Ryan Wilson on the annoying trait Maro Itoje and Bundee Aki have in common
Scotland international Ryan Wilson has tackled the rugby yappers, players who can't stop talking on the pitch in an effort to knock opponents out of their stride.
Of the belief that England talisman Maro Itoje is one of the best in the business at this, the Glasgow back row added that Ireland midfielder took things too far during last weekend's Guinness PRO14 match between Connacht and the Warriors in Galway.
Scotland forward Wilson is one of the four Test capped hosts of RugbyPass Offload, the new podcast show he is involved in with England's Dylan Hartley, Ireland's Simon Zebo and Wales' Jamie Roberts.
Quizzed by Hartley about on-field chat designed to get into the heads of the opposition, Wilson said: "It's definitely something we [Glasgow] speak about in training in the build-up the games.
"You talk about the small moments. Saracens you hear constantly going at it. Your old mate Maro Itoje, any small thing. It's interesting because not only does it give yourself energy celebrating those small wins, but also the other team are looking at it thinking, 'Oh God, they're getting one over on us again'.
"You know what it's like in rugby, you have got to have that constant chat. If things start to go flat it's when teams make mistakes and other teams can spot that. When you hear them being quiet and see them being flat and no one chatting you know you have got the upper hand."
Reflecting on his most recent match, Glasgow's opening round 2020/21 PRO14 defeat in Ireland, Wilson added: "It was weird at the weekend because Bundee Aki actually made me cringe a little bit how much he was going at it.
"I even asked a couple of his players, 'Like, you boys most be struggling?'... there is a good way to do it and there is a way which is like, 'C'mon, rein it in a bit pal'."
- To listen on iTunes, click here
https://open.spotify.com/show/3fZwAitUVlvzTbOxe9cNxq?si=xdCv9rS8Rku-Vjiko4wgEA
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Good summation Ned. Agree the Canes were out-muscled for once (except at the scrum!) by a focused Brumbies outfit. Tua deserves consideration for higher honors after the way he humbled Jordie and the Canes defense. Thankfully, his lack of eligibility for Oz keeps him from Joe’s plans. While I also agree the injuries affected the Canes performance, some players seemed to lack focus and intensity for this match. Perhaps after the Blues demolished the Brumbies, they thought it was going to be easy? A good reminder that any slip up in preparation can have a big affect on the result. Brumbies deserved that win.
Go to commentsKarl Dixon should never have been appointed this fixture, absolute disgrace, He’s not much of a referee anyway, didn't have the balls to send his mate care off
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