OT - Prem Final (Spoilers Obviously)

[Bloke in North Dorset]

Agree with above on England.  I’d have paid England prices and more to watch rugby like that,I wouldn’t go out of my way to watch an England team on free to air TV.

[westwaleswasp]

Eddie will tell you that international rugby is different, prem form is no guide etc. He will then pick Farrell et al. playing the same game plan.

[Shugs]

Quins success is based on a very basic, well known formula. A dominant pack headed by Marler and Louw allowing gifted half backs to dictate play. It makes for entertainment. If you have an occasionally dominant pack giving the ball to a 10 or 12 to kick it doesn't. Jones is trying to be too clever to feed his own ego and in doing so is providing zero entertainment and patchy results.

[hopwood]

Jones is trying to be too clever to feed his own ego and in doing so is providing zero entertainment and patchy results.

Absolutely.

[AndyL]

Eddie will tell you that international rugby is different, prem form is no guide etc. He will then pick Farrell et al. playing the same game plan.

Was interesting watching the lions game to see some of the england players being able to offload in the tackle and keep the ball moving. Show's what happens when their told not to just take it into contact.

[mike909]

Quins success is based on a very basic, well known formula. A dominant pack headed by Marler and Louw allowing gifted half backs to dictate play. It makes for entertainment. If you have an occasionally dominant pack giving the ball to a 10 or 12 to kick it doesn't. Jones is trying to be too clever to feed his own ego and in doing so is providing zero entertainment and patchy results.

This. I do not think Jones understands that England fans really value 6Ns games and want to do well. And that given the resources and money spent, coming 5th isn't good enough. He ought to have got that in 2018 when England had their longest losing run in recent times, only rescued by Danny in SA, on tour. It may well be that all that matters to Jones is the RWC, but in many ways, for the big teams, you probably only need to win two difficult games to win it.....and England are always capable of beating any team......usually having access to a monster pack. Otherwise, 91 and 07 wouldn't have happened.

SL's team put 38 points on NZ in an AI and fulfilled a very awkward three test tour of NZ......So the SF win, whilst good, wasn't unique...and England's lows under Jones have been ineptly poor. Both in selection and play. And yet when the opportunity comes to move the play on and have alternatives, they seem to be rejected. Or some rather bizarre selection like Daly at FB is persisted with regardless or really good players rejected (Brad and Nick Isiekwe come to mind)

Jones is a fab one off coach. The coach to win a game for your life - as the saying sort of goes - but he does seem to get a bee in his bonnet which can restrict his thinking. Not alone in the coaching world - but the loss to Scotland really ought to have been the warning last 6Ns - but no - England were playing similarly vs Ireland in the last game.....

[Bloke in North Dorset]

It may well be that all that matters to Jones is the RWC,

As any economist will tell you: incentives matter. 

He was brought in to win the World Cup, not the 6N or tour matches, and got to the final. On the back of that he was given an extension to have another go at the World Cup and that’s what matters to him.

I wouldn’t be surprised if there’s a big fat bonus for him if they do win it, just to focus his mind.   

[matelot22]

Not going to lie, I am delighted.
Chiefs I hope slide down the table and take their maul with them. Great club, but their style is not for me 
Quins always an ambitious team in terms of playing, and one who have fallen prey to the money bags teams and developed a chunk of talent.

Couldn't agree more, I'm chuffed that after 6 seasons of power based play winning the premiership, a team playing with flair and exciting to watch has finally won. Long may the trend continue.

[Rossm]

It may well be that all that matters to Jones is the RWC,

As any economist will tell you: incentives matter. 

He was brought in to win the World Cup, not the 6N or tour matches, and got to the final. On the back of that he was given an extension to have another go at the World Cup and that’s what matters to him.

I wouldn’t be surprised if there’s a big fat bonus for him if they do win it, just to focus his mind.

That's all very well BiND. But his game plan will not win him a WC or a fat bonus either, whatever he thinks.

[Bloke in North Dorset]

It may well be that all that matters to Jones is the RWC,

As any economist will tell you: incentives matter. 

He was brought in to win the World Cup, not the 6N or tour matches, and got to the final. On the back of that he was given an extension to have another go at the World Cup and that’s what matters to him.

I wouldn’t be surprised if there’s a big fat bonus for him if they do win it, just to focus his mind.

That's all very well BiND. But his game plan will not win him a WC or a fat bonus either, whatever he thinks.

I agree, I was just stating what I think is going on.

[Nigel Med]

To return to the thread title (not that I disagree about EJ's ludicrous selections), got to congratulate Quins, they played some sparkling rugby towards the end of the season that was such a refreshing change from the bore fest that the Premiership so often serves up. It wasn't pleasant being on the receiving end when they thumped us at home but makes it a little easier to take when they beat Exeter playing that way. And BTW, I strongly feel that the result should have been more comfortable. I was gobsmacked when Sam Simmons' try was allowed to stand without even a review. He broke from the back of a ruck, was tackled by two Quins players who clearly bought him to ground and he got straight back up without releasing the ball. Penalty Quins. The otherwise excellent Mathew Carley really should have taken a look.

Like others I can't help drawing comparisons with last season and wondering if our final result would have been different had the weather been like Saturday, the team had been a full strength without any self-isolating absentees and Wayne Barnes been in the middle as originally scheduled. No offence to Craig Maxwell Keys but he's proving time and time again that he's not ready for the big occasions, he has plenty of promise and actually he reminds me of Barnes who was also very shaky in his first 2 or 3 seasons in the Premiership. We were in the form of our life and I was pretty confident of a victory before fate conspired against us. The best teams however can adapt to the circumstances and still win so fair play to Chiefs but I would have loved to have seen us run them ragged!

[RBB]

Fair play to Adam Jones, 'We done it without cheating' to Alex Goode...

https://twitter.com/RugbyJOE_UK/status/1409828091950780418?s=20

[baldpaul101]

Fair play to Adam Jones, 'We done it without cheating' to Alex Goode...

while I love that, its a bit rich given Quins history of cheating...

[RBB]

Fair point, however, like you I love it, particularly Alex Goode's feeble ' Easy bud'.

[wasps]

Fair play to Adam Jones, 'We done it without cheating' to Alex Goode...

while I love that, its a bit rich given Quins history of cheating...

What quins did was disgraceful.
But Jones was nothing to do with the club then. I love what he says.
He's obviously had a few and didn't care about any repercussions, but the more people that call it what it was, the better