Mathieu Bastareaud huge hit on Rory Lamont

first!!

Seem to remember Lomu doing a similar thing ;)

Absolutely no attempt to wrap, basically a flying clothesline.

legal hit as far as I'm concerned. We cant see it on this clip, but bastareaud shook lamont's hand just after getting back on his feet.
He said after the game to the French TV that he's currently weighting 120kg, and feeling fine.

Awesome hit.

Completely legal hit. No idea why anyone complained or why the referee saw the need to have a word.
He looks huge, interesting to see how much pace he has left...

you don't really get many fat centres anymore, used to be loads when i was a kid

completely legal, he doesn't have to wrap, just spreading his arms is enough...

personally my prefered french player, and the most interesting... I guess nobody knows what kind of game can produce a center with this type of physique. Interesting to see how fast he can run

Great hit. Unlucky about the forward pass, though.

Sounds like Wilkinson is still on target this season. Was he selected for the EYOT matches? Or have they not named the squad yet? In any case, I hope he's picked but that Johnson doesn't stick Flood on again to have a terrible 70 minutes, then sub in Wilko for the last ten with nothing to do.

Yellow card.. or maybe even red for the ridiculous haircut!

whats up with the stadefrancais jersey? pink leopards?!! wtf

he still has his head fucked up... look at that hair cut, anyway thats a great tackle nothing wrong in it and yes he looks bigger than before..

I pity the fool who gets in my way!

Actually, on third look, I think he did wrap.

And you do have to wrap your arm as by the law book under 10.4:

"A stiff-arm tackle is dangerous play. A player makes a stiff-arm tackle when using a stiff-arm to strike an opponent.
Sanction: Penalty kick"

I was fooled by one of the camera angles into thinking he'd stiff armed but I can see now he bent the arm around him.

man he is a big centre - I remember Brian O'Driscoll clinging on to him like a rag-doll in the previous 6 nations...What is his handling like?

On a seperate note - looked a legal hit to me...

Aller Bastareaucket!

SMASH!

cant wait to see him up against nonu and SBW. be some mad collisions going on.

Chubby-fattie throwing his blub around. Remember when he claimed he was beat up in NZ? What a fat tosser.

I'd run the fat outta the wobbly chubb-chubb.

Fat Camp Owner

(Was a nice hit/fat javelin by the way!..........lol)

Last anon you have some serious issues mate.. you should get out of your house and do some sports or something instead of just puking your hatred on the internet.

Great hit by a great player, cheers RD

amazing hit, perfectly legal. The commentator says he's weighing in at about 122kgs, that about 19 and a quarter stone, bigger than lomu ever was. Forget jokers like SB Williams, bastareaud must be the biggest most powerful centre in the world. Cant wait to see him come the november internationals

Oh lighten up, I never said I hated him - he's just a juicy chubby blub

Fat camp owner

Looks legal to me, possibly a bit reckless (sp?), but no problem with the actual hit. Fair play to Lamont though, a lot of back 3s wouldnt get straight up after a hit like that.

Nice hit - looked better in normal speed, slow motion it looked softer.

I can't help but remember his craziness on the NZ tour - you know, when all the people beat him up? lol!

"but they did have a word with him as he looked overly pumped up."

Lol, he's a rugby player.

@david
Lomu weighed at 125kgs in his prime. Not to mention he's a lot faster than Bastareaud.

Hello RD,
Would you have a replay of Byron Khelleher try for Toulouse against Perpignan? (or highlights of the whole game?) both team showed determination to play. Was great to watch in the Stadium!

Yeah Lomu was the fastest AB back over forty meters in his prime. There were reasons why he was so hard to stop! (Poor Mike Catt :) )

Legal and awesome hit!
Real men wear pink!!! lol

looks more impressive than it really is: the toulon guy is standing on one leg and leaning backwards for the kick.
and by the way: Bastareaud is big and strong but does defenitely not look fit. Look at the way he chases that kick...

@ dutchrugbyplayer

The most incredible thing with Bastareaud is that yes, he's fit and got some real pace!

Don't be mistaken by his proportions : look at Caucaunibuca, he looks fat (and i guess he's a bit fat) but he's (or was...) one of the quickest rugby player on planet!

Ok Firstly; This guy is nothing special. He was shown to be lacking in international pace in most matches in the last 6nations. Secondly; I dunno if ABs are playing france? but if they are, SBW and Nonu + Conrad Smith will run rings round this chump.

So many gay anon talking about bastareauds hair cut and not the tackle,wft !! 122kg big boy should shift him in one postion to inside center for more direct running. He like a Nonu on steriods,lol. The french are looking strong there teams are dominating heniken cup looking good for 6nations. Be intresting to see how the french go aganst the criminals(OZ)!!! I know my team the Mighty AB's are looking good. Can't wait for the autum internationals.

Don't be mistaken by his proportions : look at Caucaunibuca, he looks fat (and i guess he's a bit fat) but he's (or was...) one of the quickest rugby player on planet!

---------------------

Caucau towards the end of his career has been carrying the pounds on his waist. He's never been naturally large or heavy though. He's nothing like Bastareaud. Caucau has a beer belly. Bastareaud is naturally bordering on fat.

They're not the same. Caucau could run the 100 metres before Mathieu reaches the 60 metre mark! Bastareaud is slow and always has been. I don't understand where this idea he's fast comes from. He's not fast like Caucau. He's not explosive like Lomu.

Mathieu is a great player, but he's not fast or explosive.

122kg big boy should shift him in one postion to inside center for more direct running. He like a Nonu on steriods,lol.

-------------

Except Nonu is 10 x the athlete Bastareaud will ever be. Nonu is a tank of muscle who explodes onto the line. Mathieu is fat and slow, and only looks good in the Top 14 and Heineken cup.

Nonu would walk into the French team. The All Blacks wouldn't want anything to do with Bastareaud. They have a 10,000 guys in NZ bigger than BAstareaud if they wanted size.

Mathieu is a big man in a small pond. Nonu would destroy him

I think some of you are focussing too much on his weight. Yes, he looks rather huge at the moment and could probably do with shedding 10kg's or so, but he is extremely powerful and for a guy that size, is quick enough to be there, as a professional center.

Nonu isn't all that quick himself anymore. He stated that he disliked playing wing because he felt his pace wasn't up to it. I'm sure he's quicker than bastereaud but all I'm saying is go easy on the guy weight wise - he's a good player and will definitely be around for some time yet, providing he doesn't get imprisoned for eating the nearest scrumhalf.

Can't wait for the Nov test series, then we will see who is a stud and who is a dud.

In regards to Bastareaud's shape, he should not be judged on that, but on his performance.

He chases down a kick in this clip, rushes the opposing player, puts in a big hit and gains his side 20-30 metres in ground. Anyone who gives a shit about his body type, his haircut, his past or his contemporaries are missing the point and don't know rugby.

i like that jersey, pity they only sell a limited edition for an horrendous prize, moneymakers

good work on the tackle

lomu on vincent clerc haha

I agree with Canadian Content.

I'm not a huge fan of Bastareaud or anything, but there's no denying that the guy can perform. When his game is on, he scores tries, breaks the gain line, makes big hits, puts in good defense...what else do you want?

Good grief, everyone is a critic.

I'm pretty sure the selectors know exactly what a player is capable of and pick them accordingly.

Personally, I love this guy! Come on fellas, why does every player need to look like a superhero? Rugby is a sport for all body types and good athletes come in all shapes and sizes. In my experience fat fast guys are the hardest to tackle.

The irony is that because the target did not have both feet planted on the ground and the tackle was pretty dramatic, was the probably the reason he did not get hurt and was able to walk away from that one.

fsr be it from me to say that new zealanders are biased but its hard not to get that impression when practically everyone who comes on here identifying themselves as being from NZ talks complete tripe about any player not from NZ and then gives us the usual nonsense about how the all black in the same position would destroy them. Well actually france have a very good record against eh all blacks when they bother to bring their best team. They'll show themselves to be a match for them when they play each other in the world cup, maybe then they'll get some justifiabe respect from one eyed new zealanders...though I wouldn't bet on it.
By the way I dont mean to offend any rugby fans who make an attempt to be objective, its just the blatantly biased ones who get to me

Wrapping isn't in the laws.
You don't have to wrap, the word has no meaning in the laws.
Stop talking about bloody wrapping.
This hit was fine.

Anyone who thinks Bastareaud has anything on Nonu is nuts.
Nonu is by far the superior player, and I'm not a kiwi.

fatty can tackle!

@ David SBW would cut this fat French liar in half.

Who cares if your 122kgs if your basically a fat ball runner with minimal skills.

And comparing him to Nonu?? Your all out of your mind. Nonu is the best 12 in the world by a long way.

Ah yes, keep going on about the bash merchant Nonu, we all know what JdJ and Fourie did to the Hurricanes center pairing this year. Lol.

I'd rather have Bastareaud than Nonu in my team to tell you the truth. I'd show a little more respect to France if I were you, they were in fact the team that kicked NZ out of the world cup, and broke 4 million Nz hearts lol, lol, lol. Ah, I can only imagine how many wives were beaten, lol, lol, lol.

Oh btw, Nonu will never be known as a great of the game. Sorry, isn't anything special and never will be. I win.

Seems he's carrying ALOT of extra weight...

They should put him on a diet and use him at 12... It worked for Nonu (best midfielder in the world by a long shot).

Bastareaud could be legend if he's managed well by the French... His talent and raw power is scary.

@Aussiephil and Wales put the wannabies out in 2007... Probably not the best year to refer to sweetheart.

And what did you girls do after that... You stole a kiwi coach!! And you still can't beat the AB's... LOL

Nonu + AB's = Number 1

Phil = Possibly a homosexual

Uh, Wales didn;t even get thru the group stages. Australia beat them convincingly, and they lost to Fiji too.
England knocked Australia out of the 2007 Cup.

niiiiiiicce!
from nz

Nonu is most certainly not the best 12 in world rugby, he doesn't even have a kicking game. What happened to old Nonu last year when Carter was injured?.... Like mentioned, bash merchant.

to the person above your clearly a bit of a bandwagon idiot, but ill give you a chance to redeem.

Who is currently the best no. 12 in the world?

Agree with everybody here: good legal tackle (come on, Basta's shoulder is below Lamont's arm, how can it be illegal?).

Each SF jersey seems to answer this: How flashy can pink get?

70 week ban because he is from stade francais...

very dangerous...

maybe ban for life...

I have to totally agree with a previous post, that was nothing more than a flying close-line as he made no attempt to wrap his right arm around the tackled player. Bastareaud is very over rated in my opinion.

LOL at the anon above :)

In all honesty its funny the hype you guys are actually going into....

....are you all doing it to be daft like myself? or are you genuinuely serious?!?!?

I mean ok, under the name 'Resident Troll' I have to look on the side that isnt there...i.e. the ban him side....

But really....there was nothing more there than a nice beasty tackle....

those are the tackles forwards love to do when the kicker is just kicking.....(or has just kicked if you're a little committed ;) ...)and to question anything about it is unbelievable....this tackle should not be viewed in any other way than a 'owwww that looked hard' way....

to question its legality is ridiculous....


(geez come on guys you're making me not living up to my name!!!!)

I'd love Bastareaud to pound my hole as hard as he pounded Rory!

I cannot see anything wrong with the tackle. Good hit.

But will he be selected for the November test? I cannot believe. He is currently out of shape and overweighted

Still I hope to see him at least for the 6 nations before.....I do not believe so.

He has a good card to be a good player but he has to work hard for it.

Bastareaud is Mr T reborn french :)

To be honest, I've never liked this guy... Very limited skills and just throws his body into the first sucker that gets in his way...I've seen this guy play for a while and he`s the kind of player that would prefer to run over a guy thanaround him. There are 8 guys like that in a team, lad...they are called "forwards"!

Add some big lies in the Land of the Long White Cloud, crazy haircuts and a little love for pink and a couple dozens pounds overgeight and you get this sweatty monster.


I mean, how many better french centres are there? Jauzion, Fritz, Poitrenaud, Bousses, Mermoz, Marty, David...

Ah, by the way, good tackle. Love the way Lamont doesn't even complain.

Cheers

I remember Bastareaud nailing that fat Kiwi loosehead Woodcock, he has some power

Its funny when people call Nonu a bash and crash player... I'd say he's easily got the best passing game of any AB, just ask Cory Jane, Mills or Issy Dagg... They have been scoring tries all year because of his passing skills.

Bastareaud is still pretty young, he's already a good player... No doubt he has an even bigger future if he lays off the french fries and crepes.

Stade website says 110kg, little frenchman is talking smack lol

Basteraud is not playing the November Internationals and Nonu does have a more all round game; check the highlights form the Tri Nations; he is involved in nearly all of NZ tries and now seems to be able to pass and sometimes kick.

I think Basteraud is a work in progress and could be the real deal but has to lose a bit of the spread.

I think it was wales who worked him out in Cardiff in last years 6 nations by chipping over him or grubbers past him to the oncoming traffic and the big man was too slow to be able to turn around in time.

I think France are quite rightly using these Novemebr Internationals as a chance to experiment with some other talent in the Top 14.

Anyways Basteraud is a great player but slightly 1 Dimensional and as i pointed out is open to more unconventional play from fly halves putting the ball behind him. I think the excellent Killer Bees had him in all sorst of trouble against Scotland. The problem was their support play was rubbish and the player making the break was quickly isolated.

Lots of players do get penalised for these sorts of tackles as no arms these days in southern hemisphere rugby (not sure about the north). It's rubbish and annoys the hell out of me. Perfectly legal.

I totally agree with some of the posts about Bastareaud. He is totally over-rated and should have been cited for a flying close line. No attemp at wrapping his right arm and that tackle was a no brainer - not difficult to tackle someone when they are not looking at you coming and they are standing on one leg in the middle of a kick! Bastareaud was screwed over by Tindall this year!

"Nonu would walk into the French team. The All Blacks wouldn't want anything to do with Bastareaud. "

Guess who played at center for France last time they won in New Zealand? Hee hee

i think he'd be more effective if he dropped a few kg and quickened up,he'd still be one of the biggest players on rugby,but with a bit of extra speed behind him he'd run over anything

Okay, big hit, but nothing special and I do think that it was a spear tackle, simply because he lifted his feet off the ground and pushed his head down. I guess Bakkies Botha would at least have gotten a yellow one for that...