We let it slip out of our hands

So at last the Mick's have won a Grand Slam. First one since about 60 years ago. Just days after Paddy's day they've got another thing to celebrate and the Triple Crown and Grand Slam are theirs. Do they deserve it? Well the jury may still be out on this year's Six Nations. To my mind, it was a poor tournament. Each team in turn disappointed and never got to grips with the ELV's to produce the type of rugby that one would remember. Indeed, making a highlights package from this tournament may be more difficult to edit than one may like to imagine.
So what is my assessment. The Irish play a very limited game, the pack seem to thrive on slow ball and don't mind taking the ball millimetres from one phase to another and then flop over with the ball just touching the line courtesy of the TMO.

It will be interesting if they can repeat next year as they have to fill in some key personnel, mainly O'Gara at Fly half, who is being singled out for some individual attention which limit's the game. (The Aussies targeted him on the Lions Tour so what will the Bock's do in the summer if he makes it) John Hayes may very well try to make it to 100 caps but is beginning to show some rough edges. They need to decide who's going to be their No 9. O'Leary was poor today and Stringer may have been more effective today. They have some emerging youngsters namely Luke Fitzgerald and Heslip in the pack. Time will tell. how may of them will make the Lions squad? Scotland have progressed this year. they are now competitive. One can also see some improvement in the English side. Again they need to identify core squad members and build a team around them. Then there's the Frogs. What can we say about them. Selectorial problems, new blood not being able to have an extended run in the team and the ability to produce one week and be crap the following. The Italians keep on bringing us the outtakes of the tournament. The term "Bergamasco" will soon make it's way into the Oxford English Dictionary. So that leaves us. Could we have? dare we think that we are building a dynasty? Well, in this day of the video analysis we should be aware that there will be people will be working on laptops deep into the night working us out. In most sport, people try to eliminate players out of a game by either double teaming or man marking them as Worsley did to Roberts on Match day 2. Again some say that if we had put 50 points on the Italians as the French did today, we could have relaxed a lot more and may have been able to keep in the groove. Selecting a strong team for the first hour and going 30 points ahead will allow you to bring on the likes of Hook and the others, especially the front row to go for broke in the last twenty minutes. Thus now we have the remainder of the Magners League to look forward to, the Knockout stages of the Heineken Cup. I will be very disappointed if the Munster factor will prevail as just as those Tigers ground down the opposition when they won those titles. Then there'll be the British and Irish Lions Tour of South Africa on the horizon. Come back and see who I think they'll take and who I'd take on this very arduous tour.

New Software

The upgrade for my old Sibelius 2 has arrived. I can now use Sibelius 5 to create my musical scores. I seem to have missed out on versions 3 and 4, so I'm looking forward to working with this latest version.

The upcoming Easter holidays will give me plenty of opportunities to use this newer version to create some editions of scores I've been waiting to complete for some time now. The new layout's will help the presentation with a cover option and more advanced features.

I'm looking forward to using the PhotoScore Ultimate scanning software to quickly input some of the hand written scores I have. The Tallis Magnificat and Nunc Dimittis octavi toni is high on the list along with Vox Patris by William Mundi. I'm also going to have time to construct a geocities site to link to my blog sites to publish them. Exciting times.

The same old story

It's the same old story, we don't have the strength in depth to put out the seconds and get a thumping win. There will be gnashing and gnawing of collective teeth at the selection of so many "brave" selections. Not only did some of the wild cards not perform, like the front row and Dafydd Jones, but some of the so called main picks like Andy Powell and Henson failed to live up to expectations. Again Powell, running back ball like an American Football rookie running back or punt returner waiting for the ball to be stripped from their flimsy grasp. It's so unpredictable. Contrast him with Paresi's immense display. What a shame there isn't a Europe team going to South Africa this Summer. He'd be an ideal candidate at No 8.
Anyway, back to the game. Wales should have, and I'm not going to blame the coaches because the team was announced very early and in addition Gatland was bold enough to broadcast that there would be wholesale changes after the Friday night in Paris. Should we expect that this team should have been good enough to beat Italy by more? My answer is YES. Today, we expect our international players to take their chances. They've been part of the squad system for a couple of years now with this management team. In addition, our regions are doing well enough in the Magners League, Heineken Cup and the EDF. So why did the likes of John Yapp, Huw Bennett, Dafydd Jones, Rhys Thomas, Mark Jones and Charteris (to an extent) stuff up against an Italian side that had not performed at all in it's previous games? Well, part of it is the expectation. Gatland and Edwards are right to demand that their game plan is implemented. The main men need to have understudies in case of injury and the tough latter stages of a World Cup or grueling tour in the Southern Hemisphere. Secondly, we've always been seen as a big rugby country and everybody feels as if they can knock us off our perch. As Six Nations and Grand Slam Champions we're there to be shot at. So where do we go from here?
We need a strong team and a strong bench to face the Irish. I would go for -
15. Lee Byrne 14. Lee Halfpenny 13. Tom Shanklin 12. Jamie Roberts 11. Shane Williams 10. Stephen Jones 9. Mike Philips 1. Adam Jones 2. Matthew Rees 3. Gethin Jenkins 4. Ian Gough 5. Alun Wyn Jones 6. Jonathan Thomas 7. Martyn Williams 8. Ryan Jones (capt) with Gavin Henson, James Hook, Wayne Fury, Rhys Thomas, Huw Bennett, Charteris or Dafydd Jones and Andy Powell on the Bench.
Can we beat the Irish with this team. YES. Will we manage to claw back the points difference to win the championship. No. But we could have made our job far easier. Firstly - we have conceded too many needless penalties and tries in relation to last year. Secondly, and more importantly - we have failed to convert our try opportunities against all our opponents to date. I can think of at least three try scoring opportunities against Scotland where we could have made the margin of victory more convincing, likewise, we should have put another twenty points on poor English team and Henson should have given the pass in the last minutes for try in the corner which could have been the biggest upset in years. In addition, today, Hook had an opportunity to feed Henson in the first half and the introduction of the subs should have been made ten minutes earlier. So let's see what Warren will do and how we as a nation react to his selection and how we handle next week's game against the Irish. If they are able to play in the manner they did in the second half against the Jock's we may see us loose confidence, the crowd at the Mill Stad get up themselves and a Grand Slam could be theirs.
In addition some Lion's places and reputations are at stake - Ryan Jones in particular.

Have I dreamt this? Are Wales Rugby World Cup Champions?

I've just come back from taking Mrs CJ down to the gym at the Jail of Glamorgan
Hotel and have seen a strange sight. There's a big bus blocking the enterance
and no one can get around it because there are some thirty or so fans
(presumably the WRU anorak club) welcoming back Wales the World Champions? (well seven of them to be precise)

Now I do love my rugby, both in the union form and in the other form, but where have I been not to know that it's World Cup time again. I would have marked the occasion by obviously following my nation's team and cheering them on, even in defeat. So why am I so suprised of the news of our conquring heros? Well it's probably because this must be a total Mickey Mouse Competition.

Where was the live TV coverage?

Well I've got Sky. A quick look at te schedules shows no evidence of there being anything on there. Where then? A quick look on t'internet gave me the answer. Rugby World Cup Sevens 2009. com on demand. A subscription service. Pay per view in drag. But where was the publicity? The tournament took place in Dubai. I could understand if it was held in Hong Kong, but Dubai? No wonder there was no news. Now also being fair, I can also understand that the BBC didn't want to send people like Rick O'Shea, Charlo or even my old mate Phill Steele out to a dry country as in the past Welsh 7 a side teams have gone out very early and end up in a competition called The Plate or The Bowl or The Bucket or The Ashtray or something. Further research tells me that coverage of this tournament was on the dreaded Setanta Sports channel. Poor man's Sky. I've not subscribed to this channel because there's so much dross on it Dutch Soccer, Irish Sports, everything that Sky or BBC, ITV and the rest don't want. So am I disappointed that I wasn't able to witness this triumph by our nation's best exponents of the 7 a side game? Well no. I pay enough for watching sport as it is and the thought of splashing out another couple of my hard earned quids to watch 14 minutes of Kenya v Tunisia and the fact that England can be put in the same pool as Kenya, Tunisia and Hong Kong goes a long way to explain why Setanta got this gig.

For the record, Wales were runners up in Group F behind eventual finalists Argentina. In the Quarter Finals a shock 15-14 win against No 1 seeds New Zealand opened up the competition. Defeat of another 7's specialists Samoa in the semis set up a revenge match in the final against Argentina and then we were world champs. Scores by Richie Pugh and Tal Selly (who was named player of the tournament - and thus should be thought of as the best Sevens player in the world!!!) set up a tense finish to the game but with a minute remaining Aled Thomas, complete with Shane Williams dive, went over under the posts and the rest as they say is history. So the question I ask myself, is this the dawn of Rugby World dominance for the men in red? The squad of Rhodri McAtee, Lee Williams, Tom Isaacs, Craig Hill, James Merriman, Tal Selley, Aled Brew, Aled Thomas, Rhys Webb, Richie Pugh, Dafydd Hewitt, Lee Beach will now be accorded God status and when we go to the next tournament will probably find it difficult to qualify for the ashtray. I've just seen the opening titles of this week's Scrum V and YES IT's TRUE. The sight of Paul John, Coach to the Welsh team looking very much a martin O'Neil lookalike holding the trophy confirms this. That's life in Welsh Rugby. But for the moment I can hear the call WALES, WALES, WALES, WALES above that old Queen song "We are the Champion of Sevens, and we'll keep on fighting to the end, WE ARE THE CHAMPIONS, WE ARE THE CHAMPIONS, OF SEVENS"

Following in Dr Foster's footsteps

Yesterday, I took Mrs CJ to the Regency Town of Cheltenham for the afternoon and let her loose in the shops and escaped to the nearby city of Gloucester, famous for it's Cathedral, it's two cheeses, (so good that they name it twice) and it's Three Choirs.

You can read my thoughts on my return to listen to a live Choral Evensong for the first time since 1980 (Although I did return to record a televised performance of Verdi's Quatro Pezzi Sacrae for the BBC conducted by Sir Andrew Davis a few years later) and my assessment of their DOM on my other blog site.

You can also see some photographs I took in the gloom on my picasa site. Although it is one of the more photogenic cathedrals the interior was very dark and I feel a return journey in the summer will allow some more productive shots of the beautiful interior.

So someone has been stupid enough to sign TO

When the Dallas Cowboys released wide receiver Terrell Owens last week, the speculation was.... who would be stupid enough to take on the ego that has become TO? At first the reports that several teams were interested led to a spate of denials from likely teams, even the Oakland Raiders said NO. Oakland (or moreover their GM and owner Al Davis) has been a refuge for the wild boys of the NFL, but not even they would take a punt on the player that has consistently argued with coaches, quarterbacks and the whole organisation and eventually the tantrums have become too much to handle. Owens started with my team the 49ers and was a large part of an offence that looked very flimsy when Steve Mariucci was given his P45 and went to Detroit. Since then TO has fell in and out of love in Philli with the Eagles and last week even America's team said wa enough. So what does that mean for the Bills. Playing in a strong AFC East with the Patriots back with Tom Bradey next year, a resurgent Dolphin outfit with Bill Parcells and Tony Sparano using the draft and free agency to get even better and the Jets rebuilding with a new head coach, the Bills may not get the productivity out of the wayward Owens... and when TO doesn't feel that he's getting the service or the attention he deserves he goes into locker room melt down.
Dick Juron and the remainder of the Bills organisation may very well see this as a shit or bust move. Juron's position as head coach of the Bills was rumoured to be on the line after last year's season. So is this a move that will see the Bills return to the former glories that they achieved under Marv Leavey when they were runners up in three consecutive Superbowls in the 90's. Time will tell.

My verdict - TO will get more and more frustrated and may very well be cleared out in the wake of Dick Juron's sacking some time mid season as the Bills are bottom of the AFC East after deafeats by all division rivals and some defeats against teams they should have beaten.

Dydd Gwyl Dewi

It's March 1st again and it's our Patron Saint's Day- St David’s Day or as I like to call it Dydd Gwyl Dewi. Being on a Sunday this year most of us will have transferred it either to last Friday or till tomorrow.

How do we celebrate this? There's, of course, the annual rant to make St David's Day a public holiday. (Which is having the same effect as the minority English lobby to recognise St George's Day as a public holiday on ... whenever it is)

We have a concert or even an Eisteddfod where due to the stereotypical nature of our country, the Welsh maffia seem to think that we all sit at home writing poetry, learning to recite a poem in unison or sing one melody while the accompanying instrument plays another.

I am very glad to say that despite my upbringing, being herded around schools, listening to endless partion cerdd dant, cyd addrodd and cyflwyniad dramatig I have still not been swayed that this is what we should be telling the whole world that we’re good at.

I think that every year a nation should have an opportunity to collectively celebrate it’s own identity. Take a look at our close Celtic friends the Irish. Later on this month, we'll all know about the St. Patrick's Day celebrations all over the world. It's rather scary that the pubs of Cardiff are already publicising special events where there's no equivalent for our Patron's saint's day.

I am very pleased to see that so many ex-pats, who are doing vital ambassadorial and missionary work in the countries around the world, seem to be able to express their Welshness in the same way that the Irish and other countries. Every year, Dr. George Guest would be invited to broadcast a Choral Evensong on Radio 3 which included a Welsh introit and anthem. Welsh Societies hold dinners and ask Welsh performers who have made an impact in the professional world to sing what they’re good at, and not what seen as “eisteddfodol”.

My cousin, Gwes, who lives in the “good old US of A” is typically understated in his celebration – “One proud Welshman, in a foreign land.” Bravo Gwes.