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kiggy

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Posts posted by kiggy

  1. 1 hour ago, The Phantom Horseman said:

    I'm talking about Toulouse's away games - the ones being played in England. If Barrow, Batley, Bradford & co are being told they can't play a home game on a Sunday because of a French rugby union team's schedule then we really would have a problem...

    At Fev? If the two teams are neck and neck at that point there will be a lot more than 500 in attendance!

    Yes, I know, and I edited my post immediately to say that I thought it was the away to Toulouse that was mentioned and not the other way around. 

    • Like 1
  2. 43 minutes ago, The Phantom Horseman said:

    Out of interest, does anyone know why every single one of Toulouse's away games is being played on a Saturday? There may be a good reason for this, of course, but it does seem a bit strange given nearly all their opponents normally play their home games on Sundays, and this didn't happen when they were previously in the Championship.

    The reason I ask is that I thought the Fev-Toulouse game on June 10th would be an obvious one to be chosen by ViaPlay and switched to Monday night, but if all Toulouse away games are earmarked for Saturdays then that's presumably not going to happen.

     

     

    Sorry-edited this post as I read it as away games to Toulouse not the other way around

    I doubt the RL have given a lot of thought to travel commitments etc. I.e Saturday games are easier to get to. So I would assume it's because the XV's, Stade Toulousain,  play mostly on the Sundays and they get first dibs on deciding which days they play.

    The ViaPlay coverage is a good point, but you would struggle to get 500 at that match on a Monday evening.

  3. 28 minutes ago, The Phantom Horseman said:

     

    Worth pointing out that "full-time players" is a bit of a misnomer, yes there are some players who don't have a job outside RL but the team don't train full-time, just 2 or 3 evenings a week like most other Championship teams.

    That is a better definition, although even the TO players don't train all the hours. Having the elite players in the squad makes a bit of a difference as they can't train full time which is why the are only used in exceptional circumstances 

  4. 6 minutes ago, TrueBull said:

    As has been said elsewhere, not the biggest squad but still 20 more full time players than every other team in the division 

    True, although probably not a question for you but how many full time players are in the Fév squad? They can't all have proper jobs as well? I can't quite see Johno Ford stacking shelves in Lidl ! 

    It will show though at the end of the season, TO and Fév having more full time players should be the top 2 teams. Anyone else getting one of those two spots would have done exceptionally well.

    • Haha 1
  5. On 17/02/2023 at 18:58, Madrileño said:

    BeIn are going with just NRL this season I believe, Keith. 

    I was hoping the L'équipe would have been in talks with TO too. I know there were talks early last season. At least a couple of matches would have been good this season, if they were still in SL it may have been different. With the IMG proposals a TV deal that covers more than just Catalans would have gone down well for the future of TO. I don't get a chance to talk about it last night after the game, we were discussing the growth..or lack of..of the TO rugby club as a whole and where the priorities should lie.

    • Like 2
  6. 7 hours ago, Zilla Budgie said:

    Impressive start by Toulouse, haven't got the biggest squad have they ? But their 1st choice starting XIII will take some beating.

    Tough first half to be honest, York were on top for the last 15mins of the 1st half. There will be some sore bodies this morning in the TO camp Good to see a nice group of York supporters had made the trip.

    I watched the Saints Penrith game in the morning and I couldn't help thinking how on earth Toulouse managed to beat Saint's last season. The gap between the two sides seems enormous.

    • Like 1
  7. 21 hours ago, The Daddy said:

    Skoundri seems to be highly rated by a few people I've spoken too that follow TO. I watched him play a few games for the Elite team and for a 20 year old he's big and quick, the type of player France has been lacking in the back row.

    In regards to Brochon, one thing he has in his favour is that he's probably the best goalkicker at the club and the goalkickicking so far this season has been poor.

    Houles might just stick him on the wing to get him on kicking duties. It really could be the difference between winning and losing a tight games.

    Shame about Benjamin Laguerre he was outstanding in the first game of the season. With Schaumkel due to return soon and Armitage back TO are covered quite strongly on the wing.

    The achilees heel for TO is the lack of depth in the pack. They're not as strong at prop as they were last time they were in the Championship

    Agree with all of that. The depth in the pack is work in progress. They have eyes on a few players, but it has been a waiting game to see which SL players would be sidelined after pre-season matches and those that would agree a season long loan to come to France. Greg Richards was the first he won't be the last. A couple of NRL guys they were talking to decided to stay in Oz.

    Myself...I would prefer the team to grow the younger elite players this season. They haven't had the money available to make a statement with the team but the feeling within the squad is good, they seem very happy at the moment. By letting go those players who were not pulling their weight, or who thought themselves more important than the team/club has been a breath of fresh air. I'm quite surprised that Pélissier has buckled down to the task in hand mind you as he can be difficult.

    Keeping this small squad fit will be a challenge. They seem focused at the moment

    Let's see who gets to play on Saturday, Skoundri i hope, some exciting times ahead!

    • Like 1
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  8. On 13/02/2023 at 14:40, The Daddy said:

    Always good to see clubs producing their own local players.

    At least 12 players that have come through Toulouse's local teams have been named in their 21 man squads in the past two weeks.

    Laguerre done well scoring two tries last weekend, Pezet played both games so far this season and Skoundri and Tropis have been named in the 21 man squads already. Both are highly rated youngsters.

    By the way Josh Ralph looks like a super signing already 👏  both performances have been eye catching.

     

    I am hoping that Skoundri will get a run out soon. Brochon did OK against Newcastle but with OAB back i'm not sure he will get another chance for a while. Ben Laguerre is due for surgery on his shoulder as (apparently) they don't let these things go anymore, so he will be out for 3 months. It is looking good for the French game though, it was just a shame the two French lads went off to play in the UK (Cozza I think and Lacans).

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  9. TO finally converted a try!

    Brochon did OK, scored a try and then was promoted to goal kicker and didn't miss one. An odd game though after the speed of the first game against Barrow it all seemed a bit flat tonight, they didn't seem to get out of 2nd gear for most of the match. A small crowd didn't help, holidays/freezing cold/French match on TV might have been a cause but I hope the numbers pick up as it was poor tonight.

    Sita's entrance was fun. Although he wasn't on the pitch for very long.

    York are next, one of the only championship teams to have already played at the Stade.

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  10. 36 minutes ago, The Phantom Horseman said:

    The two latest additions were both highlighted in the Elite 1 thread a while ago, always worth a read those threads (bar the odd troll).

    Looks like Ashall-Bott's absence might be as little as 1 game given it was a concussion he suffered. Laguerre could be a much longer absence by the sound of it after injuring his shoulder. Laguerre was playing really well but is probably easier to replace for Toulouse than Ashall-Bott.

    Hopefully Waïl or Robin will get a run out. I'm looking forward to seeing the new players 1st hand on Saturday (no3 son's American girlfriend is coming along with us....special treat for her to see what a proper game looks like!).

    Guy is back and will play on the wing as Latrell isn't ready, and yes, Ben will be out for a while. I heard it was necessary for surgery so that probably means 3 months out. Olly will be back for the York match. 

    • Like 1
  11. 15 hours ago, The Phantom Horseman said:

    Also Laguerre went off having seemd to injure his shoulder when scoring, he too had played very well.

    Shame for the young lad, I thought he showed a lot of promise. 2 scores is a good start. He will have a scan next week. OAB will be out for the obligatory 12 days. Maybe Latrell will be ready soon. TO don't need to lose more from the squad this early. I'm not sure what the rules are about using elite players, but if they are forced to, and allowed to, bring in 3 to 4 young French lads into the Pro setup then that can only be a good thing for the French game.

    Promising game for me though, it seems like a completely new team, finally banishing the shadow of Johno and Killer that was hanging over them last season. I thought it would take more time to gel, the 2 halves look good. If they can stay fit enough to keep bringing the speed of the SL game into the championship then they shouldn't have too many problems.

    Still, it's not the 1st game of the season that matters too much, it's the last one that counts.

     

    • Like 4
  12. 18 hours ago, The Phantom Horseman said:

    Thank you Kiggy. It can be difficult getting updates over here on Toulouse so these are very much appreciated.

    It's difficult knowing how much to say without giving too much away. Teams set up with an eye on who they will be playing on the day (it's those little 1% margins that sometimes make the difference!). So, I have to be careful what information I can give as I'm never sure how much is out in the public domain already.

    • Like 1
    • Sad 1
  13. 2 hours ago, The Phantom Horseman said:

    Wow. Just looked on the RFL match centre page for the Barrow v Toulouse 21-man game squads as neither team appear to have announced them yet on social media.

    Now, bear in mind that the RFl's website still is only able to cope with listing 19 names 🙄 and they always miss the last two alphabetically off...but Barrow have 19 listed with Josh Wood and Greg Worthington the 2 presumably missing late-alphabet players who should be there.

    BUT...Toulouse have named only 18. And now we know why they have just added a couple of outside backs from their Elite 1 team, as the names missing from their squad are wing Latrell Schaumkel and centre Reuben Rennie, plus hooker Calum Gahan, and perhaps most significantly half back Josh Ralph, who carries a lot of their hopes this season.

    I don't know if they are all injured, or whether there are visa issues, and maybe they habitually only fly with 18 anyway, but they have always named 21-man squads in the past. So it seems that for the opening day of the season Toulouse can only name 18 players, even after drafting two in from their Elite 1 team this week.

    Calum will be out for a few months, Latrell still has knee problems they are managing but should be back soon. They should have a full 18 for Barrow, and a few others back soon (Sika who came back not very fit, and Guy who missed a lot of training due to a back injury).

    • Like 1
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  14. 1 minute ago, The Phantom Horseman said:

    RFL website seems to have had some omissions judged on Toulouse's own squad they have just released which has 21 names including Ralph and another they have just signed from their Elite 1 squad.

    Image

    Don't read too much into this list, I know of at least 2 who won't be playing, although they should be ready for Newcastle next week. 

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