Month: March 2019

Highlights from the Super Rugby Qualifiers, starting with the Hurricanes’ 32-31 win over the Chiefs at Westpac Stadium.

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The Waratahs claimed a dramatic 30-23 come-from-behind victory over the Highlanders in a thrilling Super Rugby quarter-final at Allianz Stadium in Sydney on Saturday.

The Highlanders led 23-6 at half-time, having controlled the opening period, but the Waratahs stormed back in the second half, scoring three tries of their own and keeping the visitors scoreless to complete a remarkable turnaround.

The Sydneysiders had their old-timers Kurtley Beale and Israel Folau to thank for being the main instigators in their comeback as they sparked the Waratahs in to life with their tries coming from Folau and Bernard Foley (2).

The Highlanders scored in the first-half through Waisake Naholo and Rob Thompson, but were thwarted in the second by some brilliant Tahs’ defence.

The hosts got the scoring underway. Foley struck his penalty between the uprights after James Lentjes was penalised for offside but Lima Sopoaga responded for the visitors with ‘Tahs lock Jed Holloway the guilty party for not rolling away.

Foley restored the lead for the hosts when Thompson was penalised for not releasing after brilliant work from Michael Wells to get his hands over the ball and affect the turnover.

But soon after the Highlanders would score the game’s first try when Curtis Rona rushed out of the line and Sopoaga exposed the poor read in defence by the hosts, breaking the line and playing a long pass out for Naholo to show blistering speed in his run to the line. Sopoaga added the extras for a 10-6 lead.

Sopoaga extended the lead to 13-6 when excellent defensive pressure left Folau isolated at the breakdown and he conceded the penalty on the 22 right in front of his posts.

The Highlanders were winning the battle at the breakdown and effecting numerous turnover penalties. After soaking up a period of pressure and forcing the hosts to concede yet another penalty for holding on, the ball was kicked for the corner. Then followed an excellent backline move in which Teihorangi Walden got the offload away for Thompson, who had run an excellent support line, to coast in under the posts. Sopoaga’s conversion gave his side a 20-6 lead.

The Highlanders pivot slotted another penalty in the 34th minute after the Waratahs were penalised for not scrummaging straight as the hosts took a 23-6 lead into the interval.

The Waratahs received a boost shortly after the interval when Naholo saw yellow for two high tackles in quick succession on prop Sekope Kepu and the home side ruthlessly capitalised on their numerical advantage, scoring three quick tries in the space of six minutes to complete an amazing turnaround.

First, Kurtley Beale found Foley with a lovely short, inside ball from first receiver with the Waratahs now trailing 13-23 with 25 minutes to go.

Then, scrum-half Nick Phipps pounced on a loose ball after the ‘Tahs did well to disrupt a Highlanders lineout. Beale then turned creator once again, making the tackle bust in midfield before unleashing Folau, who showed his gas with the finish. Foley added the extras to bring the home side to within just three points.

And on the 60-minute mark, the comeback was complete as Folau did brilliantly once again, this time going on a 60-yard run before the ball went through the hands as Foley eventually grabbed his brace.

The Waratahs went 30-23 ahead with another Foley penalty but were then reduced to 14 men for the rest of the game when replacement Paddy Ryan was yellow-carded for cynically preventing a try, which gave the Highlanders another bite at the cherry with a five-metre scrum.

Amazingly, the Waratahs managed to hold on for a dramatic come-from-behind victory.

The scorers:

For Waratahs:
Tries: Foley 2, Folau
Cons: Foley 3
Pens: Foley 3
Yellow Card: Ryan

For Highlanders:
Tries: Naholo, Thompson
Cons: Sopoaga 2
Pens: Sopoaga 3
Yellow Card: Naholo

The teams:

Waratahs: 15 Israel Folau, 14 Alex Newsome, 13 Curtis Rona, 12 Kurtley Beale, 11 Taqele Naiyaravoro, 10 Bernard Foley (c), 9 Nick Phipps, 8 Michael Wells, 7 Will Miller, 6 Ned Hanigan, 5 Rob Simmons, 4 Jed Holloway, 3 Sekope Kepu, 2 Damien Fitzpatrick, 1 Tom Robertson
Replacements: 16 Tolu Latu, 17 Harry Johnson-Holmes, 18 Paddy Ryan, 19 Tom Staniforth, 20 Brad Wilkin, 21 Jake Gordon, 22 Cameron Clark, 23 Bryce Hegarty

Highlanders: 15 Ben Smith (cc), 14 Waisake Naholo, 13 Rob Thompson, 12 Teihorangi Walden, 11 Tevita Li, 10 Lima Sopoaga, 9 Aaron Smith, 8 Luke Whitelock, 7 James Lentjes, 6 Liam Squire, 5 Tom Franklin, 4 Jackson Hemopo, 3 Tyrel Lomax, 2 Liam Coltman, 1 Daniel Lienert-Brown
Replacements: 16 Ash Dixon (cc), 17 Aki Seiuli, 18 Kalolo Tuiloma, 19 Shannon Frizell, 20 Elliot Dixon, 21 Kayne Hammington, 22 Josh Ioane, 23 Matt Faddes

Date: Saturday, July 21
Venue: Allianz Stadium, Sydney
Kick-off: 20:05 local (11:05 BST, 10:05 GMT)
Referee: Angus Gardner (Australia)
Assistant referees: Nic Berry (Australia), Will Houston (Australia)
TMO: George Ayoub (Australia)

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The Lions will play in the Super Rugby semi-finals for the third successive year after defeating the Jaguares 40-23 in Johannesburg on Saturday.

A pair of Nicolas Sanchez penalties had given the Argentinians an early 6-0 buffer, but Swys de Bruin’s outfit soon showed why they have reached the showpiece event over the past two seasons and responded with 24 unanswered points. Ruan Combrinck, Harold Vorster and Malcolm Marx all crossed the whitewash to open up a seemingly comfortable 24-6 advantage.

The Jags were evidently stunned but they re-found their form towards the end of the half and reduced the arrears via the boot of Sanchez. They then touched down twice in the opening 10 minutes of the second period via Bautista Delguy and Pablo Matera.

An Elton Jantjies three-pointer was sandwiched in between those scores before Andries Coetzee’s try effectively completed the win before it was rubberstamped by the fly-half, who added six more points from the tee.

Mario Ledesma’s men were the Lions’ closest challengers during the regular season and they showed their quality early on, but the hosts’ experience eventually told.

The Jaguares began brightly, putting the home side under pressure and earning two penalty opportunities, which Sanchez converted for a 6-0 lead.

Back came De Bruin’s outfit, however, dominating the scrum battle and placing the visiting forwards under significant duress. Their fly-half then spotted space on the outside and produced an inch-perfect cross-field kick for Combrinck to collect and finish in the right-hand corner.

Jantjies converted and then added a second from the tee when the kicking game once again played havoc with the opposition defence. Delguy failed to gather Aphiwe Dyantyi’s grubber through and Vorster was on hand to pick up and touch down unopposed.

Having started on the front foot, the Argentinians were now regularly being sent into reverse gear, but they were not helping themselves. Ledesma’s charges continued to make mistakes and one such error saw Marx intercept a stray Gonzalo Bertranou pass and cross the whitewash for the third try.

The Jaguares did regain their composure with Sanchez scoring another three-pointer just shy of the interval before they got themselves back into the contest at the start of the second period. It came from a well-constructed effort as good hands provided Delguy with some space to work and the wing brilliantly rounded the final defender to finish.

Jantjies kept the visitors at arm’s length from the tee but the Jags refused to yield and Matera powered over to take them to within four points of the hosts.

De Bruin’s side displayed all their experience, however, and retained possession impressively. Replacement Marnus Schoeman carried well and Coetzee was the one to benefit from the back-row’s efforts, crossing the line by the left-hand upright.

Although the visitors attempted to get back into the contest, the Lions’ defence was too strong and Jantjies sealed their progress into the last four with a drop-goal and penalty.

The scorers:

For Lions:
Tries: Combrinck, Vorster, Marx, Coetzee
Cons: Jantjies 4
Pens: Jantjies 3
Drop-goal: Jantjies

For Jaguares:
Tries: Delguy, Matera
Cons: Sanchez 2
Pens: Sanchez 3

Lions: 15 Andries Coetzee, 14 Ruan Combrinck, 13 Lionel Mapoe, 12 Harold Vorster, 11 Aphiwe Dyantyi, 10 Elton Jantjies, 9 Ross Cronjé, 8 Warren Whiteley (c), 7 Cyle Brink, 6 Kwagga Smith, 5 Franco Mostert, 4 Marvin Orie, 3 Ruan Dreyer, 2 Malcolm Marx, 1 Jacques van Rooyen
Replacements: 16 Corne Fourie, 17 Dylan Smith, 18 Johannes Jonker, 19 Lourens Erasmus, 20 Marnus Schoeman, 21 Dillon Smit, 22 Courtnall Skosan, 23 Howard Mnisi

Jaguares: 15 Emiliano Boffelli, 14 Bautista Delguy, 13 Matias Orlando, 12 Jeronimo de le Fuente, 11 Matias Moroni, 10 Nicolas Sanchez, 9 Gonzalo Bertranou, 8 Javier Ortega Desio, 7 Tomas Lezana, 6 Pablo Matera (c), 5 Marcos Kremer, 4 Guido Petti, 3 Nahuel Tetaz Chaparro, 2 Agustin Creevy, 1 Santiago Garcia Botta
Replacements: 16 Julian Montoya, 17 Juan Pablo Zeiss, 18 Santiago Medrano, 19 Matias Alemanno, 20 Tomas Lavanini, 21 Juan Manuel Leguizamon, 22 Martin Landajo, 23 Sebastian Cancelliere

Date: Saturday, July 21
Venue: Ellis Park, Johannesburg
Kick-off: 15:05 local (14:05 BST, 13:05 GMT)
Referee: Jaco Peyper
Assistant Referees: Marius van der Westhuizen, Egon Seconds
TMO: Marius Jonker

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New Zealand became the first team in history to win back-to-back Rugby World Cup Sevens titles after beating France 29-0 in Saturday’s final.

A hat-trick from 22-year-old reigning World Rugby Women’s Sevens Player of the Year Michaela Blyde sealed the victory.

Australia claimed the bronze medal with a hard fought 24-14 victory over hosts USA on a day when a a noisy and enthusiastic crowd of over 33,000 packed in to the spectacular AT&T Park in San Francisco.

France had earlier dug deep to overcome 2018 HSBC World Rugby Women’s Sevens Series champions Australia 19-12 in a thrilling semi-final while the indomitable Black Ferns Sevens came from behind to defeat a spirited USA side 26-21.

The semi-finals were rugby sevens at its very best – exceptional quality, intensity and competitiveness – showcasing to a huge and highly-engaged crowd just why women’s sevens was such a hit at the Rio 2016 Olympic Games.

Women’s Day Two Results

Challenge 13/16 Place
Mexico 0-34 South Africa
Papua New Guinea 12-15 Brazil

Challenge Semi Finals
England 38-0 China
Fiji 14-15 Japan

Championship 5/8 Place
Ireland 20-15 Russia
Spain 26-14 Canada

Championship Semi Finals
Australia 12-19 France
New Zealand 26-21 USA

Challenge 15/16 Place
Mexico 0-32 Papua New Guinea

Challenge 13/14 Place
South Africa 0-22 Brazil

Challenge 11/12 Place
China 0-38 Fiji

Challenge Final
England 31-5 Japan

Championship 7/8 Place
Russia 10-22 Canada

Championship 5/6 Place
Ireland 7-12 Spain

Bronze Final
USA 14-24 Australia

Championship Final
New Zealand 29-0 France

Photo credit: Mike Lee – KLC fotos for World Rugby

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It was another thrilling day in the Men’s competition as South Africa, England, Fiji and New Zealand progressed into Sunday’s semi-finals.

South Africa outclassed Scotland in their quarter-final, winning 36-5, and will meet England, who edged USA 24-19 after extra-time, in the last four.

Indeed England progressed in dramatic fashion as Phil Burgess claimed the match-winning try following a perfect cross field kick from Tom Mitchell.

Fiji were too good for Argentina as they ran out comfortable 43-7 winners in a high quality performance and will face off with New Zealand in their semi-final, with the All Blacks Sevens coming from behind to defeat France 12-7, despite having three players sin-binned in the game.

Men’s Day Two Results

Bowl Quarter Finals
Tonga 29-33 Chile
Papua New Guinea 19-21 Uruguay
Jamaica 10-24 Hong Kong
Zimbabwe 10-24 Uganda

Challenge Quarter Finals
Kenya 14-24 Ireland
Canada 35-17 Japan
Australia 41-0 Russia
Wales 24-19 Samoa

Championship Quarter Finals
Scotland 5-36 South Africa
Argentina 7-43 Fiji
France 7-12 New Zealand
USA 19-24 England (AET)

Photo credit: Mike Lee – KLC fotos for World Rugby

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Click:best place to sell gold Auckland

Take a check on the Day Two highlights from the Men’s RWC Sevens.

Video credit: World Rugby

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Take a check on the Day Two highlights from the Women’s RWC Sevens.

Video credit: World Rugby

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World Rugby has confirmed that a Samoa player has been provisionally suspended from Rugby World Cup Sevens following an initial investigation into an alleged incident in the tunnel area after his team’s game against Wales on Saturday.

A statement from World Rugby read: “The alleged behaviour is not aligned with the sport’s values and the excellent spirit in which this competition has been played by the 40 participating teams.

“World Rugby has instigated an investigation and it would be inappropriate to make any further comment until the conclusion of that process. The Samoa player will remain provisionally suspended until the final conclusion of that process.”

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With the Super Rugby Qualifiers now a thing of the past, it is time for us to work out which players shone over the past weekend.

The Crusaders were at their imperious best as they dispatched the Sharks and a number of individuals also stood out in the Lions’ victory over the Jaguares.

Kurtley Beale and Israel are rewarded for inspiring the Waratahs’ comeback while the Hurricanes-Chiefs encounter produced several impressive performances from both sides.

Super Rugby: Team of the Qualifiers

15 Israel Folau (Waratahs): Has such a brilliant understanding with Kurtley Beale, running a sublime support line to latch on to the latter’s pass for his try. Then Folau turned creator with a magnificent step off his right foot as he cut inside to get his side close to the try-line for Bernard Foley’s second. Beats out a strong list of contenders, including Andries Coetzee (Lions), David Havili (Crusaders) and Solomon Alamailo (Chiefs).

14 Julian Savea (Hurricanes): Although it is clear he has lost a yard or two, the Bus still gets himself over the advantage line with regularity. Showed great anticipation and reading of the game for his two intercepts – one of which resulted in a try. Made two tackle-busts and offloads on the day. Elsewhere, Ruan Combrinck appears to be hitting form just at the right time for the Lions while Kobus van Wyk was one of the Sharks’ standout performers in a losing cause on Saturday.

13 Ryan Crotty (Crusaders): Having played at 12 but able to do the job at 13, we couldn’t leave Crotty out after a superb performance on Saturday. The All Blacks centre showed impressive upperbody strength and vision when assisting David Havili’s try. Beat five defenders and made three offloads as well as 14 passes. Defensively sound in conjunction with Jack Goodhue – keeping the Sharks to just the one try. Meanwhile, Anton Lienert-Brown shone for the Chiefs and deserves a mention.

12 Kurtley Beale (Waratahs): So often has the Wallaby centre been the one to lift his side and he did it again on Saturday. Trailing 23-6, it was Beale who sparked the fightback, creating two tries in the space of six minutes to bring his side storming back into the contest. First, he delivered a deft, pop pass for Bernard Foley to go in under the sticks and soon afterwards busted Tei Walden’s tackle in midfield before running 30 metres and playing the final pass for Israel Folau to finish in the corner. Also took a lot of responsibility off Foley by switching to first receiver. Edges out Ngani Laumape, who was colossal once again against the Chiefs.

11 Ben Lam (Hurricanes): Taqele Naiyaravoro ran for 75 metres, beat five defenders and made two clean breaks but surprisingly didn’t get himself on the try column against the Highlanders. Lam did, however, and it was his 69th minute five-pointer that would eventually make the difference for the Hurricanes as they edged the Chiefs 32-31. As it happens, Lam has now drawn level with Naiyaravoro on 15 tries for the season as the two battle it out for the crown of Super Rugby’s top marksman.

10 Elton Jantjies (Lions): While Bernard Foley took his brace well and Lima Sopoaga impressed in a losing cause, Jantjies’ classy performance at Ellis Park on Saturday ensures he claims the fly-half jersey in our team. The Lions’ pivot didn’t put a foot wrong throughout, contributing 20 points in total in a flawless kicking perfomance off the tee, while he also laid on two tries for his teammates. Springbok fans will be wondering why he can’t replicate the same form in green and gold.

9 TJ Perenara (Hurricanes): The sniping dart is really becoming something of a trademark of Perenara’s, as he scored both of his tries on the weekend in this fashion. The talismanic scrum-half is very difficult to stop from close range. Meanwhile, Crusaders’ Bryn Hall scored an excellent try and brilliantly created another in his side’s win over the Hurricanes, while Brad Weber also got himself on the scoresheet for the second week in a row. There is no lack of quality scrum-halves in New Zealand right now.

8 Kieran Read (Crusaders): Part of a clinical and efficient performance by the Crusaders’ pack, the New Zealand captain was typically industrious having made 31 metres from eight carries. Opposite number on Saturday, Dan du Preez, put himself about for the Sharks while Luke Whitelock produced a good display in the Highlanders’ defeat to the Waratahs, but Read was the most consistent number eight at the weekend.

7 Gareth Evans (Hurricanes): With Beauden Barrett off colour and, as a result, their backline lacking its usual slickness, the Canes’ victory against the Chiefs was primarily down to their defence and work at the breakdown. Evans duly came to the fore after making 14 tackles and being a constant threat at the contact area. Elsewhere, Tomas Lezana was hugely influential for the Jaguares but he couldn’t prevent the Argentinians from succumbing to defeat.

6 Lachlan Boshier (Chiefs): Despite defeat, there were some impressive performances by the Waikato-based outfit and the flanker was one of those to display his qualities, particularly in broken field. Pablo Matera did his best to wrestle control in the second half of the Jaguares’ game in Johannesburg but Boshier’s efforts were even greater. As well as running for 73 metres, which included an assist, the blindside was also excellent in defence, making 13 tackles without missing.

5 Franco Mostert (Lions): A tough call between him and the Crusaders’ Sam Whitelock, who always made ground with ball in hand and kept the Sharks’ defence honest with his ability to shift the point of contact on the gain line. However, in the end we went for Mostert after his remarkable defensive effort which saw him make a superb match-high 23 tackles. Also carried hard and was part of a dominant scrum that helped them control the majority of the first half.

4 Brodie Retallick (Chiefs): We could have selected another Crusaders player with Scott Barrett continuing his fine form and being part of a lock pairing which has been so effective this season, but we’ve gone with Retallick. The premier second-row in the world did his best in a losing cause and always made it over the gain line after running for 30 metres from 15 carries. Michael Fatialofa also showed up well in the same game as the Hurricanes made the semi-finals, but Retallick was even better despite defeat.

3 Owen Franks (Crusaders): On paper, the Sharks have an excellent front-row, one which has been pretty dominant over recent weeks, but they were soundly beaten in the set-piece by Franks and co. The tighthead had Tendai Mtawarira in all sorts of trouble at the scrum and it allowed the hosts to control possession and territory. It was a similar story in the Lions-Jaguares encounter where Ruan Dreyer shone, but the Crusaders prop did a fine job in dealing with a top class operator.

2 Malcolm Marx (Lions): The injury the hooker sustained in May, which kept him out of action for a few weeks, doesn’t seem to have affected the South African, who enjoyed his quarter-final clash against the Argentines. Marx scored a try, made 56 metres and was excellent in the set-piece as he took the position from Ricky Riccitelli, who put in a fine effort for the Hurricanes.

1 Jacques van Rooyen (Lions): Not too many looseheads stood out at the weekend, even if both Tim Perry (Crusaders) and Toby Smith (Hurricanes) enjoyed the upper hand in the scrum, but Van Rooyen was the best of the lot. Despite only being on the field for 53 minutes, the prop sent his opposition tighthead regularly into reverse as the Lions dominated the front-row battle.

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New Zealand have claimed back-to-back Rugby World Cup Sevens titles after they beat England 33-12 at AT&T Park in San Francisco on Sunday.

Scores from Sione Molia (2), Joe Ravouvou, Akuila Rokolisoa and Trael Joass saw the All Blacks Sevens follow their Women’s team to glory.

The English crossed the try-line through Mike Ellery and Ruaridh McConnochie in defeat.

England were hugely impressive in beating South Africa 29-7 before New Zealand saw off Fiji 22-17 in their respective semi-final fixtures.

South Africa would go on to pip Fiji 24-19 to take the Bronze while fifth place was claimed by Argentina, who beat USA 33-7 to that spot.

Scotland overcame France 29-24 in extra-time to seal seventh place while Ireland impressed in beating Australia to the Challenge Trophy.

Men’s Day Three Results

Bowl 21/24 Place
Tonga 31-5 Zimbabwe
Papua New Guinea 52-7 Jamaica

Bowl Semi-Finals
Chile 20-17 Uganda
Uruguay 5-31 Hong Kong

Challenge 13/16 Place
Kenya 17-19 Samoa
Japan 20-26 Russia

Challenge Semi-Finals
Canada 7-19 Australia
Ireland 27-12 Wales

Championship 5/8 Place
Scotland 0-28 USA
Argentina 26-15 France

Championship Semi-Finals
South Africa 7-29 England
Fiji 17-22 New Zealand

Bowl 23/24 Place
Zimbabwe 33-21 Jamaica

Bowl 21/22 Place
Tonga 14-31 Papua New Guinea

Bowl 19/20 Place
Uganda 38-28 Uruguay

Bowl Final
Chile 20-7 Hong Kong

Challenge 15/16 Place
Kenya 14-26 Japan

Challenge 13/14 Place
Samoa 22-17 Russia

Challenge 11/12 Place
Canada 12-35 Wales

Challenge Trophy Final
Australia 14-24 Ireland

Championship 7/8 Place
Scotland 29-24 France (AET)

Championship 5/6 Place
USA 7-33 Argentina

Bronze Final
South Africa 24-19 Fiji

Championship Final
England 12-33 New Zealand

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