and shite the next. If they could string it together then they would be consitently in the top 3.
December 2nd, 2009 at 5:09 am
@wallabie.:
Wallabie, who asked you to the party with the patch over your eye? Read without bias dude. Aaah, but that’s difficult for you as you also keen to have a dig at every oportunity not so?
December 2nd, 2009 at 5:09 am
@skopskiet:
How many games have the boks and French played since the boks last beat them?
December 2nd, 2009 at 5:10 am
Ok I guess patriotism can still be classified as a virtue, not forgetting ones roots should always stand one in good stead. As they say, home is where the heart is.
December 2nd, 2009 at 5:11 am
Oh, and wallabie, constant winners? Yeah right. I had a good season in NZ to be honest, how about you? Must be happy with your lot?
December 2nd, 2009 at 5:11 am
@whatever:
Hey just giving advice.
many kiwis here and they love a banter…we love it and happy to return the favour.
December 2nd, 2009 at 5:14 am
@whatever: and you are the biggest one from your country mate… youre only as good as your last game, not the games that were played 4 months ago… you harp on about the french being flat, but face it, two wins out of your last nine attempts says it all… the french have a bigger number on your lot then ours, but you will never admit that…
and as for Ireland, still a country that hasnt beaten us, yet they showed you guys up didnt they… 4 losses against NH opposition, two of them club sides… keep believing your the best, what excuses you going to bring up now?? as Ive said before, we can add IRELAND to the “teams SA were lucky not to face in 07″, cause we all know you would have lost to them too.. as results indicate..
and is it 42-33 overall, that tells me whose the best… yuo must love living in denial.. idiot!!
December 2nd, 2009 at 5:14 am
@skopskiet:
Skop, I stick up for my boys. Patriotism, but not blind patriotism. They were c r a p at the end of the season and I would be the first to admit that, but I still feel they won when it counted this year.
December 2nd, 2009 at 5:14 am
@whatever:
giving you lot a chance.
It irks many how no depth team over performs. Enjoy our lowly postion while it lasts because it aint going to last.
The bokke are moving down and the wallabies are on the way up.
December 2nd, 2009 at 5:15 am
@poppa69:
jeez, who rattled your cage Poppa? You on a tea break from the security rounds?
December 2nd, 2009 at 5:18 am
@wallabie.:
I’m not so sure about Boks on the way down. Never write them off, but I agree your boys are on the up, in fact I reckon they may take the next WC. I’ve said that before as well. Young side full of talent.
December 2nd, 2009 at 5:18 am
well I’m too lazy to look it up but I believe we did beat them in PE in 2005 which should be about 4 games ago, but last time we beat them over in France was Mallet’s team of 97 where we gave them a 5 try hiding something like the Ab’s just done. Must have been Bok’s riding high that day and Frenchie in disarray.
You always got to catch France on a bad hair day then they easy picking’s, catch them on a good hair day or when they bristling with Gallic c.cksure anxiety and you in for a tough day at the office with a few sore or broken ribs and noses to be writing home about.
December 2nd, 2009 at 5:19 am
whatever
Aus is a small rugby nation…smaller than Scotland, Wales but we are over achievers.
You see we use brain and not brawn. SA cannot go past brawn and it most times brawn loses out.
Its coming fast and de villiers knows it but he has woken up too late.
done nothing to facilitate the moving out of old players.
December 2nd, 2009 at 5:19 am
@whatever: just the way you live in the past mate… if our teams faced each other tomorrow even you know what the result would be… well done, you won your first tri nations in five years and did it well… but its funny how when we won 4 in a row it was somehow devalued with travel and the like…
yet most kiwis I know said at the time that SA were deserved winners, not too many SA’s said that over the preceding years did they??
December 2nd, 2009 at 5:22 am
@whatever:
Bugger…you taken the wind out of my sails.
I was hoping for some banter!!
The wallabies have some way to go as one swallow does not make a summer although the youngsters are showing promise.
December 2nd, 2009 at 5:28 am
@poppa69:
Go play in the traffic dingbat
December 2nd, 2009 at 5:32 am
@whatever: ooohhhh touch a nerve did I, cause you know Im right… still safer then playing in the streets in SA huh, no wonder you moved to NZ…
tell me also, is it 4 losses to Scotland your team has had ? bwahahaha seriously, another team that has never recorded a victory against us… you must love being the best for 3 month or 5 week stints, a record to be proud of for sure…
December 2nd, 2009 at 5:46 am
Its true Sa coaching haven’t been nearly as proactive as they should have. They been missing far too many tricks the past while and I think we’ve left it far too late to rectify now. Hopefully I’m wrong but Smit should certainly not be calling the shots about player selection etc.
Old timers should be upgraded regularly else we going to be trading on age old shares pretty soon. We got to get fresh blood into the system or we going to stew in our ancient juices. De Villiers better bust some gut this next year and ring some long overdue changes and start calling the shots himself.
Smit & co. must just be players, not player coaches, if their influence is extending beyond the on field management and into board rooms and change rooms to the extent where no decisions are taken without his veto able acceptance then its getting to a tail wagging the dog syndrome and can hardly be healthy or profitable. It then means some players carry far too much clout for the overall value and evolutionary progress of the team.
December 2nd, 2009 at 5:53 am
@poppa69:
So why you working as a security guard in OZ then? Greener pastures? Or did you start getting scared in South Auckland?
December 2nd, 2009 at 5:58 am
@whatever: hahahaha not at all, I was there last week visiting family… you should go visit them, they like insecure little saffas who contribute absolutely nothing to society…admit it, you were kicked out of SA for bringing the national IQ quotient down a thousand points..
December 2nd, 2009 at 3:32 pm
@blueboy: “Can someone please explain to me how these rankings work as i fail to see how the all blacks can be above the boks after the boks beating the lions and winning the tri nations.”
1) BIL games do not count, as BIL aren’t ranked team.
2) Before this year’s 3N Boks were HUGELY laggind behing the ABs in the rankings – by more than 3 points. Thanks to 3-0 win and NZ loss to France, Boks leapfroged them and became no1, despite own loss to Australia.
Since then Boks have played 3, lost 2 (both to lower ranked teams), while NZ have played 6 (last 3N Test vs Australia, Tokyo Test vs Australia plus 4 European Tests all away from home), won all 6.
That’s how.
December 2nd, 2009 at 7:14 pm
In relation to Springbok ratings, the AB ratings should always been seen in the context of the uneven playing fields they enjoy in both the Super 14 and Tri-Nations, which elevates their results due to an easier touring schedule and creates the false perception of their ongoing superiority on the playing field.
They can only truly enjoy that rating when the playing fields are close to level, which they are not at present, a fact expressed and confirmed earlier this year by Mils Muliana, the AB captain.
It is incumbent upon SARU, South African journalists and Springbok supporters to always keep this fact in mind and express it in public. Otherwise we stand the risk of demeaning our players and our results.
We need to make it a priority to even the playing fields.
December 2nd, 2009 at 10:31 pm
@sglazer: Pathetic, Mils didnt say that at all, its swings and roundabouts for all teams, stand up and be counted.
cant you just accept you had a purple patch this year, and we didnt? We came right and you didnt. Its sport for gods sake
December 2nd, 2009 at 10:48 pm
@poppa69:
Yeah mr poppavitch, first you flee eastern europe then nz. Why is that? No one like you?
December 3rd, 2009 at 12:14 am
@sglazer: “which elevates their results due to an easier touring schedule”
Playing 7 Tests (including one in Japan) is easier than 3 for Springboks (plus 2 midweek games where, I guess, just a few Boks featured).
Flying across the globe (and playing, by the way) is easier than flying in the same timezone after nice time at home.
Speaking about 3N, I have never seen Boks playing away at the other side of the globe the very next week after the home Test. ABs did just that in Bloem this year.
Moreover, before this years 3N, ABs have beaten Boks at their own backyard almost twice as much than lost. 9 to 5. It certainly affects the rankings, when Boks clearly have been weaker than ABs for years. And (bar some few exceptions) Boks have usually played in November tours in Europe much worse than the ABs. It, too, does affect the rankings.
You have valid point about S14, I agree, 4 or even 5 game tour is a huge ask for any SA team and it puts them in disadvantage. Frankly, I do not see how it can be otherwise in round-robin system (surely, no SA team would like to travel across the ocean to Aus/NZ 2 times to make each trip shorter) when Aus/NZ are fairly close to each other while SA is far away.
Hovewer – bar this (and 2007) season for the Bulls and fairly long winning streak at home for the Sharks – SA teams consistently have been poor even at home. Now where Kiwis have the enjoyed some advantage, when beating SA teams at their own turf for years?