The GreyGhost returns: Alternative International Awards

http://www.theroar.com.au/2012/11/30/the-alternative-international-rugby-awards/

With another rugby season just about done and dusted, and with the IRB Awards looking to be the usual overly political, foregone conclusion, it’s time to celebrate those who have actually provoked the most debate and excitement in season 2012.
Nominees for the Alternative IRB awards are:
1. Worst Refereeing Howler
a) Wayne Barnes and Dave Pearson: For being too close, or too far away to spot Bradley Davies spear tackle on Donncha Ryan.
b) Craig Joubert: Worst unlikely contribution to New Zealand’s Rugby World Cup campaign.
c) Bryce Lawrence: Worst brazenly obvious contribution to New Zealand’s rugby world cup campaign.
d) Alain Rolland: Worst timing for a referee to actually punish a tip tackle while having a French sounding name.
e) Jonathan Kaplan: For “Keep your eye on the ball… the ball… not around the ball…the ball. Now, JK, which ball was used in the quick throw? The game ball from row Z in the stands? Or another one?”
2. Worst Coach
a) Andy Robinson: Worst capitulation in IRB rankings in a single year.
b) Rob Howley: For enabling Wales to slip down the rankings faster than Warren Gatland falling from a ladder.
c) Robbie Deans: Consistently making the worst attempts to win a Bledisloe Cup.
d) Heyneke Meyer: For best attempt to make Springbok fans nostalgic for the good old days when P-Divvy was in the power seat.
e) Martin Johnson: for worst attempt at a Rugby World Cup campaign.
3. Worst Act of Thuggery
a) Aurélien Rougerie on Richie McCaw: For worst eye gouge on an opposition captain in a Rugby World Cup final.
b) Dean Greyling on Richie McCaw: For worst attempt to subtly imply to a referee that a flanker might be offside.
c) Sam Warburton on Vincent Cleric: For worst attempt to get away with a tip-tackle.
d) Andrew Hore on Bradley Davies: For worst attempt to nonchalantly knock out an opponent.
e) Bradley Davies on Donncha Ryan: For least appropriate way to suggest a player is bound correctly to a ruck in the future.
4. Worst Team Performance
a) England for Rugby World Cup 2011: otherwise known as Mike Tindall’s stag.
b) Fiji: For all of 2011/2012.
c) France: For worst performance by a finalist in a Rugby World Cup pool.
d) New Zealand: For that draw in Brisbane.
e) Wales: For the tour of Australia they backed themselves to win 3-0.
f) Ireland: For losing to New Zealand 60-0 after being an injury time drop goal shy of a win the week before.
5. Worst off Field Indiscretion
a) Mike Tindall: For getting caught on video with another woman in a bar, two weeks after getting married.
b) Manu Tuilagi: For worst waterborne attempt to escape from the England team environment.
c) James Haskell, Chris Ashton and Dylan Hartley: For “the hotel walkie-talkie incident”.
d) Quade Coope : For worst contribution to dressing room solidarity.
c) Eliota Sapolu Fuimaono: For worst adherence to Godwin’s law on a social media platform.
6. Worst Kit
a) England: For wearing All Black to a rugby competition, in New Zealand.
b) Ireland: For wearing an All Black away strip, at home after losing 60-0 to the All Blacks.
c) England: For the purple jump suit.
d) New Zealand: For being a bunch of money grubbing sell outs and defiling rugby’s proudest icon with a sponsor’s logo.
7. Worst Commentary/Pundit
a) Ian Smith: For introducing the defeated French Captain as “Thierry Henry” in the Rugby World Cup post match interview.
b) Murray Mexted: Occupying all Google’s top 10 hits for the search phrase “rugby commentary howler”.
c) Zinzan Brooke: For ending every sentence on Sky TV with the word “here”.
d) Brian Moore: The only thing more reliable than a referee ignoring a crooked scrum feed is that Brian Moore will talk for 20 minutes about it. Every. Single. Time.
e) Phil Kearns: For suggesting every act of foul play perpetrated by a Wallaby should be legalised by the IRB.
f) John Inverdale: For most tenuous segue to mention Jonny Wilkinson’s 2003 drop goal during every single match commentary.
And the winners are…

So are we going to link to every thing he posts on the internet and get him unabanned by proxy?

There's HERSH as well! The roar.com is the real v3!

what a mansnake, not even funny.

Judging by the comments he has the same number of detractors on that site as well.

So much rugby knowledge and yet so much hate. I know he loves the All Blacks but that doesn't mean he has to embrace the dark side.

To be fair thats a balanced article. It just appears that 90% of the site lacks any sense of humor, and are horribly partisan in a serious way

Did you want people to comment on this article here or to contribute to the original on the roar? It seems fairer to the author to post on the original site. Even if it is by the Grey Ghost.......

Wasn't it Peter Allen who was the assistant ref instead of JK? EDIT: regarding the 'wrong ball' thing EDIT2:

kiakahaaotearoa wrote:Judging by the comments he has the same number of detractors on that site as well.

So much rugby knowledge and yet so much hate. I know he loves the All Blacks but that doesn't mean he has to embrace the dark side.

Ha, a neat summary.

Let's not worry about the dear departed, shall well???

It's like that episode of the Simpsons where the lads in Protestant heaven are looking over at Catholic heaven. Absolutely no craic over there at all.

I wonder if Awop is gonna add his two cents

Great Article GG

At first I was rolling my eyes because I thought "Oh, this tiresome bore again".

But it is quite amusing to see a little club of v2 refugees trading war stories in the comments. And to think- their only crime was being annoying antisocial dicks

But biltong is over there too. Good to 'see' him. Always enjoy reading what he has to say about the game.

Notch wrote:At first I was rolling my eyes because I thought "Oh, this tiresome bore again".

But it is quite amusing to see a little club of v2 refugees trading war stories in the comments. And to think- their only crime was being annoying antisocial dicks

But biltong is over there too. Good to 'see' him. Always enjoy reading what he has to say about the game.

He's been there for about five months.

Intotouch wrote:Did you want people to comment on this article here or to contribute to the original on the roar? It seems fairer to the author to post on the original site. Even if it is by the Grey Ghost.......

Whatever you like Intotouch.

Found that list quite funny actually, very strange coming from GG

Gees I can't believe it...... GG and AWOP are cousins! ...

Enjoy your life in pastures new guys!

I'd be interested to hear a report from Greyghost on the England All Blacks game today.

I have asked if the MODS would allow a GG resurrection, just so we can read here, his doubtless fascinating analysis, of how the impossible just happened.

gregortree wrote:I have asked if the MODS would allow a GG resurrection, just so we can read here, his doubtless fascinating analysis, of how the impossible just happened.

no need!

Thegreyghost said | 4:05am | Report comment wrote:Yep. Clancy howler after howler. Very quick to ping the NZ scrum, and bails England out time and time again whilst their scrum is being smashed. Allowing England waaaay off side in defence and to enter the ruck at any angle, writhe in the ground off their feet and play the ball in the ground. Appalling stuff. A new world record for a homer referee. By then Clancy is notorious for it.

At the nd of the day 3 tried each… But suspiciously Clancy doesn’t ask the tmo on the last try, asks the tmo for a reason not to award the abs first, an yet doesn’t check the apparently held up England 3rd.

A phenomenal number of penalties awarded to England who were apparently faultless at the ruck for 75 minutes…reminds me of clancey’s handling of that springbok NZ game. Perhaps he has an agenda?

I think we should just be thankful he doesn't have Welsh ancestry (or maybe he does?)

Thank goodness he is banned here - what bilge. We have a number of good kiwi posters on here, we don't need/want a reactionary wind up merchant do we?

Clancey now joins Wayne Barnes on GG's hate list (along with 40+ million English people)

Bachelor,
thanks, gosh, exactly the kind of script I expected / could have written.
GG must also be mad about Hansen's measured assessment.
One angry NZer living in of all places ........ England !
oh the irony.

did I read that right? was he questioning the grounding of the ball for the third England try? that's the one Tuilagi walked in on the interception right?

He's obviously talking about the 1st. I didn;t rewatch it, but it did look like Carter may have turned him and held him up. To be fair to Clancy it would have looked pretty clear cut from his position. I haven' read anything so I'm assuming it's a non event.

God, some of you guys need lessons in irony

"GG should be banned innit, coz he makes us all upset with his bilge and wummery."

"Glad he's gone. He wrote utter tosh that annoyed me so ever much and the mods were perfectly spick'n'span with their ban"

"Look at this guys!! This is what that old nutjob, GG, wrote on another site. Read it and get the boot in fellas as he can't reply! "

"I'm glad he got the ban if he keeps writing rubbish like that. Keep up the good work of reposting his comments. I love to see what he's still saying on another forum"

Is GG going to be the first guy in history that get's a second ban on top of a current one based on posts he didn't even write on this forum???

SecretFly wrote:God, some of you guys need lessons in irony

"GG should be banned innit, coz he makes us all upset with his bilge and wummery."

"Glad he's gone. He wrote utter tosh that annoyed me so ever much and the mods were perfectly spick'n'span with their ban"

"Look at this guys!! This is what that old nutjob, GG, wrote on another site. Read it and get the boot in fellas as he can't reply! "

"I'm glad he got the ban if he keeps writing rubbish like that. Keep up the good work of reposting his comments. I love to see what he's still saying on another forum"

Is GG going to be the first guy in history that get's a second ban on top of a current one based on posts he didn't even write on this forum???

Lol that he's whinging that copy n paste on here might infinge his copyright...

Still, his one eyed rants posts were quite funny. It was only a matter of time before the bugger imploded.

He imploded on 606 before the England game.
Real shame on his timing (snigger)