Just check out the video below of Stellenberg High School’s performance during this year’s national competition.

Impressed?  You’re not the only one, as the judges seemed to share similar feelings about the performance from Stellenberg and awarded them with first place in the competition.

Originally, I thought I’d bring you a list of the greatest upsets in Rugby World Cup history for today. But as the group stage of the 2011 tournament draws to a close, the fact that the opening round matches have yielded precisely zero upsets thus far really took the wind out of those sails. Maybe the knockout stage will produce some surprises, but for now the topic of RWC upsets is dead to me. So I’ve decided to tack off in a different direction and do a list of something every world cup has in spades: badass dudes.

Now, they call these guys “hardmen” in Rugby circles. Basically, they’re the enforcer types you absolutely, positively, do not want to piss off. (Do not, for example, write an article for Total Pro Sports about how hot their wives and girlfriends are.)

Anyway, here’s the list: the 11 biggest badasses in Rugby World Cup History. Bust out the ibuprofen, because just watching these videos is going to give you a headache and a stiff back.

11. Jonny Wilkinson (England)

Jonny Wilkinson is a bit of a reach for “all-time great hardman” since his RWC career isn’t even over. (He’s on England’s roster right now.) But he’s generally recognized as one of the best fly-half/insider centers in the world. And man, can he pulverize an opponent. Check out this other clip, where he picks a guy up, flips him around, then smashes him to the ground:

10. Andre Venter (South Africa)

South Africa Springbok Andre Venter was one of the hardest (and, often, nastiest) players in the World Cup from 1996 to 2001. Don’t believe me? Watch this video in which he subtly…uh…stomps on another guy’s face. Ouch.

Sadly, old Andre Venter has contracted a rare disease of the muscular system that has left him in a wheel chair.

9. Mick Skinner (England)

They call this guy “The Munch” because he was such a wicked tackler, and in this clip we see the most famous hit of his career. It’s from the 1991 RWC quarterfinals against France. If you fast-forward to about 1:35, you’ll see Skinner crash into #8 Marc Cécillon of France, pick him up, and carried back about 10 yards. That one epic hit completely deflated the French attack and helped England hold out for a 19-10 victory.

8. Richard Loe (New Zealand)

Prop forward Richard Loe was called “The Enforcer” by his teammates. To opponents, who often found themselves at the losing end of elbows, cleats, and close lines, he was more commonly referred to as a thug. Either way, this dude (who played for New Zealand from 1987-1995) was one scary mother, and very deserving of this loving tribute video.

7. Brian Lima (Samoa)

In 2003, Samoan hardman Brian Lima issued one of the most bone-crushing hits in the history of the RWC (and probably in the history of rugby in general) against South Africa’s Derick Hougaard. The initial hit comes at the 0:09 mark (not that you could miss it, what with the reaction of the commentators), and then is revisited around the 2:00 mark. Careful, just watching this clip may give you whiplash.

6. Martin Johnson (England)

How badass was former England rugby captain (and current England rugby coach) Martin Johnson? The dude was willing to initiate a diplomatic crisis just to “set the tone” for a match against rivals, Ireland.

“What’s that? Move 10 feet to my right so the President of Ireland doesn’t have to walk on the wet grass? Bugger off!”

But if this kind of bull-headedness isn’t enough to satisfy you that Johnson was one tough bastard, how about some plain, old-fashioned on-field violence? Okay, here you go:

5. Sean Fitzpatrick (New Zealand)

I couldn’t find a video that really did New Zealand’s Sean Fitzpatrick (active 1986-1997) justice, so I just went with this badass photo. However, that was him getting kicked in the face by Andre Venter in #10. And you exactly don’t see him rolling around on the ground for 10 minutes holding his face like a soccer player. So yeah, he was tough. Fitzpatrick is an icon in New Zealand, and considered one of the greatest All Blacks players of all time. Considering the amount of talent that comes out of that country, that’s saying something.

4. Wayne Shelford (New Zealand)

His name was Wayne, but he goes by Buck. He only played 22 international matches, but that was enough to cement his status as one of the hardest guys to ever play for New Zealand.

In a match against France in 1986, Buck incurred one of the most awful injuries any man could ever imagine: his scrotum was ripped open by a guy’s cleat. What did he do? Kept playing, obviously. Eventually he had the trainer stitch him up so he could return to the game.

L-E-G-E-N-D.

He’d be #1 on this list for sure if that terrifying incident had actually occurred during a Rugby World Cup match.

3. Scott Gibbs (Wales)

Scott Gibbs just tackle a guy? No way. Tackle a guy, then give him a punch on the side of the head as he’s going down? Yeah, that’s what you could expect when you faced “Car Crash” Gibbs. (Skip to the 1:50 mark in the video to see what I’m talking about.)

Still, Gibbs (who played from 1986-1997) had more to give than just brute force. Check out this amazing try:

2. Bakkies Botha (South Africa)

Bakkies Botha is regarded as one of the toughest and nastiest men to ever play the game. Like #11 Johnny Wilkinson, he is still active (playing right now for the Springboks). Unlike Johnny Wilkinson, Botha’s resume is so full of brutal incidents that he’s a no brainer for this list of the RWC’s ultimate badasses.

In his first ever international match, he got a yellow card for “stamping” (like, with your feet). Also, he’s served suspensions for eye-gouging Australian Brendan Cannon and head-butting New Zealander Jimmy Cowan—the latter of which occurred in July 2010 and is the highlight of the video presented here. So the point is: just stay clear of this guy if you can.

1. Sebastien Chabal (France)

Coming in at #1 is yet another active player. Like the other two, he’s without question one of the biggest hardasses to ever step on the field.

To be sure, part of Sebastien Chabal’s mystique is his burly caveman appearance. But he’s also gargantuan, and has the brute force to back up his looks. I mean, it’s not like just anyone can get a montage of their top plays set to the score from Terminator. Plus, admit it: when you think of Frenchmen, you think of little Napoleon in his silly hat, or Albert Camus sitting at a sidewalk cafe, smoking and drinking coffee while writing in his journal. You don’t think of nightmarish guys like this. I mean come on, this dude is like some mythical beast, not a regular human being.

Anyway, here’s another clip, just to show you what he looks like at full-speed:

Source

Although I may not follow the game of rugby too closely, I understand the rules of the game enough to recognize the fact that South African winger Bryan Habana has game-breaking speed.  On second thought, you probably don’t need to know a single thing about the game of rugby to realize that fact after watching the following clip.

Here is a look at some highlight reel plays from the man who may very well be the fastest player at the 2011 Rugby World Cup.  Prepare to be amazed.

“He was watching the match with friends. After Spain scored, they realized that he was no longer with them and they found him on the ground after falling from the balcony,” [a spokeswoman for the representative of Spain’s central government in Cadiz] said.” [Dirty Tackle]

The other death occurred after a man jumped into a pool and drowned. As for the injuries, there were plenty. Reports indicate that 74 were injured near the giant outdoor screens in the city of Barcelona, while 50 individuals in Valencia were treated for injuries resulting from an over-consumption of alcohol.

As for one of the stranger incidents, it was reported that three men were arrested in the separatist-minded Basque Country for assaulting supporters of the Spanish national team.

Celebrate at your own risk Spaniards.

Hat Tip – [Dirty Tackle]

And as “the man” it was only appropriate for Casillas to conclude his post game interview by sharing an emotional kiss with girlfriend Sara Carbonero.

Carbonero, who is a reporter for Spain’s Telecinco channel, was the subject of criticism after being present behind the Spanish net when her boyfriend allowed the only goal in a 1-0 loss to Switzerland in their opening match of the tournament.  However, such accusations were quickly put to rest as Casillas and his team quickly rebounded with a 2-0 victory over Honduras, and never looked back from there.

And after being asked how he was feeling following the biggest victory in his country’s history, an emotional Casillas thanked his parents, brother, friends, and finally, his girlfriend.  Those present to witness their emotional kiss gave the couple a round of applause as Casillas left his blushing girlfriend to celebrate with his teammates.

Kissing the World Cup trophy is a once in a lifetime opportunity, but for Casillas, it was only the second best trophy that he would lay his lips on during this special night.  As for the first?  You guessed it…Sara Carbonero!

And with that, we bring you some of the top goals of the tournament, with only one question remaining: Which was the best?

We’ll let you make that decision.  And who knows…maybe the best is yet to come.

1.  Giovanni van Bronckhorst, semi-finals vs. Uruguay.

2. Luis Suarez, Quarter-finals vs. South Korea.

3. David Villa, Round Robin vs. Honduras.

4. Carlos Tevez, Round of 16 vs. Mexico.

5. Keisuke Honda, Round Robin vs. Denmark.

6. Fabio Quagliarella, Round Robin vs. Slovakia.

It is the World Cup semi-finals between Germany and Spain.  The beautiful Durban Stadium is filled with some of the world’s best footballers, including David Villa, Xavi, Andrés Iniesta, Carles Puyol, Lukas Podolski, Phillip Lahm and Bastian Schweinsteiger, among others.  The score is tied nil-nil almost 40 minutes in and with both teams getting their fair share of chances, it becomes clear at this point that we are headed for a classic World Cup match.

Is it enough to get this official excited?  It sure is!  Although perhaps he was getting a little too excited.

Thanks to Jacob O’Keefe for sending this Gem our way.  Hat Tip – [BuzzFeed]

As for the latest parody of the MFX Media video, it may not make you sick to your stomach, but it will give you a serious case of World Cup fever.

Apparently Bobbi will be accompanied by three other women (Miss Hybrid, Vicky Vette and Gabby Quinteros), who together call themselves #teambj.  As for how all of this #teambj stuff started, Vicky Vette provided Deadspin with an explanation:

“I know exactly zero about the World Cup and said that on Twitter one day. People told me to get behind the USA. I figured it would be funny to tell my 25,000-odd fans that I would give them a, err, BJ if the USA pulled off a win at the World Cup. The response was so huge I was shocked. Tons of people said they were getting into the World Cup for the first time wanting to know the score just in case they were entitled to my promised reward.”

“The USA lost but my followers Tweeted me asking that I pick another team. A friend of mine, Miss Hybrid, is English so we picked them to win. Of course, that was a disaster but the Tweets I was getting were hilarious…from people all around the globe. I figured we could not let #teambj end.

“I am friends with Bobbi Eden who is Dutch. Bobbi suggested we continue on with ‘#teambj‘ and support Holland. I told her I would give her a ‘hand’ so to speak. I like Gabby Quinteros as a friend and thought she could have some fun with it too. When Holland ended up beating Brazil, the buzz on the net exploded. Even Brazilian fans are supporting #teambj. I was shocked to see it in Playboy and all around the globe on various sites. I think Bobbi today has been getting something like 1,000 new people an hour.

“People have asked what we are going to do if Holland wins? All I can say is that I have stocked up on my handy wipes and you are going to have to follow to find out! As with all things in adult…we intend to give our followers a very ‘happy ending’.” [Deadspin]

So there you have it!  If Holland wins, it is a “very happy ending” for all.  Although, Larissa Riquelme has since told her fans that she will follow through with her promise even though Paraguay lost to Spain.  I wonder if #teambj will do the same should the Oranje let us down at Sunday’s final in Johannesburg.

Go Netherlands!!!

Hat Tip – [Next Round]

The constant buzzing of the vuvuzelas has clearly made its mark on this year’s FIFA World Cup in South Africa.  Not only have they managed to annoy everyone (including dogs and children) and change the way we think of the entire continent of Africa, but now it appears as though these instruments have taken over my hard drive.