Re: Sam Burgess : Thu Oct 09, 2014 8:17 am  

Brick with eyes wrote:

I wonder what will be going through his mind next October when he will be playing for England in the RU World Cup against Russia or Uruguay at Etihad Stadium, when up road on the very same evening it will be the Superleague Grand Final

Dunno.

If he plays in the World Cup (and I don't think he will), maybe we would be better asking what will be going through his mind when he lines up against Wales at Twickenham in front of 80000 while his England RL counterparts are contemplating not being able to sell out Doncaster's ground for the same fixture.

Or a similar crowd for a meaningful fixture against Australia that he has a credible chance of winning.

He'll be kicking himself.

Re: Sam Burgess : Thu Oct 09, 2014 8:19 am  

Biff Tannen wrote:

I agree with this.I also think Sam has had assurances that he will play a part in the WC next year no matter what which is obviously the big draw card the RFU has money aside.

I'm pretty confident he will have had no such assurances.

Re: Sam Burgess : Thu Oct 09, 2014 12:46 pm  

El Diablo wrote:

On Sam Burgess, I read earlier that he was the first non-Australian to win the Clive Churchill medal. Is it daft of me to be a bit surprised that no kiwis have ever won it?

Willie Mason was born in NZ but obviously played for Aus. As close as you are going to get.

Re: Sam Burgess : Thu Oct 09, 2014 8:17 pm  

El Diablo wrote:

On Sam Burgess, I read earlier that he was the first non-Australian to win the Clive Churchill medal. Is it daft of me to be a bit surprised that no kiwis have ever won it?

Where did you read that?

I'm pretty sure that Wiganer Dave Bolton (Balmain) earned a Clive Churchill medal for his MoM performance in the 1969 Grand Final.

Re: Sam Burgess : Thu Oct 09, 2014 8:56 pm  

William Eve wrote:

Where did you read that?

I'm pretty sure that Wiganer Dave Bolton (Balmain) earned a Clive Churchill medal for his MoM performance in the 1969 Grand Final.

He did, but his and many others from before 1986 were awarded the medal retrospectively. Burgess is the first non-Australian to win it properly on the occasion of the game since the Clive Churchill medal was introduced in 1986 for the MOM of the GF. At the time Bolton may have been the MOM but he didn't get a Clive Churchill medal. Of course you'll probably know this, you're just once again deliberately being an ar$e.

Clive Churchill was actually the losing coach the year Dave Bolton was MOM in 1969.

Re: Sam Burgess : Thu Oct 09, 2014 9:05 pm  

William Eve wrote:

Where did you read that?

I'm pretty sure that Wiganer Dave Bolton (Balmain) earned a Clive Churchill medal for his MoM performance in the 1969 Grand Final.

Internet somewhere.

Re: Sam Burgess : Fri Oct 10, 2014 8:46 am  

https://www.google.co.uk/webhp?sourceid=chrome-instant&rlz=1C1CHFX_en-GBGB569GB569&ion=1&espv=2&ie=UTF-8#q=burgess+first+non+australian+to+win+clive+churchill Lots of different outlets claiming that Burgess is the first non Australian to win it, I have no idea btw.

https://www.google.co.uk/webhp?sourceid=chrome-instant&rlz=1C1CHFX_en-GBGB569GB569&ion=1&espv=2&ie=UTF-8#q=burgess+first+non+australian+to+win+clive+churchill Lots of different outlets claiming that Burgess is the first non Australian to win it, I have no idea btw.

Re: Sam Burgess : Fri Oct 10, 2014 4:39 pm  

Sam Burgess clearly wasn't the first non-Australian recipient of a Clive Churchill Medal.

Dave Bolton was.

This perpetration of historical inaccuracy is typical of a sport which cares so little for its past as it knee-jerks its way from one catastrophic agenda to another.

If the modern day messengers of Super League prefer to rewrite history, then so be it. Much of the games history was flushed down the toilet in the mid-90's anyhow.

I'd suggest that next on the agenda ought to be the complete erasure of all historical records relating to GB tests and proper international tours. That way, everyone can pretend the game as it currently stands is in a position of rude health to such an extent that it's never been in better shape.

The 2014 vintage is simply the best... better than all the rest, etc.

Re: Sam Burgess : Fri Oct 10, 2014 5:14 pm  

Sam Burgess was the first to win it.

Bolton got his retrospectively around 2 decades later when it was introduced AFTER Churchill's death in 1985.

Technically Burgass is the first non-Australian to WIN it. Stop being a whinging little b*tch for once and just accept the fact.

Re: Sam Burgess : Fri Oct 10, 2014 9:00 pm  

El Diablo wrote:

Dunno.

If he plays in the World Cup (and I don't think he will), maybe we would be better asking what will be going through his mind when he lines up against Wales at Twickenham in front of 80000 while his England RL counterparts are contemplating not being able to sell out Doncaster's ground for the same fixture.

Or a similar crowd for a meaningful fixture against Australia that he has a credible chance of winning.

He'll be kicking himself.

Quite.

Last week Sam displayed one of the most courageous sporting efforts from an English sportsman in an age. And who knew about it? The Australian sporting public, for sure, and a few thousand English fans that follow the NRL. But nobody in the mainstream English media. Nobody in the larger sporting public in this country.

If he is a success at Union, and I have no doubt he will be, he will be a national and possible global sporting superstar with a stage that his talents deserve. He will play regular and meaningful internationals in front of massive crowds that will have paid a premium to watch him.

I'm no fan of Union but it's foolish to pretend anybody would yearn for an international rugby league match when they will likely be playing in a union world cup.

As for him coming to Leeds or indeed Super League again, I very much doubt it.