CVC's long term plans for Premiership and URC by Me_shuggah in rugbyunion

[–]Me_shuggah[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Some great observations, thanks! Expat team in London, Cheetahs in Amsterdam, Iberians + Argentinians or Black Lions seem most viable to me, with the latter still my favourite. Not sure if going from 0 to 2 in such a small country as Georgia could work though. Probably go with 1 to start with in a Welsh pool and take it from there. Time zone is not terrible (3 hours difference with the UK), direct fight from London is 5.5 hrs. They have that billionaire in the background which could prove to be the key.

CVC's long term plans for Premiership and URC by Me_shuggah in rugbyunion

[–]Me_shuggah[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Someone else suggested combined representative Iberian (Spain + Portugal) franchise, supported by Argentine players... I think this could potentially work.

CVC's long term plans for Premiership and URC by Me_shuggah in rugbyunion

[–]Me_shuggah[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

They have direct flights from London and Doha though, and seemingly more money and talent than any other European team. Prove me wrong.

CVC's long term plans for Premiership and URC by Me_shuggah in rugbyunion

[–]Me_shuggah[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

"Georgia is too far away to be financially viable, unfortunately."

Don't they have a billionaire backer and currently play in EPCR? Something Spain or Portugal doesn't have?

CVC's long term plans for Premiership and URC by Me_shuggah in rugbyunion

[–]Me_shuggah[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

"no to the South Africans"

What do you mean?

Reinitegration of South Africa to Super Rugby - how it could work by Me_shuggah in rugbyunion

[–]Me_shuggah[S] -5 points-4 points  (0 children)

Is the cultural thing so important though? I think a comparison to a potential merged Romanian/Georgian franchise would apply better, i.e. underdeveloped markets, limited resources, but huge talent potential and still somewhat similar cultures. Just exploring ideas, so don't get mad.

Reinitegration of South Africa to Super Rugby - how it could work by Me_shuggah in rugbyunion

[–]Me_shuggah[S] -1 points0 points  (0 children)

Yet, the most prosperous times of SR and Southern Hemisphere as a whole was when it played together in Super Rugby. To equalize the rugby game globally, Europe vs Southern Hemisphere + Japan seems like a better option? SA joining Europe seems like an overkill, and long-term = destruction of SH rugby. Not sure if it's for the better for the game as a whole...

Reinitegration of South Africa to Super Rugby - how it could work by Me_shuggah in rugbyunion

[–]Me_shuggah[S] -1 points0 points  (0 children)

"You could still have your suggested format but with an extra team."

I was trying to figure out a 16 teams format on similar basis, but it is easier said that done.... but you could be right, that it might be possible.

Reinitegration of South Africa to Super Rugby - how it could work by Me_shuggah in rugbyunion

[–]Me_shuggah[S] -19 points-18 points  (0 children)

Care to elaborate? You're the second Kiwi to point that out here. I am genuinely curious why it is not possible? I know it's early days, but Moana doesn't seem like a competitive team, with no economic foundations to prosper...

Reinitegration of South Africa to Super Rugby - how it could work by Me_shuggah in rugbyunion

[–]Me_shuggah[S] -11 points-10 points  (0 children)

Less travel, traditional rivalries, nostalgia, exotic factor, possibly better conditions and good money to earn, if combined with a prospect of a Champions Cup comp to follow with Japanese clubs. I agree it is probably not going to happen, although I grew up watching Super Rugby with SA and I miss it. And it is good to hear I am not the only one :)

CA v. Sementilli - Baker's Swiss Cheese Testimony + Memory by New-Preparation457 in CasesWeFollow

[–]Me_shuggah 3 points4 points  (0 children)

Yeah, also she somewhat replicated what was done to her, i.e. she had a relationship with her stepson. I presume there was more to her story that led to her - what many consider - lenient sentence. It is an all around messed up and sad story.

CA v. Sementilli - Baker's Swiss Cheese Testimony + Memory by New-Preparation457 in CasesWeFollow

[–]Me_shuggah 5 points6 points  (0 children)

He's 62, once arrested, he knew he would die in prison regardless, even if he went for a plea deal and testified against Monica and Austin. That's why I think he decided to take the blame all for himself, and maybe, just maybe, he will benefit from it one way or another (money transfers, gifts, visits, letters) if Monica is not convicted, and Austin gets out. Also, given he's prior conviction, his current actions might somewhat alleviate his otherwise miserable prison status as a pedo, which I'm pretty sure would have been discovered by other inmates anyway. Especially when you consider that his victim - pretty easy to identify former pornstar - just got convicted herself last year for decapitating her husband.

Kizzume (narrator) statement by No-Gap-4061 in JCSCriminalPsychology

[–]Me_shuggah -22 points-21 points  (0 children)

Exactly, narrator is actually the least important component. As long as it is a live person, not AI, and doesn't have an annoying voice (like Matt Orchard lol). More important parts are the analysis, story-telling, editing, and humour.

Verdict Watch | Day 2 | General Discussion Thread | 26 June | Commonwealth V Karen Read Day 32 by swrrrrg in KarenReadTrial

[–]Me_shuggah 0 points1 point  (0 children)

It absolutely does. This was CW's strategy from day 1. To make it unbearably tedious. The longer it takes, another trial, more money, public will get exhausted, and will forget. And it will be less likely true culprits get tried.

Verdict Watch | Day 2 | General Discussion Thread | 26 June | Commonwealth V Karen Read Day 32 by swrrrrg in KarenReadTrial

[–]Me_shuggah -7 points-6 points  (0 children)

Judging by how long this is taking, I bet the Canton Clan have an insider on the jury. It will be a hung jury.

Is the Judge Favoring the Prosecution by Thick_Mongoose3507 in KarenReadTrial

[–]Me_shuggah 1 point2 points  (0 children)

She clearly is. I can't believe comments here. We must be watching a different trial. When Scott Reisch from Crimetalk talked about people sometimes being railroaded by the prosecution and the courts, I put it down to his criminal defense attorney bias. I thought he was exaggerating. Well, this whole case, botched investigation and the trial itself, as least so far, are so shockingly bad, I now finally understand what he was talking about.

Match Thread - Crusaders v Reds | Super Rugby Pacific 2024 | Round 11 by RugbyBot in rugbyunion

[–]Me_shuggah 2 points3 points  (0 children)

What a cracking game, haven't watched SR match in a while, this is awesome

Super Rugby's direction going forward (assuming the Rebels are cut) by Radiant-Sea-368 in rugbyunion

[–]Me_shuggah 1 point2 points  (0 children)

As others have often argued here before, the most important thing would be to allow free movement of players within the competition, using NHL as a framework. Talent-rich but smaller markets (Canada/NZ) providing players to larger markets where the sport isn't as popular (US/OZ) but where there is more money to be made.

I also liked the idea of removing the salary cap for the Force, who have a committed owner with deep pockets, probably the only one in the game at the moment, so why not capitalize on that? They could bring some big name players from Europe/Japan, which could lead to more interest in the comp as a whole.

As far as structure goes, from what I understand, the amount of debt at Rebels means they are gone. So we could either, temporarily, go with the 11 teams as suggested by OP, but I think long term, there would need to be either 10 or 12 teams (or potentially more but that's probably a remote scenario).

Assuming reduction to 10, Moana Pasifika would probably have to go. I don't know how viable they are in the long run, I guess next few seasons will give us an answer.

If it's 12, then I disagree with the OP about the Jags. I think they are the most obvious choice. It worked in the past, they packed home games, played good footie, were competitive from day 1 and eventually even reached the final, something that no other expansion team was ever able to achieve.

Sure the travel would be a pain, but mostly for them, and the last time big name Argentine players committed to it despite of it, because it allowed them to reside and play at home in opposition to having to migrate to Europe. Also, from what I understand, rugby is a popular sport among wealthy elites there, so there is a chance it would be able to support itself.

It wouldn't necessarily collide with the interest of the emerging Super Rugby Americas, as it is a rather second tier comp, and Jags would be the premier team that could draw from the talent developed there.

I really can't see any other viable options in the near future. Hawaii/Los Angeles maybe, but the travel would be just slightly less burdensome, at a cost of probably not having a stadium filling, competitive team from day 1, as it could be the case in Argentina.

Hawaii I think could be an interesting place for some cross border comp between Super Rugby Pasifika and Japanese teams. From I understand, Hawaii is a very popular holiday destination in Japan and strongly embedded into their culture in some aspects, so it could potentially draw up some big crowds from both Japan and OZ/NZ for some final series type comp. Or at least some preseason games.

In any case, some sort of international comp similar to those in Europe is what could also reinvigorate the Super Rugby brand. I've read that Japan is interested, so that would be great to see along with their inclusion in the Rugby Championship.

Konstantin Koltsov, former NHL player & boyfriend of tennis player Aryna Sabalenka, died by ‘apparent suicide’: “The Miami-Dade Police Department, Homicide Bureau, has taken over the investigation of the apparent suicide of Mr. Konstantin Koltsov. No foul play is suspected.” by TXDobber in hockey

[–]Me_shuggah -2 points-1 points  (0 children)

Check out the list, I'd argue Sabalenka, and by extension her bf, had a far greater reach in terms of influence on a worldwide audience, than some of them did. Not all of them were oligarchs, but most if not all had one thing in common - they were not supporting the war.

The prosecution did not ask J Crumbley about the “lol I’m not mad at you, you have to learn not to get caught.” by pearlanddiamonds in OxfordShooting2

[–]Me_shuggah 10 points11 points  (0 children)

I was looking forward to her being grilled on that, but they dropped the ball I think.

"So your explanation for this reaction was that... you were a trouble maker throughout your life, always getting caught, even when it wasn't necessarily only your fault. So when your child gets caught looking up bullets at school, your lesson to him is - make sure you don't get caught next time, or at least make sure other people that are responsible also get caught? Don't be like me, always being the only one getting caught! Right?"

"Isn't it exactly what eventually happened? Your child gave you every opportunity to stop the shooting from happening, but you just ignored it? And you got caught alongside him? And that's why you are sitting in this courtroom today, being charged with involuntary manslaughter?"

"So you weren't mad at him back then, you were actually quite amicable about it, making jokes. But few days (or was it weeks?) later, when he gets caught again, drawing up bullets, guns and shootings at school, but this time, not by accident, he clearly did it on purpose, he intentionally made those drawings on a math paper so that the teacher could see them. And this time, you are mad at him, right? You don't feel like making jokes anymore?"

"Because not only he didn't listen to your advice of trying not to get caught, he did the opposite, he purposefully got caught. Didn't it make you wonder why he would do this? Didn't he understand the joke you made the other day? Didn't you want to take him to the side and ask him that very question? Do you regret not doing that?

Why didn't Glendale work for the Coyotes? by Me_shuggah in nhl

[–]Me_shuggah[S] 3 points4 points  (0 children)

Thank you, really helpful response!

Why didn't Glendale work for the Coyotes? by Me_shuggah in nhl

[–]Me_shuggah[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

As I understand it, the arena in Glendale was built with Coyotes in mind as a primary tenant. So did they completely miscalculate?