The Greatest Irish Sportsperson Ever!

[Jürgen4PM]

[quote author=Stu link=topic=35719.msg942595#msg942595 date=1252783281]
[quote author=Rafa4PM link=topic=35719.msg942359#msg942359 date=1252766621]
[quote author=Stu link=topic=35719.msg942247#msg942247 date=1252759256]
[quote author=Rafa4PM has cockbreath link=topic=35719.msg942017#msg942017 date=1252705497]
[quote author=Stu link=topic=35719.msg942007#msg942007 date=1252703722]
And why are the Lions coming up against these supreme teams? Because as the professional game continues to grow, the players continue to get fitter, more skillful, technically better. You say that the Lions played 2 of the best teams ever, I agree. But these teams are only going to continue to improve.
[/quote]
Sorry but thats shite too.
The All Blacks have gone backwards and the Aussies have been weak for years.
[/quote]
So they are finished then are they?
For someone who is on here spouting on about how much they love their rugby, you are now telling me that New Zealand and Austrailia are 'weak' and have 'gone backwards'. So these two superpowers have had their day in The Lying Rag have they? Bollocks.
[/quote]
I thought you were done talking about this with me?
Nobody said that they're finished Stu, but they are not going to just continue to improve like you said.
[/quote]

What do you base that on? Why will they not improve?
[/quote]

Like in all sports it tends to go in cycles. As it stands the current Aussie and All Black teams are both weak compared to what they have been in the past (the results prove this).

I would of course agree with you 100% that ALL international players will improve in certain aspects of the game due to the pro era. But if you've got a group of players to work with that are not as good as previous squads, then their is only so much you can do as a coach.

 

[Stulikesdrums]

I agree with every word of that post Rafa.

But there are some players in todays game who will have played rugby in the amateur era, in fact most of the top players in world rugby will have started their tutelage in this era. Now we have all these 8-12 years having the benefits of professional coaches that the likes of Carter, BOD et all did not have.
My point is that in the next couple of cycles of players there will be no top players that have not been professionally trained from a very, very young age.
This is when the standards of rugby will improve dramatically. It will not happen overnight, but it is going to happen eventually.
The bigger clubs will open academies, just like the big football clubs in England, and they will have the cream of the crop at their disposal.

 

[Rosco]

Not in Ireland Stu.

The schools system is excellent at getting players ready for competitive rugby. It's only when they're finished school that they'll get contracts or academy places from the provinces, and not that many do.

Anyone who was anyway decent during schools would have had the benefit of being involved with the provincial trials and squads, where you get professional coaches taking over but it's only a glimpse of it really. It's not a truly professional set up.

Our current system is working very well, and the clubs in Ireland don't have the resources to develop players sufficiently.