Official West Hartlepool RFC

What a mess! Four players in alleged rape case, stuffed again, stuffed in u20s, player in romp with some model. What does Andrew say ?'Must look at the positives'. Doh! First he should go, he over saw the world cup, the horrendous treatment of the last coach (he had to phone Andrew to find out if he still had a job!) and now this, he was man in charge he should stand up and take the blame. How can you keep a job when the security firm you hired phoned for transport for players and women to go to the team hotel where an alleged rape takes place and then get the same firm to accompany players out on the town a week later! He was very willing for Ashton to take the flak, now he should. NO wait a minute, as an Irish man I think he should stay, nice chap, clean cut image, nice accent, just the right man to keep England moving in the right direction - downwards!

This team was always on a hiding to nothing. I'm suite sure it all just means that when Martin Johnson starts work next month he will be able to rule with his own rod of iron.

I always find it funny should an Englishman write anything negative about Ireland, Scotland or Wales he is immediately branded arrogant. The other way around anything goes.

Well lets be honest, this lot were arrogant, so much so the NZ papers headlines were, 'Good Riddance'. My point is that Andrew felt Ashton was to blame and so he went, isn't it the same for Andrew or is he above that? This has to be the worst British tour with its on and off the field disgraces, the leadership has to take the rap as should certain players.

I agree any Englishman would be called racist/chip on shoulder etc - if any other Home Nations do it it is classed as a bit of banter.

Get your own house in order Ireland/acheive something before you start shouting the odds.

Greg

Hope you will be on the website throughout the summer - it will be great for hits! :oD

All the best

Dave

Sorry Dave

I should know better but I have lived in Scotland and Ireland so I know how one eyed with double standards they are. I won’t bite again promise

Doesn't bother me. Have as many disagreements as you want but if Greg has a pub I'm on his side

I do Dave! Yes I am back, are Rovers in a different league now, have they a stand, is Mr. Kelly still ruining the English language! Just thought I would air views,that is what a site like this is for!!! As for Ireland, we got a better result down under than the boys in white, at least we gave them a game! And the players kept their zips done up! You are correct, they have under performed and are now at a crossroads, although yet again the celt league proved that it is far superior to the Premiership. Look at the low skill levels of the England team, I believe your best team Wasps train twice a week with a ball, lasting 45 minutes, no wonder the players cannot pass and catch, they spend every morning in the gym though! By the way I thought rape and pillage was for we celts not you civilised red rose wearers.

It's "alleged" . Must be remembered that no charges have been brought.

Sorry Dave yes the celts in the earlier centuries allegedly raped and pillaged!

Hmmmm, a stripper called "Angel" that had consensual sex with one England player, then apparently is forced to have sex with a second player, returns home to boyfriend the next day.....................then the boyfriend contacts the police. There seems like lots of substance to this girls "alleged" claim.

More like the RFU are getting raped by Rob Andrew doing a pretty poor job on the whole!

I read that 'Angel' was not part of the allegations. it was another girl. I am surprised having been so humiliated that any of the players would want to go out! Or is it all they care about is their bank balances and their image?

They should have been in a condition to train the next day, working on those skills they lack or do not have. How can you be in good condition if you are drunk and are partying to the wee hours? I remember a Lions tour in Australia where the players agreed to train the next day having been humiliated, they went on to win the series! That of course when the game was 'amateur' the players then had pride in their team and squad not their wallets.

Sounds a bit like the English footy team as well a bunch of Prima Donas.

Yes I am English.

Gregor,

I agree that if Wasps only train twice a week with a ball that it's a disgusting state of affairs.

Of the Premiership and International games I have watched over the last 3 seasons I have been disappointed by the vast majority.

A lot of English clubs are choosing to adopt the low risk- low reward approach of playing everything through short channels and battering away to gain territory in the hope that the opponents give away a kickable penalty.

When the ball does go wide with an English team it is normally slow, scrappy and lateral. Often forwards end up running from a ruck on the right flank to join one in and identical position on the left flank (or worse a few metres backwards).

In one instance I watched Carlos Spencer ignore 25m of space on the blind side 15m out from a Newcastle Falcons try line in favour of a crash ball through the centre. The 25m of blind side space was created not by good play by Northampton but by the Newcastle winger standing in a defensive position on Jonny Wilkinsons inside shoulder at a set scrum.

If Northants had gone blind the scrum half, Spencer and the winger (some daft jock with orange gloves who was as big as a flanker:oP) would have been 3 on 1 with the Newcastle flanker.

This sort of 1 dimensional thinking is typical of English rugby at the moment and produces nothing but players who live in the gym building up a powerful frame for those headlong charges into the opposition.

English defences also live for the glory tackles and big hits from these short runs and when tested by a creative attack are totally incapable of reading what is going on behind the attacking line i.e. nobody seems to read the angles of running being set up by opponents.

Having said all of the above we still got to a world cup final (2 consecutive finals too), which is more than can be said for Ireland, Scotland, Wales, France, New Zealand, Australia, Fiji, Samoa or anyone else who claims to be playing pretty creative rugby.

The difference in the world cup was the passion and sheer bloody mindedness the team played with.

These, however are only my own observations and I have never played or coached at a professional level so there are probably things that are way above my sphere of understanding that the professionals in the field understand that I do not.

Fully agree. THe premiership is producing some very poor rugby players. That is why England is trying to contract them away from the clubs. One thing is for sure you will not be in a third final.

I think the english rugby premiership suffers from the same affliction as the english football premiership.

The fear of losing is greater than the desire to win.

This is probably due to the huge amounts of money at stake. I also think that the premierships have too many foreign players and the respective governing bodies need to invest in the future of England.

grd you celts were saying things like that 12 months ago and we still got to the final .we still have 3 years to build a winning team and i bet that ireland and scotland still wont have beaten the all blacks in that time

You never know! You only got to the final because Ireland had a terrible competition, they imploded and threw away a great chance to win the cup. Also, The All Blacks had one of their bad games, with Australia looking under done.

I would not write off the celts as the Magners League is far superior to the turgid dross turned out in the premiership, it also has fewer foreign players and is going from strength to strength, is that why the european champions are from the league and the 6 nations champions pla their rugby in the league. SO things are looking good for the celts.