Tragic from Wales. Epic defence the wallabies. After all the Welsh gloating I've had to deal with this is a great day!

Felt bad for Wales but at least they're still in it. Some of the best defending I've seen from the Aussies.

Should have kicked for three points when Australia were down to 13 men. We would have regained possession we at the restart and with the space available had every chance of scoring.

Hey ho on to the quarterfinals and I've just found out I'm going

Edited by Y Ddraig Goch (10 Oct 2015 9.06pm)

Fantastic day...by the way, for those inclined to try going, there are a lot of tickets being sold in the street...for less than face value...around Twickenham. The atmosphere was fantastic; one of the real pleasures of rugby as opposed to football is walking from the station with red Welsh and yellow Straya shirts side-by-side, sharing the beers and the banter.

In the end I thought Wales beat themselves. When you've got a two man advantage and your tactic is running straight into the opposition, well... But that said, there was plenty of fight and they're not out of it yet by any means. Cuthbert was predictably headless...with Sanjay goooooone (presumably), can't imagine the back line they'll roll out next week. North back to wing? Samsung is going to have to put in more than 50 minutes.

The Bokke game is definitely the pick of the quarters for me. Gats won't, but I suspect some supporters will, underestimate them because of the loss to Japan.. Don't. They've slowly rounded into form and Wales' real problem will be Beast, etc. dismantling their front row. Hard not to pick a Bokke win, but that's not to say Wales don't have a chance.

Two points: Had Robshaw gone for the penalty and Faz kicked it, England would now be through. If possible, two weeks later the whole thing looks even worse. And there's a real danger of an all SH semi-finals. The Championship sides, even Argentina, do look a cut about ours. Hope Ireland win today simply because a France-ABs quarter would be mouth-watering.

More later.

Sydenham by birth. Selhurst by the Grace of God.

The one fear I have with the Aussies is that they've peaked too early. But if they can sustain their present form then yes, they have a very good chance. If everyone played to their full potential, they wouldn't beat the ABs who are demonstrably the best, and deepest, side in the tournament but on the day, it would be close.

For me, Argentina are the real dark horses. Anyone who underestimates them does so at their peril. And it really is hard to see any NH side making the semis at this point. Scotland are still around courtesy of the draw. Wales are so banged up it's hard to imagine they'll have the beating of a peaking-at-the-right-time Bokke, and France and Ireland have hardly impressed, the latter in particular struggling for form. Can't see either of them beating the ABs so whoever wins today will have at least the best shot vs. Argentina.

Hard to look past a Straya vs. the winners of the AB/Bokke semi if it does go that way. One advantage the Aussies do have is if it goes as above, their opponents will come into the final off the back of a very tough semi. In a way, I think it would be no bad thing if there was an all SH semi-final lineup. The Six Nations would then have to take a really hard look at itself, and the way our teams play rugby. The simply truth is that technically more than tactically, we are miles behind. And the issue isn't the raw material; we have a lot of good young players. It's the coaching, particularly England. The great pity is the Welsh injuries because with a full-strength side, you would fancy Wales to give the SH teams a run for their money.

Have I already said AWJ is the next Lions captain? Well, if I haven't, he is.

Edited by sydtheeagle (11 Oct 2015 10.56am)

Sydenham by birth. Selhurst by the Grace of God.

Interesting read as always Syd. I think the case for the Aussies peaking slightly too early could be true although their defence really was exceptional yesterday.

In a similar vein I think the AB's have been below their top level so far so could peak at just the right time.

'Lies to the masses as are like fly's to mollasses...they want more and more and more'