Would Campese Find it so Easy?

From the top Armchair Playmaker field correspondent comes this story of conflict among retired Australian stars. George Gregan, whose ended his illustrious international career after the 2007 Rugby World Cup but will play in Japan this year, has made plenty of waves this week with the release of his book Halfback Half Forward. Among the exciting tidbits from the book are claims that the Australian Rugby Union inadquately supported the Wallabies during the 2003 Rugby World Cup, but for controversy nothing in the book tops the claim that legendary Australian outside back David Campese wouldn't be able to make it today. Campese, who is reconciling with the Wallabies after some awkward years during his service with South African sides and has not always been glowing in his assessment of Gregan, has noted that Gregan is entitled to his opinion, just as Campese is entitled to the opinion that Gregan "will go down as being remembered for making one tackle and then living off it for the next 15 years." The "one tackle" note is a reference to a try-saving, match-saving tackle Gregan made on New Zealand All Black Jeff Wilson in 1994.

Some have jumped to Campese's defense, but we'll stay out of the fray and let you decide after having a look at a couple of clips of "Campo" in action:





While we're at it, here's that "one tackle" as well...



...plus a couple of parodies to show the cultural significance that "one tackle" has had (Caution: some rude imagery and gestures in the first clip):

A Different Sort of Code Swap

Given Armchair Playmaker's dual-code focus, we talk a lot about code-swapping. Usually, this means players moving back and forth between the fifteen-man rugby union code and the thirteen-man rugby league code, but recent news about Waisale Serevi is another matter. The Fijian legend, who played extensively for the Fiji rugby union side but is more famous for his performances with the successful Fijian rugby union sevens side, is set to play in a rugby league nines tournament in the United Kingdom next Wednesday. The crowd is in for a treat if he is as dazzling playing rugby league nines (a rugby league variant with nine players per side and 7.5-minute halves) as he was in rugby union sevens (a rugby union variant with seven players per side and seven-minute halves), as seen below:

Ups and Downs for Eagles in Setanta Club Challenge

Although the U.S.A. Eagles endured a sound 42-22 beating from Munster in last weekend's Setanta Challenge Cup, there were some positive points. On the bright side, the United States scored twice to earn an 8-0 before Munster answered, and was down only 20-15 at the half. Less promising was the second half, when the Eagles continued their recent habit of poor second stanza showings by getting outscored 22-7.

See a few highlights from the match below:

Home Away from Home?

Are times changing? Just after we talked of the historical advantage owned by home sides in the Tri-Nations, series, Australia sneaked a 27-15 road win over South Africa.

The win was notable because it means that all three sides have now won at least one away match in the series this year, an event that has never occurred in any previous Tri-Nations series. (Although in 2001, all three sides earned at least a draw, if not a win, on the road.) Further, South Africa's only win of the series so far was on the road, while Australia is the only side in the tournament not to lose a home match yet.

Is the power of the Tri-Nations home ground advantage fading? With two matches left in the series, we shall see.

Americans: Don't Forget to Turn on the Television Today!

ESPN Classic and Setanta Sports U.S. are simultaneously airing today's Setanta Challenge Cup match between the United States national side and Heineken Cup champions Munster. The match airs at 3:00 p.m. Eastern U.S. time, so don't miss it!

No Place Like Home

As the 2008 rugby union Tri-Nations series continues today with a match between South Africa and Australia, things look grim for the Wallabies. Not so much because Australia's last match was a 39-10 loss to New Zealand, but because Australia is playing in South Africa and it is historically very, very hard for the away side to win in the Tri-Nations. In the twelve previous years of the series prior to 2008 (the tournament began in 1996). As our chart below shows, The home side historically tends to win in home matches. Up to 2007, the home side has won about 72% of its matches (not counting one draw in 2001):



For the opponents in today's match, the home ground advantage is even stronger, as our second chart shows. While New Zealand has managed to win just more than half its away matches over the history of the Tri-Nations, Australia has only won 20% of them and South Africa has won even fewer:



The lesson: If you can get an even bet on the home side in a Tri-Nations match, take it...especially if the All Blacks aren't visiting. For a reminder of that key exception to the Tri-Nations home ground advantage, have a look at highlights from Jed Thian's gleeful Alternative Rugby Commentary coverage of New Zealand's 19-0 road win over South Africa last weekend (Caution: Rude language, offensive humor, etc.):

More Code-Swapping for U.S. Side

Given that there's not a lot of money to be made playing either rugby union or rugby league in the United States, players swapping codes or playing both codes simultaneously doesn't quite bring the controversy that it does elsewhere. That said, there are a lot of interesting crossovers between the codes going on in the United States. Considering that the U.S. rugby union team's coach, Australian Scott Johnson, hails from a country with a pretty strong rugby league tradition, it is perhaps unsurprising that Johnson is digging deep into rugby league for players.

For the United States' match against ASM Clermont Auvergne last weekend, Johnson brought in Tyrone Coppedge from second-tier Australian rugby league club Souths Logan Magpies. For next Saturday's Setanta Challenge Cup match against Munster, Johnson has brought in American National Rugby League star Nick Isbrandtsen, who also plays lacrosse at Trinity College in Hartford, Connecticut, for a trial. Coppedge also returns to the side for a second match.

In anticipation of Isbrandtsen's debut, here are a couple of Connecticut Wildcats clips featuring Isbrandtsen. He can be seen playing at lock forward (a.k.a. loose forward, a position similar to a rugby union number eight) and wearing jersey number 15:

MediaZone Revamps Streaming Content Site

A little while back, we mentioned MediaZone's online Rugby Channel site among our list of places to get video content. Now, MediaZone has updated their rugby offerings with their new RugbyZone site.

As before, the site primarily offers pay-per-view content (both subscription and match-by-match), but also has some free content and a number of features, columns, etc. The site covers a lot of rugby union, though sadly no rugby league. Have a look if you get your rugby union content online and have limited television access to rugby!

Bright Spots in Another USA Loss

The USA Eagles national rugby union side continued its losing streak Saturday, falling 37-14 to French club ASM Clermont Auvergne in Charleston, South Carolina. Despite the loss, which was suffered without the services of start flyhalf Mike Hercus, the Eagles enjoyed a few good moments and blooded some talented new players. See below for a few highlights:

Great ELV Video Guide Online at Rugby Dump

One form of the rugby union Experimental Law Variations began its worldwide trial on 1 August. While other versions of the "ELVs" will be used by some professional competitions this year, most players, including all U.S. players, will be playing under the laws that went into effect this month.

While the International Rugby Board has released a very good printed guide to the new laws, their video, which has been posted at Rugby Dump, is a very handy way to get up to speed on the new laws and their application:

All Smiles Now in the Land of the Long White Cloud

With the 2008 Tri-Nations series past the halfway point, there is everything to play for with all three sides still in it. New Zealand recently the series lead by giving Australia a 39-10 thumping, but South Africa is also in a comfortable position with three consecutive home matches in a row to come.

While there is a lot left to the tournament, the win over the Wallabies has spirits lifted in New Zealand. Although New Zealand was under a fair bit of pressure before the match, things are looking up for the world's most rugby-mad nation. This is perhaps no better emphasized than by the joyous tone of the Alternative Rugby Commentary coverage provided by Jed Thian during the most recent match. Highlights are below, and Thian seems to sound a fair bit more cheerful than he did during commenting on the All Blacks' recent losses to Australia and South Africa(Caution: Profanity, rude language, etc.):

Part 1:


Part 2:

Like it or Not, SBW is a Union Man

The world-famous sudden defection of Sonny Bill Williams from league to union reached a landmark Friday when he played in his debut for Toulon. Starring in the 50-5 friendly match win despite receiving a yellow card for also bringing his legendary league-style shoulder charge to rugby union, Williams also managed to duck papers pertaining to an Australian injunction until after the match.

Williams looks to be dead-set on his code switch, claiming that he's ready to go to jail over it, so it may be time to get used to seeing him in the fifteen-man game. To get you started, here are a couple of clips from his debut:

Report Gives the IRB a Spray

An independently commissioned report released this week targets the International Rugby Board with severe criticism about its efforts to maintain and grow rugby union's global standing. Putting Rugby First, a report co-authored by the Spectrum Value Partners consultancy firm and the Addleshaw Goddard law firm and commissioned by an anonymous "group of concerned rugby supporters," lambasts the IRB for shortcomings such as:

• failing to pursue growth opportunities, particularly in large nations where rugby union is not popular (including the U.S.),
• providing an undemocratic environment by favoring the eight oldest "foundation union" nations in its policymaking, and
• falling behind other sports (including so-called "North American" sports such as American football).

Both the full report and an executive summary thereof have been posted online in an effort to espose as many readers as possible to the report. Whatever the outcome, it looks like the announcement should prompt some interesting discussion!

Tri-Nations Boiling Over

In about an hour, the 2008 Tri-Nations series will reach a crescendo in its fifth match, which features Australia against New Zealand in Auckland. Australia has hopped to the top of the table with two straight wins over South Africa and New Zealand, but each of the other two sides in the competition have won a match each and there are plenty more matches to go.

To make things more interesting, Australia hasn't won a Tri-Nations road match in quite a while. That and the pressure on New Zealand to win should ensure an intense showdown.

As we get ready for kickoff, here's highlights from the last match, as narrated by the Alternative Rugby Commentary's comedic (and rabidly pro-Kiwi) commentator Jed Thian (Caution: Contains profanity, rude language, offensive remarks, etc.):

Part 1:


Part 2:

Big Weekend for Both Codes in America

There are plenty of big rugby union and rugby league matches on in the U.S. this weekend. In rugby union, the North America 4 series wraps up with its grand final and consolation final Saturday. The U.S. Falcons and Canada West will meet in the championship decider, while the U.S. Hawks and Canada East will play for third. The semifinal matches, played earlier this week, can be viewed online in the video archive of the Glendale Raptors, hosts for the semifinal and final rounds at their Infinity Park home ground in Glendale, Colorado. The consolation final kicks off at 6:00 p.m. local time (5 p.m. Pacific U.S., 8 p.m. Eastern U.S.), and the grand final starts at 8:00 p.m. local time (7 p.m. Pacific U.S., 10 p.m. Eastern U.S.).

Both matches can be seen live at the NA4 site, and will presumably be archived in the can be viewed online in the video archive of the Glendale Rugby video archive. In the meantime, here are some highlights from the first clash between the grand finalists, which was handily won 55-3 by Canada West:



In rugby league, the final week of the American National Rugby League's regular season is on. With only six teams of the ten-team league qualifying for next week's knockout rounds and the top two sides getting a bye in those rounds, there is a lot to play for. The Aston DSC Bulls and New Haven Warriors are locked at the top of the competition points table. This weekend's match will determine what seed them and the other playoff qualifiers will take during the postseason. This weekend comes on the heels of last week's intense "War at the Shore," an annual regular-season feature wherein all of the AMNRL sides leave their home grounds to meet at one venue and play the weekend's fixtures back-to-back. The War at the Shore atmosphere also features tag rugby matches and other festival events. See highlights below: