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Bath owner Bruce Craig requests that the Toulouse match be replayed

By Online Editors
Fly-half Freddie Burns after Bath’s defeat to Toulouse

Bath Rugby owner Bruce Craig has written to the ECPR to request that last weekend’s Heineken Champions Cup game against Toulouse be replayed.

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The match will be remembered for fullback Freddie Burns late blunder under the posts but Craig believes that his side were let down by officiating at The Rec.

“I think the game should be replayed,” Craig told The Times, “and we will do what we can to get equity.”

Craig believes that the ref blew the final whistle several seconds too early, which stopped Bath from taking a crucial lineout which could have led to them losing the match.

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Craig also believes that Jerome Kaino and Lucas Pointud should have been red carded during the game. Both players were cited and subsequently banned this week.

“This is the European Cup, there are massive sporting and financial implications,” Craig told The Times. “Bath have been majorly disadvantaged.

“This isn’t sour grapes, because maybe we wouldn’t have won the game, but that is not the issue.”

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In May Craig criticised the RFU and the team England after a number of their players were injured during training camps.

At the time, Craig said: “The level of injuries in these training camps is totally unacceptable. What is going on in the camp?

“There is obviously an issue because of the number of injuries. There has got to be significant questions asked about duty of care.

“At Bath, we’re not having cruciate ligament injuries in training. I am unsure of whether the players are not being taken to levels that are unacceptable.”

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“At Bath, we’re not having cruciate ligament injuries in training. I am unsure of whether the players are not being taken to levels that are unacceptable.”

“These are totally unacceptable injuries,” Craig said, “and it is the nature of them too, these are serious long-term injuries.”

Meanwhile Joe Cokanasiga returns to the Bath Rugby starting line-up side to face Wasps in the second round of the Heineken Champions Cup today at the Ricoh Arena.

Cokanasiga starts on the left wing with Semesa Rokoduguni on the other flank and Darren Atkins moving to full-back to complete the back three. Jackson Willison continues at outside centre and will be joined in the midfield by Max Wright, who came on as a replacement last weekend against Toulouse. Will Chudley makes his competitive debut for the Club, as the scrum-half links up with Freddie Burns in the half-back pairing.

Jack Walker comes in at hooker, with Nathan Catt and Henry Thomas taking their places at loosehead and tighthead prop respectively. Dave Attwood and Charlie Ewels form the second row combination, whilst there is an unchanged back row for the trip to Coventry. Tom Ellis and Francois Louw remain at six and seven, with Zach Mercer completing the pack.

Ross Batty marks his return to the first team squad, with the hooker is named among the replacements for the European clash.

Tom Dunn, Rhys Priestland and Jamie Roberts are all unavailable for selection for this tomorrow’s game. Dunn has sustained a small fracture to his right eye and is expected to be out for three-four weeks. Priestland sustained knee ligament damage during last weekend’s game and is likely to be sidelined for six-eight weeks. Roberts underwent return to play protocols after being knocked out against Toulouse, but has not recovered in time to take his place in the squad.

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Jon 7 hours ago
Jake White: Are modern rugby players actually better?

This is the problem with conservative mindsets and phycology, and homogenous sports, everybody wants to be the same, use the i-win template. Athlete wise everyone has to have muscles and work at the gym to make themselves more likely to hold on that one tackle. Do those players even wonder if they are now more likely to be tackled by that player as a result of there “work”? Really though, too many questions, Jake. Is it better Jake? Yes, because you still have that rugby of ole that you talk about. Is it at the highest International level anymore? No, but you go to your club or checkout your representative side and still engage with that ‘beautiful game’. Could you also have a bit of that at the top if coaches encouraged there team to play and incentivized players like Damian McKenzie and Ange Capuozzo? Of course we could. Sadly Rugby doesn’t, or didn’t, really know what direction to go when professionalism came. Things like the state of northern pitches didn’t help. Over the last two or three decades I feel like I’ve been fortunate to have all that Jake wants. There was International quality Super Rugby to adore, then the next level below I could watch club mates, pulling 9 to 5s, take on the countries best in representative rugby. Rugby played with flair and not too much riding on the consequences. It was beautiful. That largely still exists today, but with the world of rugby not quite getting things right, the picture is now being painted in NZ that that level of rugby is not required in the “pathway” to Super Rugby or All Black rugby. You might wonder if NZR is right and the pathway shouldn’t include the ‘amateur’, but let me tell you, even though the NPC might be made up of people still having to pull 9-5s, we know these people still have dreams to get out of that, and aren’t likely to give them. They will be lost. That will put a real strain on the concept of whether “visceral thrill, derring-do and joyful abandon” type rugby will remain under the professional level here in NZ. I think at some point that can be eroded as well. If only wanting the best athlete’s at the top level wasn’t enough to lose that, shutting off the next group, or level, or rugby players from easy access to express and showcase themselves certainly will. That all comes back around to the same question of professionalism in rugby and whether it got things right, and rugby is better now. Maybe the answer is turning into a “no”?

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j
john 10 hours ago
Will the Crusaders' decline spark a slow death for New Zealand rugby?

But here in Australia we were told Penney was another gun kiwi coach, for the Tahs…….and yet again it turned out the kiwi coach was completely useless. Another con job on Australian rugby. As was Robbie Deans, as was Dave Rennie. Both coaches dumped from NZ and promoted to Australia as our saviour. And the Tahs lap them up knowing they are second rate and knowing that under pressure when their short comings are exposed in Australia as well, that they will fall in below the largest most powerful province and choose second rate Tah players to save their jobs. As they do and exactly as Joe Schmidt will do. Gauranteed. Schmidt was dumped by NZ too. That’s why he went overseas. That why kiwi coaches take jobs in Australia, to try and prove they are not as bad as NZ thought they were. Then when they get found out they try and ingratiate themselves to NZ again by dragging Australian teams down with ridiculous selections and game plans. NZ rugby’s biggest problem is that it can’t yet transition from MCaw Cheatism. They just don’t know how to try and win on your merits. It is still always a contest to see how much cheating you can get away with. Without a cheating genius like McCaw, they are struggling. This I think is why my wise old mate in NZ thinks Robertson will struggle. The Crusaders are the nursery of McCaw Cheatism. Sean Fitzpatrick was probably the father of it. Robertson doesn’t know anything else but other countries have worked it out.

40 Go to comments
A
Adrian 12 hours ago
Will the Crusaders' decline spark a slow death for New Zealand rugby?

Thanks Nick The loss of players to OS, injury and retirement is certainly not helping the Crusaders. Ditto the coach. IMO Penny is there to hold the fort and cop the flak until new players and a new coach come through,…and that's understood and accepted by Penny and the Crusaders hierarchy. I think though that what is happening with the Crusaders is an indicator of what is happening with the other NZ SRP teams…..and the other SRP teams for that matter. Not enough money. The money has come via the SR competition and it’s not there anymore. It's in France, Japan and England. Unless or until something is done to make SR more SELLABLE to the NZ/Australia Rugby market AND the world rugby market the $s to keep both the very best players and the next rung down won't be there. They will play away from NZ more and more. I think though that NZ will continue to produce the players and the coaches of sufficient strength for NZ to have the capacity to stay at the top. Whether they do stay at the top as an international team will depend upon whether the money flowing to SRP is somehow restored, or NZ teams play in the Japan comp, or NZ opts to pick from anywhere. As a follower of many sports I’d have to say that the organisation and promotion of Super Rugby has been for the last 20 years closest to the worst I’ve ever seen. This hasn't necessarily been caused by NZ, but it’s happened. Perhaps it can be fixed, perhaps not. The Crusaders are I think a symptom of this, not the cause

40 Go to comments
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