Lets look at the matches playd this weekend in particular and the present rankin gs are important:-
1 Stormers = 27 points - PD +124
2 Cardiff = 24 points - PD + 39
3 Munster = 23 points - PD + 30
4 Ulster = 21 points - PD + 66 #
5 Glasgow = 20 points - PD + 74
6 Leinster = 16 points - PD + 4
7 Sharks = 15 Points - PD - 2
8 Bulls = 14 points - PD - 18
9 Edinburgh = 13 points - PD + 40 #
10 Connach - 13 points - PD + 19 #
11 Zebre - 10 points PD - 75
12 Benetton - 9 points PD -76
13 Sharks - 8 points PD - 67
14 Ospreys - 7 points PD - 32
15 Dragons - 5 points PD - 91
16 Scarlets - 4 points PD - 45 #
# The four teams have only played in 5 matches - sine their matches were never played due to extremely bad weater conditions and will be fitted in in January and February
The Stormers is in a very favourable aituation - namely they have a situaation wher they only have to play 6 Matches against Irsish and UK teams to play of which only 2 are away matches. Th\e rest are against SA teams where 3 are away and 3 at hiome. So of their remaining 12 matches in the tournament only 5 are against foreign clubs and they have 7 at home matche play .
Connacht vs Sharks
Connacht won the match easilyand even if the players due to Springbok duty was absent from the team would have made no difference to the oucome - the Sharks wuld have lost, The Sharks were playng dead head rugby with ball skills gone down the drain.
OK - easy to blame the coach for deficiencies - but that is not all - the fact is th e playes have gone through many phases of traing t develop their skills ad not throw balls away for the beneiit of opposition teams they should be fired - but they roll the ball on the ground and expect tream-mates to catch it. They cannot undestand the basics about ball sense and skills and their decisionamking is rock bnottom
At this stage they have played 6 teams on URC level - 2 with all the Springbok absentees played and they won only won i of those agaisnt the weakest team in the URC - namely Scarlets So even woth theeir Sprigboks preset they remain on the Shit list.
The Bulls
Ackerman is suffering from a squad where key payers were absent and where there were zero game plans and no idea for backline play at all. The idea to use Springboks amnd ex-Springboks like Pollard, Le Roux and Serfontein - all backline players - failed badly. In the match where Polard played he was extremely poor and both matches Serfontein played in he was shit but in the 5 matches Le Roux played in showed he is total supershit,
The fact is that none of the players have an dea what backline play actually entail, Of the 6 matches played they won 3 and ended up with a negative point difference of -18 points.
There needs to be a new house cleaning done and the players told that bashing up against teams using only their forwards will be disastrous and some skills training fo backline players will prevent disastrous results, They won their first 3 at home matches played and lost the next 3
The fact is that a totaly new rugby culture needs to develop in the Bulls set-up or they will nt eb successful in future - that was shown specfically in the home match against the Lions yesterday They ahve a negative PD of 18 points..
The Lions
They also played six matches and lost 3 as well - but victories against Ulste and the Bulls showed they now play 15 man rugby ith sharp skills being present all the time. Thy do not rally have the forwards to beat tams like the Bulls and Lions - but they play 15 man rugby and have a top cass teams spirit
The Stormers,
They are top of the log bcause hey play 15 man rgby and a strong fighting spirit and team spirit and is likely to remain the top team with Sacha and Willemse being available in future, It will be very difficult to be beaten at home. They were te only team that cbnsder in recruiting top classs school players in their squad already..
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