QF3 - Match Thread - Wales v France - 20/10/19 - K/O 8:15 BST

[Guest]

First topic message reminder :

Thought I'd get these made nice and early for a few reasons - but one being that we're already now looking ahead to the QFs with several teams having finished their group stage, so it's all heating up for the proper knockout stuff...barring any more disruption.

Wales



Team:Liam Williams; George North, Jonathan Davies, Hadleigh Parkes, Josh Adams; Dan Biggar, Gareth Davies; Wyn Jones, Ken Owens, Tomas Francis; Jake Ball, Alun Wyn Jones; Aaron Wainwright, Justin Tipuric, Josh Navidi.


Reps: Elliot Dee, Rhys Carre, Dillon Lewis, Adam Beard, Ross Moriarty, Tomos Williams, Rhys Patchell, Owen Watkin


France



Team: Medard - Penaud, Vakatawa, Fickou, Huget - Ntamack, Du pont - Ollivon , Alldrit, Lauret -
Vaahamahina, Leroux - Slimani, Guirado (c), Poirot
Bench: Cat, Braille,Sentiano, Gabrillagues, Picamoles, Serin, Lopez, Rattez



Venue: Oita
Referee: Jaco Peyper
AR1: Nic Berry
AR2: Paul Williams
TMO: Marius Joncker

[Old Man]

SA still has to beat Japan, and then maybe Wales rock up next Weekend, SA struggle with Wales’ slow everything to a glacier halt.

[mikey_dragon]

Looked very forward? Very?! I know I’m biased but it didn’t seem to move forward or backward relative to the 5m line from the overhead shot???

It was marginal, so ref was fair to go with his on field call

The ref and TMO both clearly seen it. The pass didn’t look forward to me? I don’t know why we bother to argue, the English will just keep saying it’s forward when it wasn’t. You guys are boring now.

[Heaf]

Thomas and Phillips calling it a cracking game and they were serious. Gosh the loser mentality makes me so mad. 

Thomas was a great player but never thought much of him as a pundit ...

[eirebilly]

Massive congrats to Wales and the Welsh fans on here.

Not at your best and France finally turned up but this Welsh side never give up.

The dream is still alive for yiz

Really enjoyed that Match.

[Gooseberry]

Cracking game in terms of drama and excitement but an awful advert for rugby as a fast flowing sport of skill.

Seems like all the quarter finalists have just gone straight to cliches. New zealand just better than everyone else, ireland looked like they'd had too much Guinness, england kick everything, Australia run everything, wales doing their best to annoy the english by chipping away at the coal face and finding a way to win, france brilliant mercurial talent let down by outright thuggery.

[formerly known as Sam]

SA still has to beat Japan, and then maybe Wales rock up next Weekend, SA struggle with Wales’ slow everything to a glacier halt.

Not sure Wales will get away with that. They're going to have to play some more rugby. If they go toe to toe with that gigantic Bik pack then it could go very wrong.

Wales need to start using all that back three talent, why play three try machines at the back and then force them to play aerial ping pong all game. What a waste.

[Duty281]

I hope the French thug gets a long, long ban. No place for that in sport.

[RiscaGame]

Everything went France’s way really. Luck only really ran out when Medard kicked the ball long.

Well done Maggie. She knows it wasn’t forward.

[Old Man]

I hope the French thug gets a long, long ban. No place for that in sport.

Yes that was extremely stupid and deliberate.

[RiscaGame]

Wales can’t play that bad again, hopefully. Just pretty brain dead throughout. Forcing play (Parkes and North), inviting too much pressure and kind of one up running too much.

[westisbest]

Well done Wales. Looked like France didn’t want to win that at times.

Stupid sending off. Wales’s tails were up after that.

France will really be kicking themselves. They will feel they should have won that.

[LondonTiger]

Rubbish.

Can we nominate another team to represent us in the semi, please???

No congratulations from posters please!

Congratulations on finding a way to win.

All the best for next week.

[sensisball]

5 missed points from kicks by Ntamack unfortunately came back to haunt France. However Vaahamahina's moment of madness was the deciding factor in Wales being able to drag themselves over the line. If Navidi and JD aren't available next week I don't think the Boks or Japan will be hugely intimidated by playing this Welsh team.

[alfie]

Very flawed game ...but a damn sight more exciting than the first two QFs . Mistake-ridden games often are...
Doesn't change my view that whoever wins the first semi will be champions.

[The Great Aukster]

Congrats to Wales, if it's not too hot you stand a real chance of making the Final.
Comisserations to France who played some good rugby, but one idiot undid it all in a blink.

[majesticimperialman]

5 missed points from kicks by Ntamack unfortunately came back to haunt France. However Vaahamahina's moment of madness was the deciding factor in Wales being able to drag themselves over the line. If Navidi and JD aren't available next week I don't think the Boks or Japan will be hugely intimidated by playing this Welsh team.

I have to agree Wales did look a bit Lethargic, to say that Wales have BI Lions in their team.

No i do not think either SA or Japan will be to worried.

[RiscaGame]

Very flawed game ...but a damn sight more exciting than the first two QFs .   Mistake-ridden games often are...
Doesn't change my view that whoever wins the first semi will be champions.

To be fair, I think the majority would agree there.

[Gooseberry]

Theres been times in the recent past where Wales have played better and gone out of world cups so on reflection who knows maybe this is their year.
SA are another team who it's hard to gauge exactly where they are at, but honestly Japan should not troubling them. Wales are capable of doing better and if they havent picked up too many injuries for this game could take that semi final.
If England do them a favour over NZ, they are the one team who look in the competition so far, then ...well.
Gatlands " it doesnt really matter" comment has some merit, the win means more in the history books than the performances they put in to loses in tight games from previous cups.

More urgently though someone needs to find him a new tailor before his shirt chokes collar him out

[LondonTiger]

5 missed points from kicks by Ntamack unfortunately came back to haunt France. However Vaahamahina's moment of madness was the deciding factor in Wales being able to drag themselves over the line. If Navidi and JD aren't available next week I don't think the Boks or Japan will be hugely intimidated by playing this Welsh team.

I have to agree Wales did look a bit Lethargic, to say that Wales have BI Lions in their team.

No i do not think either SA or Japan will be to worried.

Bisexual Lions?

[LondonTiger]

Has Gatland ever sounded quite so depressed?

[The Bachelor]

Let's not forget this French side drew with England in the group stage...

[Geordie]

Thomas and Phillips calling it a cracking game and they were serious. Gosh the loser mentality makes me so mad. 

Yes but Thomas is as big a nob ead as Sean Fitzpatrick..they both spout so much sh1te

[westisbest]

Very flawed game ...but a damn sight more exciting than the first two QFs .   Mistake-ridden games often are...
Doesn't change my view that whoever wins the first semi will be champions.

To be fair, I think the majority would agree there.

True.
But if France has nailed just one of their missed kicks when they should have, they would have won.
That’s they way it goes, got to make those kicks.

[LondonTiger]

Let's not forget this French side drew with England in the group stage...

True, though England went into that game with just 3 available players. Wilkinson, Kay & Woodward - all a tad past their prime.

[majesticimperialman]

5 missed points from kicks by Ntamack unfortunately came back to haunt France. However Vaahamahina's moment of madness was the deciding factor in Wales being able to drag themselves over the line. If Navidi and JD aren't available next week I don't think the Boks or Japan will be hugely intimidated by playing this Welsh team.

I have to agree Wales did look a bit Lethargic, to say that Wales have BI Lions in their team.

No i do not think either SA or Japan will be to worried.

Bisexual Lions?

There could be some. 

who knows? 

would it be a problem for you?

[hugehandoff]

France have self-destructed before, but this effort was spectacular! How they lost that match only the grand fromage upstairs really knows.

As for Wales.....desperately poor, but alive and into the RWC semi-finals. Congrats and of course you cannot play as badly again so next week should be better. If not then the opposition won't be so forgiving.

[BamBam]

Didn't see the game, but the result is all that matters at this stage 

As the v2 authority on Welsh forward passes, if someone would kindly find me a link I'll have that one cleared up very quickly

[No9]

Every team that lifts the Webb Ellis trophy have a terrible game where they dog it out (call it luck)... fingers crossed that was ours.

One thing you can bet on. This Welsh team is far more professional than ever before, and they won’t be happy with that and will work harder this week to correct. Not that the coaching team will let them off anyway.

Dream still alive.... well done boys (Wales), hard luck France.

[Heaf]

Presumably the French management will refuse to pick that idiot ever again?

[Duty281]

Fair play to Gatland - “the better team lost today”

[SecretFly]

Whatever you want to say about Wales - and plenty in here usually have a lot to say about them, negative as well as positive - you always have to take your hat off to their fighting spirit.  They just never let their fans down in that area.  As the clock counts down they almost become fans themselves in their blood red willingness to do what's necessary to make it work.  Their fans are screaming at them to make it right. They're screaming at themselves (internally) to make it right. Probably the most dangerous team out there with 10 minutes left and hope in their nostrils.
Now obviously against 14 men technically they might have been criticism that they needed that final 'traditional' on-the-edge game.  You have to give quite a bit of credit to France for their part in it.  But still,  much to admire always about this Welsh team's intent to never ever give up.

[Heaf]

Said Wales would come back - didn't quite expect it to be that close though.

[LondonTiger]

Didn't see the game, but the result is all that matters at this stage 

As the v2 authority on Welsh forward passes, if someone would kindly find me a link I'll have that one cleared up very quickly

It was a rip that may or may not have gone forward. No clear evidence either way on TV so went with on-field decision.

[Guest]

Didn't see the game, but the result is all that matters at this stage 

As the v2 authority on Welsh forward passes, if someone would kindly find me a link I'll have that one cleared up very quickly

It was a strip in the tackle that’s being debated, rather than a forward pass. Will see if there’s a video somewhere.

[George Carlin]

Looked a stodgy old affair but who cares - well done Wales.

Vaahamahina needs to be interviewed about this. Why the biggest guy on the pitch standing upright in the middle of a maul presumed that nobody would see him elbowing someone in the jaw is something that at least 3 psychiatrists need to explore.

[LondonTiger]

Looked a stodgy old affair but who cares - well done Wales.

Vaahamahina needs to be interviewed about this. Why the biggest guy on the pitch standing upright in the middle of a maul presumed that nobody would see him elbowing someone in the jaw is something that at least 3 psychiatrists need to explore.

Uses the same bookie as Howley?

[BigGee]

Didn't see the game, but the result is all that matters at this stage 

As the v2 authority on Welsh forward passes, if someone would kindly find me a link I'll have that one cleared up very quickly

It was a rip that may or may not have gone forward. No clear evidence either way on TV so went with on-field decision.

Probably worth saying that it was not why they won the match either, the root cause of that was the idiocy of the second row who got sent off. They were always going to be up against it after that and Wales are a clinical enough side to eventually take a chance. They should have buried France long before that controversial rip.

The French won't be blaming the ref, only themselves!

[George Carlin]

Didn't see the game, but the result is all that matters at this stage 

As the v2 authority on Welsh forward passes, if someone would kindly find me a link I'll have that one cleared up very quickly

It was a rip that may or may not have gone forward. No clear evidence either way on TV so went with on-field decision.

Nothing to see there. The ball was clearly torn out and even if it had been judged as a pass (which would have been ridiculous), the Welsh player's hands were still pointing backwards regardless of the fact that the ball travelled forward. The try was good all day.

[stub]

Yeah, good try for me too. Congratulations Welsh fans!

[RiscaGame]

I think we should’ve had a penalty from that scrum anyway, but that was seemingly never considered, had the try not been awarded.

[stub]

Awful foul play for the red card - couldn’t believe what I was watching.

[Collapse2005]

Looked a stodgy old affair but who cares - well done Wales.

Vaahamahina needs to be interviewed about this. Why the biggest guy on the pitch standing upright in the middle of a maul presumed that nobody would see him elbowing someone in the jaw is something that at least 3 psychiatrists need to explore.

Is he the same guy who threw the stupid intercept pass to Wales in the 6 nations?

[RiscaGame]

Apparently so.

[formerly known as Sam]

Awful foul play for the red card - couldn’t believe what I was watching.

You'd suspect a substantial ban coming his way. He's always a bit of a liability.

https://www.instagram.com/p/B31cLVFg_8g/?igshid=wp5rpd1bqki2

[Recwatcher16]

Well done Wales, any RWC semi final is a good achievement.
That's two games this year that France have gifted Wales - not Gatland' s fault but he certainly rides his luck with his brand of non rugby. He started it with Wasps and he has never changed, although it is strange with the quality back three that Wales have currently at their disposal.
Moriarty is a lucky boy. Think Wales will make the final now and if the opposition make mistakes Wales will pounce.

[RiscaGame]

Christ, those sites try their best to get reactions. That’s desperate stuff. Not even worth a share.

[Heaf]

I think we should’ve had a penalty from that scrum anyway, but that was seemingly never considered, had the try not been awarded.

Yes I think Wales would probably have gone on to get the try needed anyway ...

[TightHEAD]

We played well deserved win. Wales v England final is still on.

[lostinwales]

A word for the ref. He was terrible.

I don't think either team were favoured, but the free for all on the ground seemed to favour France more. One elbow and a borderline pass away from being out.

[lostinwales]

And I know England nz won't live up to expectations because both teams will be wanting the other to play, so there will be a ton of kicking. But Wales SA has the pontential to be very grim

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