Gobble gobble? © Getty Images

1. Pocket power still has a place in the game.
Shane Williams' return to form in Wales' clash with Argentina reminded us that it's not all about the 6ft 7in/18st monsters.

2. The are still coaches out there prepared to gamble
Huge praise for Ireland coach Declan Kidney for giving fly-half Jonny Sexton the chance to shine in their showdown with Tri-Nations champions South Africa.

3. Mid-week tour clashes are here to stay
OK - Cardiff Blues' meeting with Australia was a little flat thanks to 10,000 or so empty seats but a sell-out at Welford Road for the Leicester v South Africa game, the bumper crowd at Kingsholm for the visit of the Wallabies and Saracens' upset win against the Boks at Wembley in front of 46,000 fans mean these welcome additions are surely back for good.

4. There are only 72 days to the Six Nations kick off
I know, the autumn internationals are not even over yet but for many rugby fans the calendar revolves around the battle for the northern hemisphere crown. And next year's is shaping up nicely.

5. Scottish rugby shows signs of life
A new coach and new belief for the Scots. Andy Robinson has made a promising start to his return to the international coaching stage with their hard-fought victory over the Wallabies the high point.

6. The dive pass is alive and well
Wallabies scrum-half Will Genia is seemingly leading a one-man campaign to keep the old-fashioned dive pass alive.

7. IRB Sevens circus is upon us again
The IRB Sevens World Series swings into action again next week with the opening tournament in Dubai. The shortened but equally engaging version of the game has of course been granted Olympic status - starting in Rio in 2016 - and expect the Series to justify its inclusion with a feast of fast-paced and entertaining action.

8. Ssshhh! 'Bloodgate' appears to have been put to bed.
Don't say it too loudly.

9. Leading player in common sense shocker!
All Blacks captain Richie McCaw must be applauded for his decision to take a break at the start of next year instead of cashing in with a lucrative sabbatical in the northern hemisphere. Refreshingly, arguably the world's greatest openside has chosen to give his body a break ahead of the 2011 Rugby World Cup.

10. Television Match Officials
Any rugby fans who witnessed France and in particular Thierry Henry cheating their way to the Fifa World Cup can rest assured technology means our sport gets it right in such situations - most of the time anyway.

	Actors Morgan Freeman and Matt Damon re-enact the famous exchange between former President Mandela and Springboks captain Francois Pienaar ©

Following their team's latest demoralising tour defeat at the hands of Saracens, South African fans may welcome a little reminder of better days. The Springboks' historic triumph at the 1995 Rugby World Cup was momentous in not only a sporting context but also on a wider social scale as South Africa emerged from the dark days of apartheid.

The country's journey to that day has been given the Hollywood treatment in the soon-to-be-released film Invictus with Clint Eastwood at the helm and Morgan Freeman and Matt Damon taking starring roles as President Mandela and Francois Pienaar.

The moment is also set for further treatment from ESPN as part of their 30 for 30 documentary series. Director Cliff Bestall, along with Freeman, will, "tell the emotional story of that cornerstone moment and what it meant to South Africa’s healing process." Click here for more details.

Fans in the United States will have to wait until December 11 for their chance to see Invictus while the UK release is slated for a Six Nations-friendly February 5. Check out the trailer below to whet your appetite:

And talking of potential movie magic - another story ripe for the big screen is The Stuart Tinner Story. The 24-year-old, who plays hooker for Welwyn 5th XV and lives with his parents, bagged himself £250,000 by hitting the cross bar in a kicking competition staged during the Springboks' clash with Saracens at Wembley.

Plucked randomly from the crowd and treading the famous Wembley turf in just his socks, he stunned the crowd by hitting the bar - although there was some debate as to whether he was supposed to have attempted a drop-kick - before offering his Ronnie Radford-esque celebration. Priceless.

Pienaar himself, a board member at the Premiership club, handed over the cheque. The club reportedly took out a £10,000 insurance policy against the payout which was money well spent considering the acres of coverage Tinner's feat has since earnt him and the club. The achievement - that Tinner welcomed with the line "This is the second best day of my life - the best day was when I lost my virginity." - also helped to take the spotlight away from the faltering Springboks. Again, priceless.

Finally for this week - England flanker James Haskell revealed this week that he is partial to a bit of Michael Bublé ahead of kick but what do the rest of team listen to?

Mark Cueto - "It's Now Or Never" - Elvis Presley
Matt Banahan - "I Want To Break Free" - Queen
Dan Hipkiss - "Ordinary People" - Jon Legend
Ayoola Erinle - "The Gambler" - Kenny Rogers
Ugo Monye - "Where's your head at?" - Basement Jaxx
Jonny Wilkinson - "Staying Alive" - Bee Gees
Paul Hodgson - "With or Without You" - U2
Tim Payne - "Something Inside So Strong" - Labi Siffre
Dylan Hartley - "Everyday I Love You Less and Less” - Kaiser Chiefs
Duncan Bell - "I Want Candy" - The Strangeloves
Simon Shaw - "Ol' Man River" - Show Boat
Steve Borthwick - "Desperado" - Eagles
Joe Worsley - "Bridge Over Troubled Water" - Simon and Garfunkel
Lewis Moody - "Suicide Blonde" - INXS

And as for manager Martin Johnson? Take you pick:
"I Will Survive" - Gloria Gaynor, "I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For" - U2, "Highway to Hell" - AC/DC, "Paint it Black" - Rolling Stones, "Purple Rain" - Prince, "The Riddle" - Nik Kershaw, "Under Pressure" - Queen,

You couldn't help but laugh as England attempted to explain away their latest abject display against Argentina at the weekend.

"I can understand the frustration. We must continue to strive for improvement," declared captain Steve Borthwick. Now, is it me or could that quote have been lifted from the post-match coverage of any of England's matches since Martin Johnson took the reins in the summer of 2008? In the words of baseball legend and master of the malapropism Yogi Berra - "It's like deja-vu, all over again."

On the evidence of their last two performances, England are going backwards at an alarming rate and there must come a point when enough is enough in terms of excuses. It's all very well 'striving' for improvement but if the players, coaches and management continually fail to provide evidence that they are heading in the right direction then I'm afraid it's time for a change.

As sure as night follows day, England will be on the wrong end of a harsh lesson at the hands of the All Blacks next weekend if they serve up a repeat performance. Even if they raise their game significantly the game will be all about damage limitation. Both on the scoreboard and in terms of reputation.

Fake blood hogged the headlines earlier this year and my money says there will be more of the red stuff shed before the year is out - albeit on this occasion metaphorical. A shake-up is looming and the cleaners at Rugby House will no doubt be busy scrubbing the carpet in the aftermath of the autumn campaign. Johnson's reputation - and the RFU's emphatic endorsement of him - will buy him more time but the axe is looming over his coaching team.

The team is lacking direction - not to mention a style of play - which calls to mind another Yogiism - "When you come to a fork in the road, take it."

On the subject of unintentional humour there were more laughs to be had in Toulouse on Friday night when Rastafarian Ras Dumisani slaughtered the South Africa national anthem Nkosi Sikelel' iAfrika ahead of their clash with France. Maybe it was the pressure of the occasion or the demands of lyrics that contain five of the country's 11 languages?

The crowd were heard to be laughing during the performance and not surprisingly the Springboks were more than a little offended. "As a union we were shocked and horrified by the rendition of the anthem," said SARU chief Oregan Hoskins.

France's response? "Every time we welcome a foreign side, we ask the embassy to propose people for the national anthems,” said team manager Jo Maso. He could still play with a pass like that.

A Facebook group called “Ban Ras Dumisani from ever singing again” already has over a thousand supporters - have they got a point or is this just nonsense? They of course went on to lose the game so perhaps we have stumbled upon a new tactic here?

Dumisani himself reportedly claimed he sang “beautifully" which suggests he has either been indulging in a bit too much of the ganja or has spent too much time listening to Steve Borthwick.

	Can you get enough of the Anglo-Welsh Cup? © Getty Images

The Rugby Football Union and the Welsh Rugby Union must be praised for finding a title sponsor for this event that is as attractive a timeshare in Helmand Province to the average rugby fan. Sadly commercial binds do not allow me to reward the generosity of the sponsors with an extra plug here but they are arguably better off not being associated with rugby's poor cousin.

It is clearly being used as a development tool by many if not all of the clubs and regions involved and fans are likely to do their talking at the turnstiles.

A case in point are injury-ravaged Leicester who find themselves juggling all sorts of demands on their squad this week with the Anglo-Welsh Cup coming off worst. With five players - Tom Croft, Lewis Moody, Jordan Crane, Louis Deacon and Dan Hipkiss - slated to feature for England it is an under strength Tigers side that will take on the touring Springboks at Welford Road on Friday night in a game that doubles as the official opening of the re-vamped stadium.

Some familiar names will be playing their part in what is a showpiece game:
15 Scott Hamilton; 14 Lucas Amorosino, 13 Andy Forsyth, 12 Manu Tuilagi, 11 Johne Murphy; 10 Aaron Mauger (c), 9 Ben Youngs; 1 Marcos Ayerza, 2 Mefin Davies, 3 Martin Castrogiovanni, 4 Calum Green, 5 Ben Kay, 6 Geoff Parling, 7 Ben Pienaar, 8 Brett Deacon

As a result the side that will tackle Leeds Carnegie on Sunday in a competitive yet low-key Anglo-Welsh Cup fixture has a distinctly unfamiliar look to it:
15 Lucas Amorosino; 14 Alex Lewington, 13 Greig Tonks, 12 Joe Cobden, 11 Will Hurrell; 10 George Ford, 9 James Grindal (c); 1 Robbie Harris, 2 Tom Youngs, 3 Dan Cole, 4 Sam Raven, 5 Dan Hemingway, 6 Craig Hammond, 7 Matt Everard, 8 Tom Armes

The schedule for this season's competition is also a key point for fans and tournament organisers who claimed earlier this year that, "best efforts have been made to avoid teams playing each other in back to back matches in various competitions."

Newcastle battled to a 14-3 victory over Worcester only last weekend in the Premiership but guess which two sides will be going up against each other at Sixways this weekend? You're one step ahead of me aren't you? The Warriors and the Falcons.

The newly structured competition will see the 12 Guinness Premiership clubs and four Welsh regions play over four weekends, followed by the semi-finals and finals. Each team will be guaranteed two home and two away inter-pool fixtures, with the top teams from each pool qualifying for the knockout stages. Teams from Pool One will face their rivals from Pool Four, while Pools Two and Three will also battle it out against each other - are you keeping up?

There is no doubt that the Anglo Welsh Cup Final at Twickenham or the Millennium Stadium is an attractive proposition for fans and the promise of Heineken Cup qualification for the winners is a powerful lure for the English sides but that carrot is not even there for the Welsh regions.

But can the tournament be profitable in a commercial sense over the qualifying stages? Are under-strength sides going to bring the fans in especially when their is international rugby on offer elsewhere be it in person or from the comfort of their armchair? Organisers cited the 'revenue potential' of the tournament but the clubs are better being concerned with the playing potential of their next generation of stars.

I am not privy to the accounts of the UK's leading clubs but I'm sure the Anglo-Welsh Cup is not a money-making exercise - even if you add in their slice of sponsorship and Sky Sports' TV deal which forms part of their wider support of the game in general. They are better off not charging to see these games and using them as a marketing ploy to find new fans and sow the seeds of long-term support.