Wales v england

[Dai 55]

Well i have seen some s--t in my time but Wales were **** beyond belief,how sad were they?
Dai 55

[jcj]

Serves you right for watching football Dai.Did you watch the Crusaders v Sharks today.What a game, the best one I have seen in a long time.The speed and skills shown by both sides made the six nations look pedestrian.

[keithwill38]

Yes must agree jcj,what a great advert for fast flowing rugby,something neither club,regional,or national teams can do in the northern hemisphere,the critics call it basketball rugby but if that is so lets have more,in my eyes they are just more fitter and talented rugby players,and a pleasure to watch

[Dai 55]

Yes agree jcj what a game i will watch all the time now,back to the football Bellamy has now said he is retiering from international football (good)whats he ever done?apart from getting his name in the paper for trouble,living in England my wife and kids all english was not easy watching the match just gobsmacked how a team playing for your country at home can perform like that,lets be honest England were not a lot better,No more football for me.

dai 55

[sixties]

Absolute Rubbish they should hold their heads in shame, You see better football in our local park.

[Gwyn Nicholas]

Whilst I agree the Wales did under perform (first half), I cannot see why people are so annoyed. Teams much higher in World rankings have gone under by more than 2-0 to England. In this campaign alone England have beaten the Swiss 3-1 (ranking 23) and Bulgaria 4-0 (ranking 47). When you are ranked 116 in the world and playing against the no 6 (arguably) team in the World passion and pride can only go so far. I thought in the first ten minutes the Welsh boys looked stunned and the clumsy tackle to give away a soft pen must have been gutting. If you at look the rankings and compare them to Rugby Union, this match was like Bermuda or Malta taking on New Zealand and I'm sure their fans would not be as unhappy about losing by a couple of trys. Speaking of Rugby Union for a moment, where was all the rage about this six nations debacle by Wales and the ineptness of Byrne, Phillips and Hook along with the coaching staff who continue to pick them. 7th in the world given a kicking by France 6th.

Sorry but (in my opinion) you guys just expected too much from a football team who are what they are, Ranked 116 in the World. It angers me more that a certain player who could have made a difference, put club before Country for the sake of a European Cup (Champions League) game against Real Madrid.

[Dai 55]

Gwyn,
although i agree with rankings etc,this was Wales v England were was the pride?people can say to me all day the difference in class but Wales did not show any passion during the match,can you really blame Bale for picking club before country i think he made a very good decision
On your other note Byrne,Hook,Phillips say no more
Dai 55

[Gwyn Nicholas]

Dai on one hand you say that the Welsh showed a lack of passion and pride (yet they chose to play and represent their country) on the other, you say you cant blame a player for turning his back on his country and you think he made the right decision. One of those statements must be wrong surely as they totally contradict each other. Following that logic, the Welsh boys would be held in higher esteem by you if they refused to put on the shirt in the first place. They went down 2-0 in no time but did they capitulate, no they fought back and held them to the same scoreline. Bale has shown his quality in Europe and the Premiership this season and scares defenders to death with his pace and crossing ability. That sort of quality in your side lifts players much as it did when Ian Rush and Ryan Giggs played. They still didn't win much because one or two players (even world class) are not enough to compete at this level hence no116 ranking, they dont get that for lacking in passion, it's lacking in quality/class. Bale should have played if able, representing your country used to be the pinnacle of a sportsman life obviously he doesn't think so. Speed is as guilty and blaming the state of the pitch really does show that this man should not be in charge of an international side.

[Dai 55]

Exactly right Gwyn,those who turned up showed no passion at all unless someone was watching another game?
Bale to me made a very good decision why should he put his football career in doubt playing for that,i dont think it would matter to Bale after that performance if played or not? lots of welsh players play in lower leauges and this gives them some chance to be seen, why else would they be there, there not going to win anything,and if i am wrong did we win anything when Giggs and Rush played for Wales all down to money at the end of the day,

Dai 55

[Gwyn Nicholas]

Whether they were going to win or not, Giggs and Rush still played for their country. Giggs could have played for England and probably would have been first named on any selectors list, but he chose Wales. He put his country of choice in front of personal ambition. That is passion, that is pride, you slate the Welsh team who actually donned the shirt and stick up for guy who wants a champions league medal more than a Welsh shirt. The fact is, he will not get that medal either because Tottenham are not good enough to win the Cup. I watched that game and I saw how weak they were all over the park but they lacked class against a team full of players who are playing week in week out at the very highest level in the premiership. Did I watch a different game to you no, but we saw different things. I am old fashioned and I believe to represent Wales is the highest accolade for any Welsh sportsman, obviously neither you or Bale share my belief as is your right.

[Dai 55]

Gwyn totally agree representing your country is as good as it gets, and one of my proudest moments was watching my brother win a gold medal for Wales in 1986 i am sure you remember 29,i am Welsh through and through,yes i have made my opinions on the football but they are just my opinions case closed on this one for me,
Take care
Dai 55

[Gwyn Nicholas]

England (no6) 1 - Ghana (no 16) 1 . Pretty much shows the ranking system is quite accurate. England on paper should win the match but with only ten places between them it should be close - and it was. England on paper should beat Wales(no116) comfortably - and they did.

[Dai 55]

On rankings yes i agree it should be close,look at how many minnows have knocked big teams out of the fa cup,and i think this topic was down to Wales playing England only happens once in a blue moon and we did not perform,along with no passion,heart,pride etc,i just feel we went onto the pitch knowing the game was lost were was the HEART,
And what really baffles me is how England are ranked 6 in the World?

Dai 55

[Gwyn Nicholas]

Dai, you are right minnows do occasionally knock out bigger clubs, just as in horse racing terms, odds on favs lose to outsiders for no apparent reason. The mighty Man utd lost to stuggling West Ham this season, it happens albeit on rare occasions. Sometimes heads just go down when the going gets tough and as proud as you are or as passionate sometimes on the day you cant give your best. England have been slated by their fans in the same way, lack of pride lack of passion when the truth is, they just didn't perform on the day. Rooney is a prime individual example, because his form has been as flat as a washer, he has been accused of not being passionate enough about playing when the truth is, he is so disappointed with his own form that it has affected his game.

The point you made about it being a rare thing England playing Wales is perhaps another reason why there was a lack of self belief(I prefer that to lack of pride and passion) in the team. When teams play each other on a semi-regular basis such as England and the old enemy Germany, they have an idea how each other plays and know that class divide between them is so small that a win or lose is down to the odd error or stroke of luck. I suppose they could have kicked the English players off the park and done a Vinny Jones or Robbie Savage make-over on them to show their passion but with reffing today they would have had their marching orders P D Q. The fact is, we are a small nation, football is not our number one priority as a sport and we dont have enough players playing in the top flight to be able to compete at international level and expect to win any major trophy. For Welsh football, the "taking part" element of sportsmanship is about as much as they will ever achieve.

[jase hill]

Have read with interest what already has been written here and feel I must comment. Allthough I would rather try to lick my own elbow before watching rugby my aim is not to bash the sport but to remind you that Rugby is a minority sport. To compare the Welsh rugby team with the Welsh football team is unfair. The rugby team competes with a far smaller talent pool. Take for instance where Wales came in the recent 6 nations, 3rd I think. That puts them half way down a list of 6 competitors so 50th out of 100 and so forth, the Welsh football team are 160 something in a global sport, the worlds best most watched most popular sport. Comparisons are therefore unfair. Love your sport but dont knock the football because like it or not Rugby is way behind and always will be, just look at the fan base. And did Englang not beat the Welsh Rugby team as well recently. I suppose you rugby fans can justify a Welsh defeat to the old enemy in more simple terms.

[dutchman]

at the end of the day it is "just" a game albeit well paid players playing it both soccer and rugby (obviousely not as much in rugby ) but as my mrs tells me when i get peed off watching the rugby or the football "noone died so stop crying and go and do the dishes "

[jcj]

If you want passion rivalry and a fair deal of skill you should have watched the varsity rugby match last night on S4C. Cardiff UNI v Swansea Uni, I really enjoyed watching what I thought was an excellant game and well reffed by Nigel Owen.