Rugby in Sweden and Europe

Kan Sverige vinna mot Ungern?

On 9th October 2017

Jag sade att jag inte skulle skriva mera om veckans landskamp eftersom jag inte ansåg att det uttagna laget var representativt. Efter veckoslutets matcher finns ingen anledning att ändra på det omdömet.

Jag har skrivit åtskilliga gånger att den svenska klungan varit klart undermålig och en bidragande orsak till att Sverige förlorat 20 av 21 landskamper under den nuvarande SRF –ledningen. Sverige har ont om bra forwards och om de nästa aldrig tränar ihop kommer de tveklöst att förlora de flesta landskamperna.

Det uttagna laget har 4 forwards från Hammarby, 2 från Pingvin, 1 från Exiles och 0 från Enköping. De möttes om Mästerskapet resp. tredjeplats i helgen. Exiles kom etta och Enköping trea. Jag hoppas några läsare har sett matcherna eller åtminstone första matchen i Trelleborg och andra matchen i Enköping på Youtube.
I båda matcherna mellan Exiles och Pingvin dominerade Exiles i klungan vare sig det var deras första eller andra första led. Pingvin trycktes tillbaka 2 – 3 meter vid nästan varje insättning. Pingvins aktuella landslagsmän, Oscar Larsson och Erik Sjöbeck utgjorde andra ledet. De är båda två duktiga spelare men klungaspel verkar inte vara deras starka sida

Andra matchen om 3dje plats som gick i helgen i Enköping var mycket mera skrämmande. Hammarby´s fyra aktuella Sverigeuttagna var Marcus Loxvi, Christopher Sidgwick, Ehsan Fadakar och Christopher Nilserius (även Södertälje). De spelade mot ett ungt och entusiastikt gäng från Enköping som bokstavligen körde över dem. Varje Hammarbyklunga trycktes 5m., 10 m. och stundtals 15 m. bakåt och Enköping vann lätt. Det är en svindlande tanke att hälften av Hammarbys klunga kommer att ställa upp i Sveriges färger nu på lördag. Jag tror att vi kan utgå ifrån att Sverige på nytt kommer att göra en mycket svag insats och chanserna att vinna sjunker drastiskt. Det hedrar Marcus Loxvi när han fick en fråga om spelarna: ”De kunde inte få de bästa spelarna, så de valde oss”. Vemodigt men tyvärr delvis sant.

På tal om de ”bästa spelarna” är budskapet fråm SRF att många tackade nej till spel för att de ville åka till Singapores sjumannaturnering i början på november. Laget är inte klart än och antagligen blir det t ex inte fler än 4 Exiles som följer med. Av Exiles klunga som spelade bra i lördags var 6 landslagsmän och vad jag vet var de flesta tillgängliga för spel mot Ungern. Som vanligt uppgift mot uppgift och naturligtvis inga offentliga uttalanden från vårt dysfunktionella SRF.

Great end to (Male) season

By Hunter Mabon Snr

On 7th October 2017

In Hunter on rugby

Exiles have not had the best of seasons, with a horrendous list of injuries still not resolved. Against an inspired opposition they did well to take a sixth title, however and if truth be told Pingvin never quite looked as if they could pull off a sensational victory.

Exiles coach Henry van Niekerk is trying to introduce a bit of flair to Swedish rugby. It was great to see the final team presented individually on Facebook, to have a jersey presentation before the game, a great Exiles promotional film was shown as pre-match motivation and to have about 30 of the Exiles youngsters lined up to cheer the team on to the pitch. The weather was of course a disaster, but Stockholm can be like that in October, and a crowd of about 300 congregated to see the Championship decider. A lot of freebies of course and nothing like the 550 paying down in a sunny Trelleborg.Pingvin started strongly with a certain amount of ping-pong as both teams kicked for position. One such kick by Dustin gave a penalty which Neill converted after 8”. Kicking from both sides continued with Pingvins scrum-half Matthew Keene finding touch near the line on several occasions.

Half-way through the first half Exiles seemed to be getting on top but Pingvin kicked themselves into a penalty position which they failed to convert. On 28” Pingvin had a first dangerous attack from their backs but strong tackling snuffed it out.
The Exiles No 8 Franco then had one of his trademark runs and Exiles were beginning to seriously challenge the Pingvin line. Keane got back several times as a last line of defence when Exiles seemed likely to score and there was a huge miss by Exiles on 33” when the ball was dropped a few yards from the line with a two-man overlap.

The Exiles pack completely dominated in the set pieces as in the first final, but the lineouts were letting them down again and giving Pingvin possession. They used this to kick to the corner and a sustained period of pressure was exerted before centre Erik Arvidsson found a gap to score on the halftime whistle. Campbell converted and it was 7 – 3 to the visitors. Exiles probably had the edge in the first half but it was a tough attritional battle with very little between the two teams.

The second half was uneventful in terms of points but both teams were fighting for their lives. Exiles were still 5 points ahead on aggregate but a converted try would give Pingvin the title. Play ranged back and forward in the middle of the pitch with Exiles once again just having territorial advantage. Penalties were missed by both sides. Exiles continued to push Pingvin back yards in every scrum and they were beginning to win more and more lineouts. I don´t think Pingvin were ever in the Exiles 22m. in the second half, the nearest being a positional kick landing just outside.

With the clock ticking, Neill finally put over another penalty to put Exiles 8 points or two scores ahead. With only a couple of minutes to go it was soon all over and Exiles had retained their title. Probably the best game of the season with easily the two best teams fighting it out to the death. The weather was a factor of course with a number of passes dropped but you have to be able to play in all weathers to win titles. The referee Jacob Bäverstam handled the game well and it was played in an excellent spirit.

For Pingvin, scrum-half Matthew Keane is half the team (it is still not clear if he will be returning next year) and the two centres Micah Barber and Erik Arvidsson worked hard all afternoon. Lock Oscar Larsson had some bullocking runs when standing in the backs and a special word for debutant hooker Anthony Raphael aged 19, who was under pressure in the scrum throughout but still managed to do very well in open play.

For Exiles, Dustin was his usual steady self and Ian was always dangerous when coming into the line from fullback. The back row was excellent with Neex always near the ball and Franco always threatening. And well done the various front rows who have been unchallenged all season.

The trophy was presented by SRF chairperson Madeleine Lahti, after what is believed to be the first time she has ever seen Exiles play. SRF board member Pasi Niemelä has also written an excellent match report along with coverage of other matches.

Exiles take title in tight match

By Hunter Mabon Snr

On 7th October 2017

In Hunter on rugby

Pingvin won 7 – 6 in the Men´s final but it was not enough to catch Exiles 8 point lead from the first final. Exiles are thus champions for the sixth year in a row, more details later.
Exiles Ladies were always in control against Pingvin winning 12 – 0 to add to their 36 – 5 from semi 1. They now meet Vänersborg next week in the last rugby match ever at Årsta. Vänersborg beat Enköping again, this time 34 – 0.
But Enköping still had something to cheer about, catching up 19 points against Hammarby and winning 32 – 6 this time to take the bronze medal.

Rain forecast for Årsta

By Hunter Mabon Snr

On 7th October 2017

In Hunter on rugby

Looks like a damp end to the season as the Ladies play a second semi and the Men go for a sixth title in a row.

Pingvin Ladies have travelled up with their Men but face an almost impossible task of catching up 31 points against a very solid Exiles team. Looks likely to be the last game ever at Årsta next week with Exiles probably facing Vänersborg who meet Enköping at home with an 18 point lead.The Pingvin Men have a couple of enforced changes in the front row including a 19 year old, Anthony Rafael, making his debut at hooker. Oscar Larsson, selected for Sweden next week, returns to the second row after being out for five weeks. Otherwise unchanged. Interesting to note that no–one in the starting team is over 25, while there are a few 30+ on the bench.

Exiles field an unchanged 15 with a couple of new faces on the bench. They have 11 internationals starting and three more on the bench. After dominating last week they only have a nine-point lead. They are faced with improving their lineouts, the number of penalties conceded and their finishing. Any progress on these fronts and they should win comfortably. But rain is a great leveller and Pingvin will be throwing everything at the home team.

Author: HM Senior

Sverige mot Ungern den 14 oktober

By Hunter Mabon Snr

On 5th October 2017

In Hunter on rugby

Här nedan finns den svenska laguppställningen.

HAMMARBY
Christofer Sidgwick 20*
Ehsan Fadaker 35*
Sebastian Pihlainen 24*
Robert Persson 24*
Marcus Loxvi 31
PINGVIN
Oscar Larsson 25*
Erik Sjöbeck 25*
Erik Arvidsson 25
Samuel Ahlbäck 20*

KALMAR SÖDRA
Sebastian Karlsson 24*
Armir Kozhani 23*

DIVERSE SVERIGE
Richard Nunstedt 19* (Vänersborg)
Jan-Olof Johansson 33 (Spartacus)
Alex Melander 19* (Wexiö)
Theodor Karlsson 19* (Exiles)
Jono Edwards 30* (Göteborg)
Christopher Nilserius 26* (S-tälje)
Sebastian Nockmar 30* (Trojan)

DIVERSE UTLANDET
Arthur Marini (Paris University)*
Jack Duffy (Landsdowne)*
Tom Milner (Ilkley)*
Anders Nilsson (Blackheath)*
Carl Lindblom (Speed)

Spelare markerade med stjärna, 19 st, var med i truppen som förlorade 18 – 10 mot Danmark för ett par veckor sedan. Ungern slog Danmark förra året. Av de 4 nytillkoma i truppen är endast Erik Arvidsson en tillgång. Sveriges giganter, Hammarby, har flest spelare i truppen. Ingen kan rimligtvis tro att denna trupp består av Sveriges 23 bästa behöriga spelare. Jag tror att 5 – 6 skulle platsa i en sådan trupp, med 2-3 som startar.
Jag skriver inte mera om detta totala misslyckande. Sista förödmjukelsen vore om Sverige förlorade mot Ungern, ett inte helt otänkbart utfall.

Author: HM Senior

Pingvin – Exiles on Youtube

By Hunter Mabon Snr

On 2nd October 2017

In Hunter on rugby

Thanks once again to Pingvin for getting both their home matches available in no-time. A paying crowd of over 500 was excellent but there are probably quite a few more who will want to watch the matches electronically.

I´ve watched the Men´s game, won by Exiles 17 – 8 a couple of times. I don´t think I have ever seen a team so outclassed for such long periods and who still only lost by 9 points. But Exiles have to some extent only themselves to blame, which I´ll return to.
Exiles started off playing into a very strong wing in the first half but still dominated play completely. Exiles were in the Pingvin half for well over 30 minutes, they pushed the Pingvin pack all over the place, their backs were much sharper in attack and they were much faster on the ball in loose play. Pingvin just saved two or three tries with desperate defence on the line and were extremely lucky to get to the break only 10 – 3 down. Exiles continued to dominate in the second, were camped on the line from the start and finally made it 17 – 3 with another pushover try on 52”. Pingvin´s problems were compounded from the kick-off when one of their props was red-carded, presumably for tackling a player in the air. Exiles then brought on most of their bench but continued to pound the Pingvin line. How they failed to score two or three tries is a mystery, but credit must go to the Pingvin defence which performed heroically. Pingvin were hardly more than 30 metres from their line for the first half-hour, but in the last 7 – 8 minutes they worked their way up the field, mainly by being awarded a series of penalties, the count was 11 – 4 in their favour in the second half. And with last play of the game their scrum-half was able to stroll over in the corner with a new scrum-half, a new flanker and a non-existent winger unable to stop him. Extremely careless!
Exiles lost the penalty count 17 – 8 (a reversal of the points score) and this is something they must work on for next week. Exiles just had the edge in the lineout in the first half but won just one of their throw-ins in the second half (of about six) and once again this should be improved. I´m not sure why most of our star forwards were replaced either, although there is a problem here. You can´t ask young men to travel 650 km and then not give them some time on the pitch, which Exiles always do.
And perhaps once again the final explanation for the low points lead: the narrow pitch which makes it very difficult to create gaps on the outside. We´ll see how it goes on the wide open spaces of Årsta on Saturday.
All in all, this was Exiles best team of the year and their best performance. If they can iron out the above-mentioned blemishes we could see something special at Årsta.
A couple of words about the Ladies. They dominated in much the same way as the Men, but won by 6 tries to 1 instead of 2 – 1 for the Men.
Vänersborg recorded what seemed to be a comfortable win against Enköping, 26 – 8 and yet Enköping consider they were the better team on the day. We´ll see how things pan out next week in Stockholm and Vänersborg.

Author: HM senior

Summing up the day

By Hunter Mabon Snr

On 30th September 2017

In Hunter on rugby

Not a bad day´s rugby where Exiles will be pretty happy and Pingvin less so.

Results:
Men´s final: Game 1 Pingvin – Exiles 8 – 17
Ladies´ semis: Game 1 Pingvin – Exiles 5 – 36;Enköping – Vänersborg 8 – 26
Men´s 3rd place: Game 1 Hammarby – Enköping 43 – 24
Promotion Allsvenskan Game 2 Trojan – Göteborg 30 – 13 Aggregate 35 – 25Exiles Men with a nine point lead before their final home match next week. Exiles a bit nonchalant when leading 17 – 3, with an extra man and the wind behind them. They brought on the whole bench with 25″ to play and let Pingvin in for their only try on the final whistle.

Exiles Ladies and Vänersborg as expected too strong for their semifinal opponents. They are likely to meet in the one-off final in Stockholm in a couple of week´s time. Could be a very good game.

Hammarby too good for Enköping for the bronze medal. Enköping fielded a reasonably good team and are unlikely to catch up 20 points next week.

Perhaps the surprise of the day was when Trojan caught up their 7 point deficit and more against Göteborg to retain their place in Allsvenskan. Most clubs would like to see six teams next year, i e including Göteborg as well. Göteborg would do well to think very carefully about this, however, as Trojan were a clear last in Allsvenskan this year and yet still beat Göteborg over the last two weeks.

Author: HM Senior

Good end today for Exiles

By Hunter Mabon Snr

On 30th September 2017

In Hunter on rugby

Exiles Men won 17 – 8 in Trelleborg.
Not a decisive lead, but good to have nine points in the bank when you´re playing at home.

Author: HM Senior

Good start today for Exiles

By Hunter Mabon Snr

On 30th September 2017

In Hunter on rugby

The Ladies won 36 – 5 against Pingvin in the semi in Trelleborg. This should give them a comfortable cushion for the return next week and hopefully a one-off final in Stockholm on the 14th. Hattrick for Juliette, two tries for Sandra and one for Hanna. Consolation try for Pingvin with two minutes to go. Strong wind blowing which might cause problems in the Men´s first final just commencing.

Author: HM Senior

The final countdown!

By Hunter Mabon Snr

On 27th September 2017

In Hunter on rugby

Time for the Men´s finals and the Ladies´ semis, with the two leading clubs figuring in both. Exiles meet Pingvin for the third year in a row, while one of last year´s Ladies´ finalists, Göteborg, has completely dropped out the picture. It´s crunch time for Trojan and Göteborg as well as they battle for a place in Allsvenskan next year.

The Men´s final is of course the main event with possibly a majority of those involved in Swedish rugby hoping to see new Champions. Everyone likes of course the honours to go round rather than any particular animosity towards Exiles and Exiles have won for the last five years.
It´s interesting to look back over these years. For the first three Exiles won easily but the other clubs started to improve and catch up last year although the final win was still pretty convincing. Exiles won away 17 – 0 and at home 24 – 3, although Pingvin put up a better fight in the second final than the score would suggest. In 2016 Exiles scored 300+ points in the league and conceded 90, and almost exactly the same this year. Pingvin have scored 200 + in each season but their points against has dropped from 170 to 100, suggesting that their defence has tightened up considerably.
Pingvin won of course their home game in June, 18 – 13, and started off strongly in Stockholm as well, leading 14 – 7 at halftime. But Exiles gradually got on top in the second half which they won 20 – 0 to make it 27 – 14. Exiles will have close to their best team on Saturday in Trelleborg and will be hoping to do better than in June. Let´s see how this first final goes before making any predictions about the Championship outcome.
Third place is also up for grabs this weekend and next as Hammarby start by receiving Enköping at Årsta. Enköping are very dependent on a few senior players and their results have shown dramatic swings over the season. I think Hammarby will just be favourites to retain their bronze medals, not least by virtue of having half a dozen players from Södertälje.

Trojan have lost all their games this season but will be hoping they can win the last one by at least 8 points against Göteborg to make sure they will retain the right to play in Allsvenskan next year. Probably a 50 – 50 chance, although most teams would like to see both teams playing there next year.

There should also be matches for 7th/8th rankings in Sweden between Exiles Twos and Erikslund, but neither team has shown any great enthusiasm. They will probably never be played and Erikslund can concentrate on their players in the U18 team.

The Exiles Ladies are continuing to train hard and will be hoping to retain their title. The North and South teams have not met so far this year at 15s so we don´t really know where everyone stands. I would be surprised, however, if Exiles do not prove too strong for Pingvin whom they also meet in Trelleborg. Vänersborg, like Exiles, have had very few demanding games so far this season but should be better than a strenthened Enköping who are not bad but a little short on scoring power.

Author: HM Senior