Hore set for hefty ban
26 Nov 2012
New Zealand hooker Andrew Hore has been cited for an off-the-ball incident which subsequently hospitalised Wales lock Bradley Davies.
Hore hit Davies off the ball during the initial stages of last Saturday’s Test in Cardiff. The incident was missed by matchday officials, but Hore has now been cited and looks likely to receive a lengthy suspension.
The time and date of the hearing, before the IRB’s appointed independent judicial officer, have yet to be fixed.
All Blacks coach Steve Hansen expects the hooker to be sidelined for some time. Hansen did not say as much, but has already called for a replacement ahead of the coming Test against England.
Dane Coles is expected to start at Twickenham.
30,305 Comments
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11 Dec 2012, 20:50 pm
Like ‘Skyfall’
Not at all, but that is what gives me mixed feelings to share a few of the things is exactly that. I don’t want anybody to have sleepless nights…
The closest I get to a nightmare is the Blitz Boks losing for the 200th time against DJ Forbes and that Fijian bloke.
I’ll say this and actually walk away from the topic: it seems that 21 Dec 2012 11:11 (GMT) that is 13:11 SA time seems to be some kind of cut off; some websites even have a count down. It seems something significant will happen then – either it is the biggest hoax ever OR something happens but we will have to wait months for info to leak or put bits and pieces together.
Oh I don’t think it’s the end of the world – anyway end of the world to my mind refers to Yom Teruah when the Shofar will sound and the bride will be snatched just like in Jewish wedding tradtion.
11 Dec 2012, 20:52 pm
is 12202 a lucky number?
11 Dec 2012, 20:55 pm
Boks can steal a march in 2013
Comment: Rob Houwing, Sport24 chief writer
Cape Town – It is dubiously called a “Test window” period anyway, and the Springboks must use the three weeks of international activity in June next year as a genuine window of opportunity to prepare themselves for more glamorous goals later in the season.
Our national side has a greatly less taxing, on paper, June agenda than either of their most traditional southern hemisphere rivals, New Zealand and Australia … and must use it to their advantage in terms of bigger-picture aspirations like the Castle Rugby Championship a bit further up the gruelling 2013 drag.
It was confirmed recently that the Boks’ initial obligations next year, during the now traditional June “gap” period in Super Rugby, will be as part of a four-nation tournament also featuring Scotland, Italy and Samoa.
They play Italy at the first-time location of Mbombela Stadium in Nelspruit on June 8, the Scots at Kings Park on June 15, and then a likely “final” – as they will be heavy tourney favourites – against one of the three other sides at Loftus on June 22, depending on the finishing pecking order.
With respect to the visiting trio, there is simply no comparison between South Africa’s June programme and the altogether stiffer itineraries laid out for fellow SANZAR giants the All Blacks and Wallabies.
The Samoans, who the Boks will hopefully play in the Loftus game for the sake of variety, are eternally hard-tackling and uncompromising, but like all the Pacific Island sides do struggle to be truly competitive at the set-piece against the bigger Test powers, particularly when they oppose them in their own strongholds.
The Italians and Scots, for their part, almost routinely occupy bottom-half slots on the Six Nations table — and Scotland’s last Test appearance of this year was a humiliating home defeat to Tonga!
World champions the All Blacks will play home Tests on three successive Saturdays against France, dangerous through their unpredictability at the best of times and seemingly back on an encouraging upward curve anyway.
All New Zealanders will know, with memories of the nail-biting (8-7) 2011 World Cup final still fresh on their minds, that the French will allow their hosts few luxuries in terms of experimentation or rotation – that might only come in game three, in the event that the All Blacks have already gone an unassailable 2-0 ahead in the series.
In some respects, Les Bleus had a more satisfying end-of-year period in 2012 than New Zealand did, considering that they won all their fixtures – including beating Australia by a consummate 33-6 and Argentina 39-22 – whereas the tiring All Blacks tripped up rather spectacularly against England at Twickenham.
The Wallabies, for their part, probably have it the toughest of the SANZAR powers in June (and for them early July, too) when they tackle the British and Irish Lions over three Tests – a once-every-12-years event for the big three of the “south” and a prestigious, money-spinning one never taken lightly.
So if the Boks play their cards correctly, they may be in the beneficial position of entering the second annual Rugby Championship, also featuring the Pumas, fresher than either the All Blacks or Wallabies.
Frankly, even at this faraway point there seems little sense in Bok coach Heyneke Meyer playing absolutely full-strength sides for all – or even any? – of the three June fixtures.
The “window” comes, after all, when many of the best Test candidates are already feeling the debilitating effects of many weeks of Super Rugby, and with the business end of that competition also immediately following the June internationals.
He may be maligned in some areas of his philosophy and game-plan but Meyer, to his credit, has always made it clear that he does not hand out Bok caps willy-nilly.
And while it may look as if that is what he did to some extent in his up-and-down first season in charge, the array of players he employed was much more related to a severe injury epidemic than to any knee-jerk reaction to adversity that was a hallmark, for instance, of the Rudolf Straeuli era when all sorts of sub-standard journeymen got Bok call-ups.
What Meyer did do judiciously, especially on the end-of-year tour, was establish a pretty decent “pool” of Test-quality players in various positions.
So when the time comes to play the relative minnows visiting our shores in June, he is not going to lose much in either strength or credibility if he first assesses volumes of Super Rugby game time by his personnel and then rotates them accordingly – probably without risking any serious danger of shock losses.
Let’s face it, even a properly-picked South Africa ‘A’ team could probably dispose of any of the Scots (minus a potential handful of Lions representatives, remember), Italians or Samoans very comfortably in our own habitat.
Meyer will know, for instance, that a suitably-firing Bok side should whip any of these three regardless of whether Beast Mtawarira or Gurthro Steenkamp is at loosehead prop, Andries Bekker or Juandre Kruger is in the No 5 jersey and Schalk Burger or Willem Alberts is at blindside flank.
Of course there is a case for fielding as “familiar” and settled a team as possible for most Tests, but the squad system is also a huge, inevitable part of the rugby landscape these days.
Unlike earlier this year, when Meyer was tackling his maiden series against credible foes England and quite obviously desired best possible troops, the June 2013 international spell does afford him the opportunity to cocoon, to some extent, key figures with a view to their being especially fresh and hungry for the Rugby Championship.
That is a blessing the All Blacks and Wallabies may not have …
11 Dec 2012, 20:55 pm
@ryecatcher-12186:
did you say you were in the central berg region?
would that be winterton or bergville or somewhere smaller?
sounds like you are a bit of a bullet like me.
11 Dec 2012, 21:13 pm
@charo-12204: Winterton.Bergville is the armpit of the Berg.What is a bullet?Regards
11 Dec 2012, 21:20 pm
@David-12161: Bisho?Which featured
that wonderful military strategist Ronnie Kasrils.
11 Dec 2012, 21:21 pm
@ryecatcher-12205:
“bullet” is the term given by my “kids” for someone over the age of 55 or more.
the little buggers think that us older folk are mostly near senile and no longer the oracle we used to be when they were teenagers or younger.
funnily enough, i think i had the same attitude when i was about their age
11 Dec 2012, 21:26 pm
@charo-12207: The little buggers are
probably right.I am 73 going on 74l
11 Dec 2012, 21:32 pm
@ryecatcher-12206:
No. Archbishop Desmond Tutu
11 Dec 2012, 21:34 pm
@David-12209: Sorry pal.How wrong can one be?
11 Dec 2012, 21:52 pm
@ryecatcher-12210:
Being a Sharks supporter?
Anyway, I’m off to bed. cheers>
11 Dec 2012, 21:56 pm
Good night pal.
11 Dec 2012, 22:39 pm
@ryecatcher-12206: same military skills like those awb chaps who attempted to crush the military might of the ciskei.
11 Dec 2012, 23:11 pm
This thread is definitely on a go-slow.
Looks like people have already headed for the coast.
11 Dec 2012, 23:28 pm
But capo, the vark, is still lurking.
What a doos.
11 Dec 2012, 23:41 pm
@I am a stormer-12214: This thread will still reach 20 000 but it will be a slow process, probably by the end of January.
(It is ugly to call someone a doos.)
11 Dec 2012, 23:49 pm
@wnbb-12213: Awb… Ciskei? Unless I was living in a different SA to you, it was Bophuthatswana, dumbfuck…
Yet you reckon you’re a “South African”… Typical myopic Cape Tonian… Ciskei, Bop, South Africa, Africa, all the same, eh?
11 Dec 2012, 23:49 pm
@Finfan-12216: Hang af wat jou opinie oor doos is…
12 Dec 2012, 00:00 am
@Finfan-12216: Not really unless the doos is ugly… And there truly can be some ugly dooses… Sometimes I sympathise withe gynaes… Sounds like a dream job, and Im sure they see some rippers, but fark me they must see some ugly doose too…
Somehow Doggy Pedigree comes to mind here…
12 Dec 2012, 00:04 am
12220
12 Dec 2012, 00:04 am
12221
12 Dec 2012, 00:05 am
BOOM!
12 Dec 2012, 00:07 am
@Finfan-12216:
Oh really, there are 245 pages for you to go and read. Take your time.
I’ve predicted this thread will only come to an end once Hore’s suspension comes to an end.
12 Dec 2012, 00:27 am
I see Eben Etzebeth is on the cover of SA Rugby this month.
That oke is so strong he could bench press Pierre Spies.
12 Dec 2012, 00:30 am
Let’s see if I can steal the 12345.
Got some time to kill tonight
12 Dec 2012, 00:30 am
12226
12 Dec 2012, 00:31 am
12227
12 Dec 2012, 00:31 am
Anyone out there?
12 Dec 2012, 00:32 am
12229
12 Dec 2012, 00:32 am
12230
12 Dec 2012, 00:32 am
12231
12 Dec 2012, 00:32 am
12232
12 Dec 2012, 00:33 am
12233
12 Dec 2012, 00:33 am
12234
12 Dec 2012, 00:34 am
Nah this is too boring
12 Dec 2012, 00:34 am
1
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2
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3
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4
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12 Dec 2012, 00:36 am
7
12 Dec 2012, 00:36 am
7?
12 Dec 2012, 00:36 am
Think I am going to miss 12345…can’t hang around for it, and will proberly miss it in the morning…….verver sad that I even want it
12 Dec 2012, 00:36 am
8
12 Dec 2012, 00:37 am
@Treehugger-12244: Ok your loss
12 Dec 2012, 00:37 am
12247
12 Dec 2012, 00:37 am
12248
12 Dec 2012, 00:38 am
12249
12 Dec 2012, 00:38 am
Nuwe bladsy asseblief
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