25 Days of Rugby Man Hotness (Dec 1)

Take a look at Facebook this month and you'll find numerous '25 Days of ___________' type photo albums... usually these are related to Christmas, or being grateful, or other such boring stuff...  So I decided that I would use December as a chance to showcase some of the nommiest men in the rugby world, in my eyes (and Lauriel's!) anyway.

So without further adieu, I give you Mr December 1st

Sean Maitland - who gets extra hotness points
for this facial scruff & suit ensemble!

Movember Mo-Men (week 4)

I saved (some of) the best until last!

Movember 22nd - Julian Savea
... another one who does the mo relatively well.

Movember 23rd - Stephen Donald
... the man won the RWC2011 for New Zealand...
even if the mo looked dreadful I would be full of praise.

Movember 24th - Sam Whitelock
Falls under the category of SURPRISE MO!
and doesn't look half bad...
Still in existance post Dec 1st as well!

Movember 25th - Israel Dagg & Richie McCaw.  feat. Prince William.
I'm sure that Prince William felt that Izzy's mo-nstrosity took some of the
attention way from his receding hairline... the same can be said about Izzy's
receding hairline too... nicely played Iz, nicely played.

Movember 26th - Aaron Smith
quite possibly the most surprising of all the moustaches...
relativley thick & dark for such a little fella...
VOTE PEDRO!

Movember 27th - Conrad Smith
Conrad was going for 'cop mo' look, circa 1960's-1970's
& as a tribute to his father!  how sweet

Movember 28th - Kieran Read
... another one for whom the mo doesn't look dreadful
but he looks a lot better with scruff!

Movember 29th - Luke Romano
considering the man has size 17 flippers (sorry, feet),
I thought his mo would be a lot more epic...

And naturally, the VERY best was saved for the VERY last day of Movember...  And I post these photos in honour of my fiancée, who I believe has become very fond of the McAwful/McAwesome mo!  Somehow he managed to pull it off.  The wearing of the mo, I mean.  He didn't pull the actual mo off.  That would hurt.

Movember 30th - Mr Movember himself, Richie McCaw

It's only appropriate to finish off with Lauriel's favourite movember McAwesome mo...

Unexpected Benefit of the End of Year Tour

There has been a very unexpected benefit of the All Blacks 2012 end of year tour to Europe.  Along the way they have played Scotland, Italy, Wales - and this weekend England.  They have won 3/3 so far, with their toughest game being this weekend against England - but they are still favourites to win... even if they are now seen as thugs due to Andrew Hore's major fuck up.  (for the record, 5 weeks - not enough).

But that unexpected benefit?  The unearthing of hot foreign rugby players!  The two main ones that come to mind are Tim Visser (Dutch, plays for Scotland) & Mike Phillips (Wales, also plays for Bayonne)... and now I leave you with Mr Visser and Mr Phillips, for your viewing pleasure.

Mr Visser

Mr Visser looking rather nommy in his Barbarians jeresy

More Visser goodness

And now for the nommier of the two, Mike Phillips - aka the Welsh DC (Dan Carter)

What's not to love about Mike Phillips?

Lounging by the pool.  Oh to be a fly on the... umbrella...

All suited up... and looking goooooood.

What a view!  Nice scenery too...

Ludicrously huge bottle of wine, for a ludicrously sexy man!

Looking rather European!

Movember Mo-Men (week 3)

Here we go with week 3!

Movember 15th - Jason Eaton
Where to start?  Wow. Went from ScaryBeard to ScaryMo, overnight
... literally.

Movember 16th - Adam Thomson
Tommo-Mo

Movember 17th - Conrad Smith
WOW, the SnakeyMo came out of nowhere

Movember 18th - Kendrick Lynn
... he's friends with Hottyata, of course I had to include him

Movember 19th - Brodie Retallick
eeeeek, it's FrankenMo!
(we think he looks a little like Frankenstein)

Movember 20th - Andrew Hore
hmmm, the best part of this picture is Mr McCaw

Movember 21st - Nick Barrett
the dude has gone a bit OTT....

Movember Mo-Men (week 2)

Week two of the fabulous (??????????) Movember Mo-Men

Movember 8th - Cory Jane
WTF-Mo

Movember 9th - Zac and Izzy (they are a single entity, after all)
IzzyMo/CreepyMo and the sexy El Zaco

Movember 10th - Jarrad Hoeata (and Kendrick Lynn)
... Hottyata does the mo well, affording him no mo nickname...
except perhaps Sexy-Mo-Fo

Movember 11th - Andre Taylor
The dude does any scruff well.

Movember 12th - Tom Marshall
just continuing with the Crusader theme, really

Movember 13th - Tom Donnelly
...

Movember 14th - Beauden Barrett
aka FrodoMo (cos he looks like Frodo)

Movember Mo-Men (week 1)

Movember is well underway, infact (thank god) it is almost over.  On my facebook I've been posting a daily 'Mo-Man of Movember', and decided I might as well post the daily Mo-Man on this here blog, as well.  Without further ado, I bring you the Mo-Men of week one!

Movember 1st - Ryan Crotty
the mo affectionately known as  the 'Crotty-Mo'

Movember 2nd - Zac Guildford
aka the 'El Zaco', due to the fact that before it grew in,
he looked like a Mexican.

Movember 3rd - Israel Dagg
the MOnstosity not affectionately known as the IzzyMo

Movember 4th - Richie McCaw
the McAwful

Movember 5th - Andy Ellis
quite simply, EPIC MO!

Movember 6th - Owen Franks
keeping with the Crusaders mo-theme

Movember 7th - Hosea Gear
the one I unintentionally called the Ho-Mo...
before realising what I had just said...

EOYT Squad. God I'm Good. & WTF Steve?

The All Blacks squad for the end of year tour was announced yesterday, and for the most part the selections were obvious.  BUT (yes - there is always a but), there are a couple of admissions and exclusions which puzzle the hell out of me, and make me wonder exactly what is Steve thinking?

See ya later, Piri.

The first, and potentially the most obvious admission - Piri Weepu.  WTF STEVE?  I understand that Piri has the potential to be bloody awesome on the field, I mean, the guy developed quite the cult following during the Rugby World Cup, he really was on fire.  But this year, it seems that Piri has been coated in flame retardant.  There has been no sign of that fire, hell - there aren't even a few embers lying around.  No.  In 2012, Piri is more like saturated firewood - without a match in sight.  Or should that be a match start?

The kid Piri mentored has surpassed him. Oops.

I think that all that is really saving Piri's ass here, is the fact he is another goal kicking option - but with Beauden Barrett improving with each game, and the skill of Aaron Cruden, and of course Dan Carter, I don't think this little saving grace is going to be saving his ass much longer.  Especially not when there is another #9 nipping at his heels.  A number #9 he helped to mentor whilst playing with the Hurricanes.  Yeap - TJ Perenara, who is finally on his way back from inury, after breaking his ankle in a[n unofficial] Super XV match against the Reds (?) this season.  TJ outplayed Piri in all aspects of the game during the 2012 Super XV, and other than Aaron Smith, he was the most exciting #9 playing in the Super XV - and I have a feeling that had he not been injured, he quite possibly could have been in this end of year tour squad, or at the very least, been in the Maori All Blacks tour squad.  Then there is Tawera Kerr-Barlow, who also outplayed Piri this season - but more on him later.

Long story short?  Don't expect to see Piri in the black jersey, in 2013!

Yeap, I'd be feeling that way too, Ali

The other curious admission is Ali Williams.  I scratch my head and try to come up with reasons he was selected, after playing bugger all rugby this year - and I fail to come up with any reasons, other than the fact he's played 50+ tests for the All Black, and could be seen as a good leader for other locks selected (Sam Whitelock, Brodie Rettalick, Luke Romano) - even if judging by that list, he would be the 4th favoured lock on the list.  Maybe Steve has more faith in him than the NZ public (and it seems, a lot of the rugby fraternity), but I don't understand how he is in the team.  Surely Jarrad Hoeata could have been given a look in, particularly with his ability to play other positions in the forwards, as well.  Then there is Craig Clarke, who had an excellent Super XV season for the Chiefs?  I highly doubt that Ali Williams will make it to the end of the end of year tour, uninjured - and the way Clarke, Hoeata & Jason Eaton have been playing, it will probably signal the end of his time in the black jersey.

Dane Coles - the dude can run.

It's not all doom and gloom and bitching though!  I let out a little squeeeee of delight, when I saw that Tawera Kerr-Barlow and Dane Coles had been named in the squad - both are players I noticed early in the Super XV season, and I remember saying on several occasions that both of them would be All Blacks by the end of the year.  Well - it's not quite the end of the year, and they are now named in the All Blacks squad, and one has to imagine that both will get some game time in Europe.  I am especially glad that Dane Coles got in, because while we seem to have an abundance of talent when it comes to the backs, and most of the forwards positions, hooker is one where we are lacking.   Dane Coles did a great job for the Hurricanes, showing he could do the physical work of a hooker - but that he could also run... and I think it's a great idea to get him in the squad while the likes of Keven Mealamu and Andrew Hore are still around to mentor him, to help boost his confidence and skill, so that when the time comes for those players to retire, we won't be let with a big gaping hole, in the hooking department.

Tawera Kerr-Barlow, more in form than Piri, in 2012

And yes, I understand that I just mentioned 'gaping holes' when discussing hookers.

All in all, a pretty awesome squad to take on Scotland, Italy, Wales and England - with the possibility for one of these games to be a swan song for two or three of the players, but also the possibility for a lot of young up and comers to really stamp their mark on the team.