Cardiff Blues Season Thread (Toulon fall in Cardiff)

[wales606]

First topic message reminder :

Keeping organised the ins and outs at the Blues leading into next season.

New Signing
Paetru Tamba (during the season)
Filo Paulo - North Harbour (confirmed)
Matthew Rees (confirmed)
Liam Davies (confirmed - until end of season)
Gethin Jenkins (confirmed)
Miles Normandale (confirmed)
Rhys Gill - Saracens (rumoured) Unlikely
Craig Mitchell - Exeter (rumoured) Unlikely
Adam Warren - Scarlets (rumoured)
Dan Lydiate - Dragons (mentioned) (rumoured)
Scott Williams - Scarlets (rumoured)
James Hook (rumoured - again)
Rodney So’oialo - Honda Heat (rumoured)
Aled Summerhill - Blues Academy
Ben Roach - Blues Academy
Ellis Jenkins - Blues Academy
Tom Pascoe - Blues Academy
Will Thomas - Blues Academy

Departures (all confirmed)
Jamie Roberts - Racing Metro
Ceri Sweeney - Exeter Chiefs
Tom James - Exeter Chiefs
Michael Paterson - Sale Sharks
Jason Tovey - Newport Gwent Dragons
Campese Ma'afu - Nottingham
Ryan Harford - Cardiff RFC
Nathan Trevett - London Welsh
Matthew Screech - Newport Gwent Dragons
Darren Harries - Scarlets
Jake Cooper Wooley - London Wasps
Cory Hill - Cornish Pirates
Petru Tamba - Unattached
Andi Kyriacou - Retired
Xavier Rush


Re-Signings
Alex Cuthbert (3 years)
Scott Andrews (2 years)
Josh Navidi (3 year)
James Down (unknown)
Andreus Pretorious (can't find the article...)
Marc Breeze (unknown)
Lewis Jones (unknown)
Lloyd Williams (3 years)
Tom Williams (3 years)
Rhys Patchell (3 years)
Sam Hobbs (?3 years?)
Rhys Williams (?3 years?)
Tom Davies (?3 years?)
Richard Smith (2 years)

[wales606]

What a terrible restart

[wales606]

Blues scrum looks good

[wales606]

Patchell's drop goals! Wow!

That's 3 in 3 games, all coming from deep and one from behind the 10m line.

[Cari]

That was an excellent DG considering the conditions as well.  He's having a good game.  

9-7 at 35 minutes.

Shame the ball is like soap...the Blues really should have scored a try by now.

[wales606]

Patchell having a go at counter-attacking too, showing all his skills.

If only everyone else played to his standard, too many silly errors though :/

[wales606]

Stupid penalty to give away with 10 seconds to go

Looks like the Blues will go in behind, but going straight to a penalty for a crooked feed?

[wales606]

Blues need to run, this kicking game is hopeless with no options in the centres or on the wings

[wales606]

Patchell is having problems kicking out of hand this week :/ and as a result the Blues have nobody to take the pressure off him.

Lloyd Williams was kicking to the left hand touchline earlier, which seems very strange.

[wales606]

Copeland and Hewitt have been taken off

[wales606]

Gareth Davies put on at 12 rather than Gavin Evans, they clearly know they need the extra kicking option.

Good scrum again by the Blues

Could be that our scrum and physicality win us the game, rather than lose it.

[wales606]

That should have been a try :/

Still we have the lineout

Lloyd Williams MOTM again?

[wales606]

Just can't finish :/

[wales606]

What a load of rubbish...

[wales606]

Blues scrum is winning them the game

Am I dreaming?

[wales606]

Well done captain Rees, just butchered a literal walkover try from that maul

It was easier to score than not score from there.

[wales606]

Patchell MOTM???

Bit odd, he didn't play badly, but certainly not up to his standards.

I think Lloyd Williams should have gotten it again.

Or perhaps Paulo or Navidi

[wales606]

Positives : Got the W. Scrum, Lloyd Williams is playing well, mauling was good, good breakdown and defence (bar the try)

Negatives : Poor back move finishing (thanks Baber), kicking game was poor, few missed kick at goal and touch from Patchell, losing heads too often.

[Liam]

Scrappy scrappy game which was crying out for a bit of creativity in the backs. As 606 said, i'm worried even Baber could not do anything with this backline but the weather conditions played their part.

Forwards did well and at the end of the day, as pundits are saying its a game last year we were losing so well done Blues, all about wins at the end of the day.

[wales606]

More optimistic after Rees and Bradley's interviews - there still seems to be some confidence there

Game was scrappy in the rain, but to be fair, they didn't look like losing in the second half

The Blues forwards were pretty good, there was just a few missed opportunities, which i'm sure will change as the season continues and the weather improves.

Halfpenny back next week, and maybe Allen.

[wales606]

Also, the Connnacht defence was very good, they have improved a lot over the last couple of seasons and it looks like they will be difficult to put down.

[Coleman]

Very strange to see the Blues using the rolling maul. Worked well though.

[tatterd]

Take a bow Patchell. Very modest in his post match interview, saying Navidi should have got MOTM (which I completely agree with, Jiffy as usual looking no further than the 10 - pathetic). Speaks volumes for the young man - well done Rhys.

[Jhamer25]

God best the blue shave played in ages. Bluddy good rugby played by some players but the weather also had its role. They were very unlucky last week against Glasgow and deserved this win.
Navidi, Owen Williams and yet again Patchell were just awesome.
I'm just gutted they didn't take those opportunities because that should have been a thrashing. Just cut out the simple mistakes
Good ball carrying by the backs, Owen Williams all round game was very good and they had a set piece form the scrum.
Cut out those mistakes and the Blues will be a team to beat this season.

[Steffan]

A good performance by Cardiff. Patchell is starting to look the business on a consistant level now and it will be hard for the horrible pieman to keep hold of him at this rate I think. Cardiff will struggle at Heineken Cup level though I think although I guess a lot of the big guns are due back. While im not a fan of any of Wales superclubs it is nice to see them picking Welsh players for a change but I think a lot of that with Cardiff is the horrible pieman not wanting to out his hand in his pocket anymore

[Guest]

Blues looked good at times, a little ropey at others, terrible conditions but the pitch held up well. Patchell had a good game, when we see the likes of Halfpenny, Jenkins and Warburton return we should be a bit more competitive.

[maestegmafia]

Good performance despite the weather. Halfbacks looking really good. I notice there are a lot less posters saying Lloud Williams is only there because of Brymor

[wales606]

Good performance despite the weather. Halfbacks looking really good. I notice there are a lot less posters saying Lloud Williams is only there because of Brymor

Lloyd had a really, really, really bad season last year - and realistically he should have been dropped, we just had no real option behind him.

Things got better after the 6Ns last year though, and he seems to have had a good pre-season.

Should deserve his place on the Wales bench this season at least.

[Steffan]

Personally I would love to go down the Arms Park and cheer on a region on the new pitch which looks really good I will add

[Guest]

[quote="wales606"]

Things got better after the 6Ns last year though, and he seems to have had a good pre-season.

Possibly down to being coached by one of Wales' best scrumhalves

[The Saint]

Blues were awful. They really struggled in attack and gaining ground against a team that is possibly one of the weakest they will face this season. 2 games in and 0 tries. Connacht looked pretty good with ball in hand despite the conditions.

[XR]

Director of Rugby Phil Davies has revealed that British & Irish Lions ace Leigh Halfpenny will make his playing return for Cardiff Blues when they face Zebre in the RaboDirect PRO12 this Friday night at the Arms Park (kick-off 7.30pm).Halfpenny will return to the Cardiff Blues line-up after a scintillating summer that saw him named player-of-the-series as the Lions secured a first Test series triumph in Australia in 16 years.
"Leigh will be involved for this week's game," said Davies. "He will start for us this week which is great. Alex (Cuthbert) is back in as well so that is good for us.

"There will be one or two changes this week to team selection. Firstly it's based on momentum; on trying to achieve that win. Secondly to get people more rugby, I want people to have opportunities to play so we can have that depth in the squad.

"Leigh is no different to what he always is. He sets such a high standard every time he trains and in preparation.

"He is a bit more experienced now and has had played at an exceptionally high standard. But he will continue doing what he always does, being professional and hitting high standards.

"He's come back into a team that is growing and developing each week. It is exciting to see the whole thing come together. We've got a quality squad of young players who are keen to develop and represent the Blues."

Hoping 1/2p starts tomorrow as it will take pressure of Patchell having to kick for posts and he can concentrate on running the backline. Also gives us another kicking out of hand option that we didn't have last Friday.

[XR]

Teams for tonight:

Cardiff Blues: Leigh Halfpenny; Alex Cuthbert, Owen Williams, Dafydd Hewitt, Chris Czekaj; Rhys Patchell, Lewis Jones; Taufa'ao Filise, Marc Breeze, Scott Andrews, Lou Reed, Filo Paulo, Macauley Cook, Josh Navidi, Andries Pretorius (capt).

Replacements: Matthew Rees, Sam Hobbs, Benoit Bourrust, James Down, Robin Copeland, Lloyd Williams, Gareth Davies, Cory Allen.

Zebre: Ruggero Trevisan; David Odiete, Tommaso Iannone, Matteo Pratichetti, Dion Berryman; Luciano Orquera, Brendon Leonard; Salvatore Perugini, Andrea Manici, Dario Chistolini, Quintin Geldenhuys, Marco Bortolami (capt), Mauro Bergamasco, Andries van Schalkwyk, Samuela Vunisa.

Replacements: Tommaso D'Apice, Matias Aguero, Luca Redolfini, George Biagi, Filippo Ferrarini, Guglielmo Palazzani, Giovanbattista Venditti, Leonardo Sarto.


Perfect conditions here for running rugby, let's see some tries!

[wales606]

Everyone complaining we haven't scored any tries, and Hewitt gets one in 2 minutes.

Pity this game isn't televised and i'm not in Cardiff anymore. Should be fun,

I'll have the settle for the highlights on Sunday

[The Saint]

Well congratulations on your first try, it only took you 3 games. You'll be the lowest scorers in the league again for sure. When are some rugby people going to come in and sort out this joke of an organisation (otherwise known as Cardiff Blues). As a welshman it pains me to see a good team with good potential run by a bunch of amateurs.

[Steffan]

        

Another great victory for the MIGHTY KAAAAIIIRDIFF RUGBY.....NOT

You know where you can stick your Peters Pies as well

Derserve to be a stand alone club my backside...

[The Saint]

Yeah, Pontypridd could have done a better job.

[Steffan]

Yeah, Pontypridd could have done a better job.

Probably would have and thats without the horrible piemans endless supply of money being pumped in

Worst thing is the 'regions' were brought in to strengthen Welsh rugby and those bunch of self-serving idiots down at the Arms Park are now losing to sides that the old clubs would have beaten

[The Saint]

It's probably pie man's fault to be honest, I believe it was his idea to bring in Phil Davies, etc. Does this pieman even watch rugby?

Was that Zebre's first ever win?

[Steffan]

It's probably pie man's fault to be honest, I believe it was his idea to bring in Phil Davies, etc. Does this pieman even watch rugby?

Was that Zebre's first ever win?

The only thing the Pieman watches is his wallet getting bigger

Yeah first ever win for Zebre. Couldnt have picked a nicer side to have done it against  

[Artful_Dodger]

Great stuff Zebre

[yappysnap]

So Cardiff the worst team in Europe now then? Like a reverse ranfurly shield comp...

[Jenifer McLadyboy]

It's probably pie man's fault to be honest, I believe it was his idea to bring in Phil Davies, etc. Does this pieman even watch rugby?

Was that Zebre's first ever win?

The only thing the Pieman watches is his wallet getting bigger

Yeah first ever win for Zebre. Couldnt have picked a nicer side to have done it against  

Jaysis youse lads are proper little rays of sunlight. Can you only get yer jollies off other people's misfortunes? Try going out and doing something positive for once in yer lives.

[Cardiff Dave]

It's probably pie man's fault to be honest, I believe it was his idea to bring in Phil Davies, etc. Does this pieman even watch rugby?

Was that Zebre's first ever win?

The only thing the Pieman watches is his wallet getting bigger

Yeah first ever win for Zebre. Couldnt have picked a nicer side to have done it against  

Jaysis youse lads are proper little rays of sunlight. Can you only get yer jollies off other people's misfortunes? Try going out and doing something positive for once in yer lives.

"Regionalism" mun. It's great. We're all in it together etc, united as one and have been since 2003.
Look it up. It's like a Horrible Histories' fact.

[Jenifer McLadyboy]

It's probably pie man's fault to be honest, I believe it was his idea to bring in Phil Davies, etc. Does this pieman even watch rugby?

Was that Zebre's first ever win?

The only thing the Pieman watches is his wallet getting bigger

Yeah first ever win for Zebre. Couldnt have picked a nicer side to have done it against  

Jaysis youse lads are proper little rays of sunlight. Can you only get yer jollies off other people's misfortunes? Try going out and doing something positive for once in yer lives.

"Regionalism" mun. It's great. We're all in it together etc, united as one and have been since 2003.
Look it up. It's like a Horrible Histories' fact.

I get all the Ponty stuff and the loss of the Celtic warriors and the way the Regions don't represent everyone etc. Not as clear cut as our provinces.

Some people are just never happy unless they are moaning though.

[The Saint]

It's probably pie man's fault to be honest, I believe it was his idea to bring in Phil Davies, etc. Does this pieman even watch rugby?

Was that Zebre's first ever win?

The only thing the Pieman watches is his wallet getting bigger

Yeah first ever win for Zebre. Couldnt have picked a nicer side to have done it against  

Jaysis youse lads are proper little rays of sunlight. Can you only get yer jollies off other people's misfortunes? Try going out and doing something positive for once in yer lives.

Not me Jenifer. I support my own Regional team . I was expressing concern for the Blues in the most bitter way possible. Phil Davies really is an amateur coach (it doesn't take a genius to work it out, look at his track record) and Pieman was the one who brought him in (after his disastrous idea of sticking out with B&B aka Laurel&Hardy for a year). If you look at the first team 22 there is awesome potential there. It's too bad the place has been run by amateurs for the past few years which translates to amateur performances on the pitch; with that in mind they will struggle to hold on to players like Halfpenny and Warburton.

[The Saint]

It's probably pie man's fault to be honest, I believe it was his idea to bring in Phil Davies, etc. Does this pieman even watch rugby?

Was that Zebre's first ever win?

The only thing the Pieman watches is his wallet getting bigger

Yeah first ever win for Zebre. Couldnt have picked a nicer side to have done it against  

Jaysis youse lads are proper little rays of sunlight. Can you only get yer jollies off other people's misfortunes? Try going out and doing something positive for once in yer lives.

"Regionalism" mun. It's great. We're all in it together etc, united as one and have been since 2003.
Look it up. It's like a Horrible Histories' fact.

I get all the Ponty stuff and the loss of the Celtic warriors and the way the Regions don't represent everyone etc. Not as clear cut as our provinces.

Some people are just never happy unless they are moaning though.

You'll probably wanna avoid Cardiff Dave, Steffan and to an extent Lord Dowlais then. All they do is whinge.

[Cardiff Dave]

You'll probably wanna avoid Cardiff Dave, Steffan and to an extent Lord Dowlais then. All they do is whinge.

Cheers. I take that as a compliment actually. People don't whinge and moan and complain enough if you ask me. Rip Off Britain is a phrase that comes to mind.
I did the aforementioned relentlessly for almost 3 years and now Cardiff are back at CAP. Result.
As for "Regionalism", I will continue to whinge until this outrageous lie is dumped altogether.

[Cardiff Dave]

It's probably pie man's fault to be honest, I believe it was his idea to bring in Phil Davies, etc. Does this pieman even watch rugby?

Was that Zebre's first ever win?

The only thing the Pieman watches is his wallet getting bigger

Yeah first ever win for Zebre. Couldnt have picked a nicer side to have done it against  

Jaysis youse lads are proper little rays of sunlight. Can you only get yer jollies off other people's misfortunes? Try going out and doing something positive for once in yer lives.

"Regionalism" mun. It's great. We're all in it together etc, united as one and have been since 2003.
Look it up. It's like a Horrible Histories' fact.

I get all the Ponty stuff and the loss of the Celtic warriors and the way the Regions don't represent everyone etc. Not as clear cut as our provinces.

Some people are just never happy unless they are moaning though.

Steffan is happy Cardiff Blues lost, so he's not really moaning. Nowt wrong with that.

[maestegmafia]

Great result for Zebra. It was going to happen sooner or later they are a much better side this year. Good on them well done.

Guess all the RP12 teams will have to watch out.

This league is getting tougher every year.

[bedfordwelsh]

Oh dear dear me Cardiff oops sorry Blues lose to Zebre never mind hehehehehehehe

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