You've got to get your first tackle in early, even if it's late. Ray Gravell in Week 1
===================================================================================================================
Following Scotland's accusations of French foulplay - if you can't take a punch, you should play table tennis. Pierre Berbizier in Week 1
===================================================================================================================
In my time, I've had my knee out, broken my collarbone, had my nose smashed, a rib broken, lost a few teeth, and ricked my back; but as soon as I get a bit of bad luck I'm going to quit the game. J.W. Robinson in Week 1
===================================================================================================================
Rugby football is a game I can't claim absolutely to understand in all its niceties, if you know what I mean. I can follow the broad, general principles, of course. I mean to say, I know that the main scheme is to work the ball down the field somehow and deposit it over the line at the other end and that, in order to squalch this programme, each side is allowed to put in a certain amount of assault and battery and do things to its fellow man which, if done elsewhere, would result in 14 days without the option, coupled with some strong remarks from the Bench. P.G. Wodehouse in Very Good, Jeeves (1930) in Week 2
===================================================================================================================
On Jonah Lomu - I've seen a lot of people like him, but they weren't playing on the wing! Colin Meads (welcome back Jonah - God help you Stormers! Ed.) in Week 2
===================================================================================================================
Former Irish forward Fergus Slattery during the New Zealand v Ireland world cup game. Sean Fitzpatrick was being led from the field injured, the commentator explained, "I think he's broken his nose." Slattery corrected him, "No, I think someone broke it for him." (Submitted by Jon) in Week 3
===================================================================================================================
The rules of football at Rugby School, in a state of flux ever since Webb Ellis is said to have caught the ball and then run with it, have finally been codified in a set of decisions on certain disputed points. "Hacking" is permitted, but not above the knee. Holding a player carrying the ball is permitted, but with one arm only. "running in" - the Ellis method - is permitted, but passing with the hands is banned. And if no decision is reached after five afternoons' play, a match will be declared drawn. Article from Rugby School, 1846 in Week 3
===================================================================================================================
The advantage law is the best law in rugby, because it lets you ignore all the others for the good of the game. Derek Robinson in Week 3
===================================================================================================================
Colin Meads, quintessential All Black great in the final test at Eden Park against the Springboks of 1965 typified his attitude towards game and country in this exchange when his brother lay on the ground in agony: Colin: 'How are you?' Stan: 'No bloody good.' Colin: 'Well, You'd better get yourself right. In one minute's time you and I have to lock a New Zealand scrum together and we're not going backward.' In Week 4
===================================================================================================================
The least successful rugby forward of all time? This dubious distinction belongs to Oliver Jones, who scored only three tries in forty-five years of regular playing for the old Edwardian Exiles. The silver haired prop scored his third try aged sixty. The Book of Heroic Failures by Stephen Pile in Week 4
===================================================================================================================
To Princess Anne's son Peter Phillips, Gordonstoun School's rugby captain, for his pre-match coin-toss preference - Grandmother or tails, sir? Anon rugby referee in Week 4
===================================================================================================================
New Zealand rugby is a colourful game since you get all black... and blue. Anon in Week 5
===================================================================================================================
There is far too much talk about good ball and bad ball. In my opinion, good ball is when you have possession and bad ball is when the opposition have it. Dick Jeeps in Week 5
===================================================================================================================
After being asked if he has anything to add to an inspiring teamtalk, "Ja, anyone know where I can get an engine for a Toyota Corolla?" Frans "Domkrag" Erasmus, late Springbok prop in Week 5
===================================================================================================================
Front Row - Without a doubt the manliest men on the pitch. Large, often hairy, beer swilling carnivores that can and will smash anything in their path. Revelling in the violence inherent in the scrum, they are rarely considered "nice" people, and in fact to some they aren't even considered human's at all. Front rowers tolerate this attitude far and wide because they recognise their role at the top of the food chain and are used to suffering the fools that surround them. Accused by some of simply being dumb, I prefer to think of this group as "open to unconventional ways of thinking." Peter Fitzsimmons in Week 5
===================================================================================================================
Rugby backs can be identified because they generally have clean jerseys and identifiable partings in their hair ... come the revolution the backs will be the first to be lined up against the wall and shot for living parasitically off the work of others. Peter Fitzsimmons in Week 6
===================================================================================================================
I prefer rugby to soccer. I enjoy the violence in rugby, except when they start biting each other's ears off. Elizabeth Taylor in Week 6
===================================================================================================================
On the Munster pack - Mothers keep their photo on the mantlepiece to stop the kids going too near the fire. Jim Neilly in Week 6
===================================================================================================================
In 1823, William Webb Ellis first picked up the ball in his arms and ran with it. And for the next 156 years forwards have been trying to work out why. Sir Tasker Watkins (1979) in Week 6
===================================================================================================================
The player who is not honest with himself will not get far. This honesty must, however, not be aimed only at his weakness but also his strongpoints. He must know where he is good or bad or less than good, so that he can maintain his strength and develop it and use it properly, and he can remove his weakness and hide it as long as it is there. Danie Craven in Week 7
===================================================================================================================
On Jonah Lomu - There's no doubt about it, he's a big bastard. Gavin Hastings in Week 7
===================================================================================================================
The relationship between the Welsh and the English is based on trust and understanding. They don't trust us and we don't understand them. Dudley Wood in Week 7
===================================================================================================================
Back Row - These are fine fit fellows who, like a bunch of hermaphrodites, are confused as to what their role in life should be. While they know they are undeniably linked to the forwards, there are those among them who long for the perfect hair and long flowing gowns that come with being a back. Some relish the forward role and will do anything to win the ball and there are others within this group that will break the prime directive of the forward and do anything to prance foolishly with the ball. Generally, these guys are not all bad, but I, personally, have to wonder about any forward who brings a hairbrush and a change of clothes to a game. Peter Fitzsimmons in Week 7
===================================================================================================================
Locks - Slightly below the front row on the food chain. As with front row players it is advisable to put an appendage you wish to keep near this group's maw when they are in the feeding mode. This group of large, often foul smelling brutes is also more than willing to relish the finer points of stomping on a fallen opponent's body and will gleefully recount the tale ad infinitum. While they tend to take the tag "Powerhouse of the Scrum" a little too seriously, they can be useful if injured with the proper hatred of their fellow man. While members of this proud fraternity like to think of themselves as "open to unconventional ways of thinking" - they are usually just dumb. Peter Fitzsimmons in Week 8
===================================================================================================================
The lads say my bum is the equivalent of one 'Erica'. Bill Beaumont in Week 8
===================================================================================================================
After JPR Williams was involved in a road traffic accident - Bloody typical, isn't! The car's a write-off. The tanker's a write-off. But JPR comes out of it all in one piece. Gareth Edwards in Week 8
===================================================================================================================
Colin Meads is the kind of player you expect to see emerging from a ruck with the remains of a jockstrap between his teeth Tony O'Reilly in Week 8
===================================================================================================================
Coaches are best when people barely know they exist. Not so good when people obey or acclaim them. Worse when they despise them - fail to know people - they fail to honour you. But of good coaches who talk little - when their work is done, their aim fulfilled, their charges will say - ‘we did this ourselves’. Adapted from LAO-TZU, Tao Te Ching, sixth century BC in Week 9
===================================================================================================================
On losing - In Wales the half backs, especially the stand off half, always get the blame. Neil Jenkins in Week 9
===================================================================================================================
On violence - It's the nature of the game to have aggression. Take on people physically and then have a beer with your friends. Gareth Chilcott in Week 9
===================================================================================================================
Look here, I'm afraid being tryless is always totally irrelevant. The object of rugby is just to score more points than the opposition. End of story. Geoff Cooke in Week 9
===================================================================================================================
On the sending off of Colin Meads for kicking (and missing) the ball or a player, both in close proximity - For one with Mead's world-wide reputation for robust play, this was like sending a burglar to prison for a parking offence. Michael Melford in Week 9
===================================================================================================================
The one handed palmer can always reach higher, they say. They may be right, but the result is that nearly every lineout is like a tropical island - all waving palms. Vivian Jenkins in Week 10
===================================================================================================================
Rugby is a game for the mentally deficient... That is why it was invented by the British. Who else but an Englishman could invent an oval ball? Peter Pook in Week 10
===================================================================================================================
I'm just off for a quiet pint. Followed by fifteen noisy ones. Gareth Chilcott after last game for his club in Week 10
===================================================================================================================
In cricket it seperated Bradman and Sobers from the rest; Pele had it in football, Borg had it in tennis, Ali had it in boxing, Barry John had it in rugby. Those who try to pin down everything in life like so many butterflies to a board would call it genius. I prefer it nameless. George Allan in Week 10
===================================================================================================================
The whole of the world is tribal, but when it comes to rugby, New Zealand is much more tribal than most. The All Blacks are the national virility symbol. Their people support them come hail, rain or shine. Mike Gibson in Week 10
===================================================================================================================
I decided that if I was going to compete with the best I had to be as aggressive and get the psychological edge on my opponent without going over the top. Wade Dooley in Week 11
===================================================================================================================
Rugby football is a game for gentlemen in all classes, but never for a bad sportsman in any class. Motto of Barbarians Rugby Football Club in Week 11
===================================================================================================================
Foul play and cheating are the two factors that can make the game unplayable... the All Blacks are guilty of both... international rugby players are amongst the most physical yet literate and I believe they know exactly what they are doing. Clem Thomas, 1993 in Week 11
===================================================================================================================
Of all the teams in the world you don't want to lose to, England's top of the list. The English know no humility in victory or defeat... If you beat them, it's because you cheat. If they beat you, it's because they've overcome your cheating. Good teams learn how to win and lose with graciousness and humility. England hasn't learned that lesson yet. Grant Fox, 1993 in Week 11
===================================================================================================================
Sport and chivalrous competition awakens the best human qualities... it helps to strengthen the bonds of peace between the nations Adolf Hitler, 1935 in Week 11
===================================================================================================================
Youngsters need heroes. They need figures like Batman, Tarzan and Naas Botha. Abe Malan in Week 12
===================================================================================================================
Have a go, you mug. That means, don't die wondering whether you were good enough to win; don't wait until you've lost to see if you can win. Bob Dwyer in Week 12
===================================================================================================================
Genius is great when it is on song. It is more of a nuisance when it goes bad, because it contaminates and destroys what is around it. Joe Mercer in Week 12
===================================================================================================================
Nothing can unite a country like South Africa more than a rugby Test match - we become one. Danie Craven in Week 12
===================================================================================================================
These English you're just going out to meet have taken our coal, our water, our steel; they buy our houses and only live in them a fortnight a year... Down the centuries these English have exploited and pillaged us - and we're playing them this afternoon, boys. Phil Bennett, captain of Wales in a team talk before a test against England in Week 12
===================================================================================================================
Statistics are like a bikini. What they reveal is suggestive, but what they conceal is vital. Aaron Levenstein in Week 13
===================================================================================================================
On trying to stop Phil Horrocks-Taylor - Every time I went to tackle him, Horrocks went one way, Taylor went the other, and all I got was the bloody hyphen. Nick England in Week 13
===================================================================================================================
The Holy Writ of Gloucester Rugby Club demands: first, that the forwards shall win the ball; second, that the forwards shall keep the ball; and third, the backs shall buy the beer. Doug Ibbotson in Week 13
===================================================================================================================
Dean Richards is nicknamed Warren, as in warren ugly bastard! Jason Leonard in Week 13
===================================================================================================================
We've lost seven of our last eight matches. Only team that we've beaten was Western Samoa. Good job we didn't play the whole of Samoa. Gareth Davies bemoaning Wales' fortunes in 1989 in Week 13
===================================================================================================================
I favour the Gucci outlook, long after you've forgotten the price, you remember the quality. Allan Jones, Australian coach in Week 14
===================================================================================================================
The difference between ordinary and extraordinary is that little extra. Anon in Week 14
===================================================================================================================
I've heard of Bread of Heaven, but this was ridiculous. Gary Knight after being struck by a "flour bomb" during the third test between the Springboks and All Blacks in 1981 in Week 14
===================================================================================================================
Generally the theories we believe we call facts, and the facts we disbelieve we call theories. Felix Cohen in Week 14
===================================================================================================================
Playing rugby at school I once fell on a loose ball and, through ignorance and fear, held on despite a fierce pummelling. After that it took me months to convince my team-mates I was a coward. Peter Cook in Week 14
===================================================================================================================
He had no idea what was going on for half the time. I would not entertain him refereeing my form three at school. Wales coach John Bevan on Rene Hourquet's "diabolical" refereeing in Week 15
===================================================================================================================
The only time you realise you have a reputation is when you fail to live up to it. Anon in Week 15
===================================================================================================================
Jones was brilliant. He was so much quicker than the French back row that he almost had to stop and wait for them. He has the hands of a centre, he jumps like a decathlete and he tackles like a ton of bricks. John Reason singing the praises of RWC 1987's man of the tournament, Michael Jones in Week 15
===================================================================================================================
Our players are selected according to their ability, they always have been and always will be. Abie Malan Springbok manager after a French request to include a 'black Bok' in 1992 in Week 15
===================================================================================================================
I think you enjoy the game more if you don't know the rules. Anyway, you're on the same wavelength as the referee. Jonathan Davies in Week 16
===================================================================================================================
Condom is back in French Pack. Independent newspaper headline in Week 16
===================================================================================================================
Playing the French is like facing 15 Eric Cantonas. They are brilliant but brutal. Brian Moore in Week 16
===================================================================================================================
League is much, much more physical than Union, and that's before anyone starts breaking the rules. Adrian Hadley in Week 16
===================================================================================================================
In sport, in courage, and in the light of Heaven, all men meet on equal terms. Winston Churchill in Week 16
===================================================================================================================
It doesn't matter how quick you are, you can't play rugby without a brain. David Campese in Week 17
===================================================================================================================
The greatest professional quality is not money, but attitude. John Monie, Australian rugby league coach in Week 17
===================================================================================================================
They think we're just a bunch of ignorant paddies from the bog. Let's not disappoint them. Stewart McKinney, Irish player before a test against England in Week 17
===================================================================================================================
When he was rugby football correspondent of The Times, the late V.A. Titley declined to use the first names of players in his reports since in most cases he had not been introduced to them. Geoffrey Nicholson in Week 17
===================================================================================================================
Success has made failures of many men. Cindy Adams in Week 17
===================================================================================================================
They bashed us, basically. And quite frankly, it was embarrassing at times. Some of my players looked a little gun-shy, and that worries me, this is meant to be a body contact sport. Greg Smith, Fidji coach in Week 18
===================================================================================================================
There's nothing that a tight forward likes more than a loosie right up his backside. Murray Mexted in Week 18
===================================================================================================================
In one match last year eight water-bottle runners ran on the field and gave drinks to the players when someone was injured in the first thirty seconds of the game. Thirty seconds - hell they must have been thirsty. When I played we got a piece of orange at halftime, and if you were quick you got two. Colin Meads in Week 18
===================================================================================================================
You would like to think that everyone would be treated equally, but in this farmyard some pigs are created more equal than others. Rod Kafer in Week 18
=================================================================================================================
===================================================================================================================
Following Scotland's accusations of French foulplay - if you can't take a punch, you should play table tennis. Pierre Berbizier in Week 1
===================================================================================================================
In my time, I've had my knee out, broken my collarbone, had my nose smashed, a rib broken, lost a few teeth, and ricked my back; but as soon as I get a bit of bad luck I'm going to quit the game. J.W. Robinson in Week 1
===================================================================================================================
Rugby football is a game I can't claim absolutely to understand in all its niceties, if you know what I mean. I can follow the broad, general principles, of course. I mean to say, I know that the main scheme is to work the ball down the field somehow and deposit it over the line at the other end and that, in order to squalch this programme, each side is allowed to put in a certain amount of assault and battery and do things to its fellow man which, if done elsewhere, would result in 14 days without the option, coupled with some strong remarks from the Bench. P.G. Wodehouse in Very Good, Jeeves (1930) in Week 2
===================================================================================================================
On Jonah Lomu - I've seen a lot of people like him, but they weren't playing on the wing! Colin Meads (welcome back Jonah - God help you Stormers! Ed.) in Week 2
===================================================================================================================
Former Irish forward Fergus Slattery during the New Zealand v Ireland world cup game. Sean Fitzpatrick was being led from the field injured, the commentator explained, "I think he's broken his nose." Slattery corrected him, "No, I think someone broke it for him." (Submitted by Jon) in Week 3
===================================================================================================================
The rules of football at Rugby School, in a state of flux ever since Webb Ellis is said to have caught the ball and then run with it, have finally been codified in a set of decisions on certain disputed points. "Hacking" is permitted, but not above the knee. Holding a player carrying the ball is permitted, but with one arm only. "running in" - the Ellis method - is permitted, but passing with the hands is banned. And if no decision is reached after five afternoons' play, a match will be declared drawn. Article from Rugby School, 1846 in Week 3
===================================================================================================================
The advantage law is the best law in rugby, because it lets you ignore all the others for the good of the game. Derek Robinson in Week 3
===================================================================================================================
Colin Meads, quintessential All Black great in the final test at Eden Park against the Springboks of 1965 typified his attitude towards game and country in this exchange when his brother lay on the ground in agony: Colin: 'How are you?' Stan: 'No bloody good.' Colin: 'Well, You'd better get yourself right. In one minute's time you and I have to lock a New Zealand scrum together and we're not going backward.' In Week 4
===================================================================================================================
The least successful rugby forward of all time? This dubious distinction belongs to Oliver Jones, who scored only three tries in forty-five years of regular playing for the old Edwardian Exiles. The silver haired prop scored his third try aged sixty. The Book of Heroic Failures by Stephen Pile in Week 4
===================================================================================================================
To Princess Anne's son Peter Phillips, Gordonstoun School's rugby captain, for his pre-match coin-toss preference - Grandmother or tails, sir? Anon rugby referee in Week 4
===================================================================================================================
New Zealand rugby is a colourful game since you get all black... and blue. Anon in Week 5
===================================================================================================================
There is far too much talk about good ball and bad ball. In my opinion, good ball is when you have possession and bad ball is when the opposition have it. Dick Jeeps in Week 5
===================================================================================================================
After being asked if he has anything to add to an inspiring teamtalk, "Ja, anyone know where I can get an engine for a Toyota Corolla?" Frans "Domkrag" Erasmus, late Springbok prop in Week 5
===================================================================================================================
Front Row - Without a doubt the manliest men on the pitch. Large, often hairy, beer swilling carnivores that can and will smash anything in their path. Revelling in the violence inherent in the scrum, they are rarely considered "nice" people, and in fact to some they aren't even considered human's at all. Front rowers tolerate this attitude far and wide because they recognise their role at the top of the food chain and are used to suffering the fools that surround them. Accused by some of simply being dumb, I prefer to think of this group as "open to unconventional ways of thinking." Peter Fitzsimmons in Week 5
===================================================================================================================
Rugby backs can be identified because they generally have clean jerseys and identifiable partings in their hair ... come the revolution the backs will be the first to be lined up against the wall and shot for living parasitically off the work of others. Peter Fitzsimmons in Week 6
===================================================================================================================
I prefer rugby to soccer. I enjoy the violence in rugby, except when they start biting each other's ears off. Elizabeth Taylor in Week 6
===================================================================================================================
On the Munster pack - Mothers keep their photo on the mantlepiece to stop the kids going too near the fire. Jim Neilly in Week 6
===================================================================================================================
In 1823, William Webb Ellis first picked up the ball in his arms and ran with it. And for the next 156 years forwards have been trying to work out why. Sir Tasker Watkins (1979) in Week 6
===================================================================================================================
The player who is not honest with himself will not get far. This honesty must, however, not be aimed only at his weakness but also his strongpoints. He must know where he is good or bad or less than good, so that he can maintain his strength and develop it and use it properly, and he can remove his weakness and hide it as long as it is there. Danie Craven in Week 7
===================================================================================================================
On Jonah Lomu - There's no doubt about it, he's a big bastard. Gavin Hastings in Week 7
===================================================================================================================
The relationship between the Welsh and the English is based on trust and understanding. They don't trust us and we don't understand them. Dudley Wood in Week 7
===================================================================================================================
Back Row - These are fine fit fellows who, like a bunch of hermaphrodites, are confused as to what their role in life should be. While they know they are undeniably linked to the forwards, there are those among them who long for the perfect hair and long flowing gowns that come with being a back. Some relish the forward role and will do anything to win the ball and there are others within this group that will break the prime directive of the forward and do anything to prance foolishly with the ball. Generally, these guys are not all bad, but I, personally, have to wonder about any forward who brings a hairbrush and a change of clothes to a game. Peter Fitzsimmons in Week 7
===================================================================================================================
Locks - Slightly below the front row on the food chain. As with front row players it is advisable to put an appendage you wish to keep near this group's maw when they are in the feeding mode. This group of large, often foul smelling brutes is also more than willing to relish the finer points of stomping on a fallen opponent's body and will gleefully recount the tale ad infinitum. While they tend to take the tag "Powerhouse of the Scrum" a little too seriously, they can be useful if injured with the proper hatred of their fellow man. While members of this proud fraternity like to think of themselves as "open to unconventional ways of thinking" - they are usually just dumb. Peter Fitzsimmons in Week 8
===================================================================================================================
The lads say my bum is the equivalent of one 'Erica'. Bill Beaumont in Week 8
===================================================================================================================
After JPR Williams was involved in a road traffic accident - Bloody typical, isn't! The car's a write-off. The tanker's a write-off. But JPR comes out of it all in one piece. Gareth Edwards in Week 8
===================================================================================================================
Colin Meads is the kind of player you expect to see emerging from a ruck with the remains of a jockstrap between his teeth Tony O'Reilly in Week 8
===================================================================================================================
Coaches are best when people barely know they exist. Not so good when people obey or acclaim them. Worse when they despise them - fail to know people - they fail to honour you. But of good coaches who talk little - when their work is done, their aim fulfilled, their charges will say - ‘we did this ourselves’. Adapted from LAO-TZU, Tao Te Ching, sixth century BC in Week 9
===================================================================================================================
On losing - In Wales the half backs, especially the stand off half, always get the blame. Neil Jenkins in Week 9
===================================================================================================================
On violence - It's the nature of the game to have aggression. Take on people physically and then have a beer with your friends. Gareth Chilcott in Week 9
===================================================================================================================
Look here, I'm afraid being tryless is always totally irrelevant. The object of rugby is just to score more points than the opposition. End of story. Geoff Cooke in Week 9
===================================================================================================================
On the sending off of Colin Meads for kicking (and missing) the ball or a player, both in close proximity - For one with Mead's world-wide reputation for robust play, this was like sending a burglar to prison for a parking offence. Michael Melford in Week 9
===================================================================================================================
The one handed palmer can always reach higher, they say. They may be right, but the result is that nearly every lineout is like a tropical island - all waving palms. Vivian Jenkins in Week 10
===================================================================================================================
Rugby is a game for the mentally deficient... That is why it was invented by the British. Who else but an Englishman could invent an oval ball? Peter Pook in Week 10
===================================================================================================================
I'm just off for a quiet pint. Followed by fifteen noisy ones. Gareth Chilcott after last game for his club in Week 10
===================================================================================================================
In cricket it seperated Bradman and Sobers from the rest; Pele had it in football, Borg had it in tennis, Ali had it in boxing, Barry John had it in rugby. Those who try to pin down everything in life like so many butterflies to a board would call it genius. I prefer it nameless. George Allan in Week 10
===================================================================================================================
The whole of the world is tribal, but when it comes to rugby, New Zealand is much more tribal than most. The All Blacks are the national virility symbol. Their people support them come hail, rain or shine. Mike Gibson in Week 10
===================================================================================================================
I decided that if I was going to compete with the best I had to be as aggressive and get the psychological edge on my opponent without going over the top. Wade Dooley in Week 11
===================================================================================================================
Rugby football is a game for gentlemen in all classes, but never for a bad sportsman in any class. Motto of Barbarians Rugby Football Club in Week 11
===================================================================================================================
Foul play and cheating are the two factors that can make the game unplayable... the All Blacks are guilty of both... international rugby players are amongst the most physical yet literate and I believe they know exactly what they are doing. Clem Thomas, 1993 in Week 11
===================================================================================================================
Of all the teams in the world you don't want to lose to, England's top of the list. The English know no humility in victory or defeat... If you beat them, it's because you cheat. If they beat you, it's because they've overcome your cheating. Good teams learn how to win and lose with graciousness and humility. England hasn't learned that lesson yet. Grant Fox, 1993 in Week 11
===================================================================================================================
Sport and chivalrous competition awakens the best human qualities... it helps to strengthen the bonds of peace between the nations Adolf Hitler, 1935 in Week 11
===================================================================================================================
Youngsters need heroes. They need figures like Batman, Tarzan and Naas Botha. Abe Malan in Week 12
===================================================================================================================
Have a go, you mug. That means, don't die wondering whether you were good enough to win; don't wait until you've lost to see if you can win. Bob Dwyer in Week 12
===================================================================================================================
Genius is great when it is on song. It is more of a nuisance when it goes bad, because it contaminates and destroys what is around it. Joe Mercer in Week 12
===================================================================================================================
Nothing can unite a country like South Africa more than a rugby Test match - we become one. Danie Craven in Week 12
===================================================================================================================
These English you're just going out to meet have taken our coal, our water, our steel; they buy our houses and only live in them a fortnight a year... Down the centuries these English have exploited and pillaged us - and we're playing them this afternoon, boys. Phil Bennett, captain of Wales in a team talk before a test against England in Week 12
===================================================================================================================
Statistics are like a bikini. What they reveal is suggestive, but what they conceal is vital. Aaron Levenstein in Week 13
===================================================================================================================
On trying to stop Phil Horrocks-Taylor - Every time I went to tackle him, Horrocks went one way, Taylor went the other, and all I got was the bloody hyphen. Nick England in Week 13
===================================================================================================================
The Holy Writ of Gloucester Rugby Club demands: first, that the forwards shall win the ball; second, that the forwards shall keep the ball; and third, the backs shall buy the beer. Doug Ibbotson in Week 13
===================================================================================================================
Dean Richards is nicknamed Warren, as in warren ugly bastard! Jason Leonard in Week 13
===================================================================================================================
We've lost seven of our last eight matches. Only team that we've beaten was Western Samoa. Good job we didn't play the whole of Samoa. Gareth Davies bemoaning Wales' fortunes in 1989 in Week 13
===================================================================================================================
I favour the Gucci outlook, long after you've forgotten the price, you remember the quality. Allan Jones, Australian coach in Week 14
===================================================================================================================
The difference between ordinary and extraordinary is that little extra. Anon in Week 14
===================================================================================================================
I've heard of Bread of Heaven, but this was ridiculous. Gary Knight after being struck by a "flour bomb" during the third test between the Springboks and All Blacks in 1981 in Week 14
===================================================================================================================
Generally the theories we believe we call facts, and the facts we disbelieve we call theories. Felix Cohen in Week 14
===================================================================================================================
Playing rugby at school I once fell on a loose ball and, through ignorance and fear, held on despite a fierce pummelling. After that it took me months to convince my team-mates I was a coward. Peter Cook in Week 14
===================================================================================================================
He had no idea what was going on for half the time. I would not entertain him refereeing my form three at school. Wales coach John Bevan on Rene Hourquet's "diabolical" refereeing in Week 15
===================================================================================================================
The only time you realise you have a reputation is when you fail to live up to it. Anon in Week 15
===================================================================================================================
Jones was brilliant. He was so much quicker than the French back row that he almost had to stop and wait for them. He has the hands of a centre, he jumps like a decathlete and he tackles like a ton of bricks. John Reason singing the praises of RWC 1987's man of the tournament, Michael Jones in Week 15
===================================================================================================================
Our players are selected according to their ability, they always have been and always will be. Abie Malan Springbok manager after a French request to include a 'black Bok' in 1992 in Week 15
===================================================================================================================
I think you enjoy the game more if you don't know the rules. Anyway, you're on the same wavelength as the referee. Jonathan Davies in Week 16
===================================================================================================================
Condom is back in French Pack. Independent newspaper headline in Week 16
===================================================================================================================
Playing the French is like facing 15 Eric Cantonas. They are brilliant but brutal. Brian Moore in Week 16
===================================================================================================================
League is much, much more physical than Union, and that's before anyone starts breaking the rules. Adrian Hadley in Week 16
===================================================================================================================
In sport, in courage, and in the light of Heaven, all men meet on equal terms. Winston Churchill in Week 16
===================================================================================================================
It doesn't matter how quick you are, you can't play rugby without a brain. David Campese in Week 17
===================================================================================================================
The greatest professional quality is not money, but attitude. John Monie, Australian rugby league coach in Week 17
===================================================================================================================
They think we're just a bunch of ignorant paddies from the bog. Let's not disappoint them. Stewart McKinney, Irish player before a test against England in Week 17
===================================================================================================================
When he was rugby football correspondent of The Times, the late V.A. Titley declined to use the first names of players in his reports since in most cases he had not been introduced to them. Geoffrey Nicholson in Week 17
===================================================================================================================
Success has made failures of many men. Cindy Adams in Week 17
===================================================================================================================
They bashed us, basically. And quite frankly, it was embarrassing at times. Some of my players looked a little gun-shy, and that worries me, this is meant to be a body contact sport. Greg Smith, Fidji coach in Week 18
===================================================================================================================
There's nothing that a tight forward likes more than a loosie right up his backside. Murray Mexted in Week 18
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In one match last year eight water-bottle runners ran on the field and gave drinks to the players when someone was injured in the first thirty seconds of the game. Thirty seconds - hell they must have been thirsty. When I played we got a piece of orange at halftime, and if you were quick you got two. Colin Meads in Week 18
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You would like to think that everyone would be treated equally, but in this farmyard some pigs are created more equal than others. Rod Kafer in Week 18
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If the game is run properly as a professional game, you do not need 57 old farts running rugby. Will Carling in Week 19
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The French selectors never do anything by halves; for the first international of the season against Ireland they dropped half the three-quarter line. Nigel Starmer-Smith in Week 19
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If I had been a winger, I might have been daydreaming and thinking about how to keep my kit clean for the next week. Bill Beaumont in Week 19
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After biting Sean Fitzpatrick's ear - For an 18-month suspension, I feel I probably should have torn it off. Then at least I could say, 'Look, I've returned to South Africa with the guy's ear.' Johan le Roux in Week 19
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On his successors in the Oxford University backs - I've seen better centres in a box of Black Magic. Joe McPartlin in Week 20
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I may not have been very tall or very athletic, but one thing I did have was the most effective backside in world rugby. Jim Glennon in Week 20
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I think Brian Moore's gnashers are the kind you get from a DIY shop and hammer in yourself. He is the only player we have who looks like a French forward. Paul Rendall in Week 20
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Forwards are the gnarled and scarred creatures who have a propensity for running into and bleeding all over each other. Peter Fitzsimmons in Week 20
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After England had been humbled by the All Blacks in the World Cup Semi-Final - I don't know about us not having a Plan B when things went wrong, we looked like we didn't have a Plan A. Geoff Cooke in Week 21
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Gareth Edwards: The sooner that little so-and-so goes to rugby league, the better it will be for us. Dickie Jeeps in Week 21
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After a succession of career-threatening injuries - I played ten injury-free years between the ages of 12 and 22. Then, suddenly, it seemed like I was allergic to the twentieth century. Nigel Melville in Week 21
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On playing for Wales at Lansdowne Road, Dublin - I didn't know what was going on at the start in the swirling wind. The flags were all pointing in different directions and I thought the Irish had starched them just to fool us. Mike Watkins in Week 21
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The job of Welsh coach is like a minor part in a Quentin Tarantino film: you stagger on, you hallucinate, nobody seems to understand a word you say, you throw up, you get shot. Poor old Kevin Bowring has come up through the coaching structure so he knows what it takes... 15 more players than Wales have at present. Mark Reason, 1996 in Week 22
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To play rugby league, you need three things: a good pass, a good tackle and a good excuse Anon in Week 22
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We do not stop playing because we are old; we grow old because we stop playing Anon in Week 22
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Before the first scrum in a club match, "mean man" Piet Bester chirped, "welcome to HELL" to a very young Ollie le Roux, Ollie's response? "Yes, and meet the DEVIL!" Week 22
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You're as old as you need to be. As long as you're fit enough, you're young enough. Jeff Probyn in Week 23
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Rugby can be a very violent game if there is £ 1000 per man riding on the result. Bob Weighill, secretary of the RFU, 1983 in Week 23
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To be a top sportsman in any field, you need an arrogance; you need to be driven. It can offend people, but you cannot be bothered about that too much. You might regret it later, as I do in a way, but not at the time. Barry Richards in Week 23
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There are people who say I have never really done anything wrong in my life; of course they only say it behind my back. Oscar Wilde in Week 23
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A coach is like a winemaker: he must produce the best wine with the grapes available. Fabio Capello, AC Milan coach in Week 24
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Serious sport has nothing to do with fair play. It is bound up with hatred jealousy, boastfulness, disregard of all rules and sadistic pleasure in witnessing violence; in other words it is war minus the shooting George Orwell in Week 24
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No leadership no ideas. Not even enough imagination to thump someone in the lineout when the ref wasn't looking J.P.R. Williams after a Wales defeat against Australia 1984 in Week 24
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I have never been in the situation of running a rugby team but I had been in the situation of controlling 30 players on a rugby field and trying to get those players to perform to the best of their abilities, and that's man management. Clive Norling in Week 24
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Was it knocked forward or knocked-on? Murray Mexted during the NZ/Aus Tri-Nations on Saturday in Week 24
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We want consistency, but we don't want a consistent referee to consistently blow the whistle. Murray Mexted in Week 25
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I asked a ref if he could give me a technical foul for thinking bad things about him. He said, of course not. I said, well, I think you stink. And he gave me a technical. You can't trust 'em. Jim Valvano in Week 25
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In the end, it’s extra effort that separates a winner from second place. But winning takes a lot more that that, too. It starts with complete command of the fundamentals. Then it takes desire, determination, discipline, and self-sacrifice. And finally, it takes a great deal of love, fairness and respect for your fellow man. Put all these together, and even if you don’t win, how can you lose? Jesse Owens in Week 25
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Sportsmanship for me is when a guy walks off the court and you really can't tell whether he won or lost, when he carries himself with pride either way. Jim Courier in Week 25
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I would rather win than have good sportsmanship. Allen Iverson in Week 25
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Coming together is a beginning; keeping together is progress; working together is success. Henry Ford in Week 26
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The problem with referees is that they just don't care which side wins. Tom Canterbury in Week 26
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I don't like this new law, because your first instinct when you see a man on the ground is to go down on him. Murray Mexted in Week 26
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When we beat the Springboks or France there's a general feeling of 'so you bloody well should', rather than 'that's a really good achievement'. Wayne Smith in Week 26
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Jonah Lomu's diffused his own bomb! Chris Handy after a very untrademark Lomu chip kick in Week 27
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The win was very fortunate, but I will buy Kefs a drink anytime, anywhere, whenever he asks! John Eales in Week 27
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It has often occurred to me that sport, like sex, is an activity that should either be performed or watched - but not written about. Paul Gardner in Week 27
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After calling all sports agents vultures - It was a rash statement and I'd like to apologise to every vulture in the sky. Mike Gottfried in Week 27
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If size is all that matters, how come the whale is endangered and the ant continues to do just fine? Unknown in Week 27
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Opportunities multiply as they are seized. Sun Tzu in Week 28
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I haven't really read the papers, but if they're going to call you this superhuman rugby player or whatever and you believe it, then you should also believe it when they call you a tosser. Martin Johnson in Week 28
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You can't have a prop playing hooker, they're not intelligent enough! Ross Nesdale in Week 28
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I've been watching Sven Goran Eriksson. I realise his pond is far bigger than mine, but there are similarities. Graham Henry in Week 28
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We've been together three and a half days and we haven't been to the pub yet. Donal Lenihan on the difference between the professional 2001 Lions, and his 1989 squad in Week 28
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The way a team plays as a whole determines its success. You may have the greatest bunch of individual stars in the world, but if they don't play together, the club won't be worth a dime. Babe Ruth in Week 29
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I think the French always niggle, grabbing blokes around the balls and the eyes and that sort of thing. Tim Lane in Week 29
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We generally make too much of winning. Let's face it, someone always has to win; that is the nature of competition. But the mere fact of winning doesn't make you great. Wilt Chamberlain in Week 29
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This is Chris Koch. He's a farmer and our champion biltong eater. Hennie Muller's introduction of the player to the Duke of Edinburgh before the Twickenham test in 1952 in Week 29
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Adversity causes some men to break; others to break records. William A. Ward in Week 30
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To be honest, the rugby's been that awful I haven't really been excited enough to get into it. Josh Kronfeld on the Super 12 in Week 30
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The mind is the limit. As long as the mind can envision the fact that you can do something, you can do it, as long as you really believe 100 percent. Arnold Schwarzenegger in Week 30
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Hell, it's been hard. I never thought it would be this bad. You have to be in it to experience it. I get criticised all the time. It's more difficult than I ever imagined. Harry Viljoen in Week 30
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You know exactly what he's going to do. He's going to come off his right foot at great speed. You also know that there isn't a blind thing you can do about it. David Duckham on Gerald Davies, Welsh great in Week 31
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The only place where success comes before work is in the dictionary. Vidal Sassoon in Week 31
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For any England side to score six tries against France is an achievement. I can remember getting some real hammerings off them as a player. Clive Woodward in Week 31
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Sport is quite a simple thing. It is play, and in play, people of all ages find the chance to engage their most profound emotions love, fear, excitement, disappointment, anger and joy. Timothy Shriver in Week 31
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It shows what a hot seat that number 9 jersey has been . Nigel Starmer-Smith in Week 32
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Paul Allott drying the wet ball which is a disadvantage in Lancashire's favour. Frank Hayes in Week 32
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You have to be fairly one dimensional when the crunch comes down. Australian Rugby Coach in Week 32
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I don't want to sit on the fence, but it could go either way. Maurice Banford in Week 32
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The Wigan defence allowed him two bites at the shot. Radio Manchester in Week 32
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A pressure kick for Andrew with Brown breathing down his throat. Nigel Starmer-Smith in Week 32
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That could have made it 10-3 and there's a subtle difference between that and 7-3. Bill Maclaren in Week 32
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He's like a needle in a haystack, this man 0 he's everywhere. Ray French in Week 32
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And there's Kenney, who at times looks almost like his double. Nigel Starmer-Smith in Week 32
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If you didn't know him, you wouldn't know who he was. Nigel Starmer-Smith in Week 32
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Dusty Hare kicked 19 of the 17 points. David Coleman in Week 32
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Of course they don't play to any sort of pattern and if you're not careful you will start playing to that pattern. Mike Davies in Week 32
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An easy kick for George Fairburn now but, as everybody knows, no kicks are easy. David Doyle-Davidson in Week 32
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Come on, Sean, I've got four million New Zealanders on my back, and now I must carry you around the course as well! John Hart to Sean Fitzpatrick after a three putt from three metres in a round of golf against the Springboks in Week 33
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I don't like rugby and I work for The Irish Times. It's like being a day trader and working for Pravda. Tom Humphries in Week 33
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We're going to tear those boys apart. Message pinned up on the changing room wall by England captain Will Carling before the All Blacks in the 1995 World Cup semi-final in Cape Town in Week 33
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If you think you can win, you can win. Faith is necessary to victory. Unknown in Week 33
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Maybe it's a good thing just to step back and say, 'Right, I got taught a good rugby lesson this season'. Robbie Fleck in Week 35
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Tiredness and fatigue is a mental thing. The body is capable of much, much more than most people think. I love rugby. I can't wait to play. Stay fresh mentally, work hard at something else, and rugby is a pleasure. Andre Venter in Week 35
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The impression I get from the guys is that they are happy to tour Europe, but certainly not Afghanistan or Pakistan. Pat Howard in Week 35
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We deserved to lose. I can't believe how many errors we made and I just couldn't believe what I was watching near the end. Clive Woodward in Week 35
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In the collective memory of this country rugby will always hold a place of pride for the role it played in nation building during those first years of our new democracy. Nelson Mandela in Week 36
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I have no doubt that we have the players, what we've lacked in the last 4 years is a strong, capable Coach. A Coach who is definitely the boss a Coach who MEANS what he says, a Coach who's not afraid to dump a big name player who isn't performing that's the sort of Coach NZ rugby needs. We don't need wimps, we need a MAN!!!!! Patrick Innes in Patrick on Rugby Vol 2119, 24 Oct in Week 36
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I thrived only in lineouts, those strange masonic rituals wherein everybody uniformly mistimes their jump for some reason I couldn't initially understand. Clarification wasn't long in coming. After two clean catches, the person opposing you in the lineout would just reach across and pull your hair. Beats gravity every time. Hair-pulling wasn't a very manly thing to do, but neither was weeping: "Ref! Ref! He's pulling my hair." I learned to mistime my jump like everyone else. Tom Humphries (maybe the real reason why lineouts are such a mess?! Ed) in Week 36
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Individual commitment to a group effort, that is what makes a team work. Vince Lombardi in Week 37
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I want to show Harry that I'm still good enough to play for South Africa. He told me what he wants from me and that he'll pick me if I play good rugby. Rassie Erasmus in Week 37
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You gotta lose 'em sometimes. When you do, lose 'em right. Unknown in Week 37
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The players accept responsibility for the way they played and each one is keen to put it right against Italy and against England the following weekend. Andre Vos in Week 37
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As for South Africa, it is impossible to advocate a case for them. Since the emergence of Harry Viljoen as coach, the Springboks have promised a great deal and delivered very little. Stuart Barnes in Week 38
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The Australians have been kings of the world, but time does not stand still. With successive losses, Jones has been handed the latch to the trapdoor. He must pull it. Greg Gowden in Week 38
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It is an indication of England's powerful run in the past 18 months and of South Africa's current lack of real assurance - let alone their historical arrogance - that England are firm favourites to win with the bookmakers. Stephen Jones in Week 38
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It was clear that, once the All Blacks had collected their wits and secured their bearings, they are the likely winners of the next World Cup under yet another grim-visaged coach in John Mitchell. Allan Watkins in Week 38
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The only solution was to tell first-choice players that they wouldn't play for France anymore if they didn't change their ways. Some of them got the message. They now are among the best players in the world. Bernard Laporte in Week 38
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Harry Viljoen makes statements about " The PATH ", look Harry, if we wanted a Star Wars Jedi master we would have gone to George Lucas. Markus Basson in Week 39
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"Leave that for the forwards!" Zinzan Brooke after Stefan Terblanche's botched drop goal attempt for the Babaas vs Australia in Week 39
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They (SA rugby administrators) duck below the parapets heroically avoiding the flak and then Clinton-like emerge anxiously grinning away, shaking each others hands, hoping the public have forgotten the mess they have helped to create. Nick Mallett in Week 39
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Winning is not a sometime thing; it's an all time thing. You don't win once in a while, you don't do things right once in a while, you do them right all the time. Winning is habit. Unfortunately, so is losing. Vince Lombardi in Week 39
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His sidestep was marvellous - like a shaft of lightning. Bill Mclaren on Gerald Davies in Week 40
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The most complete player in his position I have ever seen; in full flight he resembled a comic-strip hero on a field of mere mortals. Colin Harries on Danie Gerber in Week 40
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This will be completely different from last year's. We are much more settled. We will be looking to take our game a step further, especially on attack and the forward momentum of our pack. Harry Viljoen before the European tour in Week 40
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People do not lack strength; they lack will. Victor Hugo in Week 40
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