Glasgow and Edinburgh: Ongoing Banter Thread II

[George Carlin]

First topic message reminder :

A. Edinburgh
 

 
1. Pre-season
 
Fri 30 Aug 2013, 19:45
Edinburgh Rugby 15 - 5 Newcastle Falcons
 
Fri 23 Aug 2013, 19:30
Northampton Saints 24 - 6 Edinburgh Rugby
 
2. 2013/2014 Season - Played
 
Sat 7 Sep, 19:15
Munster Rugby 34 - 23 Edinburgh Rugby
 
Fri 13 Sep, 19:45
Edinburgh Rugby 16 - 13 Newport Gwent Dragons
 
Sat 21 Sep, 18:30
Ospreys 44 - 10 Edinburgh Rugby
 
Fri 27 Sep, 19:45
Edinburgh Rugby 9 - 22 Scarlets

Sun 6 Oct, 14:05
Cardiff Blues 29 - 12 Edinburgh Rugby

Fri 25 Oct, 19:45
Edinburgh Rugby 20 - 13 Benetton Treviso

Fri 1 Nov 19:45
Edinburgh Rugby 25 - 23 Zebre

Fri 22 Nov 19:05
Ulster Rugby 41 - 17 Edinburgh Rugby

Fri 29 Nov 19:45
Edinburgh Rugby 43 - 10 Connacht

Fri 20 Dec 19:35
Edinburgh Rugby 11 - 6 Leinster

Thu 26 Dec 15:05
Edinburgh Rugby 16 - 20 Glasgow Warriors

Wed 1 Jan 18:05
Glasgow Warriors P - P Edinburgh Rugby

3. 2013/2014 Season - Next 3 Games
 
Sun 9 Feb 13:05
Newport Gwent Dragons  v  Edinburgh Rugby

Sat 15 Feb 17:00
Connacht Rugby v Edinburgh Rugby

Sat 22 Feb 14:30
Scarlets v Edinburgh Rugby

B. Glasgow
 

 
1. Pre-season
 
Sat 31 Aug 2013, 15:00
Exeter Chiefs 26 - 29 Glasgow Warriors
 
2. 2013/2014 Season
 
Fri 6 Sep, 19:35
Glasgow Warriors 22 - 15 Cardiff Blues
 
Fri 13 Sep, 19:05
Ulster Rugby 12 - 13 Glasgow Warriors
 
Fri 20 Sep, 19:35
Glasgow Warriors 12 - 6 Leinster Rugby
 
Fri 27 Sep, 19:30
Zebre 17 - 24 Glasgow Warriors
 
Sat 5 Oct, 18:30
Scarlets 12 - 17 Glasgow Warriors

Fri 25 Oct, 19:35
Glasgow Warriors 6 - 13 Munster Rugby

Sat 2 Nov, 17:00
Connacht Rugby 12 - 19 Glasgow Warriors

Fri 22 Nov, 19:35
Glasgow Warriors 8 - 23 Newport Gwent Dragons

Fri 29 Nov, 19:05
Ospreys 16 - 28 Glasgow Warriors

Fri 20 Dec, 19:35
Glasgow Warriors P - P Benetton Treviso

Thu 26 Dec 15:05
Edinburgh Rugby 16 - 20 Glasgow Warriors

Wed 1 Jan 18:05
Glasgow Warriors P - P Edinburgh Rugby

3. 2013/2014 Season - Next 3 Games
 
Sun 9 Feb 14:00
Glasgow Warriors v Connacht Rugby

Sat 15 Feb 18:30
Cardiff Blues v Glasgow Warriors

Sun 23 Feb 14:30
Newport Gwent Dragons   v   Glasgow Warriors
 
Any and all patter about these teams is welcome.
 
Any jingoism, sledging or graceless kicking of anyone whilst they are up or down will see posts deleted.
 
Be gracious and be constructive.

[Majestic83]

Been confirmed Neil Cochrane has signed for Edinburgh for next Season. Yet another hooker on the books!

[jimbopip]

Fes, firstly, if you are going to pick up on every one of my daft ideas you will run the risk of becoming a single issue fanatic. Believe me you'll crack before I will.
Secondly, unless Ford can fart through his nose he ain't farting the ball to the back of any scrum any time soon.

[RDW]

Been confirmed Neil Cochrane has signed for Edinburgh for next Season. Yet another hooker on the books!

Surely must mean Ford is out the door?

Good to sign an Edinburgh boy, but looking at his stats he's pretty small at 5ft 10 and not much over 16st.  Not a typical Solomons type of player.

[EWT Spoons]

Given our weegie brethren are inclined to call Edinburgh “Brotheltown” is there some kind of weird agreement that we have to sign as many hookers as possible?   

[Majestic83]

Been confirmed Neil Cochrane has signed for Edinburgh for next Season. Yet another hooker on the books!

Surely must mean Ford is out the door?

Good to sign an Edinburgh boy, but looking at his stats he's pretty small at 5ft 10 and not much over 16st.  Not a typical Solomons type of player.

Yep think there must be at least a couple of hookers leaving at the end of the season. My money would be on Ford and possibly Hilterbrand. Leaving Cochrane, Latui, McInally, Walker, Turner.

Cochrane is a converted back rower. Normally a 7 but switched to hooker about 2/3 years ago when at either ROtherham or Doncaster.
He is very mobile and adds the extra advantage of being very good at the breakdown and tackle area and does look to carry the ball alot.
Started the season off playing a few games for Wasps but since Festucia arrived his game time has been limited!

[Tattie Scones RRN]

The only caveat I have with Fife is that he reminds me of Lee Jones; young player bursts on to scene, scores lots of tries gets pitched in to national side, and then...

I think Fife is a more complete player than Jones. It was really his form for the 7's team that put Jones forward. Fife is a very solid player, good basics, doesn't miss tackles and has an ability to slip through gaps. Lee Jones was always a gamble. He'd played a lot less 15-a-side rugby than Fife at this point, and hadn't really been properly tested. That Malzieu try still bothers me - Jones was completely blown away.

Fife's still behind Maitland and Seymour for my money as a right winger, but he's closing the gap and has plenty confidence at the moment. I've said it a few times but I actually think Fife should shift inside to 13, where he played his first game for Edinburgh. What that requires though is for Visser and Walker to both be fit and on form, and both seem quite a way off.

I twittered/tw@tted/tweetied (whatever it's called) Visser over the weekend asking how long he was out for.

He replied 'not long'

Cool.....thanks.

[R!skysports]

Just a thought, but is Grant struggling a little to adapt to the new scrum laws?  

I did think about that. You'd think that wouldn't be the case, as Grant was always more a technical scrummager than a monster, but I guess you never quite know how changes will affect different players. It seems to have done wonders for Ali Dickinson, as it was the hit that he seemed to struggle with. Now he seems to be able to keep things steady long enough for Ford to fart the ball to the back of the scrum.

He can hold it until the next ice age - impressive :-)

[jimbopip]

  

[Nematode]

Saw on Edinburgh Twitter about Cochrane joining. Clicked on his twitter and a Wasps teammate tweeted "Good luck on your accies move mate" - maybe not going to be playing for Edinburgh as much as we think then.

[funnyExiledScot]

Odd signing, with Ford, Hilterbrand, Lawrie, Lutui and McInally......

[jimbopip]

Given our weegie brethren are inclined to call Edinburgh “Brotheltown” is there some kind of weird agreement that we have to sign as many hookers as possible?   

[BigGee]

Tim Swinson commits to Glasgow for another three years! This was inadvertently leaked by Nathan Hines last week but it is good to hear all the same. He is going to be a key figure for club and country during the next three years.

[funnyExiledScot]

Agreed on Swinson. Key player for Glasgow and Scotland now. Huge workrate and if SJ is going to persist without a specialist 7, then I'd suggest for the sake of balance that Swinson is essential.

[jimbopip]

Agree with you on that FES. The interesting thing is that, for me, Swinson and Gray Snr are our best second rows at the moment but neither calls the lineouts. Big Nasty Jim does that but I don't think he offers as much in the loose as either of them. As you say, if we don't have a specialist 7 then a mobile second row is a must. Looking ahead Ickle Jonnie calls the lineout and is very athletic around the pack. I think for the World Cup the choice will be from Gray,Swinson and Gray. With Big Jim and A N Other making up the squad numbers.
It all seems to keep coming back to 7 and how that affects the balance of the pack. Rab C Johnstone seems unwilling to play Barclay or Fusaro and unable to select Rennie.
It'll be interesting to see who Fern Cotton fancies.

[funnyExiledScot]

As I've said on another post, I don't think we should too much into Big Jim calling the lineout. I'm confident that Gray could fulfil that role pretty easily. The issues are usually with Ford anyway.

Still, Hamilton was excellent against Ireland last year and it's supposed to rain in Dublin on Sunday, so Hamilton could well get the nod on that basis: horses for courses. Plus it saves Richie Gray for the outing at Murrayfield against France.

[R!skysports]

Although when I spoke with Big Jim last year at the players awards, he was quite clear that the others don't and at this time can not call the line out (and mentioned Gray Snr specifically) - which is a bit of a struggle when trying to fill the positions

[funnyExiledScot]

Oh well, if Jim Hamilton himself says he has to be picked, then who are we mere mortals to argue!!

Did you ask him where he keeps his collection of yellow cards?

[R!skysports]

He tattoos them into his leg

[MacKnocked-on]

A lot of discussion on the Ulster forum about whether SQ Robbie Robinson, if he were to sign for Ulster, would be contractually prevented from playing for Scotland and instead have to wait three years to qualify for Ireland. Some doubts about the legality of such a contract but surely if Robinson is keen to move to Europe (and proud of his Scottish roots) as reported then the SRU have to make an effort to sign him for either Edinburgh or Glasgow? I presume he will have been approached by Lineen for a chat at some point.

[RDW]

What position is he?

[MacKnocked-on]

What position is he?

Very good utility back I believe; 10,15,13?

[RDW]

What's his professional rugby experience like?

[MacKnocked-on]

What's his professional rugby experience like?

Currently plays for the Chiefs, before that the Highlanders. NZ U20s & Maori, presumably doesn't tie him to NZ.

[RDW]

Sounds pretty decent.

Edinburgh don't need him though - we've got Piers Francis, De Luca and Cuthbert already!

[MacKnocked-on]

Sounds pretty decent.

Edinburgh don't need him though - we've got Piers Francis, De Luca and Cuthbert already!

I'm sure he could learn a lot from them

[funnyExiledScot]

Sounds like a good pedigree - reckon we should be onto him. Versatile players tend to have a pretty decent allround game - see Laidlaw, CP and Tonks as good examples in Scottish rugby.

I'm still not sure what the future holds for Piers Francis in Scottish rugby.

[MacKnocked-on]

Sounds like a good pedigree - reckon we should be onto him. Versatile players tend to have a pretty decent allround game - see Laidlaw, CP and Tonks as good examples in Scottish rugby.

I'm still not sure what the future holds for Piers Francis in Scottish rugby.

Like it or not I think we have to attempt to recruit players of this standard to complement out home grown players and improve the overall depth of our squad. I think we are only two or three good players short of having a genuinely competitive team that could challenge in the 6Ns soon enough. Still hoping that one or two of the Scotland League boys are being looked at as well as possible 'project players'.

[funnyExiledScot]

Agreed - we can't afford to leave the league structure isolated. With the ever expanding squads we do seem to be seeing more squad players getting game time in the leagues, but equally we need to see players being given a shot a pro rugby.

[MacKnocked-on]

Agreed - we can't afford to leave the league structure isolated. With the ever expanding squads we do seem to be seeing more squad players getting game time in the leagues, but equally we need to see players being given a shot a pro rugby.

I actually meant the Rugby League Scotland team from their recent World Cup, specifically Matty Russell and one or two others.
I totally agree however about the need for players realistically being able to make it from the club game to the pro teams. An example of this could have been Richie McIvor from Dundee HSFP who was at Edinburgh for a short time last season but was let go and now he's heading down south, his club coach thinks he could have been a really good pro player in time, hopefully London Scottish might offer him a chance? Perhaps the newly mooted semi-pro club set up might help this.

[Nematode]

He's quality. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0_gN2UdIPkc

[IanBru]

Don't you just love a bit of Euro-trance?

Break out your glow-sticks and body paint, lads!

Unce unce unce.

[MacKnocked-on]

He's quality. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0_gN2UdIPkc

Forward this video to Murrayfield asap, it's a great watch

[funnyExiledScot]

Don't you just love a bit of Euro-trance?

Break out your glow-sticks and body paint, lads!

Unce unce unce.

There is absolutely no question that music tastes in Europe are of a more sophisticated nature. Every year the Eurovision Song Contest hammers home that message mercilessly.

[jimbopip]

Rab C Johnston in his sermon to the press said of Sean Lamont, "He's got some leg on him."
If you listen carefully you can hear, in the background, a hysterical Exeter matron screaming "That's not his leg! I've seen the calendar."
  

[EWT Spoons]

Rumours on twitter that Laidlaw has been getting shown round Sales training ground with a view to moving there.

[RDW]

Sale?? He should surely be setting his sights higher!

[EWT Spoons]

Sale?? He should surely be setting his sights higher!

If he is to move, then I agree. Sale fans seem delighted though.

[BigGee]

Sale?? He should surely be setting his sights higher!

If he is to move, then I agree. Sale fans seem delighted though.

Sale do seem to be on the up this year and have had a much better season, maybe it is the Redpath connection!

[TJ]

Sale has been a bit of a mixed hunting ground for Scots players over the years but it does have some sense to it. Much easier to get home than from Bath for example. Who would he be competing with for the 9 shirt? I don't think it necessarily the best move for him but its not a stupid move. Ford is the one I think would benefit from a couple of years outside scotland. Whats always a bad move is if you move to a big club to sit on the bench

[RDW]

Sale?? He should surely be setting his sights higher!

If he is to move, then I agree. Sale fans seem delighted though.

Sale do seem to be on the up this year and have had a much better season, maybe it is the Redpath connection!

That's what Richie Gray thought when he moved there....

Laidlaw is a top class international and one of the best goal kickers in the NH - he really should be playing for a team that is going to fighting it out in the playoffs every year and regular European rugby. Sale may be on the up, but they are not that far away from being in a relegation dogfight again IMO.

[AsLongAsBut100ofUs]

Sale has been a bit of a mixed hunting ground for Scots players over the years but it does have some sense to it.  Much easier to get home than from Bath for example.  Who would he be competing with for the 9 shirt?  I don't think it necessarily the best move for him but its not a stupid move.  Ford is the one I think would benefit from a couple of years outside scotland.  Whats always a bad move is if you move to a big club to sit on the bench

Peel is moving to Bristol, I think, so there is a scrummie vacancy at Sale - plus Basil Redpath is probably not a bad mentor to have. Sale have consolidated this year after an appalling year last season, and they'll finish mid table I would imagine

[TJ]

Thing is if Laidlaw goes to a top team would he just end up on the bench?

[RDW]

Perry Parker has been loaned out to the Ospreys for the rest of the season.

Wonder if he'll play against us at the end of the month?

We're well stocked in the 2nd row so can't see him getting another contract in the summer.

[Nematode]

Perry Parker has been loaned out to the Ospreys for the rest of the season.

Wonder if he'll play against us at the end of the month?

We're well stocked in the 2nd row so can't see him getting another contract in the summer.

He's apparently Welsh qualified - maybe to join Ospreys/Dragons?

[cakeordeath]

Interesting statement on the Hawks site
http://www.glasgowhawks.com/news/12118

[AsLongAsBut100ofUs]

Good god, I remember Charlie Afukwah and his brother from school - not a small lad, if memory serves me right. Does 'innocent until proven guilty' apply to professional sportsman, or should they be ostricised based on charges alone due to their place in the public eye?

[cakeordeath]

Good god, I remember Charlie Afukwah and his brother from school - not a small  lad, if memory serves me right.  Does 'innocent until proven guilty' apply to professional sportsman, or should they be ostricised based on charges alone due to their place in the public eye?

I agree with the SRU on this on. There are criminal charges pending and until a verdict is reached it should be BAU.

[AsLongAsBut100ofUs]

BAU?

[cakeordeath]

BAU?

Business As Usual

[AsLongAsBut100ofUs]

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