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#Post#: 143904--------------------------------------------------
Re: Tom Willis off to France again
DIR By: Quinky
Date: October 21, 2025, 7:19 am
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--- Quote from: never sleep link ---
>
> Yes - clearly it was a joke.
> My wife used to play womens rugby in her younger days and I
used to use this joke then (and I used to often get a slap
around the back of my head every time).
> No - I'm not embarrassed. I am thick skinned and it takes a
lot to make me embarrassed.
> I will be there on Friday night supporting our team again as I
do for all the women's home games (and as I do for all of the
Richmond women's home games as well.)
>
>
--- End Quote ---
I thought it was amusing. But then, I have a sense of humour.
#Post#: 143905--------------------------------------------------
Re: Tom Willis off to France again
DIR By: JammyGit
Date: October 21, 2025, 7:21 am
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--- Quote from: MaidstoneQuin link ---
>
> I personally want to test our strength in depth a bit more
which is why I want to give Illione and Pollock a chance to
shine, and also give CCS a chance to play 8. I imagine Earl will
be the test 8 though with probably Underhill at 7 and possibly
Chessum at 6 with CCS possibly at 5. I wouldn't be upset if he
was 7 though over Underhill, but I think Sam is playing fairly
well
>
--- End Quote ---
Illione is very much a 7 at this stage. One start at 8 compared
to lots at 7.
Guy Pepper has been superb since breaking through, too
#Post#: 143912--------------------------------------------------
Re: Tom Willis off to France again
DIR By: MaidstoneQuin
Date: October 21, 2025, 8:47 am
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--- Quote from: JammyGit link ---
>
> Illione is very much a 7 at this stage. One start at 8
compared to lots at 7.
>
> Guy Pepper has been superb since breaking through, too
>
--- End Quote ---
Looking at recent SB comments I would say he's hoping he can
step into the 8 void. I'd be surprised if he leapfrogs
Underhill/Earl/Pepper for 7. Pollock is probably the best bench
impact option with his tenacity
#Post#: 143930--------------------------------------------------
Re: Tom Willis off to France again
DIR By: QuincyJones
Date: October 22, 2025, 1:08 am
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--- Quote from: FrostAndFire link ---
>
> The men's game does run at a loss, though. The internationals
do not come close to funding the whole of the men's game. And
you can't treat internationals as something that stands alone.
If it wasn't for the weekly games with the money-losing clubs,
there would be no international players to make that occasional
but inadequate money.
>
--- End Quote ---
Internationals made lots of money long before the club game
turned professional.
#Post#: 143931--------------------------------------------------
Re: Tom Willis off to France again
DIR By: QuincyJones
Date: October 22, 2025, 1:12 am
---------------------------------------------------------
--- Quote from: JammyGit link ---
>
> It's quite obviously a growth market and frankly I think
you're being extremely blinkered if you can't see that. A
comparatively small investment has an outsize impact. Christ,
the increased advertising opportunities alone are probably worth
their weight in gold. I don't think there's any part of the
sport that would provide the same returns for the same money
currently.
>
> Businesses - and the RFU - care about growth. The clubs care
about growth.
>
> But then rugby doesn't exist to make money and I think people
are forgetting that.
>
--- End Quote ---
It's clearly a growth market, but you'd hope something would
grow after the millions being chucked at it. The RFU care about
growth, for money's sake. They didn't care about the growth of
7s when they cut all of its funding and made all their full time
players redundant. Because it was a big expense.
#Post#: 143932--------------------------------------------------
Re: Tom Willis off to France again
DIR By: QuincyJones
Date: October 22, 2025, 1:17 am
---------------------------------------------------------
--- Quote from: poorfour link ---
>
> The women’s international game was planned to break even by
2030 but it had already achieved that milestone before RWC 2025,
which itself beat its original attendance target by nearly
200,000 tickets and will probably have turned a decent profit
when the accounting settles.
>
--- End Quote ---
The women's RWC is rumoured to have made a net £20m loss. Unlike
the men's figures, the women's figures are concealed if they
don't fit the 'world's best investment opportunity' narrative.
#Post#: 143936--------------------------------------------------
Re: Tom Willis off to France again
DIR By: JammyGit
Date: October 22, 2025, 2:00 am
---------------------------------------------------------
--- Quote from: QuincyJones link ---
>
> It's clearly a growth market, but you'd hope something would
grow after the millions being chucked at it. The RFU care about
growth, for money's sake. They didn't care about the growth of
7s when they cut all of its funding and made all their full time
players redundant. Because it was a big expense.
>
--- End Quote ---
Revenues grow. The number of people watching the sport grows.
The number of people wanting to play the sport grows.
7s wasn't a growth opportunity. It's a dead end sport with very
little room to grow and very little interest despite years of
being put on a pedestal.
Businesses like having revenue grow even if their profits don't,
for extremely obvious reasons. But again, rugby doesn't exist to
make money.
#Post#: 143938--------------------------------------------------
Re: Tom Willis off to France again
DIR By: deadlyfrom5yardsout
Date: October 22, 2025, 2:12 am
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I can take or leave "7"s Rugby as it is an anachronism that is
followed by Blazers in Hong Kong for a whiff of home and a jolly
good pi*s up...much like polo really. Only really useful these
days for fitness training when the turnout for Tuesday night
training is poor.
#Post#: 143939--------------------------------------------------
Re: Tom Willis off to France again
DIR By: deadlyfrom5yardsout
Date: October 22, 2025, 2:14 am
---------------------------------------------------------
--- Quote from: never sleep link ---
>
> Yes - clearly it was a joke.
> My wife used to play womens rugby in her younger days and I
used to use this joke then (and I used to often get a slap
around the back of my head every time).
> No - I'm not embarrassed. I am thick skinned and it takes a
lot to make me embarrassed.
> I will be there on Friday night supporting our team again as I
do for all the women's home games (and as I do for all of the
Richmond women's home games as well.)
>
>
--- End Quote ---
Which is why the Women play in White, so they match all the
other kitchen appliances.
#Post#: 143941--------------------------------------------------
Re: Tom Willis off to France again
DIR By: Rugbycat
Date: October 22, 2025, 2:20 am
---------------------------------------------------------
--- Quote from: QuincyJones link ---
>
> It's clearly a growth market, but you'd hope something would
grow after the millions being chucked at it. The RFU care about
growth, for money's sake. They didn't care about the growth of
7s when they cut all of its funding and made all their full time
players redundant. Because it was a big expense.
>
--- End Quote ---
The sevens series was mismanaged by world rugby into a vastly
expensive and unsustainable abomination, that outside of the
traditional venues had declining attendance and huge costs it
was losing world rugby around £30m a year, and a number of
unions openly stated it had very little development potential
for players and withdrew.
So sevens was in decline and funding was used elsewhere in the
women’s case for the full game, which was growing and the policy
of giving sevens contracts and then fifteens contracts
alternately was not working for the women.
You mentioned Amazon which lost 3 billion dollars before
becoming profitable, but again rugby is not about money for a
governing body, beyond being able to maintain financial
stability.
Their role is to grow the game at every level and offer
opportunities for anyone who wants to play, or get involved.
Anything requires investment to flourish and just saying that
the money would be better used elsewhere is your opinion, in the
same way that I believe it is well spent on the women’s game is
my opinion.
Only difference is the RFU have decided to support my side of
the debate.
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