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'Petulent' Springbok hopeful pilloried for 'trying to be a hard man'
Aspiring Springbok Evan Roos has been branded as ‘looking like a turkey’ after he instigated an off-the-ball incident in the United Rugby Championship over the weekend.
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In a thrilling match in Cape Town on Saturday, the DHL Stormers overcame a 6-3 halftime deficit to win 20-13 against table topping Leinster, completing a full house of wins for the South African teams in the penultimate round of league competition.
The first half was tense as both teams tried to establish dominance but were unable to cross the try line – although the Stormers came close in the opening seconds – but the hosts will rue a number of lost opportunities in the second half, with a four-try bonus-point eluding them in the end.
One 62nd minute incident saw Stormers No.8 Evan Roos tackle Leinster flyhalf Harry Byrne, as the 23-year-old looked to clear his side’s lines from within the in-goal real.
Roos legally dump tackled Byrne but things turned ugly when the loose forward went to rub Byrne’s face into the ground following the tackle.
“He could be in big trouble here,” observed British & Lions legend Donal Lenihan, who was on commentary duties for RTE. “You can’t do that. He’s looking at a yellow minimum. He drives his head into the ground with his hand.
“Harry Byrne does well to clear out but it’s afterward that there, having made the tackle… just petulent really.
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Matchday referee Craig Evans didn’t see it that way and Roos got away with just a penalty against him.
Former Leinster and Ireland centre blasted Roos on Twitter, writing: “Evan Roos trying to be a hard man, without doing anything hard. Instead just ends up looking like a turkey.”
Evan Roos trying to be a hard man, without doing anything hard. Instead just ends up looking like a turkey ?
— Gordon D'Arcy (@Gordonwdarcy) April 30, 2022
Karl Brophy wrote: Some evidence today as to why Rassie Erasmus has chosen not to call up Evan Roos just yet. Great talent but questionable temperament. He’ll learn.”
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Some evidence today as to why @RassieRugby has chosen not to call up Evan Roos just yet. Great talent but questionable temperament. He’ll learn #STOvLEI
— Karl Brophy (@KarlBrophy) April 30, 2022
Indeed all the recent headlines centering on Roos had been around his shock exclusion from Jacques Nienaber’s first Springboks alignment camps, although it’s not clear if the 22-year-old has been involved in the second camp, which kicked off in Cape Town yesterday.
Nienaber has previously indicated that he is happy with his current crop of back rows, nearly all of whom were involved in the 2019 Rugby World Cup victory.
The real litmus Test is whether or not Roos will be involved as South Africa hosts Wales in a three Test series this July. If he isn’t involved, it will give Nienaber precious little time to blood the rampaging youngster ahead of next year’s Rugby World Cup in France.
His case is certainly not furthered by this type of incident.
Comments on RugbyPass
Je suis sûr que Farrell est impatient de jouer avec Lopez et Machenaud et d’être entraîné par Collazo… 🤭
1 Go to commentsAn on field red (aka a full red) in SRP must surely carry a bigger suspension than a red card given by the bunker as that carries a 20 minute team punishment. Had Damon Murphy abdicated his responsibility as a ref and issued both Drua players a yellow, which would have been upgraded to a 20 minute red by the bunker, that would have killed Australia and New Zealand’s push for the 20 minute red to be trialled globally from July this year.
11 Go to commentsEver so often you all post a Danny Care story that isn’t the announcement that he has finally re-signed for one more, victory tour season at Quins and I’m just like, “well you fooled me again!” My absolute favorite player ever, we need to make his final year at the Stoop (and Twickers) official already. I know he supposedly snubbed France but I won’t feel better until he signs.
1 Go to commentslate hit what late hit it wasn’t at all late and can clearly see he was committed before the tackle
1 Go to commentsChristian Lio -Willies 2 try perfomance was a standout. As was captain Scott Barrett. Up front was where the boys won it.They are a great team and players. Fantastic Crusades , you can keep going.
1 Go to commentsI don't know how the locals feel about that? I guess if you call yourselves the Worcester Wasps that might be appease. But really we need more teams in the Premiership in my view so they are not padding it out as they are at the moment. It might curtail so many players going abroad as well
5 Go to commentsNZ 😭😭😭is certainly rivaling England for best whingers cup!😭😭😭 !!!
25 Go to commentsYup. New Zealand won 3 out of 10 world cups played. SA 4 out of 8 attempts 30 Vs 50 per cent.🤔🤔
25 Go to commentsShould've done this years ago. Change Saturday kick off times to around 11am. Up and off and back home before 3pm, limit travel time too. Allows players to actually do something else with their Saturday that's family oriented or being rugby fans they could ‘watch’ pro rugby. Increases crowds etc. How can anyone that enjoys grassroots and pro rugby have to choose between the two on Saturdays?
9 Go to commentsI bet he inspired those supporters just as much.
1 Go to commentsBen Smith Springboks living rent free in his head 😊😂
67 Go to commentsGood to hear he would like to play the game at the highest level, I hadn’t been to sure how much of a motivator that was before now. Sadly he’s probably chosen the rugby club to go to. Try not to worry about all the input about how you should play rugby Joey and just try to emulate what you do on the league field and have fun. You’ll limit your game too much (well not really because he’s a standard athlete like SBW and he’ll still have enough) if you’re trying to make sure you can recycle the ball back etc. On the other hard, you can totally just try and recycle by looking to offload any and everywhere if you’re going to ground 😋
1 Go to commentsThis just proves that theres always a stat and a metric to use to justify your abilities and your success. Ben did it last week by creating an imaginary competition and now you did the same to counter his argument and espouse a new yardstick for success. Why not just use the current one and lets say the Boks have won 4 world cups making them the most successful world cup team. Outside of the world cup the All Blacks are the most successful team winning countless rugby championships and dominating the rankings with high win percentages. Over the last 4 years statistically the Irish are the best having the highest win rate and also having positive records against every tier 1 side. The most successful Northern team in the game has been England with a world cup title and the most six nations titles in history. The AB’s are the most dominant team in history with the highest win rate and 3 world cups. Lets not try to reinvent the wheel. Just be honest about the actual stats and what each team has been good at doing and that will be enough to define their level of success.
25 Go to commentsHow is 7’s played there? I’m surprised 10 or 11 man rugby hasn’t taken off. 7 just doesn’t fit the 15s dynamics (rules n field etc) but these other versions do.
9 Go to commentsPick Swinton at your peril A liability just like JWH from the Roosters Skelton ??? went missing at RWC
14 Go to commentsLike tennis, who have a ranking system, and I believe rugby too, just measure over each period preceding a world cup event who was the longest number one and that would be it. In tennis the number one player frequently is not the grand slam winner. I love and adore the All Blacks since the days of Ian Kirkpatrick when I was a kid in SA. And still do because they are the masters of running rugby and are gentleman on and off the field - in general. And in my opinion they have been the majority of the time the best rugby team in the world.
25 Go to commentsHaving overseas possessions in 2024 is absurd. These Frenchies should have to give the New Caledonians their freedom.
21 Go to commentsBell injured his foot didn’t he? Bring Tupou in he’ll deliver when it counts. Agree mostly but I would switch in the Reds number 8 Harry Wilson for Swinton and move Rob Valentini to 6 instead. Wilson is a clever player who reads the play, you can’t outmuscle the AB’s and Springboks, if you have any chance it’s by playing clever. Same goes for Paisami, he’s a little guy who doesn’t really trouble the likes of De Allende and Jordie Barrett. I’d rather play Carter Gordon at 12 and put Michael Lynagh’s boy at 10. That way you get a BMT type goalkicker at 10 and a playmaker at 12. Anyways, just my two cents as a Bok supporter.
14 Go to commentsThanks Brett, love your articles which are alway pertinent. It’s a difficult topic trying to have a panel adjudicating consistently penalties for red card issues. Many of the mitigating reasons raised are judged subjectively, hence the different outcomes. How to take away subjective opinions?
11 Go to commentsYes Sir! Surprising, just like Fraser would also have escaped sanction if he was a few inches lower, even if it was by accident that he missed! Has there really been talk about those sanctions or is this just sensational journalism? I stopped reading, so might have missed any notations.
11 Go to comments